People who leave school without any qualifications have poorer health than
those with some qualifications. However, a new study funded by the Economic
and Social Research Council (ESRC) suggests that if they return to education
later on in life, they may be able to reduce the health gap with their more
educated peers.

A study of 4311 British adults born in 1958 has found that men and women who
leave school without any qualifications may be able to ‘catch up’ to some
extent with more qualified people in terms of a lower risk of Coronary Heart
Disease (CHD). Around 14% of adults went on to obtain some qualifications
between the ages of 23 and 42. Men who left school without any
qualifications had a 4% risk of CHD. Those who left school without any
qualifications but who obtained some qualifications later on (usually an ‘O’
level equivalent qualification) had a lower risk of CHD of around 3%. There
were similar, although smaller, effects among women.

Professor Tarani Chandola, University of Manchester, carried out the
research for the ESRC-funded International Centre for Lifecourse Studies in
Society and Health. Professor Chandola said: “Health inequalities are a
major concern in the UK and elsewhere and while there has been a great deal
of attention paid to the importance of having a good start in life, we also
need to think about what we can do to improve the health of adults who
haven’t had the best start to their lives. Although the study does not prove
that returning to education as an adult automatically improves your health,
this study provides some hope to many who leave school without any
qualifications. Apart from personal, social and economic benefits to
returning to education as an adult, there may be health benefits as well.” 

For further information, contact:
Professor Tarani Chandola (email. [log in to unmask])
1.	This press release is based on the findings from ‘Is adult education
associated with reduced coronary heart disease risk?” published by the
International Journal of Epidemiology. The study was funded by the Economic
and Social Research Council and carried out by Professor Chandola and other
researchers from the International Centre for Lifecourse Studies in Society
and Health (www.ucl.ac.uk/icls), UCL at the Department of Epidemiology and
Public Health at the University of London..
2.	Methodology: The project used data from the National Child Development
Study (NCDS). Data are publicly available and ethical approval for data
collection was obtained from a multi-centre research ethics committee in the UK.
3.	The ESRC is the UK’s largest organisation for funding research on
economic and social issues.  It supports independent, high quality research
which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector. The
ESRC’s total budget for 2010/11 is £128 million. At any one time the ESRC
supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic
institutions and independent research institutes. More at: www.esrc.ac.uk
To leave, manage or join list: https://listserv.yorku.ca/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=sdoh&A=1