The impact of multidimensional energy poverty on the cognitive abilities of middle-aged and older adults: evidence from China

Energy poverty (EPOV) is considered to have a significant impact on health and has become an essential issue on the policy agenda in most countries, especially those with rapid aging. Cognitive and mental health (CMH) for aging well is just as important a component as physical health, but the literature on the effect of EPOV on CMH is still rare. Using 2014–2018 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this study explores EPOV and its impacts on CMH among middle-aged and older adults. Six measures based on energy affordability are constructed to capture the state of EPOV. The results show that the proportion of middle-aged and older adults living in EPOV in China ranges from 24.3% to 27.8%, according to different measures. Applying a two-way FE model, the estimates show that overall, the impact of EPOV on CMH is significantly negative. Furthermore, physical health is an important channel through which EPOV affects CMH. Although EPOV has a significant adverse effect on the CMH of both middle-aged and older adults, it harms the latter more.

While improving agricultural technical efficiency and alleviating energy poverty are vital components of sustainable development, existing research on the relationship between the two remains limited. This study aims to elucidate the effects and mechanisms of energy poverty on agricultural technical efficiency. The sample comprises small-scale farmers from the China Family Panel Studies, spanning from 2012 to 2018. Utilizing the two-stage least squares method to correct for the endogenous bias of energy poverty, our findings indicate that energy poverty reduces agricultural productivity by 11.7% to 47.8%, depending on the measurement method used. With a structural equation modelling approach, we find that the relationship between energy poverty and agricultural productivity is partially mediated by non-agricultural employment and land transfer, which contribute 3.72% to 30.86% to the total impact of energy poverty. Non-agricultural employment and land transfer hinder the improvement of agricultural technical efficiency in the process of alleviating energy poverty. The results and findings of this study yield significant policy implications for energy poverty alleviation and the enhancement of agricultural technical efficiency, which can be generalized to other developing countries.

Drawing upon data from the 2018 CHARLS, this paper utilizes MEPI and a 10% threshold indicator to, respectively, assess the energy poverty (EP) status among middle-aged and older adults in China, focusing on the unavailability and unaffordability of energy services. Additionally, an econometric model is constructed to investigate the effects of EP on the health and welfare of middle-aged and older adults. Regression results indicate that EP exerts a significant negative impact on the health and welfare of middle-aged and older adults. This conclusion remains robust after conducting endogeneity and robustness tests, demonstrating its validity. Finally, based on the calculation results, we propose relevant policy recommendations including enhancing energy services for older adults in rural areas, integrating household energy alternatives with targeted poverty alleviation, enhancing monitoring mechanisms, and conducting energy education activities to alleviate EP and improve the quality of life of middle-aged and older adults.

Can information technology construction alleviate household energy poverty? Empirical evidence from the “broadband China” Pilot Policy

Energy poverty (EPOV) is a critical issue for many countries, and is regarded as having an impact on subjective well-being (SWB). Using data from 2014–2020 China Family Panel Studies, this study examines the impact of EPOV on SWB from two dimensions: present-based and future-based. Our results indicate that the incidence of EPOV at the family level in China ranges from 20.2% to 23.6% across six different measures. The empirical findings show that EPOV has a significantly negative effect on SWB in both dimensions. Physical health, mental health, and cognitive health serve as key channels through which EPOV affects SWB. Furthermore, the impacts of EPOV on SWB vary across different demographic groups. In the present-based dimension, EPOV has a greater impact on middle-aged and older adults; whereas in the future-based dimension, the impact on low-capital residents, middle-aged and older adults is more significant. These findings highlight the necessity of addressing the adverse impact of EPOV on SWB in different time dimensions. Developing comprehensive and targeted strategies to mitigate EPOV for diverse demographic groups is essential.

