Effect of Air Pollution and Rural-Urban Difference on Mental Health of the Elderly in China

Background: China has become an aging society, and the mental health problem of the elderly is increasingly becoming prominent. This paper aimed to analyze the effect of air pollution and rural-urban difference on mental health of the elderly in China. Methods: Using the data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey (CHARLS, 2013), after controlling the social demography variable via Tobit and Probit, a regression analysis of the effect of air pollution and rural-urban difference on mental health and psychological disorder was conducted on 6,630 old people (>= 60 yr old) of China from February to April 2015. Mental health and psychological disorder of the elderly were measured by the CES-D score of respondents. Air pollution degree of counties and cities (n=123) were measured by SO2 emission. Results: 27.8% of old people had psychological disorders. Air pollution significantly influenced the mental health of the elderly, showing a positive "U-shaped" curve (P<0.001). In China, the urban elderly had better psychological status than the rural elderly had. The female elderly had more serious mental health problems. Marriage, education, and social activities had positive effects on the mental health of the elderly. Conclusion: China's local governments should consider the influence of air pollution on the mental health of the elderly during economic development. This paper recommends paying attention to the difference in mental health between the urban and rural elderly when making public health policies. Governments could improve the mental health of the elderly by enriching social activities and increasing employment opportunities of the elderly.