Despite the improvement of the lives of Brazilians, still persists a panorama of iniquities in health in Brazil. This ecological study evaluated the relationship of socioeconomic conditions and public health policy with oral health conditions in Brazilian capitals. Factor analysis was performed with the socioeconomic indicators, revealing two common factors: economic deprivation and socio-sanit...

BACKGROUND The influence of social support on health was explored among gender and socio-economic groups with the aim of contributing to the explanation of socio-economic health differences among Slovak adolescents. METHODS The sample consisted of 2616 Slovak adolescents (52.4% male, 47.6% female, mean age 15 years). The data were assessed by a self-reported questionnaire including measures o...

OBJECTIVES To clarify the needs and to consider establishing a social support system for patients with Minamata disease (MD), or methylmercury poisoning, by investigating their health and socioeconomic conditions. METHODS The total number of people certified as having MD in May 1999 by the Kumamoto and Kagoshima Prefecture Government Committees on MD was 2265. We sent two questionnaires to 91...

BACKGROUND Despite recent achievement in economic progress in India, the fruit of development has failed to secure a better nutritional status among all children of the country. Growing evidence suggest there exists a socio-economic gradient of childhood malnutrition in India. The present paper is an attempt to measure the extent of socio-economic inequality in chronic childhood malnutrition ac...

Among the numerous factors that influence the pattern of children's growth and development there are factors of the changeable socio-economic environment. The inequalities among the socio-economic strata in the Hungarian society have increased during last decades. The main objective of the study was to examine the body structure of children and adolescents living in different socio-economic bac...

AIM To investigate the role of health risk behavior, such as smoking and alcohol consumption, in the explanation of socio-economic health differences among adolescents. The hypothesis of different exposure and the hypothesis of different vulnerability were explored. METHOD In the study carried out in 1998, the prevalence of health complaints of smokers vs non-smokers, alcohol consumers vs abs...

We are facing serious problems related to long-term depopulation and an aging society with a falling birth rate in Japan. In this situation, we are suffering from a shortfall in human resources as well as a shortage of workforce in rural regions. In addition, we are struggling with a protracted economic slump and excess concentration of population in the Tokyo Metropolitan area. It is an urgent...