The impact of income-support interventions on life course risk factors and health outcomes during childhood: a systematic review in high income countries

BMC Public Health

Research

Matteo G. Richiardi¹  Lorenzo Richiardi¹  Costanza Pizzi²  Silvia Maritano³  Delia Boccia⁴  Sandrine Lioret⁵ 

[1] Centre for Microsimulation and Policy Analysis, Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Essex, Colchester, UK;Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin and CPO-Piemonte, Turin, Italy;Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin and CPO-Piemonte, Turin, Italy;University School for Advanced Studies IUSS Pavia, Pavia, Italy;Faculty of Population and Health Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Pl, WC1H 9SH, London, UK;Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin and CPO-Piemonte, Turin, Italy;Université Paris Cité, INSERM, INRAE, Paris, CRESS, France;

关键词: Child health;    Inequalities;    Social support;    Income;    Social protection;    Life-course;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-023-15595-x

 received in 2022-10-26, accepted in 2023-04-04,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIn high income countries one in five children still lives in poverty, which is known to adversely shape the life course health trajectory of these children. However, much less is understood on whether social and fiscal policies have the capacity to reverse this damage, which intervention is likely to be most effective and when these interventions should be delivered to maximise their impact. This systematic review attempts to address these questions by looking at the impact of income-support interventions, delivered during the first 1,000 days of life, on cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory and mental health outcomes.MethodsThe review was restricted to experimental or quasi experimental studies conducted in high income countries. Studies were retrieved from multidisciplinary databases as well as health, economic, social sciences-specific literature browsers. All papers retrieved through the search strategy were double screened at title, abstract and full text stage. Relevant data of the selected studies were extracted and collected in tables, then summarised via narrative synthesis approach. Robustness of findings was assessed by tabulating impact by health outcome, type of intervention and study design.ResultsOverall, 16 relevant papers were identified, including 15 quasi-experimental studies and one randomized control trial (RCT). Income-support interventions included were unconditional/conditional cash transfers, income tax credit and minimum wage salary policies. Most studies were conducted in United States and Canada. Overall, the evidence suggested limited effect on mental health indicators but a positive, albeit small, effect of most policies on birth weight outcomes. Despite this, according to few studies that tried to extrapolate the results into public health terms, the potential number of negative outcomes averted might be consistent.ConclusionsIncome-support interventions can positively affect some of the health outcomes of interest in this review, including birth weight and mental health. Given the large number of people targeted by these programs, one could infer that – despite small – the observed effect may be still relevant at population level. Nonetheless, the limited generalisability of the evidence gathered hampers firm conclusions. For the future, the breadth and scope of this literature need to be broadened to fully exploit the potential of these interventions and understand how their public health impact can be maximised.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023

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