Approved Research

Examining negative health outcomes among ethnic minorities through the lens of income differences: an analysis of UK Biobank Data.

Lay summary

The aim of this project is to analyse the causes of differences in health outcomes (in terms of deaths caused by diseases) across different ethnicities in Scotland and the UK. The underlying scientific rationale of the project is that there is likely to be some component of differences in health outcomes across ethnic groups that is driven by the differences in incomes that arise, on average, by ethnicity. This relationship will be examined while accounting for the effects of various other factors including age and sex. Income is a particularly important control: accounting for this could reduce apparent differences in health outcomes across individuals of different ethnicities by accounting for lifestyle-related health effects.

The project will last several months after data release and must be completed by the end of 2021. The public health impact of this project is that performing such analysis should improve public health and societal understanding of the health inequalities that affect individuals of different ethnicities, and go some way towards informing possible solutions.