A new report from the Snohomish Health District links health trends and economic trends.
“Unemployment &Health,” a new report from the Snohomish Health District, indicates that Snohomish County residents who are unemployed report more days of poor health in a month, less satisfaction with their lives, and greater likelihood of smoking, compared with people who have jobs.
The report is based on local data collected between 2004 and 2008 from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey.
“In general, economic uncertainty leads to stress, which by itself can directly affect health,” said Dr. Gary Goldbaum, Health Officer and Director of the Snohomish Health District. “Stress also leads people to engage in risky health behaviors, such as drinking and smoking. Long-term economic problems mean the prevalence of these behaviors can be expected to increase,” he said.
Among the key findings in “Unemployment &Health” were these:
People who were unemployed were significantly younger than people who had jobs; young people are more likely to engage in risky behaviors associated with youth, such as binge drinking.
Adults who had not completed high school were more than twice as likely to be unemployed as other adults.
Only 60 percent of unemployed persons had health insurance.
People unemployed for at least one year reported 11 poor-health days per month, compared with 5 poor-health days for job holders.
Out of the ranks of the unemployed, 15 percent reported they were “somewhat” or “very dissatisfied” with life.
Out of the persons unemployed at least one year, 39 percent reportedly smoke cigarettes, compared with 18 percent of job holders.
Making matters worse, the current economic slowdown has increased the number of people who are unemployed.
Unemployment has ramifications for both a person’s finances and their health. The report noted that workers in their 40s who lose their jobs have a 1 to 1.5 year lower life expectancy than others.
Another study showed that the stress associated with fear of job loss is also detrimental to health. Commonly, people who have lost their jobs also lose access to health care because employer-provided health insurance ends.
In Snohomish County, people who were unemployed reported more days of poor health, less satisfaction with their lives, and they were more likely to smoke cigarettes.
In Snohomish County, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 5.1 percent of the Snohomish County workforce was unemployed in 2008. This was considerably lower than the 7.2 percent of adults who described themselves as unemployed in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey.
However, both sources of data have similar patterns and show unemployment was lowest in1998 and peaked in 2003. Unemployment increased significantly between 2007 and 2008 and is expected to continue increasing in 2009 (the lastest unemployment rate in the county, in October, was 10.2 percent).
If the current financial downturn continues, the overall level of the public’s health can be expected to deteriorate. Public health indicators that have been showing improvement over time may change direction because of the negative health impacts of unemployment.
For example, suicide rates in Snohomish County declined significantly from 1990 to 2007, but during times of economic distress and unemployment suicide rates tend to increase.
The entire report is accessible online at www.snohd.org/snoHealthStats. Celebrating its 50th year of service in 2009, the Snohomish Health District works for a safer and healthier community through disease prevention, health promotion, and related efforts.
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