Determinants of Self-Rated Health in a Representative Sample of a Rural Population: A Cross-Sectional Study in Greece

Abstract

Self-rated health (SRH) is a health measure related to future health, mortality, healthcare services utilization and quality of life. Various sociodemographic, health and lifestyle determinants of SRH have been identified in different populations. The aim of this study is to extend SRH literature in the Greek population. This is a cross-sectional study conducted in rural communities between 2001 and 2003. Interviews eliciting basic demographic, health-related and lifestyle information (smoking, physical activity, diet, quality of sleep and religiosity) were conducted. The sample consisted of 1,519 participants, representative of the rural population of Tripoli. Multinomial regression analysis was conducted to identify putative SRH determinants. Among the 1,519 participants, 489 (32.2%), 790 (52%) and 237 (15.6%) rated their health as “very good”, “good” and “poor” respectively. Female gender, older age, lower level of education and impaired health were all associated with worse SRH, accounting for 16.6% of SRH variance. Regular exercise, healthier diet, better sleep quality and better adherence to religious habits were related with better health ratings, after adjusting for sociodemographic and health-related factors. BMI and smoking did not reach significance while exercise and physical activity exhibited significant correlations but not consistently across SRH categories. Our results support previous findings indicating that people following a more proactive lifestyle pattern tend to rate their health better. The role of stress-related neuroendocrinologic mechanisms on SRH and health in general is also discussed.

Edentulism and other variables associated with self-reported health status in Mexican adults

“…In this regard, the observed differences between men and women have been well documented by other authors [16,18,20,21], as well as in our own study, with women reporting worse health status than men. One of the main explanations for such a difference is that women may recognize pain and discomfort more easily than men [16].…”

John Henryism, Gender and Self-reported Health Among Roma/Gypsies in Serbia

“…Furthermore, the relationship between unemployment and increased risk of morbidity and mortality is well known (Bambra and Eikemo 2009). The negative health effects of unemployment was particularly strong for women across Europe (Darviri et al 2012). In fact, full-time work means better health for women who are mothers.…”

“…Responses ranged from ''very good'' (score = 1) to ''good-average'' (score = 2) and ''poor'' (score = 3). The use of SRH as a summary measure of overall health is common in field surveys (Darviri et al 2012). Also, this particular question has been shown to be a reliable predictor of other outcomes, such as subsequent use of medical care (Lindeboom and Van Doorslaer 2004).…”

Fatores associados à saúde positiva autorreferida em jovens ativos na região nordeste, Brasil

“…Research held in Sweden 6 with subjects from both sexes, shows that age , the absence of the smoking habit and the high educational level were associated with positive self-rated health, similar results to the ones found in this study. Another study held in Greece 14 evidenced that being female, having lower educational level, presenting advanced age and compromised health were determinant in the negative self-rated health. On the other hand, regular physical exercise, better sleeping quality, healthy eating habits and religious habits determined the positive self-rated health.…”

“…Similarly, some demographic and socio-economic factors as well as other related to lifestyle are directly associated with health self-evaluation in industrialists 4,5 , adults 6,7 and in the elderly 8 , being able to determine a positive or negative perception, which contributes to the development of future interventions in many population subgroups 9 . Moreover, negative self-rated health is associated with higher frequency of chronic diseases 10 , smoking over 20 cigarettes a day, insufficient levels of physical activities 11,12 , low weight or obesity 13 , female sex, advanced age, low educational background and compromised health 14 . Some studies have shown that physically active men present better self-rated health compared to the insufficiently active ones [15][16][17] .…”