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Социально-экономические факторы детского здоровья в России
This paper examines the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and physical health in childhood. Social factors of health inequalities are a prominent research topic of study for recent decades. Results suggest that social and economic factors - including economic resources, living conditions, education, life style - effect health outcomes. These findings are verified for many countries regardless of health measurement. And it is true across lifespan from birth and childhood to adulthood. It is especially worth paying attention to children’s health because bad health conditions in childhood are connected with double burden. Additionally to family expenditures on health care and medicines due to child’s disease, poor health leads to lower level of human capital in future.
This paper uses data from Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey to estimate the role of social and economic factors in children’s health in Russia. Analysis was performed on a subsample of 0-6 year olds. The information about children's parents and households as a whole was matched to this subsample. Several health indicators were tested – permanent health perception (5-point scale), chronic conditions, and transitory health state. The results of the study show that all types of child health measurement are significantly connected with maternal health state and some mothers’ behaviors, especially alcohol consumption. The findings provide no support for hypothesis about the crucial role of main socioeconomic factors in health –family welfare, maternal education, mother’s age, marital status, and employment status. These results provide evidence that there is a huge difference between key social factors of children’s health in Russia and most other countries. It is supposed the reason is that Russian socioeconomic groups are not likely to be so different in behaviors, attitudes toward health life style, access to qualitative medical care as social classes in other countries.