Prevalence of Non-Communicable Diseases and Number of Comorbidities According to Differences in Household Income Levels in Japan: Analysis from National Health and Nutrition Survey

摘要

Though it has been reported that in Western developed countries socioeconomic status is associated with non-communicable diseases (NCD), there are sparse evidence from Japan, midst an income gap that has been pointed out in recent years. Therefore, we examined the presence or absence of NCD and the number of comorbidities according to household income in Japanese, using data from the National Health and Nutrition Survey of 2010. 1287 men and 1659 women aged 20 - 79 years from households at 3 income levels (p p = 0.041), and stroke (5.07 [2.04 - 12.60] p < 0.001). Additionally, prevalences of participants with 2 or 3 NCD (hypertension, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia) were 15.0% and 33.0% in high and low income levels, respectively. A low income could contribute to a high prevalence of NCD and large number of comorbidities among Japanese. Establishing a health policy in Japan is needed to enable an optimal health condition and lifestyle regardless of socioeconomic disparities.