Pollution and its influence on health of population in Russia

• Published in: Regional research of Russia 2014, Vol.4 (1), p.1-9
• Main Authors: Gilmundinov, V. M., Kazantseva, L. K., Tagaeva, T. O.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Economics; Economics and Finance; Regional/Spatial Science
• ISSN: 2079-9705; 2079-9713
• DOI: 10.1134/S2079970514010110

This paper is dedicated to an assessment of the dependence of health on environmental pollution in different regions of Russia. Transformation from a command to a market economy has been followed by significant deterioration of the health of Russian citizens. The number of cases diagnosed for the first time per thousand people increased by 30% in 2012 compared to the beginning of the 1990s. Based on the data of the Federal State Russian statistics a regional analysis was conducted to explain the dynamics of morbidity. Such factors as the health infrastructure, social, economic, environmental and climate factors were considered as explanatory variables. As dependent variables public health characteristics were considered, i.e., fertility and mortality coefficients, including infant mortality, life expectancy, and the incidence of various types of diseases overall, were selected. The hypothesis that there is a statistically significant negative impact of pollution on human health is supported by the results of a regression analysis. The most significant impacts were observed in Irkutsk, Kemerovo, Murmansk, Chelyabinsk oblast, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Nenets, and the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug