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Ethnic inequalities in limiting health and self-reported health in later life revisited

Ethnic inequalities in limiting health and self-reported health in later life revisited
Ethnic inequalities in limiting health and self-reported health in later life revisited
Background: It is well established that there are ethnic inequalities in health in the UK; however, such inequalities in later life remain a relatively under-researched area. This paper explores ethnic inequalities in health among older people in the UK, controlling for social and economic disadvantages.

Methods: This paper analyses the first wave (2009–2011) of Understanding Society to examine differentials in the health of older persons aged 60 years and over. 2 health outcomes are explored: the extent to which one's health limits the ability to undertake typical activities and self-rated health. Logistic regression models are used to control for a range of other factors, including income and deprivation.

Results: After controlling for social and economic disadvantage, black and minority ethnic (BME) elders are still more likely than white British elders to report limiting health and poor self-rated health. The ‘health disadvantage’ appears most marked among BME elders of South Asian origin, with Pakistani elders exhibiting the poorest health outcomes. Length of time resident in the UK does not have a direct impact on health in models for both genders, but is marginally significant for women.

Conclusions: Older people from ethnic minorities report poorer health outcomes even after controlling for social and economic disadvantages. This result reflects the complexity of health inequalities among different ethnic groups in the UK, and the need to develop health policies which take into account differences in social and economic resources between different ethnic groups.
0143-005X
653-662
Evandrou, Maria
cd2210ea-9625-44d7-b0f4-fc0721a25d28
Falkingham, Jane
8df36615-1547-4a6d-ad55-aa9496e85519
Feng, Zhixin
33c0073f-a67c-4d8a-9fea-5a502420e589
Vlachantoni, Athina
06a52fbb-f2a0-4c81-9fbc-d6efc736c6cb
Evandrou, Maria
cd2210ea-9625-44d7-b0f4-fc0721a25d28
Falkingham, Jane
8df36615-1547-4a6d-ad55-aa9496e85519
Feng, Zhixin
33c0073f-a67c-4d8a-9fea-5a502420e589
Vlachantoni, Athina
06a52fbb-f2a0-4c81-9fbc-d6efc736c6cb

Evandrou, Maria, Falkingham, Jane, Feng, Zhixin and Vlachantoni, Athina (2016) Ethnic inequalities in limiting health and self-reported health in later life revisited. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, 70 (7), 653-662. (doi:10.1136/jech-2015-206074). (PMID:26787199)

Record type: Article

Abstract

Background: It is well established that there are ethnic inequalities in health in the UK; however, such inequalities in later life remain a relatively under-researched area. This paper explores ethnic inequalities in health among older people in the UK, controlling for social and economic disadvantages.

Methods: This paper analyses the first wave (2009–2011) of Understanding Society to examine differentials in the health of older persons aged 60 years and over. 2 health outcomes are explored: the extent to which one's health limits the ability to undertake typical activities and self-rated health. Logistic regression models are used to control for a range of other factors, including income and deprivation.

Results: After controlling for social and economic disadvantage, black and minority ethnic (BME) elders are still more likely than white British elders to report limiting health and poor self-rated health. The ‘health disadvantage’ appears most marked among BME elders of South Asian origin, with Pakistani elders exhibiting the poorest health outcomes. Length of time resident in the UK does not have a direct impact on health in models for both genders, but is marginally significant for women.

Conclusions: Older people from ethnic minorities report poorer health outcomes even after controlling for social and economic disadvantages. This result reflects the complexity of health inequalities among different ethnic groups in the UK, and the need to develop health policies which take into account differences in social and economic resources between different ethnic groups.

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More information

Submitted date: 19 May 2015
Accepted/In Press date: 22 December 2015
Published date: 19 January 2016
Organisations: Gerontology

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 386193
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/386193
ISSN: 0143-005X
PURE UUID: 6fc19462-10f6-4f93-a77b-983a955ebfc9
ORCID for Maria Evandrou: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-2115-9358
ORCID for Jane Falkingham: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-7135-5875
ORCID for Athina Vlachantoni: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-1539-3057

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Date deposited: 29 Jan 2016 09:37
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:30

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