European Journal of Public Health

BackgroundLongitudinal evidence on the association between temperature fluctuations and psychological wellbeing remains limited, particularly in ageing populations of Southeast Asia. This study examines how heat exposure affects multiple wellbeing outcomes among older adults in Thailand. MethodsWe linked longitudinal data from 16,002 observations in the Health, Aging, and Retirement in Thailand (HART) study (2015-2023) with province-level meteorological data. Using a multilevel mixed-effects mo...

ObjectivesNon-communicable diseases (NCDs) account for almost 90% of deaths in Europe, yet comparative estimates of the productivity costs associated with premature NCD mortality across diseases and countries remain limited. This study estimates and compares productivity losses attributable to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer mortality among working-age populations across Europe. Population-based data were used to estimate productivity costs for CVD and cancer deaths across 30 European co...

BackgroundHeatwaves are becoming more frequent, intense, and prolonged. High temperat-ures raise mortality and morbidity, particularly in older adults and those with pre-existing conditions. However, it remains unclear whether increases in deaths during hot periods are accompanied by sim-ilar changes in hospital admissions. Understanding the full health burden of heat requires assessing both outcomes under a unified exposure framework. MethodsWe analyzed national hospital data from Austria (200...

IntroductionClimate change is expected to alter daily patterns of sleep, sedentary behaviour and physical activity, yet empirically grounded projections across the full 24-hour movement spectrum are lacking. This study estimated how projected future warming may alter 24-hour movement behaviour patterns in adults. MethodsA Monte Carlo simulation framework estimated temperature-dependent distributions of daily movement behaviour duration using data from 368 adults in the Annual Rhythms in Adults ...

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic disrupted healthcare services, potentially affecting diabetes management and complications. ObjectiveTo investigate the impact of the pandemic on lower extremity amputation (LEA) rates among individuals with type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus, focusing on social determinants of health. MethodsA retrospective observational cohort study using de-identified claims data from a large U.S. health plan. LEA rates were compared before and after the onset of the COVID-1...

ObjectivesDigital biomarkers offer scalable screening for type 2 diabetes, yet adoption is stalled by uncertainty regarding economic viability. This study evaluates the cost-effectiveness and budget impact of digital screening compared to opportunistic screening from a Swiss payer perspective. MethodsA probabilistic Markov cohort model was developed to simulate at-risk Swiss adults (age [≥]45, BMI [≥]25 kg/m{superscript 2}) over a 40-year horizon. The model incorporates a digital attritio...

ObjectivesGrowth Mindset and Grit have been proposed as key psychological resources for resilience and adaptation, yet their manifestation and social distribution in later life remain underexplored. This study examines the structure, distribution, and correlates of Growth Mindset and Grit in older adulthood using proxy indicators in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). MethodsProxy indicators reflecting learning behaviour, personality traits, affect, and beliefs were used to derive ...

ImportanceInfants born small or large for gestational age exhibit different growth patterns compared with appropriate-for-gestational age counterparts. Evidence is lacking on how birth weight centiles beyond conventional thresholds predict early life growth. ObjectiveQuantify association of birth weight centile range with infant and child growth. DesignProspective cohort study. SettingFrance, Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, United Kingdom, United States. ParticipantsSingletons from seven b...

ObjectiveExplore self-reported racial discrimination in healthcare. MethodsRepresentative population sample, Switzerland, repeated cross-sectional data 2016 to 2024 (N=15,525). ResultsContrary to expectation, respondents from the migration-related population (foreign citizens, foreign born, migration background, first/second generation) report less racial discrimination than members of the majority population. Over time, we see an increase in the non migration-related population reporting (rac...

ObjectiveIn England, since 2022, large businesses providing food in the out-of-home sector are required to display calorie information for non-prepacked food and non-alcoholic drink items. This study estimates long-term cost-effectiveness of the policy by extrapolating real-world evidence on short-term policy effects in England. DesignThe lifetime health economic impacts of calorie labelling were simulated using a microsimulation model. The analysis adopted a health systems perspective to compa...

