For hypertension, high cholesterol and obesity, even the most socioeconomically advantaged groups in the US had similar or worse health than the most disadvantaged groups in Britain
Would you be interested to know that Americans have significantly worse health in midlife than we do, especially heart health?
So says an Oxford University study comparing smoking habits, weight, cholesterol levels and blood pressure among American and British adults aged 33 to 46. Americans have worse heart health, higher levels of obesity, along with greater disparities in health by socioeconomic factors we do.
For several outcomes, including hypertension, high cholesterol and obesity, even the most socioeconomically advantaged groups in the US had similar or worse health than the most disadvantaged groups in Britain.
On the other hand, British adults rated their overall health worse on average and were more likely to smoke and put on weight.
Co-author, Oxford Professor Jennifer Dowd states, “Worsening health trends in the US could serve as a warning for Britain and the need to focus on prevention and the broad social determinants of health.”
The study, co-authored by researchers at University College London (UCL) and the USA’s Universities of Syracuse and North Carolina, compared data from the 1970 British Cohort Study and the Add Health study in the US. The analysis included data from almost 10,000 British people born in 1970 and 5,000 American adults born between 1976 and 1983.
Participants’ blood pressure, cholesterol levels, Body Mass Index and glucose were measured, and they self-reported their smoking habits and quality of health.
Co-author Oxford’s Dr Andrea Tilstra added, “The unique combination of high inequality and a weak welfare state in the US may prove harmful for all groups throughout the life course.
“Even for the more advantaged in the US, the associated costs of healthcare are still substantial. Our paper highlights the opportunity to better understand the factors influencing health in both populations by comparing similarities and differences in policies and other environmental contexts.”
Lead author, UCL’s Dr Charis Bridger-Staatz says, “Our new research shows that although British adults are more likely to believe that their health is poor, they tend to have better cardiovascular health than their US counterparts in midlife.
“While we were unable to directly investigate the causes of this, we can speculate that differences in levels of exercise, diets and poverty, and limited access to free healthcare, may be driving worse physical health in the USA.
“Given the political and social similarities between the US and Britain, the US acts as a warning of what the state of health could be like in Britain without the safety net of the NHS and a strong welfare system.”
