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A Comparative Analysis of the Status Anxiety Hypothesis of Socio-economic Inequalities in Health Based on 18,349 individuals in Four Countries and Five Cohort Studies.

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Title: A Comparative Analysis of the Status Anxiety Hypothesis of Socio-economic Inequalities in Health Based on 18,349 individuals in Four Countries and Five Cohort Studies.
Authors: Layte, R., McCrory, C., Cheallaigh, C.N., Bourke, N., Kivimaki, M., Ribeiro, A.I., Stringhini, S., Vineis, P.
Publication Year: 2025
Collection: Université de Lausanne (UNIL): Serval - Serveur académique lausannois
Subject Terms: Aged, Anxiety/immunology, C-Reactive Protein/analysis, Cohort Studies, Female, Health Status Disparities, Humans, Ireland, Male, Middle Aged, Portugal, Poverty/psychology, Poverty/statistics & numerical data, Social Class, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Description: The status anxiety hypothesis proposes that systematic inflammation as a consequence of chronic psycho-social stress is a possible pathway linking socio-economic position (SEP) to premature ageing and is a possible explanation for cross-national variation in patterns of health and well-being. Harmonised data from the LIFEPATH consortium on 18,349 individuals aged 50 to 75 and 30,632 observations are used to measure variation in the association between inflammation measured as C-reactive protein and SEP across four countries (Britain, Ireland, Portugal and Switzerland) and five studies (ELSA, Whitehall II, TILDA, EPIPorto and SKIPOGH). Adjusting for population composition, mean concentrations of CRP are highest in Portugal, the country with the highest income inequality and lowest in Switzerland, a lower income inequality country. Across all of the studies, lower SEP groups have higher mean concentrations of CRP and, as predicted by the theory, absolute differentials between SEP groups reflect the pattern of societal income inequality. Adjustment for lifestyle indicators reduces SEP differentials by between 45% and 52% but cannot account for country variation in mean inflammation.
Document Type: article in journal/newspaper
File Description: application/pdf
Language: English
ISSN: 2045-2322
Relation: Scientific Reports; https://iris.unil.ch/handle/iris/167355; serval:BIB_CB9BBACDB726; 000456826200025
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37440-7
Availability: https://iris.unil.ch/handle/iris/167355
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-37440-7
Accession Number: edsbas.1EEA95DA
Database: BASE
Description
Abstract:The status anxiety hypothesis proposes that systematic inflammation as a consequence of chronic psycho-social stress is a possible pathway linking socio-economic position (SEP) to premature ageing and is a possible explanation for cross-national variation in patterns of health and well-being. Harmonised data from the LIFEPATH consortium on 18,349 individuals aged 50 to 75 and 30,632 observations are used to measure variation in the association between inflammation measured as C-reactive protein and SEP across four countries (Britain, Ireland, Portugal and Switzerland) and five studies (ELSA, Whitehall II, TILDA, EPIPorto and SKIPOGH). Adjusting for population composition, mean concentrations of CRP are highest in Portugal, the country with the highest income inequality and lowest in Switzerland, a lower income inequality country. Across all of the studies, lower SEP groups have higher mean concentrations of CRP and, as predicted by the theory, absolute differentials between SEP groups reflect the pattern of societal income inequality. Adjustment for lifestyle indicators reduces SEP differentials by between 45% and 52% but cannot account for country variation in mean inflammation.
ISSN:20452322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-018-37440-7