TY - JOUR
T1 - Depression in the house
T2 - The effects of household air pollution from solid fuel use among the middle-aged and older population in China
AU - Liu, Yan
AU - Chen, Xi
AU - Yan, Zhijun
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2020/2/10
Y1 - 2020/2/10
N2 - Background: Although the adverse health effects of ambient air pollution are well documented, evidence on the depression effects of household air pollution (HAP) are scarce. Objectives: We investigated the effects of HAP exposure from the use of solid fuel on depression using a nationally representative dataset of middle-aged and older population in China. Methods: By employing the propensity score matching method, we first matched the type of household fuel based on background information, including demographic characteristics, lifestyles, health status, and household economic levels. Based on the matched data, we conducted OLS and logistic regressions with cluster standard error at community level to examine the effects of household solid fuel use on depression and adjusted for potential confounders. Heterogeneous effects for vulnerable population were also considered. Results: We found a significantly higher Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) score and depression risk among current household solid fuel users. After matching and adjusting for potential confounders, current solid fuel users had a higher CES-D score of 0.59 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.31, 0.89) than clean fuel users. The OR of depression risk were 1.26 (95% CI: 1.14, 1.41). Solid fuel users had the highest CES-D scores (β = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.62, 1.36) and depression risk (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.30, 1.73) for over five years. These associations were generally higher in females, participants aged 65 years and older, with a BMI ≥ 25, with low education, with low household economic levels, and those suffer from chronic diseases, including diabetes, chronic lung diseases, and cardiovascular diseases. Conclusions: Exposure to HAP from solid fuel combustion was linked with strong depression outcomes. Findings suggested a need to strengthen public health efforts, such as controlling the social, health, and economic costs of depression by taking the physical environment, including HAP exposure, into account.
AB - Background: Although the adverse health effects of ambient air pollution are well documented, evidence on the depression effects of household air pollution (HAP) are scarce. Objectives: We investigated the effects of HAP exposure from the use of solid fuel on depression using a nationally representative dataset of middle-aged and older population in China. Methods: By employing the propensity score matching method, we first matched the type of household fuel based on background information, including demographic characteristics, lifestyles, health status, and household economic levels. Based on the matched data, we conducted OLS and logistic regressions with cluster standard error at community level to examine the effects of household solid fuel use on depression and adjusted for potential confounders. Heterogeneous effects for vulnerable population were also considered. Results: We found a significantly higher Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) score and depression risk among current household solid fuel users. After matching and adjusting for potential confounders, current solid fuel users had a higher CES-D score of 0.59 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.31, 0.89) than clean fuel users. The OR of depression risk were 1.26 (95% CI: 1.14, 1.41). Solid fuel users had the highest CES-D scores (β = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.62, 1.36) and depression risk (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.30, 1.73) for over five years. These associations were generally higher in females, participants aged 65 years and older, with a BMI ≥ 25, with low education, with low household economic levels, and those suffer from chronic diseases, including diabetes, chronic lung diseases, and cardiovascular diseases. Conclusions: Exposure to HAP from solid fuel combustion was linked with strong depression outcomes. Findings suggested a need to strengthen public health efforts, such as controlling the social, health, and economic costs of depression by taking the physical environment, including HAP exposure, into account.
KW - CHARLS
KW - Depression
KW - Household air pollution
KW - Household solid fuel use
KW - Propensity Score Matching
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85074711239&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134706
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134706
M3 - Article
C2 - 31731156
AN - SCOPUS:85074711239
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 703
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 134706
ER -