Inequalities in good health by ethnicity
About 2 mins
Key points
- There is a 20-percentage-point difference in the proportion of the population reporting good health between different ethnic groups.
- Mixed white and Asian; black African; and mixed white and black African ethnic groups have the highest proportion of people reporting good health.
Prevalence of good health varies by ethnicity
There is large variation in the general health between different ethnic groups in the UK. Understanding inequalities between ethnic groups is complex, as social and economic determinants of health and health-related behaviours all interact.
This chart shows the proportion of the population reporting good health, by ethnicity in England and Wales.
- There is a 20-percentage-point difference in the proportion of the population reporting good health between different ethnic groups.
- More than 90% of the mixed white and Asian; black African; mixed white and black African; white Roma and other white ethnic group populations report good health.
- In contrast, just 72% of people from white Gypsy or Irish traveller, 76% of white Irish and 78% of black Caribbean groups report good health.
It is likely that when also looking within ethnic groups the picture is more complicated. Analysis of mortality data highlights large differences between people born in the UK and people born outside the UK within the same ethnic group. Some minority ethnic groups also fare worse than the white British population for many other health outcomes – including infant mortality, a number of chronic conditions, and mortality for specific causes of death. Ethnic groups also have different age structures which will affect the general health of the population. More research is needed to better understand the specific mechanisms linking ethnicity, migration and health.
- People are classified as having good health if they report having ‘very good’ or 'good’ health, measured on a five-point scale also including ‘very bad’, ‘bad’ and ‘fair’.
- Ethnic groupings reflect the two stages of the Census data. A person first identifies through one of the following five high-level ethnic groups: Asian, Asian British, Asian Welsh; black, black British, black Welsh, Caribbean or African; mixed or multiple; white; and other ethnic groups. The person then further identifies through one of the 19 more detailed categories, as shown in the chart.
Source: Health Foundation analysis of Office for National Statistics, Ethnic group by general health, Census 2021, England and Wales, 2021
