SpringerLink
Log in

Epidemiology and Health

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Health Studies

  • 1680 Accesses

Overview

Epidemiology is the study of how diseases are distributed among different groups of people and the factors that affect this distribution. Accurately recording who in a defined population contracts a disease (the disease rate) also makes it possible to explore factors that might affect disease acquisition. Disease patterns are traditionally studied in relation to time, place and person. For example, Does the disease occur during particular seasons? Does it occur in certain geographical locations? Which are the more vulnerable age groups? Do those who become sick differ in their lifestyle habits from those who remain healthy? In this way, epidemiology tries to predict conditions (risk factors) that might lead to disease, and thus to identify strategies that might be used to prevent its occurrence. Moreover, once someone has contracted a disease, epidemiology can help identify prognostic factors, which indicate how quickly or severely the disease may progress. The natural history of diseases (how they develop and progress over time) is thus central to epidemiology. Since it is concerned with rates, epidemiology focuses on populations of people rather than single individuals.

Part 1 explores the approach of epidemiology to healthcare problems and the conceptualization of health and disease in epidemiology. Part 2 describes how epidemiological data are collected and analysed. This chapter concludes with a case study discussing how epidemiology studies public health issues such as obesity by analysing its distribution and seeking to explain its causes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 49.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Further Reading and Resources

  • Coggan, D., Barker, D. J., & Rose, G. (2003). Epidemiology for the Uninitiated (5th ed.). BMJ Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Provides succinct explanations for the novice of the major concepts and research designs used in epidemiology. A quick reference guide.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moon, G., Gould, M., Brown, T., et al. (2000). Epidemiology: An Introduction. Open University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clear and readable introduction to the principles and methods of epidemiology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Somerville, M., Kumaran, K., & Anderson, R. (2016) 2nd ed. Public Health and Epidemiology at a Glance. John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Accessible introduction to the key concepts of population-level disease prevention, hel** you appreciate the determinants of health that impact on healthcare services and their effectiveness.

    Google Scholar 

  • Webb, P. M., & Bain, C. J. (2019). Essential Epidemiology. An Introduction for Students and Health Professionals (4th ed.). Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clear, practical introduction to all areas of epidemiology.

    Google Scholar 

Resources

  • Digital.nhs.uk is the national information centre for health and care.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ons.gov.uk is the Office for National Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fingertips.phe.org.uk is the Public Health England repository of indicators relating to health and wellbeing.

    Google Scholar 

  • www.nice.org.uk

  • NICE provides current evidence on effective interventions and guidelines for management of health condition.

    Google Scholar 

References

  • Allmark, P., & Tod, A. (2006). How Should Public Health Professionals Engage with Lay Epidemiology? Journal of Medical Ethics, 32(8), 460–463.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2004). Obesity Trends in Older Australians, Bulletin 12. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berkman, L. F., & Kawachi, I. (2000). A Historical Framework for Social Epidemiology. In L. F. Berkman & I. Kawachi (Eds.), Social Epidemiology (pp. 3–12). Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowling, A. (2004). Measuring Health: A Review of Quality of Life Measurement Scales (3rd ed.). Open University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bradford Hill, A., & Hill, I. D. (1991). Bradford Hill’s Principles of Medical Statistics (12th ed.). Edward Arnold.

    Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, M. K., Piaggio, G., Elbourne, D. R., & Altman, D.G. for the CONSORT Group. (2010). Consort 2010 Statement: Extension to Cluster Randomised Trials. British Medical Journal, 345(7881), 19–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cochrane, A. L. (1972). Effectiveness and Efficiency. Random Reflections on Health Services.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coggan, D., Barker, D. J. P., & Rose, G. (2003). Epidemiology for the Uninitiated (5th ed.). BMJ Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crow, R. A., Chapman, R. G., Roe, B., & Wilson, J. (1986). A Study of Patients with an Indwelling Urethral Catheter and Related Nursing Practice (Report to the Department of Health). DH.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawber, D. R. (1980). The Framingham Study: The Epidemiology of Atherosclerotic Disease. Harvard University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dingwall, R. (1992). ‘Don’t Mind Him, He’s from Barcelona’: Qualitative Methods in Health Studies. In J. Daly, I. MacDonald, & E. Willis (Eds.), Researching in Health Care: Designs, Dilemmas and Disciplines (pp. 161–175). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finkel, M. L., & Law, A. (2011). The Rush to Drill for Natural Gas: A Public Health Cautionary Tale. American Journal of Public Health, 101(5), 784–785.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Finucane, M. M., Stevens, G. A., Cowan, M. J., et al. (2011). National, Regional, and Global Trends in Body-Mass Index Since 1980: Systematic Analysis of Health Examination Surveys and Epidemiological Studies with 960 Country-Years and 9.1 Million Participants. Lancet, 377, 557–567.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher, G. S. (2019). Clinical Epidemiology: The Essentials (6th ed.). Wolters Kluwer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frankenberg, R. (1980). Medical Anthropology and Development: A Theoretical Perspective. Social Science and Medicine, 14B(4), 197–207.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holman, N., Knighton, P., Kar, P., et al. (2020). Risk Factors for COVID-19 Mortality in People with Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes in England: A Population-Based Cohort Study. Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, 8(10), 823–833.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Interphone Study Group. (2010). Brain Tumour Risk in Relation to Mobile Telephone Use: Results of the INTERPHONE International Case-Control Study. International Journal of Epidemiology, 39, 675–694.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keogh, B. (2011). Poly Implant Prostheses (PIP) Breast Implants: Interim Report of the Expert Group. Retrieved March 20, 2014, from www.gov.uk/government/publications/pip-breast-implants-interim-report-of-the-expert-group