Background: Aging increased the risks of cognitive impairment and depression. Then, these conditions can lead to poor quality of life by reducing one’s ability to perform activities of daily living. Recently, it is established that physical activity can decrease the cognitive decline and the risk of depression in older adults. Moreover, regular physical activity can improve physical and mental functions in populations of all ages. However, level and speed of cognitive decline occurs varies greatly among individual especially the difference between middle-aged and older adults. Objective: This study aimed to focus on the comparison of physical activity, cognitive function and depression between older and middle-aged adults, which has never been done before. Moreover, the associations of physical activity with cognitive impairment and depression were also investigated in older and middle-aged adults. The information in this study will provide an understanding regarding the design of physical activity program for different age groups. Methods: All participants were divided into two groups of 50 middle-aged adults and 50 older adults. The assessments of physical activity, cognitive function, and level of depression were conducted for all participants. Results: The total level of physical activity and cognitive function in older adults was decreased when compared with middle-aged ones. Moreover, each work and transportation domain of physical activity in older adults also was decreased when compared with that in middle-aged ones. However, the leisure domain of physical activity in older adults was increased via a decreasing depression level. In addition, the level of physical activity associated with both cognitive function and depression and depression alone in middle-aged and older adults, respectively. Conclusion: We suggested that total level of physical activity in older adults can increase via stimulating work and transportation activities in physical activity program. Moreover, the level of physical activity associated with both cognitive function and depression and depression alone in middle-aged and older adults, respectively.

BackgroundPoor sleep quality will have adverse effects on physical and mental health, quality of life and other aspects of middle-aged and older adults. Sleep quality is affected by many factors. Whether the sleep quality measures of the participants had changed in the previous or subsequent time period is not easily taken into account. Moreover, there have been no studies on this topic in Chinese middle-aged and older adults. The objective of this study was to mitigate the bias of sleep quality assessment, and analyze the association between personality traits and sleep quality in Chinese middle-aged and older adults.MethodsThe data came from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). A total of 6031 participants aged ≥ 45 years were included in this study. Personality characteristics were evaluated based on the scores of each dimension of Big Five personality traits. Sleep duration and sleep perception were used as indicators to measure sleep quality. Logistic models were used to analyze the relationship between personality traits and sleep duration or sleep perception, respectively.Results4.5% of the participants had abnormal sleep duration, and 14.4% had a pessimistic sleep perception. Conscientiousness was rated the highest among the personality traits (3.97 ± 0.6). Participants with higher scores for extraversion personality traits had more normal sleep duration (OR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.64–0.93) and more optimistic sleep perception (OR = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.76–0.96). Using the Internet and feeling unwell in the past week have a moderating effect on the impact of conscientiousness personality characteristics on sleep duration or sleep perception, respectively (but not overall sleep quality). In addition, participants with a spouse or no recent physical discomfort tended to have a normal sleep duration and a more optimistic sleep perception.ConclusionsThe higher the score of extraversion personality traits, the better the overall sleep quality of middle-aged and older adults. Having a spouse and feeling unwell were the important factors affecting their sleep quality. Specific personality traits intervention should be carried out for middle-aged and older adults with poor sleep quality to make their personality traits are closer to extraversion. In addition, middle-aged and older adults without spouses should be encouraged to marry or remarry. We will strengthen health management and medical expenditures for middle-aged and older adults.

Does the belt and road initiative alleviate energy poverty in participating countries?

The importance of healthy aging is growing in China as it has the largest number of older adults in the world and is one of the fastest-aging countries. This study aimed to examine the predictive value of regular physical exercise in relation to the physical, emotional, and cognitive health among samples of adults aged ≥60 years in China during an 8-year period. A total of 10,691 older adults were extracted from two waves of national data from the China Family Panel Studies in 2010 and 2018. To minimize the impact of selection bias on the findings, a longitudinal propensity score matching (LPSM) method was used to examine the relationships between regular physical exercise and emotional health (depression), between regular physical exercise and physical health (instrumental activities of daily living), and between regular physical exercise and cognitive health (cognitive ability) of older adults. After LPSM, 856 older adults were included in the study. In the regular physical exercise group, the average age of participants at baseline year was 65.67 years, with an average age of 65.90 years for 238 men and 65.45 years for 190 women, and in the non-physical exercise group, their average age at baseline year was 65.70 years, with an average age of 65.45 years for 253 men and 65.98 years for 175 women. LPSM indicated that regular physical exercise has been found to be effective in improving physical function and reducing depressive symptoms in old adults, even after controlling for background differences. However, the sensitivity analysis suggests that the positive association between regular physical exercise and cognitive function may not be sufficiently valid. The findings of this study indicate that engaging in long-term structured and repetitive physical exercise can have a significant positive effect on reducing depressive symptoms and improving the physical function of older adults. As a result, incorporating regular physical exercise into the lifestyle of older adults is recognized as an effective strategy for promoting healthy aging and reducing the strain on public health resources.

