IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/yor/hectdg/08-25.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Urbanization and the spread of diseases of affluence in China

Author

Listed:
  • Van de Poel, E
  • O'Donnell, O
  • van Doorslaer, E

Abstract

A new methodology is used to quantify, track and explain the distribution of obesity and hypertension across areas differentiated by their degree of urbanicity. We construct an index of urbanicity from longitudinal data on community characteristics from the China Health and Nutrition Survey and compute a rank-based measure of inequality in disease risk factors by degree of urbanicity. Prevalence rates almost doubled over the period 1991-2004 and the risk factors became less concentrated in more urbanized areas. Decomposition analysis shows that urbanicity-related inequalities are mostly attributable to differences in community level characteristics and to disparities in incomes and in the physical and farming activity of individuals.

Suggested Citation

  • Van de Poel, E & O'Donnell, O & van Doorslaer, E, 2008. "Urbanization and the spread of diseases of affluence in China," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 08/25, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    • Handle: RePEc:yor:hectdg:08/25
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.york.ac.uk/media/economics/documents/herc/wp/08_25.pdf
    File Function: Main text
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. van Doorslaer, Eddy & Gerdtham, Ulf-G., 2003. "Does inequality in self-assessed health predict inequality in survival by income? Evidence from Swedish data," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 57(9), pages 1621-1629, November.
    2. Gordon G. Liu & Xiaodong Wu & Chaoyang Peng & Alex Z. Fu, 2003. "Urbanization And Health Care In Rural China," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 21(1), pages 11-24, January.
    3. Liu, Yuanli & Hsiao, William C. & Eggleston, Karen, 1999. "Equity in health and health care: the Chinese experience," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 49(10), pages 1349-1356, November.
    4. Owen O’Donnell & Eddy van Doorslaer & Adam Wagstaff, 2012. "Decomposition of Inequalities in Health and Health Care," Chapters, in: Andrew M. Jones (ed.), The Elgar Companion to Health Economics, Second Edition, chapter 17, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Chou, Shin-Yi & Grossman, Michael & Saffer, Henry, 2004. "An economic analysis of adult obesity: results from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 565-587, May.
    6. Andrew M. Jones (ed.), 2006. "The Elgar Companion to Health Economics," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 3572, March.
    7. Liu, Gordon G. & Dow, William H. & Fu, Alex Z. & Akin, John & Lance, Peter, 2008. "Income productivity in China: On the role of health," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 27-44, January.
    8. Terry Sicular & Yue Ximing & Björn Gustafsson & Li Shi, 2007. "The Urban–Rural Income Gap And Inequality In China," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 53(1), pages 93-126, March.
    9. Morris, Stephen & Sutton, Matthew & Gravelle, Hugh, 2005. "Inequity and inequality in the use of health care in England: an empirical investigation," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 60(6), pages 1251-1266, March.
    10. Wagstaff, Adam & van Doorslaer, Eddy & Watanabe, Naoko, 2003. "On decomposing the causes of health sector inequalities with an application to malnutrition inequalities in Vietnam," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 112(1), pages 207-223, January.
    11. Wagstaff, Adam & Paci, Pierella & van Doorslaer, Eddy, 1991. "On the measurement of inequalities in health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 33(5), pages 545-557, January.
    12. McDade, Thomas W. & Adair, Linda S., 2001. "Defining the "urban" in urbanization and health: a factor analysis approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 55-70, July.
    13. Sahn, David E. & Stifel, David C., 2000. "Poverty Comparisons Over Time and Across Countries in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 28(12), pages 2123-2155, December.
    14. Dahly, Darren L. & Adair, Linda S., 2007. "Quantifying the urban environment: A scale measure of urbanicity outperforms the urban-rural dichotomy," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(7), pages 1407-1419, April.
    15. Eddy van Doorslaer & Xander Koolman & Andrew M. Jones, 2004. "Explaining income‐related inequalities in doctor utilisation in Europe," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 13(7), pages 629-647, July.
    16. repec:bla:devpol:v:21:y:2003:i:5-6:p:581-597 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Tony Saich & Shahid Yusuf, 2008. "China Urbanizes : Consequences, Strategies, and Policies," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6337, April.
    18. World Bank, 2007. "World Development Indicators 2007," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 8150, April.
    19. Adam Wagstaff, 2005. "The bounds of the concentration index when the variable of interest is binary, with an application to immunization inequality," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 14(4), pages 429-432, April.
