How much of the relation between population mortality and unequal distribution of income is a statistical artefact?

The absolute income hypothesis—that holding other factors constant, the higher an individual’s income the better is their health—is supported by a considerable body of evidence. 2 3 However, according to the more recent relative income hypothesis, an individual’s health is also affected by the distribution of income within society. Someone with a given income would have worse health if he or she lived in a society with greater inequality of income than in a society in which income is more equally distributed. Several recent papers examining the relation between population mortality and income inequality seem to support the relative income hypothesis. 6 7 8 9 10 11 They suggest that greater inequality is associated with higher population mortality and that this relation persists even when account is taken of the average income of the population.