Income influences health behavior
The higher the income, the better the diet and the higher the physical activity. However, high income is also more often associated with risky alcohol consumption.
Having a low income has an influence on health behavior: The less someone earns, the higher the risk that they will exercise too little and not pay attention to a healthy diet. However, the reverse is true for alcohol consumption: better-off people have an increased risk of alcohol abuse. This was shown in a study by the Swiss Health Observatory Obsan and the Federal Office of Public Health.
The study examined how health behaviors related to tobacco, alcohol, physical activity and diet are distributed among population groups. In addition to household income, differences between genders, education, age and parts of the country were also examined.
Sporty good earners
Overall, 65% of the Swiss population are regularly physically active. However, there are clear differences between the income levels: While only around 50% of the population earning the least do sports, three quarters of the highest 20% do so. Education also plays a role: the higher the education, the more active the person.
The situation is similar with regard to nutrition: The higher the income, the more value is placed on a healthy diet. Since the first survey of this kind in 1997, inequality has actually increased. Here, too, education has a similarly high influence on dietary behavior. Women also pay significantly more attention to nutrition than men - otherwise, according to the study authors, the difference in terms of income would be even more pronounced.
Alcohol and tobacco
However, higher earners do not live healthier lives everywhere: In the case of alcohol abuse in particular, it is evident that risky consumption occurs more frequently the more income is available. Interesting here: The level of education has an inverse influence - i.e., the more highly educated have a lower risk than the less highly educated. Other risk factors are age (over 60-year-olds have a higher risk than younger ones), gender (men have a higher risk than women) and nationality (Swiss are more at risk than foreigners). The region of the country also plays a role: the poorer the part of the country, the higher the risk.
Tobacco consumption has generally been declining in recent years. But it is not declining equally among all strata of the population: While in 1997 the highest-earning 40% of the population still had the highest tobacco consumption, this is now among the middle and second-lowest 20%. Overall, smoking inequality decreased.
