Education and Health
Courtesy of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America
Source: Mathews TJ, MacDorman MF. Infant mortality statistics from the 2004 period linked birth/infant death dataset. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 55 no 14. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics, 2007
A child’s health is linked to the education of her or his parents. Babies of more-educated mothers are less likely to die before their first birthdays, and children of more educated parents experience better health.
Both educational attainment and racial or ethnic group matter for a person’s health, as this graph demonstrates. Adult health improves as educational attainment status increases. Furthermore, at nearly every level of education, non-Hispanic white adults fare better than adults in any other racial or ethnic group.
Courtesy of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America
Source: Based on BRFSS data, 2005-2007, from ISSUE BRIEF 6: EDUCATION AND HEALTH “Education Matters for Health”
Further Reading
D’Angelo H, Ammerman A, Gordon-Larsen P, Linnan L, Lytle L, Ribisl KM. Sociodemographic Disparities in Proximity of Schools to Tobacco Outlets and Fast-Food Restaurants. American Journal of Public Health. 2016 Sep;106(9):1556-62.
Carlson JA, Mignano AM, Norman GJ, McKenzie TL, Kerr J, Arredondo EM, Madanat H, Cain KL, Elder JP, Saelens BE, Sallis JF. Socioeconomic disparities in elementary school practices and children’s physical activity during school. American Journal of Health Promotion. 2014 Jan-Feb;28(3 Suppl):S47-53.
Ramirez SM, Stafford R. Equal and universal access?: water at mealtimes, inequalities, and the challenge for schools in poor and rural communities. Journal of Health Care for the Poor Underserved. 2013 May;24(2):885-91.
Adachi-Mejia AM, Longacre MR, Skatrud-Mickelson M, Li Z, Purvis LA, Titus LJ, Beach ML, Dalton MA. Variation in access to sugar-sweetened beverages in vending machines across rural, town and urban high schools. Public Health. 2013 May;127(5):485-91.
Sampson N. Environmental justice at school: understanding research, policy, and practice to improve our children’s health. Journal of School Health. 2012 May;82(5):246-52.