  • Keogh, B. (2012). Poly Implant Prostheses (PIP) Breast Implants: Final Report of the Expert Group. Retrieved March 20, 2014, from www.gov.uk/government/publications/poly-implant-prothese-pip-breast-implants-final-report-of-the-expert-group

  • Krieger, N. (2001). A Glossary for Social Epidemiology. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 55, 693–700.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kruger, H. S., Puoane, T., Senekal, M., & van der Merwe, M. (2005). Obesity in South Africa: Challenges for Government and Health Professionals. Public Health Nutrition, 8(5), 491–500.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Last, J. M. (2014). A Dictionary of Epidemiology (6th ed.). Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawlor, D. A., Frankel, S., Shaw, M., et al. (2003). Smoking and Ill Health: Does Lay Epidemiology Explain the Failure of Smoking Cessation Programs Among Deprived Populations? American Journal of Public Health, 93(2), 266–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lovatt, M., Eadie, D., Meier, P. S., Li, J., Bauld, L., Hastings, G., & Holmes, J. (2015). Lay Epidemiology and the Interpretation of Low-Risk Drinking Guidelines by Adults in the United Kingdom. Addiction, 110(12), 1912–1919.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marmot, M., Allen, J., Boyce, T., Goldblatt, P., & Morrison, J. (2020). Health Equity in England: The Marmot Review 10 Years On. Institute of Health Equity.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marmot, M., Allen, J., Goldblatt, P., et al. (2010). Fair Society, Healthy Lives: Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in England Post-2010. The Marmot Review.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKeown, T. (1976). The Role of Medicine: Dream, Mirage or Nemesis. Nuffield Provincial Hospitals Trust.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mettlin, C., Lee, F., Drago, J., & Murphy, G. (1991). Findings on the Detection of Early Prostate Cancer in 2425 Men. Cancer, 67(12), 2949–2958.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moher, D., Hopewell, S., Schulz, K. F., et al. (2010). CONSORT 2010 Explanation and Elaboration: Updated Guidelines for Reporting Parallel Group Randomised Trials. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 63(8), 1–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Narayan, K. M. V., Boyle, J. P., Thompson, T. J., et al. (2007). Effect of BMI on Lifetime Risk for Diabetes in the U.S. Diabetes Care, 30(6), 1562–1566.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • National Audit Office 2001 Tackling Obesity in England. Available online https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20170207052351/https://www.nao.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2001/02/0001220es.pdf

  • Parsons, T. (1951). The Social System. Routledge & Kegan Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Percy, A. K., Norbrega, F. T., Okazaki, H., et al. (1971). Multiple Sclerosis in Rochester, Minn: A 60 Year Appraisal. Archives of Neurology, 25(2), 105–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Public Health England. (2020). Excess Weight and COVID-19: Insights from New Evidence. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/907966/PHE_insight_Excess_weight_and_COVID-19__FINAL.pdf

  • Sackett, D. L. (1996). Evidence Based Medicine—What It Is and What It Isn’t. British Medical Journal, 312, 71–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheper-Hughes, N. (1978). Saints, Scholars and Schizophrenics: Madness and Badness in Rural Ireland. Medical Anthropology, 2(3), 59–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seedhouse, D. (2002). Health: The Foundations of Achievement (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snowdon, C., Garcia, J., & Elbourne, D. (1997). Making Sense of Randomisation: Responses of Parents of Critically Ill Babies to Random Allocation of Treatment in a Clinical Trial. Social Science and Medicine, 45(9), 1337–1355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spiegelhalter, D., Knight, S., & Sant, T. (2012). Breast Implants: The Scandal, the Outcry, and Assessing the Risks. Significance, 9(6), 17–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The Information Centre. (2006). Lifestyles Statistics. Statistics on Obesity, Physical Activity and Diet: England. Retrieved July 16, 2020, from https://files.digital.nhs.uk/publicationimport/pub00xxx/pub00166/obes-phys-acti-dieteng-2006-rep.pdf

  • WHO (World Health Organization). (1946). Preamble of the Constitution of the World Health Organization. WHO.

    Google Scholar 

  • WHO. (2000). Obesity: Preventing and Managing the Global Epidemic. Report of WHO consultation. WHO Technical Report Series 894(3), i-253, WHO.

    Google Scholar 

  • WHO. (2002). Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy Life. WHO. Retrieved March 20, 2014, from www.who.int/whr/2002/en/whr02_en.pdf?ua=1

  • WHO. (2007). World Health Report 2007: A Safer Future: Global Public Health Security in the 21st Century. WHO. Retrieved March 20, 2014, from www.who.int/whr/2007/whr07_en.pdf?ua=1

  • Wilson, P. W., d’Agostino, R. B., Levy, D., et al. (1998). Prediction of Coronary Heart Disease Using Risk Factor Categories. Circulation, 97(18), 1837–1847.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ziraba, A. K., Fotso, J. C., & Ochako, R. (2009). Overweight and Obesity in Urban Africa: A Problem of the Rich or the Poor? BMC Public Health, 9, 465–474.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Statistics, London South Bank University, London, UK

    Nicola Crichton

  2. Ashmanhaugh, Norfolk, UK

    Anne Mulhall

Authors
  1. Nicola Crichton
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Anne Mulhall
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nicola Crichton .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Health, Community & Policy Studies, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK

    Jennie Naidoo

  2. London South Bank University, London, UK

    Jane Wills

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Crichton, N., Mulhall, A. (2022). Epidemiology and Health. In: Naidoo, J., Wills, J. (eds) Health Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2149-9_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2149-9_3

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-16-2148-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-16-2149-9

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation