Caroline Shaw, Ryan Gage, Melissa McLeod, Rhys Jones, Michael Keall, Alistair Woodward, Linda Cobiac
{"title":"Population health, health equity and health system impacts of light vehicle electrification: a modelling study in Aotearoa/New Zealand.","authors":"Caroline Shaw, Ryan Gage, Melissa McLeod, Rhys Jones, Michael Keall, Alistair Woodward, Linda Cobiac","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-223865","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2025-223865","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Electrification of the light vehicle fleet is a core component of decarbonisation policy globally. As transport is an important determinant of health, this process will likely impact a range of pathways to population health, outside of averted climate change.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A transport-health multistate lifetable model for Aotearoa/New Zealand was used to model changes in the vehicle fleet and transport behaviour patterns that could be expected as part of electrification in Aotearoa/New Zealand. These changes are related to the new energy source and the costs of driving. The potential health, equity, health system cost and environmental impacts of this transition were modelled through the pathways of physical activity, injury and air pollution (tailpipe and non-tailpipe).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Compared with a scenario of 2018 vehicles and travel patterns projected forward, under the electrification scenario modelled by 2050, there would be a 21% increase in per capita kilometres travelled by car, a loss of 270 health adjusted life years (95% uncertainty interval (UI) -1000 to 500) and health system costs incurred of NZ$44 million 2018 dollars (95% UI NZ$-12 to NZ$110). While health impacts from air pollution decreased, in the electrification scenario road injury increased and there was a net health loss. Increasing the cost of driving, through distance-based charging, attenuated the negative health impacts.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These results suggest that the electrification of the light vehicle fleet has mixed health impacts. Researchers and policy-makers should take a cautious approach to claims that light fleet electrification will have co-benefits for population health and health equity.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"811-818"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144546234","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Niels Bal, Christopher Pell, Michaela Theilmann, Katja Polman, Trynke Hoekstra, Bongekile Thobekile Cindzi, Ntombikele Ginindza, Sijabulile Dlamini, Lisa Stehr, Harsh Vivek Harkare, Ria Reis, Frank van Leth
{"title":"Syndemic processes between non-communicable diseases and HIV within the Kingdom of Eswatini.","authors":"Niels Bal, Christopher Pell, Michaela Theilmann, Katja Polman, Trynke Hoekstra, Bongekile Thobekile Cindzi, Ntombikele Ginindza, Sijabulile Dlamini, Lisa Stehr, Harsh Vivek Harkare, Ria Reis, Frank van Leth","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-223753","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2025-223753","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Sub-Saharan Africa faces a double burden of disease due to the continued high prevalence of infectious diseases such as HIV and tuberculosis, and a concurrent increase in non-communicable diseases. The co-occurrence and clustering of multiple diseases can cause a syndemic, synergistically interacting epidemics, driven by context.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This cross-sectional study investigated potential syndemics in Eswatini, by determining geospatial disease concentration and estimating interaction between four diseases and the impact of context on these interactions. Using data from the WHOPEN@Scale household survey, we estimated generalised linear models with a quasi-Poisson link, incorporating three-way interaction terms. Joint effect estimates and the relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI) between diseases and contextual factors were estimated.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Conditions with comorbid depression were concentrated in the middle of the country near the capital, and the combinations without depression mostly in the north. Additive interaction was found between HIV and diabetes across all three contextual factors, in particular for people who are the sole household member aged 30 or above RERI: 0.46 (95% CI 0.12 to 0.80) and those who had lost their partner RERI: 0.44 (95% CI 0.02 to 0.86).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>We show that HIV and diabetes exhibit syndemic properties, indicated by geospatial variation, additive interaction as well as interaction with context. The lifelong chronicity and stigmatising nature of both diseases emphasise the importance of the social and financial context surrounding affected individuals. While the other disease pairs did not exhibit syndemic properties, the worst health outcomes among the double-exposed stipulate that comorbidity remains important within treatment guidelines.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"849-857"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144735460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nils Gutacker, David Glynn, Anne Mason, Simon Mark Walker, Luigi Siciliani, Tim Doran