Can renewable energy technology innovation alleviate energy poverty? Perspective from the marketization level

Synergistic effects of regional environmental governance on alleviating energy poverty and promoting household decarbonization

Despite the growing awareness and interest in the impact of energy poverty on depression, studies in developing economies are relative limited, and there is a gap of knowledge of such impact among rural individuals in China. In this study, we investigate the impact of energy poverty on depression among rural Chinese individuals aged 16 and above, and our sample includes 13,784 individuals from 6103 households. With data from the 2018 China Family Panel Studies, we apply the instrumental variable (IV) quantile regression approach to address the potential endogeneity of energy poverty and allow for heterogeneous effects of energy poverty on depression across individuals with different levels of depression. Our estimates from the IV quantile regression suggest a strong positive impact of energy poverty on depression at the upper quantile of depression scores, but no impact at the middle and lower quantiles. The primary results are robust and consistent with alternative energy poverty measures, and we find that energy poverty does not affect depression of low-risk individuals (with low depression scores), but it does affect that of high-risk individuals. We also find individual socio-demographic factors of age, gender, household size, religious belief, education, marriage and employment status play roles in affecting depression. The findings of this study generate policy implications for energy poverty alleviation and mental health promotion.

Multi-dimensional energy poverty patterns around industrial crop projects in Ghana: Enhancing the energy poverty alleviation potential of rural development strategies

This article's objective was to compare demographic/medical history and multidomain clinical assessment outcomes between older and middle-aged adults following concussion. Seventy-six patients aged 50-80 years within 12 months of a concussion from a specialty clinic between October 2021 and August 2023 participated in the study. Participants were grouped into older (≥60 years) and middle-aged (50-59 years) adults. At their first clinic visit, participants completed multidomain clinical assessments comprising symptoms, cognitive, vestibular/ocular motor, psychological health, and quality of life domains. Older adults (n = 35) had less females (40.0% vs. 68.3%, p = .01), anxiety history (17.1% vs. 39.0%, p = .036), and employed individuals (57.1% vs. 82.9%, p = .002) than middle-aged adults (n = 41). Older adults had better Neuro-Quality of Life, F(1, 71) = 6.8, p = .01, ηp² = 0.09; Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status recall, F(1, 71) = 12.6, p < .001, ηp² = 0.15; fluency, F(1, 71) = 5.7, p = .02, ηp² = 0.08; list recall, F(1, 69) = 5.2, p = .03, ηp² = 0.07; and list recognition, F(1, 69) = 5.3, p = .03, ηp² = 0.07, when controlling for sex, anxiety history, and employment status. Older adults also had lower odds of being impaired to borderline on Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing verbal memory (OR = 0.05, 95% CI [0.01, 0.56], p = .01), visual motor speed (OR = 0.08, 95% CI [0.01, 0.73], p = .03), and reaction time (OR = 0.21, 95% CI [0.05, 0.89], p = .03), and lower odds of having moderate to severe impairment on Neuro-Quality of Life (OR = 0.32, 95% CI [0.11, 0.97], p = .04) than middle-aged adults. Older adults (≥60 years) exhibited fewer subjective cognitive difficulties and objective cognitive impairments compared to middle-aged adults (50-59 years) following concussion. There were no differences between groups in symptoms, vestibular/ocular motor functioning, or psychological health. Clinicians should consider these findings when evaluating and interpreting outcomes from older and middle-aged adults following concussion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Older adults often face more pronounced energy inequality in their daily lives, which is one of the reasons for their accumulation of stress or anxiety and may further aggravate their depression. Analyzing the relationship between energy poverty and the depression level of China's older adults will provide policy enlightenment for solving the problems of older adults' relative poverty, energy poverty, and mental poverty and thus promote happy and healthy aging. In this paper, using the data of China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study in 2018, we used the entropy weighting method to objectively assign weights to 10 indicators reflecting the status of energy poverty and construct a multidimensional energy poverty index for older adults. First, we analyzed the relationship between multidimensional energy poverty and the depression levels of older adults using multiple linear regression model and quantile regression models. Next, we used instrumental variable linear regression model and instrumental variable quantile regression models for endogeneity tests. Then, we performed a robustness check by replacing the core explanatory variable. After that, we conducted heterogeneity analyses by residential area, type of residence, and solitary status. Finally, we analyzed the mediating role of life satisfaction using structural equation modeling. Multidimensional energy poverty has aggravated depression among older adults, and the effect is greater for older adults with higher depression levels. The effect of multidimensional energy poverty on depression is greater for older adults in western China, urban areas, and those who live alone. Multidimensional energy poverty has aggravated depression among older adults by reducing their life satisfaction.