Early unemployment can contribute to adult health problems: results from a longitudinal study of school leavers.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the long term effects of early unemployment (a total of more than half a year of unemployment between the ages of 16 and 21) on health behaviour and psychological and somatic symptoms.


METHODS
A 14 year follow up of a cohort of school leavers was conducted from 1981 to 1995. Information was collected by questionnaires.


METHODS
An industrial town in northern Sweden.


METHODS
The original cohort was defined as all pupils in a middle sized municipality in the last year of compulsory school at age 16 (n=1083). The participants were followed up between the ages of 16 and 30. The analysis included 96% of the original sample, 547 men and 497 women


RESULTS
After controlling for initial health behaviour and symptoms as well as for working class background and late unemployment, early unemployment among young men and women showed a significant explanatory effect on smoking, psychological symptoms and-among men only-somatic symptoms after a follow up of 14 years. No correlation was found between early unemployment and late excess alcohol consumption.


CONCLUSIONS
Early unemployment can contribute to adult health problems. Thus, youth unemployment constitutes a significant public health problem, which to a certain extent remains in adult age.
Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Sweden. anne.hammarstrom@fammed.umu.se
A
A
Hammarström
U
U
Janlert
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D013332:Student Dropouts; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D014478:Unemployment / Q000523:psychology*