Exploring health in the UK Biobank: associations with sociodemographic characteristics, psychosocial factors, lifestyle and environmental exposures
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: A greater understanding of factors associated with good health may help increase longevity and healthy life expectancy. Here we report associations between multiple health indicators and sociodemographic (age, sex, ethnicity, education, income and deprivation), psychosocial (loneliness and social isolation), lifestyle (smoking, alcohol intake, sleep, BMI, physical activity and stair climbing) and environmental (air pollution, noise and greenspace) factors, using data from 307,378 UK Biobank participants. Low income, being male, neighbourhood deprivation, loneliness, social isolation, short or long sleep duration, low or high BMI and smoking was associated with poor health. Walking, vigorous-intensity physical activity and more frequent alcohol intake was associated with good health. There was some evidence that airborne pollutants (PM 2.5 , PM 10 , and NO 2 ) and noise (L den ) were associated with poor health, though findings were inconsistent in adjusted models. Our findings highlight the multifactorial nature of health, the importance of non-medical factors, such as loneliness, healthy lifestyle behaviours and weight management, and the need to examine efforts to improve health outcomes of individuals with low income.
Source: BMC Medicine
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,580
Funders: Eli Lilly and Company, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, National Institute for Health and Care Research, Department of Health and Social Care, King's College London, Directorate for Biological Sciences, NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, Medical Research Council, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Menzies Centre for Australian Studies, King's College London, University of London
OpenAlex ID: W3207876344