Open AccessJournal Article
Mortality and income inequality among economically developed countries.
TLDR
Evidence is presented that, even for economically developed countries, the income distribution of a nation is an important determinant of its mortality, and the results of this study suggest that the relatively unequalincome distribution of the United States is anImportant contributing factor to its low life expectancy relative to other high-income countries.Abstract:
The absence of a correlation between age-adjusted death rates and the average income levels of economically developed countries has led researchers to conclude that income does not affect the mortality levels of economically developed countries. The mortality experiences of the former Soviet Union and some of the eastern European countries have further brought into question the importance of income's distribution in determining mortality among economically developed countries; prior to its breakup, the income distribution of the Soviet Union was as equal as that of Sweden, yet the life expectancy of the Soviets has been dramatically shorter than that of the Swedes. Using insights from a longitudinal microanalysis of U.S. mortality, this study presents evidence that, even for economically developed countries, the income distribution of a nation is an important determinant of its mortality. The results of this study also suggest that the relatively unequal income distribution of the United States is an important contributing factor to its low life expectancy relative to other high-income countries.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Measuring Social Class in US Public Health Research: Concepts, Methodologies, and Guidelines
TL;DR: Concepts and methodologies concerning, and guidelines for measuring, social class and other aspects of socioeconomic position (e.g. income, poverty, deprivation, wealth, education) are discussed.
Journal ArticleDOI
Income inequality and population health: a review and explanation of the evidence.
TL;DR: It is suggested that the studies of income inequality are more supportive in large areas because in that context income inequality serves as a measure of the scale of social stratification, or how hierarchical a society is.
ReportDOI
Are Recessions Good For Your Health
TL;DR: The authors investigated the relationship between economic conditions and health and found that smoking and obesity increase when the economy strengthens, whereas physical activity is reduced and diet becomes less healthy, and there is some evidence that the unfavorable health effects of temporary upturns are partially or fully offset if the economic growth is longlasting.
Posted Content
Are Recessions Good For Your Health
TL;DR: The possible importance of cyclical variations in the time costs of medical care or healthy lifestyles and of negative health effects of job-holding are suggested.
Journal ArticleDOI
Is Income Inequality a Determinant of Population Health? Part 1. A Systematic Review
John Lynch,George Davey Smith,Sam Harper,Marianne M. Hillemeier,Nancy A. Ross,George A. Kaplan,Michael Wolfson +6 more
TL;DR: Despite little support for a direct effect of income inequality on health per se, reducing income inequality by raising the incomes of the most disadvantaged will improve their health, help reduce health inequalities, and generally improve population health.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
The increasing disparity in mortality between socioeconomic groups in the United States 1960 and 1986.
TL;DR: Despite an overall decline in death rates in the United States since 1960, poor and poorly educated people still die at higher rates than those with higher incomes or better educations, and this disparity increased between 1960 and 1986.
Journal ArticleDOI
Income distribution and life expectancy.
TL;DR: There is clear evidence of a strong relation between a societys income distribution and the average life expectancy of its population.
Journal ArticleDOI
Inequalities in health: Some international comparisons
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare various dimensions of inequality between different countries, including, particularly, those relating to income and wealth, and find that mortality is easier to define than income, and there is no problem equivalent to that of defining the income unit.