Self-rated health and socio-economic status among older adults in Northern Iceland

Little is known about self-rated health (SRH) of older people living in more remote and Arctic areas. Iceland is a high-income country with one of the lowest rates of income inequality in the world, which may influence SRH. The research aim was to study factors affecting SRH, in such a population li...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International Journal of Circumpolar Health
Main Authors: Arun K. Sigurdardottir, Gísli Kort Kristófersson, Sonja Stelly Gústafsdóttir, Stefan B Sigurdsson, Solveig A. Arnadottir, Jon Arni Steingrimsson, Elín Díanna Gunnarsdóttir
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2019
Subjects:
older people
rural health
community dwelling
arctic areas
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine
RC955-962
Arctic
Circumpolar Health
Iceland
International Journal of Circumpolar Health
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2019.1697476
https://doaj.org/article/cfe273384c454a6ea0e995a64daed72c
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Summary:Little is known about self-rated health (SRH) of older people living in more remote and Arctic areas. Iceland is a high-income country with one of the lowest rates of income inequality in the world, which may influence SRH. The research aim was to study factors affecting SRH, in such a population living in Northern Iceland. Stratified random sample according to the place of residency, age and gender was used and data collected via face-to-face interviews. Inclusion criteria included community-dwelling adults ≥65 years of age. Response rate was 57.9% (N = 175), average age 74.2 (sd 6.3) years, range 65–92 years and 57% were men. The average number of diagnosed diseases was 1.5 (sd 1.3) and prescribed medications 3.0 (sd 1.7). SRH ranged from 5 (excellent) to 1 (bad), with an average of 3.26 (sd 1.0) and no difference between the place of residency. Lower SRH was independently explained by depressed mood (OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.80–0.96), higher body mass index (OR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.87–0.99), number of prescribed medications (OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.78–1.00) and perception of inadequate income (OR = 0.45, 95% CI = 0.21–0.98). The results highlight the importance of physical and mental health promotion for general health and for ageing in place and significance of economic factors as predictors of SRH.

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