To examine long-term trends in the prevalence and burden of diabetes among adults in Bangladesh from 2000 to 2050 using historical estimates and future projections.A descriptive epidemiological trend analysis using secondary data from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Diabetes Atlas (2000, 2011, 2024, and 2050 projections) and prevalence estimates calibrated with the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2017- 2018.Bangladesh, South-East Asia Region. Adults aged 20-79 years i...

PurposeBody dissatisfaction is common, particularly among those with higher BMIs. Issues with BMI as an adiposity measure may limit our understanding of body dissatisfaction determinants. We investigate the association of childhood trajectories of BMI, fat mass index (FMI), and fat-free mass index (FFMI) with body dissatisfaction at age 14, and sex differences in these associations. MethodsWe used latent class growth analysis to model trajectories of BMI (3-14 years), FMI and FFMI (7-14 years) ...

BackgroundHigher childhood (pre-morbid) cognitive function (IQ) appears to confer a lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) episodes in adulthood, however, the underpinning mechanisms are uncertain. We tested the association between childhood cognitive ability and later CVD risk factors that may underpin this gradient. MethodsWe used data from two well-characterized prospective birth cohort studies initiated in the United Kingdom in 1958 (N=10870) and 1970 (N=9278). Cognitive function was qu...

BackgroundSafety data for most medications in pregnancy remain limited, yet pharmacological treatment is often necessary. Evidence on real-world medication use in pregnancy including over-the-counter products and folic acid is scarce, especially in Belgium. MethodsWe conducted a drug utilisation study using self-reported data from BELpREG, a prospective, web-based pregnancy registry established in November 2022. Pregnant individuals aged [≥]18 years receiving healthcare in Belgium can enrol ...

BackgroundVisceral adiposity is widely regarded as the pathogenic component of central obesity in cardiometabolic disease. However, emerging evidence suggests that abdominal subcutaneous adiposity may also confer metabolic risk in South Asian populations, although data in young, lean individuals are scarce. We investigated associations of MRI-measured abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (ASAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) with cardiometabolic risk markers in young rural Indian adults. Me...

PurposeMedication use during pregnancy is common, but patterns may differ across occupational subgroups, particularly in healthcare and social assistance where working conditions, education, and health literacy vary. We aimed to compare medications dispensed to pregnant women across occupations within this sector. MethodsWe conducted a nationwide population-based study using the French EDP-Sante database, linking occupational and socioeconomic data with healthcare reimbursement records. Pregnan...

BackgroundTimely access to screening, diagnosis, and treatment services is essential to prevent complications among people with diabetes. We evaluated trends and factors associated with self-reported diabetes screening, diagnosis, and treatment among Peruvian adults aged 18 years and older from 2014 to 2024. MethodsWe analyzed data from the Health Questionnaire of the Demographic and Family Health Survey (ENDES). We used information on diabetes screening, diagnosis, and treatment, along with so...

BackgroundClimate change is increasingly recognised as a threat to population health and healthcare systems, yet the effects of environmental variability on pharmaceutical prescribing remain poorly characterised in the UK. Using a wide array of open-source datasets, we examine the effect of environmental, geographic and socioeconomic factors on prescribing habits in England. MethodsWe linked monthly, practice-level prescribing data for England (2010-2025) to meteorological, air-quality, floodin...

Abstract/SummaryFinancial exploitation of older adults is an increasingly prevalent public health concern, yet few have characterized fraud prevalence longitudinally or evaluated whether financial exploitation vulnerability measures prospectively predict fraud outcomes. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, we examined fraud prevalence across a 14-year period and tested whether the Perceived Financial Vulnerability Scale (PFVS) predicts subsequent fraud victimization among older adult...

ObjectiveTo assess contemporary UK population-level trends in second-line glucose-lowering therapy initiation and explore treatment outcome trends across age and frailty groups in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D). MethodsWe studied 117,064 adults with T2D who initiated major second-line glucose-lowering drug classes after metformin between 2019-2024 in population-representative UK data (Clinical Practice Research Datalink). Outcomes were assessed in three groups: age [≤]70 years (n=84,589 [...