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Neighborhood socioeconomic status and self-rated health in Israel: the Israel National Health Interview Survey

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Public Health

Abstract

Objectives

To explore neighborhood socioeconomic status (NSES) differentials in self-rated health (SRH) in Israel.

Methods

Study sample included 6296 Jewish participants in the Israeli National Health Interview Survey of 2007–2008. Neighborhoods were assigned socioeconomic scores by the Central Bureau of Statistics, incorporating 16 demographic and socioeconomic measures using a 20-point scale. Generalized estimating equation models with a multinomial distribution assessed the relative cumulative odds for decreasing SRH by quartiles of NSES, while accounting for neighborhood clustering. Base models were adjusted for age, religiosity, immigration from the former Soviet Union, education, income, and then additionally for employment, living in the periphery and co-morbidity.

Results

We found a strong association between poor SRH and living in disadvantaged neighborhoods, after adjusting for individual-level SES. The combination of living in deprived areas with below average income was associated with over twice the risk of poor SRH.

Conclusions

The association between low NSES and worsening SRH, exacerbated by lower income, highlights the importance of considering socioeconomic environmental and individual conditions in targeting high-risk populations.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the contribution of Teena Enav, and the Israeli National Health Interview Survey staff. This study was funded by the Israel Center for Disease Control, Israel Ministry of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, UCLA Geffen School of Medicine, 10945 Le Conte Avenue, Suite 2339, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1687, USA

    Sharon Stein Merkin

  2. Israel Center for Diseases Control, Israel Ministry of Health, Gertner Institute, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Hadar Arditi-Babchuk & Tamy Shohat

  3. Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Tamy Shohat

Authors
  1. Sharon Stein Merkin
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  2. Hadar Arditi-Babchuk
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  3. Tamy Shohat
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Correspondence to Sharon Stein Merkin.

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Merkin, S.S., Arditi-Babchuk, H. & Shohat, T. Neighborhood socioeconomic status and self-rated health in Israel: the Israel National Health Interview Survey. Int J Public Health 60, 651–658 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0705-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0705-8

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