Fear of crime may be a barrier to participation in health-promoting physical and social activities. Public health practitioners should support fear-reduction initiatives.

Evidence is accumulating that the place where a person lives may influence their health, even after accounting for individual risk factors, 1-10 although some studies have found no independent effects of area on health once individual factors have been controlled for. [11][12][13] On the whole, the literature points to relatively small effects of area characteristics in comparison with the larger effects of individual socioeconomic position, 10 although most findings are based on secondary analysis of existing datasets so may not have identified and measured important area level determinants of health. Some studies have used ecological analyses relating average health in an area to some characteristic of that area, such as neighbourhood socioeconomic status (SES). [14][15][16] It is argued that a relationship between neighbourhood status and health in these studies cannot be taken to mean that living in a deprived neighbourhood is bad for one's health -the influence of an individual's SES on health may be driving this association. Individual-level data on health and SES and neighbourhood level data on deprivation must be analysed simultaneously to determine whether living in a deprived neighbourhood increases the risk of poor health over and above the effect of individual risk factors. Another possibility is that the health effects of living in a deprived neighbourhood are different for rich and poor individuals. Poorer people tend to live in poorer places and an individual's decisions and options are played out in various settings, including the residential setting. The SES of a neighbourhood may affect rich and poor individuals' decisions and options, and ultimately their health, differentially. We are now dealing with the interaction between person and place in determining health.Socioeconomic factors at the individual and area level may act together to influence health in two ways. In a 'collective resources model', people in non-deprived areas have better health than people in deprived areas because there are more collective resources (including material and social resources, such as services, job opportunities, and social supports). The ability of wealthier, more powerful individuals to attract high © International Epidemiological Association 2003 Printed in Great Britain International Journal of Epidemiology 200332:357-366 DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyg084 Neighbourhood deprivation and health: does it affect us all equally?Mai Stafford and Michael Marmot Accepted November 2002Background Neighbourhood socioeconomic status (SES) may affect rich and poor residents differentially. Two models are proposed. Model 1: living in a non-deprived neighbourhood is better for health because better collective material and social resources are available. Model 2: being poor (rich) relative to the neighbourhood average is associated with worse (better) health because of the discrepancy between an individual's situation and those around them.

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These findings demonstrate, for the first time, the relationship between a flatter slope in cortisol levels across the day and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease mortality in a nonclinical population.

Britain’s oldest birth cohort study, the MRC National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD) provides data to explore life time influences on ageing. The latest data collection was undertaken between 2006 and 2011 when study members were aged 60–64 and consisted of postal and pre-assessment questionnaires to eligible study members, followed by invitation to attend one of six clinical research facilities (CRFs) across the UK for clinical assessments, and dietary diaries and activity monitors in the days following the CRF visit. The option of a home visit for clinical assessments was provided if the study member refused or was unable to attend the CRF. We examined response and attrition, here describing rates overall and for postal and clinical assessment modes of data collection, identifying socioeconomic and health-related predictors of response, and assessing the continued representativeness of the sample. In total, 2,661 (84 % of the target sample) responded. Lower educational attainment, lower childhood cognition and lifelong smoking independently predicted lower likelihood of both overall response and CRF cooperation. At 53 years, not owning one’s home and not being married predicted lower likelihood of overall response whereas manual social class and obesity predicted lower likelihood of CRF cooperation. Providing for collection of biomedical data in the home and use of assessment instruments and modes to retain study members with lower education attainment, lower cognition and poorer health behaviours should be priorities for helping reduce attrition amongst vulnerable ageing study members.

Local social contexts may be as important as individual or illness-related factors in explaining employment status.

Radicular pain in the distribution of the sciatic nerve, resulting from herniation of one or more lumbar intervertebral discs, is a frequent and often debilitating event. The lifetime incidence of this condition is estimated to be between 13% and 40%. Fortunately, the majority of cases resolve spontaneously with simple analgesia and physiotherapy. However, the condition has the potential to become chronic and intractable, with major socio-economic implications. This review discusses the history, epidemiology, pathophysiology, and natural history of sciatica. A Medline search was performed to obtain the published literature on the sciatica, between 1966 and 2006. Hand searches of relevant journals were also performed. Epidemiological factors found to influence incidence of sciatica included increasing height, age, genetic predisposition, walking, jogging (if a previous history of sciatica), and particular physical occupations, including driving. The influence of herniated nucleus pulposus and the probable cytokine-mediated inflammatory response in lumbar and sacral nerve roots is discussed. An abnormal immune response and possible mechanical factors are also proposed as factors that may mediate pain. The ongoing issue of the role of epidural steroid injection in the treatment of this condition is also discussed, as well as potential hazards of this procedure and the direction that future research should take.