Research Objectives: This study aims to investigate the associations between multiple environmental factors (including physical and social environments) and various health outcomes (such as cancer; metabolic diseases like diabetes and obesity; neurological disorders including depression and cognitive decline; respiratory diseases such as asthma and COPD; cardiovascular diseases represented by coronary heart disease and stroke; arthritis and osteoporosis; and ocular diseases). Using data from the UK Biobank, the study will: (1) systematically evaluate the relationships between multiple environmental factors and health outcomes; (2) examine the combined effects of key environmental factors on health outcomes; (3) explore potential influencing pathways (e.g., mediating factors such as physical activity and inflammatory markers), and analyze whether the effects of environmental factors differ across subgroups based on age, gender, etc.
Research question: What are the associations between environmental factors (individual ones as well as combinations of physical and social environments) and common health issues?
Scientific rationale: Natural, built, and social elements collectively form a broad range of environmental factors that are key determinants of health. Studies have shown that environmental factors such as air pollution, noise exposure, poor housing conditions, and limited green space may increase the risk of mental health disorders and cancer. However, there is still limited research systematically evaluating the associations between a wide array of built, natural, and social environmental factors and various health outcomes. In particular, the combined effects of these environmental factors have not been sufficiently explored in large-scale longitudinal studies. Therefore, investigating the impact of various environmental factors on health outcomes will help facilitate early prevention of environmental risk factors for different health issues.
