Publication year: 2011
Source: Social Science & Medicine, In Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available online 23 July 2011
Petter, Tinghög , John, Carstensen , Gunnar, Kaati , Sören, Edvinsson , Michael, Sjöström , …
Migration may result in exposure to factors that are both beneficial and harmful for good health. How the act of migration is associated with mortality, or whether the socio-economic condition of migrants prior to migration influences their mortality trajectory, is not well understood. In the present study, a cohort of 413 randomly selected individuals born in the rural community of Överkalix, Sweden, between 1890 and 1935 were followed from birth to either death or old age. Around 50% of the study population moved away from Överkalix at one time or another. To adjust for a potential bias resulting from self-selection…
Highlights: ► This study is the first to follow a cohort from birth to death, assessing how migration affects mortality trajectories. ► The study has the advantage of using genealogical data to adjust for potential selection effects among the emigrants. ► This study confirms that pre-migration assets determine the alteration of migrants’ mortality trajectories.