Centre for Research and Action in Public Health, The University of Canberra, University Drive, Bruce, ACT 2601, Australia.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2011 Oct;8(10):4039-54. doi: 10.3390/ijerph8104039. Epub 2011 Oct 21.
This paper examines the role farmers' health plays as an element of adaptive capacity. The study examines which of twenty aspects of adaptation may be related to overall health outcomes, controlling for demographic and on-farm-factors in health problems. The analysis is based on 3,993 farmers' responses to a national survey of climate risk and adaptation. Hierarchical linear regression modelling was used examine the extent to which, in a multivariate analysis, the use of adaptive practices was predictively associated with self-assessed health, taking into account the farmer's rating of whether their health was a barrier to undertaking farm work. We present two models, one excluding pre-existing health (model 1) and one including pre-existing health (model 2). The first model accounted for 21% of the variance. In this model better health was most strongly predicted by an absence of on-farm risk, greater financial viability, greater debt pressures, younger age and a desire to continue farming. Social capital (trust and reciprocity) was moderately associated with health as was the intention to adopt more sustainable practices. The second model (including the farmers' health as a barrier to undertaking farm work) accounted for 43% of the variance. Better health outcomes were most strongly explained, in order of magnitude, by the absence of pre-existing health problems, greater access to social support, greater financial viability, greater debt pressures, a desire to continue farming and the condition of on-farm resources. Model 2 was a more parsimonious model (only nine predictors, compared with 15 in model 1), and explained twice as much variance in health outcomes. These results suggest that (i) pre-existing health problems are a very important factor to consider when designing adaptation programs and policies and (ii) these problems may mediate or modify the relationship between adaptation and health.
本文探讨了农民健康作为适应能力要素的作用。本研究考察了适应的二十个方面中哪些可能与整体健康结果相关，同时控制了健康问题的人口统计学和农场因素。该分析基于对 3993 名农民对全国气候风险和适应调查的回应。分层线性回归模型用于检查在多元分析中，适应实践的使用在多大程度上与自我评估的健康相关，同时考虑了农民对健康是否成为从事农场工作障碍的评价。我们提出了两个模型，一个不包括预先存在的健康（模型 1），一个包括预先存在的健康（模型 2）。第一个模型解释了 21%的方差。在这个模型中，更好的健康状况主要由农场风险不存在、财务生存能力更强、债务压力更大、年龄更小和继续务农的愿望来预测。社会资本（信任和互惠）与健康中度相关，采用更可持续的做法的意图也是如此。第二个模型（包括农民的健康作为从事农场工作的障碍）解释了 43%的方差。健康结果的解释按重要性排序，主要由不存在预先存在的健康问题、更多的社会支持、更强的财务生存能力、更大的债务压力、继续务农的愿望和农场资源状况来解释。模型 2是一个更简洁的模型（只有九个预测因素，而模型 1 有 15 个），对健康结果的解释程度是模型 1 的两倍。这些结果表明：（i）预先存在的健康问题是设计适应计划和政策时需要考虑的一个非常重要的因素；（ii）这些问题可能会调节或改变适应与健康之间的关系。