{"title":"Socioeconomic inequalities in disease prevalence by age and sex for 17 common long-term conditions in England: retrospective, observational study of electronic primary care records from Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) Aurum.","authors":"Nils Gutacker, David Glynn, Anne Mason, Simon Mark Walker, Luigi Siciliani, Tim Doran","doi":"10.1136/jech-2024-223553","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2024-223553","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Evidence on socioeconomic inequalities in the prevalence of common long-term conditions and their variation across the life course is necessary for equitable service design and resource allocation. We used routinely collected electronic primary care records and a unified data extraction and analysis framework to estimate socioeconomic variations in the prevalence of 17 common long-term conditions by age and sex.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Electronic records for 2.2 m patients registered with 300 randomly selected primary care practices contributing to the Clinical Practice Research Datalink Aurum database were used to estimate observed, age-sex standardised and age-specific rates of disease prevalence on 31 March 2020 by Index of Multiple Deprivation quintile groups. Inequality in disease burden was expressed as the prevalence rate ratio (RR) between the most and least deprived fifths of the population.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Age-sex standardised prevalence rates were higher in the most deprived compared with the least deprived fifth of the population for 16 of 17 conditions. The largest relative differences in disease prevalence were observed for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (RR: 3.29; 95% CI: 3.19 to 3.38), severe mental illness (RR: 2.72; 95% CI: 2.60 to 2.85) and peripheral arterial disease (RR: 2.58; 95% CI: 2.46 to 2.72). For most conditions, the equity gap was largest in middle age and reduced with age thereafter.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Substantial socioeconomic inequalities in disease prevalence are evident in the English population. A catalogue of disease prevalence by socioeconomic quintile group, age and sex is provided to facilitate further analysis and modelling.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"874-881"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144745997","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluating the effect of the end of the COVID-19 uninsured programme on COVID-19 vaccine administration in California: a quasi-experimental study.","authors":"Celeste J Romano, Roch A Nianogo, Cora Hoover, Joshua J Quint","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-223751","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2025-223751","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The COVID-19 Claims Reimbursement for Vaccine Administration for the Uninsured Programme (COVID-19 Uninsured Programme), a novel, short-term federal initiative, reimbursed providers for healthcare-related expenses incurred through the vaccination of individuals without healthcare coverage. The present study aimed to characterise the use of the COVID-19 Uninsured Programme in California and estimate the effect of the end of the programme on vaccine administration.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>California vaccine providers who received reimbursements through 5 April 2022 (the programme end date) were linked to providers in the state immunisation registry. Generalised synthetic control methods were used to estimate the effect of the end of the programme on COVID-19 vaccine administration rates during the ensuing 8 weeks in counties with the highest (>3%) versus lowest (<1%) proportion of doses reimbursed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Overall, 1145 vaccine providers across 48 of California's 58 counties received reimbursement through the COVID-19 Uninsured Programme. The county-level median number and percentage of doses reimbursed through the programme was 2908 (IQR=406-18 578) and 0.9% (IQR=0.4%-2.5%), respectively. Among the 8 counties with the greatest proportion of doses reimbursed, an estimated 6.4 fewer doses were administered per 10 000 vaccine-eligible residents per day (95% CI: -10.4 to -2.5).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The end of the COVID-19 Uninsured Programme was associated with lower vaccine administration rates among counties with high participation in the programme; several counties had low or no participation in the programme, indicating underutilisation.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"821-827"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144651266","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ambient PM<sub>1</sub> on COPD mortality: insights from a population-based study.","authors":"Wenfeng Lu, Hong Sun, Ruijun Xu, Jing Wei, Chunxiang Shi, Chenghui Zhong, Yuewei Liu, Yun Zhou","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-223967","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2025-223967","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Evidence on the short-term association between particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of ≤1 µm (PM<sub>1</sub>) and mortality from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is scarce. We aimed to explore the potential effects of PM<sub>1</sub> on COPD mortality.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a province-wide time-stratified case-crossover study in 13 cities of Jiangsu province, China, from 2015 to 2019. Daily mortality data were collected and PM<sub>1</sub> at the individual level was estimated using a gridded dataset (10 km × 10 km) linked to personal residential addresses. The effects of PM<sub>1</sub> on COPD mortality were evaluated using conditional logistic regression. We also investigated the exposure-response relations and potential effect modifiers.