    20. Colin Bell, A. & Adair, Linda S. & Popkin, Barry M., 2004. "Understanding the role of mediating risk factors and proxy effects in the association between socio-economic status and untreated hypertension," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 59(2), pages 275-283, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Laudicella, Mauro & Cookson, Richard & Jones, Andrew M. & Rice, Nigel, 2009. "Health care deprivation profiles in the measurement of inequality and inequity: An application to GP fundholding in the English NHS," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 1048-1061, December.
    2. Olufunke Alaba & Lumbwe Chola, 2014. "Socioeconomic Inequalities in Adult Obesity Prevalence in South Africa: A Decomposition Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-20, March.
    3. H. Eme Ichoku & William Fonta & Michael Thiede, 2011. "Socioeconomic gradients in self-rated health: a developing country case study of Enugu State, Nigeria," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 44(3), pages 179-202, August.
    4. Aristides dos Santos, Anderson Moreira & Perelman, Julian & Jacinto, Paulo de Andrade & Tejada, Cesar Augusto Oviedo & Barros, Aluísio J.D. & Bertoldi, Andréa D. & Matijasevich, Alicia & Santos, Iná S, 2019. "Income-related inequality and inequity in children’s health care: A longitudinal analysis using data from Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 224(C), pages 127-137.
    5. Mariana De Santis & Verónica Herrero, 2009. "Equidad en el Acceso, Desigualdad y Utilización de los Servicios de Salud. Una Aplicación al Caso Argentino en 2001," Revista de Economía y Estadística, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas, Instituto de Economía y Finanzas, vol. 47(1), pages 125-162, Junio.
    6. Mohammad Hajizadeh & M. Karen Campbell & Sisira Sarma, 2014. "Socioeconomic inequalities in adult obesity risk in Canada: trends and decomposition analyses," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 15(2), pages 203-221, March.
    7. dos Santos, Anderson Moreira Aristides & Triaca, Lívia Madeira & Tejada, Cesar Augusto Oviedo, 2021. "Evolution of inequalities in health care use among older people in Brazil: Evidence for the period 1998–2019," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 20(C).
    8. Laura Vallejo‐Torres & Stephen Morris, 2013. "Income‐Related Inequity In Healthcare Utilisation Among Individuals With Cardiovascular Disease In England—Accounting For Vertical Inequity," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(5), pages 533-553, May.
    9. Jihyung Hong & Jaehee Lee, 2019. "Decomposing Income-Related Inequalities in Self-Reported Depression and Self-Rated Health Among Married Immigrants in South Korea," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-15, May.
    10. Baeten, Steef & Van Ourti, Tom & van Doorslaer, Eddy, 2013. "Rising inequalities in income and health in China: Who is left behind?," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 1214-1229.
    11. Yuejen ZHAO, 2013. "Decomposition of Concentration Index using Generalised Linear Model: Analysis of Socio-Economic Determinants of Health Inequality in the Northern Territory of Australia," Regional and Sectoral Economic Studies, Euro-American Association of Economic Development, vol. 13(1), pages 145-154.
    12. E. Xie, 2011. "Income-related inequalities of health and health care utilization," Frontiers of Economics in China, Springer;Higher Education Press, vol. 6(1), pages 131-156, March.
    13. Martin Siegel & Karl Mosler, 2014. "Semiparametric Modeling Of Age‐Specific Variations In Income Related Health Inequalities," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 23(7), pages 870-878, July.
    14. Costa-Font, Joan & Hernández-Quevedo, Cristina, 2012. "Measuring inequalities in health: What do we know? What do we need to know?," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(2), pages 195-206.
    15. Dolores Jiménez‐Rubio & Peter C. Smith & Eddy Van Doorslaer, 2008. "Equity in health and health care in a decentralised context: evidence from Canada," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(3), pages 377-392, March.
    16. Martin Siegel & Andreas Mielck & Werner Maier, 2015. "Individual Income, Area Deprivation, and Health: Do Income‐Related Health Inequalities Vary by Small Area Deprivation?," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(11), pages 1523-1530, November.
    17. Athina Raftopoulou & Joan Gil Trasfi, 2024. "Income-related inequality in obesity and its determinants in Spain: What happens beyond the obesity threshold?," International Journal of Health Economics and Management, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 135-153, March.
    18. Carrieri, V. & Wuebker, A., 2012. "Assessing inequalities in preventive care use in Europe: A special case of health-care inequalities?," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 12/25, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    19. Richard Cookson & Mark Dusheiko & Geoffrey Hardman, 2006. "Socio-economic inequality in small area use of elective total hip replacement in the English NHS in 1991 and 2001," Working Papers 015cherp, Centre for Health Economics, University of York.
    20. Martha Tangeni Nghipandulwa & Alfred Kechia Mukong, 2023. "Estimating Income-Related Health Inequalities Associated with Tobacco and Alcohol Consumption in Namibia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-17, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    China; urbanization; health inequalities; obesity; hypertension; decomposition;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:yor:hectdg:08/25. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Jane Rawlings (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/deyoruk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.