How unequally is consumption of products harmful to health distributed between Iranian households?

Abstract

Background Products harmful to health encompass a wide range of goods, including tobacco, high-fat, high-salt, and high-sugar foods, alcoholic beverages, addictive substances, unlicensed food supplements, and certain cosmetic products. This study aimed to assess the extent of inequality in the consumption of such health-harmful products among Iranian households.

Methods This secondary analysis utilized data from Iran’s 2019 Households Income and Expenditure Survey, comprising a representative sample of 38,328 households. Expenditures on harmful products were identified following guidelines from Iran’s Ministry of Health. The Gini coefficient measured inequality in absolute household expenditure, while the concentration index assessed inequalities in expenditure on harmful products across households with varying socio-economic status, using household income, education level, and occupation of the household head as separate proxies.

Results The Gini coefficients indicated significant inequality in both absolute and relative household expenditures across all categories of harmful products. Concentration indices for subcategories of harmful products remained below 0.2 across income, education, and occupation groups, with income-related inequalities slightly exceeding those related to education or occupation.

Conclusion Expenditures on harmful products exhibit notable but not extreme inequality across different socio-economic groups. Policymakers should consider all income, education, and occupation strata when designing interventions to reduce spending on unhealthy products, with particular focus on lower-income households.