foodconsumer.org: Job loss may lead to sickness

Job loss may lead to sickness
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admin on 05/09/2009 12:58:00
 
Saturday May 9, 2009 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new study indicates that job loss
may have adverse effects on health, numerous sources report.  The study,
undertaken by Kate W. Strully of Harvard University, looked at in-depth data
from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics at the University of Michigan, focusing
on the direct effect of job-loss on health.
Strully told USA today that "in today's economy, job loss can happen to anybody.
 We need to be aware of the health consequences of losing our jobs and do what
we can to alleviate the negative effects."
While the link between job-loss and health was uncovered long ago, The New York
Times reports that is has been yet unclear whether or not job-loss merely
exacerbated underlying conditions.  Strully's findings indicate that job-loss
may have an effect on healthy people.
The study looked at data from over 8,000 workers, spanning from white-collar to
blue-collar.  The workers were surveyed about their health and work history in
1999, 2001 and 2003.  Apparently, workers who had lost their jobs were
83-percent more likely to develop a new health condition, even if they were
seeking new employment after they lost their job.  Strully points to various
factors for a possible explanation, including declining health habits, smoking
and stress.
Strully stated in a news release that "some of the most common health conditions
coming up were arthritis and hypertension and cardiovascular conditions, which
in large part are inflammatory-type responses."  When discussing the
cause-effect relationship of job-loss and health, she said "[she] could separate
out people who had lost their jobs under different circumstances and various
reasons."
This study is especially timely as unemployment in the United States has climbed
to 8.9-percent, its highest in 25 years (USA Today).  According to the study, a
very small portion (6-percent) of people with a reliable source of employment
saw a new health condition during each study period.
David R. Williams, a Harvard Professor and staff director of the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation Commission, said in a new release that "as we consider ways
to improve health in America during a time of economic recession and rising
unemployment, it is critical that we look beyond health-care reform to
understand the tremendous impact that factors like job loss have on our health."
The study is available in the May 8 issue of Demography.
(By Will Levine)