Dataset Information

A Reversal of the Association between Education Level and Obesity Risk during Ageing: A Gender-Specific Longitudinal Study in South Korea.

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to examine and quantify obesity risk across different education levels during ageing using the dataset of a nationally representative longitudinal survey. A total of 45,391 observations of 9991 individuals aged ?45 years were included in this study. Obesity was defined as a body mass index of ?25, according to a guideline for Asians by the World Health Organization, and education level was grouped into three categories. Socio-demographics, lifestyles, and health conditions were used as covariates. Adjusted odds ratios and predicted probabilities of obesity were computed and adjusted for a complex survey design. With respect to gender, education level and age were significantly associated with obesity risk, and the association was stronger in women than in men. Furthermore, education level was negatively associated with obesity risk in the middle age in each gender. However, the association became positive in the old age, specifically among highly educated women. Therefore, policy efforts to reduce obesity risk and the resulting education gradients should be established based on studies considering their old age. Further longitudinal studies are required to examine whether these findings are valid in other socio-cultural or economic settings.

SUBMITTER: Chung W

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7559988 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

A Reversal of the Association between Education Level and Obesity Risk during Ageing: A Gender-Specific Longitudinal Study in South Korea.

Chung Woojin W Kim Roeul R

International journal of environmental research and public health 20200916 18

This study aimed to examine and quantify obesity risk across different education levels during ageing using the dataset of a nationally representative longitudinal survey. A total of 45,391 observations of 9991 individuals aged ≥45 years were included in this study. Obesity was defined as a body mass index of ≥25, according to a guideline for Asians by the World Health Organization, and education level was grouped into three categories. Socio-demographics, lifestyles, and health conditions were ...[more]

PMID: 32948024

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Project description:OBJECTIVES:To identify gender-specific associations between education and income in relation to obesity in developed countries by considering both the interaction-effect terms of the independent variables and their main-effect terms. DESIGN:A cross-sectional study. Education and income levels were chosen as socioeconomic status indicators. Sociodemographics, lifestyles and medical conditions were used as covariates in multivariable logistic regression models. Adjusted ORs and predicted probabilities of being obese were computed and adjusted for a complex survey design. SETTING:Data were obtained from the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2012). PARTICIPANTS:The sample included 7337 male and 9908 female participants aged ≥19 years. OUTCOME MEASURE:Obesity was defined as body mass index of ≥25, according to a guideline for Asians. RESULTS:In models with no interaction-effect terms of independent variables, education was significantly associated with obesity in both men and women, but income was significant only in women. However, in models with the interaction-effect terms, education was significant only in women, but income was significant only in men. The interaction effect between income and education was significant in men but not in women. Participants having the highest predicted probability of being obese over educational and income levels differed between the two types of models, and between men and women. A prediction using the models with the interaction-effect terms demonstrated that for all men, the highest level of formal education was associated with an increase in their probability of being obese by as much as 26%. CONCLUSIONS:The well-known, negative association between socioeconomic status and obesity in developed countries may not be valid when interaction effects are included. Ignoring these effects and their gender differences may result in the targeting of wrong populations for reducing obesity prevalence and its resultant socioeconomic gradients.

Project description:Successful ageing is often defined as a later life with less disease and disease-related disability, high level of cognitive and physical functions, and an active life style. Few studies have compared successful ageing across different societies in a non-Western social context. This study aims to compare prevalence and correlates of successful ageing between China and South Korea. The data come from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) and the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA). A total of 19,346 community-dwelling elders over 65 years were included, 15,191 from China and 4,155 from Korea. A multidimensional construct of successful ageing was used, with the criteria of no major comorbidity, being free of disability, good mental health, engaging in social or productive activity, and satisfaction on life. Correlates of successful ageing included demographics (gender, age, and rural/urban residence), socioeconomic features (financial status, education, and spouse accompany), and health behaviours (smoking, alcohol-drinking, and exercising). The results showed that 18.6 % of the older adults in China was successful agers, which was less than 25.2 % in Korea. When gender and age were adjusted, older adults were 51 % less likely to be successful agers in China than Korea (p < 0.001). The association patterns between successful ageing and its correlates are similar between China and Korea. However, before the socioeconomic variables are under control, rural residence was negatively related to successful ageing in China, whereas this is not the case in Korea. And the gender gap of successful ageing was mostly explained by socioeconomic features and health behaviours in Korea, but not in China. In both countries, good financial condition was highly associated with successful ageing. The study suggests that advancement of public health system could better control progression of non-communicable diseases among old people and thus promote successful ageing.

Project description:BackgroundIn Korea, higher education has rapidly grown influenced by sociocultural tradition. Parents invest a significant portion of their household income in their children's education. Private education has been considered to greatly affect students' psychology and behavior. However, past research has largely neglected to study parents who pay these costs. Since household income and education level are important determinants of socioeconomic status (SES), education expenditures are likely to cause depressive symptoms. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the correlation between private education costs and parental depression in South Korea.MethodsData were collected from the Korean Welfare Panel Study (KoWePS, 2015, 2018). The sample analyzed consisted of 397 and 337 fathers and 403 and 370 mothers in 2015 and 2018, respectively. The independent variable in this study was the proportion of private education cost. This proportion was calculated by dividing each household's private education costs by its equivalized household disposable income (EHDI) and multiplying this number by 100. The main dependent variable was parental responses to the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale-11 (CESD-11). Using a generalized linear model, we investigated the effects of the proportion of private education cost on parental depression.ResultsThe results showed that fathers with higher proportions of private education cost exhibited higher CESD-11 scores compared to fathers with lower proportions cost (moderate: ??=?0.419, S. E?=?0.164, p =?0.0105; high: ??=?0.476, S. E?=?0.178, p =?0.0076), indicating that a higher ratio of private education cost may negatively affect depression in fathers. However, there was no discernable correlation between mothers' CESD-11 scores and the proportion of private education cost (moderate: ??=?-?0.078, S. E?=?0.250, p =?0.7555; high: ??=?0.003, S. E?=?0.215, p =?0.9882).ConclusionsThese results may be explained by the tendency for fathers to experience greater economic burdens than mothers in patriarchal Korean society.

Dataset Information

A Reversal of the Association between Education Level and Obesity Risk during Ageing: A Gender-Specific Longitudinal Study in South Korea.

Publications

A Reversal of the Association between Education Level and Obesity Risk during Ageing: A Gender-Specific Longitudinal Study in South Korea.

Similar Datasets

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