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 255 043 COPD deaths were included in data analyses. Each 10 μg/m<sup>3</sup> increase in PM<sub>1</sub> was associated with increased mortality risk of 3.32% (2.67%-3.97%) for COPD, 3.75% (2.30%-5.22%) for chronic bronchitis, 3.25% (1.09%-5.45%) for emphysema and 3.35% (2.56%-4.15%) for acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD), respectively. Natural cubic splines analysis revealed linear relationships for PM<sub>1</sub> and COPD mortality. Particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of ≤2.5 µm (PM<sub>2.5</sub>) had slightly weaker effects on COPD mortality than PM<sub>1</sub>. Population attributable fractions for PM<sub>1</sub>-related mortality from COPD, chronic bronchitis, emphysema and AECOPD were 8.86%, 8.84%, 8.25% and 8.86%, respectively.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study provides new evidence of an association between short-term exposure to PM<sub>1</sub> and COPD mortality. Our findings suggest a predominant role of PM<sub>1</sub> within PM<sub>2.5</sub> and emphasise the need for targeted strategies to reduce PM<sub>1</sub> concentrations.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"866-873"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144979411","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A time of challenge, a time of change: new editorial team at <i>JECH</i>.","authors":"S Vittal Katikireddi, Anna Pearce","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-224889","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2025-224889","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":"79 11","pages":"809-810"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145260264","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kiran Thapa, Ye Shen, José F Cordero, Emily Anne Vall, Janani Rajbhandari-Thapa
{"title":"Prospective association of adverse childhood experiences and social support with all-cause mortality among young adults in the USA.","authors":"Kiran Thapa, Ye Shen, José F Cordero, Emily Anne Vall, Janani Rajbhandari-Thapa","doi":"10.1136/jech-2024-223342","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2024-223342","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study examined the independent effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and social support on all-cause mortality among US young adults and assessed whether social support modified the ACEs-mortality association.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, a population-based prospective US cohort. Our study sample included 12 421 children and adolescents aged 11-17 years at baseline (1994-1995) and followed up until 2016-2018. ACEs were assessed from youth and parent responses at baseline. Social support was assessed using a subjective measure of nine items and categorised into high, moderate and low. Weighted multivariable Cox proportional hazards models and Aalen's additive hazards models estimated HRs and hazard differences (HDs) per 10 000 individuals per year.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>At baseline, participants' mean age was 15.4 years (SD=1.5), 49% were females and 46% had ≥1 ACEs. 327 deaths (2.6%) occurred during 301 416 person-years of follow-up. High social support was associated with decreased risk of all-cause mortality independent of ACEs after controlling for sociodemographic factors (HR<sub>adjusted</sub>: 0.63 (0.42 to 0.93); HD<sub>adjusted</sub>: -5.00 (-9.33 to -0.67)). Compared with those without ACEs and high social support, those with ≥1 ACEs and low social support had over two times greater hazards of premature mortality (HR<sub>adjusted</sub>: 2.03 (1.45 to 3.49))-equivalent to approximately 9.4 additional deaths per 10 000 people per year (HD<sub>adjusted</sub>: 9.41 (2.08 to 16.74)), after adjusting for baseline sociodemographic factors. Stratified analyses showed that ACEs were associated with increased risk of mortality in the low social support group only.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Complementing ACEs prevention efforts with social support interventions could be effective strategies to reduce premature deaths among US young adults.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"890-896"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144327700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Aurélie M Lasserre, Yachen Zhu, Carolin Kilian, Laura Llamosas-Falcón, Jurgen Rehm, Charlotte Probst
{"title":"Mediating role of psychological distress and alcohol use in socioeconomic disparities in deaths of despair: a causal mediation analysis using record linkage data.","authors":"Aurélie M Lasserre, Yachen Zhu, Carolin Kilian, Laura Llamosas-Falcón, Jurgen Rehm, Charlotte Probst","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-224372","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2025-224372","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Deaths of despair - suicide, drug overdose and chronic liver disease mortality - are major contributors to premature mortality in the USA, disproportionately affecting individuals with low socioeconomic status (SES). The mechanisms underlying these disparities, particularly the roles of psychological distress and alcohol use, remain insufficiently understood. We assessed associations of SES, alcohol use and psychological distress with deaths of despair, along with the mediating roles of alcohol use and psychological distress in the SES-deaths of despair association in men and women.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We linked US National Health Interview Survey data (1997-2018) to mortality records until 31 December 2019 by following 3 11 508 women and 2 42 463 men for 10.5 years. Using counterfactual-based inverse probability-weighted marginal structural models, we decomposed the total effect of SES (education, income) into direct and indirect effects through psychological distress (Kessler-6) and alcohol use (daily consumption). Analyses were sex-stratified and adjusted for marital status, race and ethnicity and survey year.