Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway
IntroductionEducational inequality in multiple health behaviors is rarely monitored using data from the same individuals as they age. The aim of this study is to research changes in relative educational inequality in multiple variables related to health behavior (smoking, physical activity, alcohol...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:e968cfa4b6364383ab711e6998035b83 2023-09-26T15:21:23+02:00 Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway Ana Silvia Ibarra-Sanchez Gang Chen Torbjørn Wisløff 2023-08-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 https://doaj.org/article/e968cfa4b6364383ab711e6998035b83 EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-2565 2296-2565 doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 https://doaj.org/article/e968cfa4b6364383ab711e6998035b83 Frontiers in Public Health, Vol 11 (2023) educational inequality health behavior socioeconomic disparities health guidelines the Tromsø Study Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 2023-08-27T00:38:14Z IntroductionEducational inequality in multiple health behaviors is rarely monitored using data from the same individuals as they age. The aim of this study is to research changes in relative educational inequality in multiple variables related to health behavior (smoking, physical activity, alcohol intake, and body mass index), separately and collectively (healthy lifestyle), among middle-aged adults living in Northern Norway.MethodsData from adult respondents aged 32–87 in 2008 with repeated measurements in 2016 (N = 8,906) were drawn from the sixth and seventh waves of the Tromsø Study. Logistic regression was used to assess the relative educational inequality in the variables related to health behavior. The analyses were performed for the total sample and separately for women and men at both baseline and follow-up.ResultsEducational inequality was observed in all the variables related to health behavior at baseline and follow-up, in both men and women. Higher levels of educational attainment were associated with healthier categories (non-daily smoking, physical activity, normal body mass index, and a healthy lifestyle), but also with high alcohol intake. The prevalence of daily smoking and physical inactivity decreased during the surveyed period, while high alcohol intake, having a body mass index outside of the normal range and adhering to multiple health recommendations simultaneously increased. The magnitude of relative educational inequality measured at baseline increased at the follow-up in all the variables related to health behavior. Differences were larger among women when compared to men, except in physical inactivity.ConclusionPersistent and increasing relative disparities in health behavior between the highest education level and lower education levels are found in countries with well-established and comprehensive welfare systems like Norway. Addressing these inequalities is essential for reducing both the chronic disease burden and educational disparities in health. Article in Journal/Newspaper Northern Norway Tromsø Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Norway Tromsø Frontiers in Public Health 11 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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language |
English |
topic |
educational inequality health behavior socioeconomic disparities health guidelines the Tromsø Study Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 |
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educational inequality health behavior socioeconomic disparities health guidelines the Tromsø Study Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 Ana Silvia Ibarra-Sanchez Gang Chen Torbjørn Wisløff Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
topic_facet |
educational inequality health behavior socioeconomic disparities health guidelines the Tromsø Study Public aspects of medicine RA1-1270 |
description |
IntroductionEducational inequality in multiple health behaviors is rarely monitored using data from the same individuals as they age. The aim of this study is to research changes in relative educational inequality in multiple variables related to health behavior (smoking, physical activity, alcohol intake, and body mass index), separately and collectively (healthy lifestyle), among middle-aged adults living in Northern Norway.MethodsData from adult respondents aged 32–87 in 2008 with repeated measurements in 2016 (N = 8,906) were drawn from the sixth and seventh waves of the Tromsø Study. Logistic regression was used to assess the relative educational inequality in the variables related to health behavior. The analyses were performed for the total sample and separately for women and men at both baseline and follow-up.ResultsEducational inequality was observed in all the variables related to health behavior at baseline and follow-up, in both men and women. Higher levels of educational attainment were associated with healthier categories (non-daily smoking, physical activity, normal body mass index, and a healthy lifestyle), but also with high alcohol intake. The prevalence of daily smoking and physical inactivity decreased during the surveyed period, while high alcohol intake, having a body mass index outside of the normal range and adhering to multiple health recommendations simultaneously increased. The magnitude of relative educational inequality measured at baseline increased at the follow-up in all the variables related to health behavior. Differences were larger among women when compared to men, except in physical inactivity.ConclusionPersistent and increasing relative disparities in health behavior between the highest education level and lower education levels are found in countries with well-established and comprehensive welfare systems like Norway. Addressing these inequalities is essential for reducing both the chronic disease burden and educational disparities in health. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Ana Silvia Ibarra-Sanchez Gang Chen Torbjørn Wisløff |
author_facet |
Ana Silvia Ibarra-Sanchez Gang Chen Torbjørn Wisløff |
author_sort |
Ana Silvia Ibarra-Sanchez |
title |
Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
title_short |
Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
title_full |
Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
title_fullStr |
Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
title_full_unstemmed |
Are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? A longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in Northern Norway |
title_sort |
are relative educational inequalities in multiple health behaviors widening? a longitudinal study of middle-aged adults in northern norway |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 https://doaj.org/article/e968cfa4b6364383ab711e6998035b83 |
geographic |
Norway Tromsø |
geographic_facet |
Norway Tromsø |
genre |
Northern Norway Tromsø |
genre_facet |
Northern Norway Tromsø |
op_source |
Frontiers in Public Health, Vol 11 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-2565 2296-2565 doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 https://doaj.org/article/e968cfa4b6364383ab711e6998035b83 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1190087 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Public Health |
container_volume |
11 |
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1778146087994916864 |