Burström B, Diderichsen F, Shouls S, Whitehead M
Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
J Epidemiol Community Health. 1999 Dec;53(12):750-6. doi: 10.1136/jech.53.12.750.
To study trends in the health and socioeconomic circumstances of lone mothers in Sweden over the years 1979-1995, and to make comparisons with couple mothers over the same period.
Analysis of data from the annual Survey of Living Conditions (ULF), conducted by Statistics Sweden from 1979-1995. Comparison of demographic, socioeconomic and health status of lone and couple mothers and how these have varied over the 17 years of the study. Main outcome measures include prevalence of self perceived general health and limiting longstanding illness.
All lone mothers (n = 2776) and couple mothers (n = 16,935) aged 16 to 64 years in a random sample of the Swedish population in a series of cross sectional surveys carried out each year between 1979 and 1995.
The socioeconomic conditions of lone mothers deteriorated during the period 1979-1995, with increasing unemployment and poverty rates. Lone mothers had worse health status than couple mothers throughout the period. In comparison with the first two periods, the prevalence of less than good health increased among both lone and couple mothers from the late 1980s onwards. For lone and couple mothers who were poor, their rates of less than good health were similar in the early 1980s, but in 1992-95 poor lone mothers were significantly more likely to report less than good health than poor couple mothers. Unemployed lone mothers had particularly high rates of ill health throughout the study period.
As in other European countries, lone mothers are emerging as a vulnerable group in society in Sweden, especially in the economic climate of the 1990's. While they had very low rates of poverty and high employment rates in the 1980s, their situation has deteriorated with the economic recession of the 1990's. The health status of lone mothers, particularly those who are unemployed or poor, appears worse than that of couple mothers and in some circumstances may be deteriorating. Further study is needed to elucidate the mechanisms mediating their health disadvantage compared with couple mothers.
研究1979年至1995年间瑞典单身母亲的健康及社会经济状况趋势，并与同期的已婚母亲进行比较。
对瑞典统计局1979年至1995年进行的年度生活条件调查（ULF）数据进行分析。比较单身母亲和已婚母亲的人口统计学、社会经济和健康状况，以及这些状况在17年研究期间的变化情况。主要结局指标包括自我感知的总体健康状况和长期限制性生活疾病的患病率。
在1979年至1995年期间每年进行的一系列横断面调查中，从瑞典人口随机样本中选取所有年龄在16至64岁之间的单身母亲（n = 2776）和已婚母亲（n = 16935）。
1979年至1995年期间，单身母亲的社会经济状况恶化，失业率和贫困率上升。在此期间，单身母亲的健康状况始终比已婚母亲差。与前两个时期相比，从20世纪80年代末起，单身母亲和已婚母亲中健康状况不佳的患病率均有所上升。对于贫困的单身母亲和已婚母亲来说，20世纪80年代初她们健康状况不佳的发生率相似，但在1992 - 1995年，贫困的单身母亲比贫困的已婚母亲更有可能报告健康状况不佳。在整个研究期间，失业的单身母亲健康状况不佳的发生率尤其高。
与其他欧洲国家一样，在瑞典，单身母亲正成为社会中的弱势群体，尤其是在20世纪90年代的经济环境下。她们在20世纪80年代贫困率很低且就业率很高，但随着20世纪90年代的经济衰退，她们的状况恶化了。单身母亲，尤其是那些失业或贫困的单身母亲，其健康状况似乎比已婚母亲更差，而且在某些情况下可能还在恶化。需要进一步研究以阐明与已婚母亲相比，导致她们健康状况不利的机制。