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Severe psychological distress and high alcohol use were each associated with over a threefold increased risk of death of despair. In men, psychological distress and alcohol use mediated up to 16% and 14% of the SES-deaths of despair relationship, respectively. In women, psychological distress mediated up to 20% of the association, while alcohol use did not mediate the relationship.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Low SES, psychological distress and alcohol use are key risk factors for deaths of despair. Intervention targeting mental health and alcohol use, especially through SES-specific and sex-specific approaches, may help reduce inequalities in these preventable causes of death.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145276599","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mariél de Aquino Goulart, Andrea Sherriff, David I Conway, Alex D McMahon
{"title":"Poor child oral health and school absences: a population-wide data linkage study.","authors":"Mariél de Aquino Goulart, Andrea Sherriff, David I Conway, Alex D McMahon","doi":"10.1136/jech-2025-223754","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2025-223754","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Child dental caries is highly prevalent worldwide, with significant treatment costs, but its broader societal impact remains underexplored. This cross-sectional study examined associations between child oral health and school absences in Scotland.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Four population-wide data sets were linked at the individual level, where the outcome was part-day school absence during first primary school year across six academic years (2008/2009-2010/2011, 2012/2013, 2014/2015 and 2016/2017). Oral health was assessed using three metrics: caries experience, urgent need of dental treatment (UNDT) and dental extractions under general anaesthetic (DGA). Gamma-distributed general linear models (identity link) estimated adjusted mean differences, including interaction terms for socioeconomic deprivation (Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) deciles). Models adjusted for sex, age, academic year and SIMD.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Records from 263 597 children (mean age: 5.5 years) showed 33% had caries experience (median 16 part-day absences), 9% had UNDT (median 19) and 2% had DGA (median 20). Children without caries experience had a median of 11 part-day absences. Adjusted models showed mean differences of 5.0 (95% CI 4.9 to 5.2) more absences for children with caries experience versus none; 6.2 (95% CI 5.9 to 6.5) more absences for UNDT versus no UNDT; and 6.5 (95% CI 5.8 to 7.1) more for DGA versus no DGA. Interaction analysis showed a deprivation gradient: children in the 10% most deprived areas had nearly twice the burden of absences related to poor oral health compared with the 10% least deprived.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Poor oral health was associated with higher absenteeism, with socioeconomic inequalities exacerbating the impact.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"882-888"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144585676","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jennifer Ervin, Brendan Churchill, Yamna Taouk, Leah Ruppanner, Tania King
{"title":"Gendered associations between time-related underemployment and mental health: longitudinal evidence from 21 waves of cohort data.","authors":"Jennifer Ervin, Brendan Churchill, Yamna Taouk, Leah Ruppanner, Tania King","doi":"10.1136/jech-2024-223378","DOIUrl":"10.1136/jech-2024-223378","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Underemployment is an increasing feature of global labour markets. However, the mental health impacts of underemployment remain relatively under-researched. Longitudinal evidence is particularly sparse, as is accounting for gender differences in the association. Addressing key gaps, this study examines the association between time-related underemployment and mental health in Australian adults.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Pooled panel data from 21 waves (2002-2022) of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey (n=18 288 participants, 124 531 observations) was used. Fixed-effects linear regression and Mundlak adjustment modelling was conducted to examine how time-related underemployment (not underemployed, underemployed 1-5, 6-10, 11-20 and ≥21 hours) was associated with 5-item mental health scale, with adjustment for time-varying confounders.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A stepwise (or dose-dependent) association was observed between increasing time-related underemployment and mental health for both genders, with the strongest association observed in those underemployed by ≥21 hours for both women (-1.88, 95% CI -3.09 to -0.67) and men (-2.24, 95% CI -3.59 to -0.89). Some gender differences were observed. Most notably, more women in our sample were underemployed compared with men.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Addressing rising underemployment in labour markets has the potential to improve population mental health for everyone. Furthermore, targeted social policy to reduce gendered exposure to underemployment in Australia is also key to mental health gains in working-age women.</p>","PeriodicalId":54839,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"835-841"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144487157","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}