Zvi Eisenbach

Mortality differentials among women: the Israel Longitudinal Mortality Study.

The first aim of this study was to examine differentials in mortality among Israeli adult women with respect to ethnic origin, marital status, number of children and several measures of socio-economic status; the second was to compare mortality differentials among women with those found for Israeli men. Data are based on a linkage of records from a 20% sample of the 1983 census with the records of deaths occurring until the end of 1992. The study population includes 79,623 women and the number of deaths was 14,332. Measures of SES included education, number of rooms, household amenities and possession of a car. Results indicated higher mortality among women originating from North Africa compared with Asian and European women. Adjustment to SES eliminated the excess mortality among North African women and revealed a lower mortality of Asian women, relative to Europeans. Among women aged 45-69, substantial and consistent mortality differentials were evident for all SES indicators examined where mortality declined with improved socio-economic position. Mortality was related to womens childbearing history, with the highest mortality among childless women. Mortality differentials among women aged 70+ were generally narrower than those found for younger women. Gender differences in mortality differentials varied by the socio-demographic indicator and age.

Mortality after spousal loss: are there socio-demographic differences?

This study evaluates the effect of spousal death on mortality among Israeli adults and examines differences in this effect by duration of bereavement, age, sex, education, ethnic origin, household size, and number of children. Data are taken from the Israel Longitudinal Mortality Study which is based on a linkage of records from a 20% sample of the 1983 census to records of deaths occurring during the period 1983-1992. The study population comprised 49,566 men and 41,264 women, of whom 4,402 (9%) and 11,114 (27%), respectively, were bereaved during the follow-up period. Excess mortality among the bereaved was evident among both men and women, especially after bereavement of short duration. During the first 6 months, the excess mortality was about 50% among women and about 40% among men. For men, the effect of bereavement on mortality decreased linearly with age, with a relative risk of 3 among younger men during early widowhood. Bereavement had a greater impact on the more educated men. The effect of bereavement did not vary by ethnic origin or household size.

The Predecline Rise in Israeli Moslem Fertility

The census data seem to suggest that Israeli Moslem women who were born before 1900 had between six and seven births on average Cohort fertility reached a high of 8.5 births among women born in the 1920s and 1930s. Thus we need to account for a rise of 1.5 births at least. Nuptiality seems to have been declining despite a decline in widowhood. Hence the proximate determinant that accounts for much of the rise in fertility is probably postpartum infecundability. It is even more difficult to determine the ultimate causes for the rise. The literature suggests at least three variables associated with declines in breastfeeding income maternal education and urbanization. Our results suggest that the rise in maternal education is able to account for a small part of the decline in the length of the second birth interval. (excerpt)

Religiosity and Marital Fertility: Israeli Arab Muslims, 1955—1972

This study examines the relationship between religiosity and marital fertility in a Muslim society around the onset of the transition using the 1973—74 Israeli Fertility Survey. In rural areas, where no decline was discernable, there was a negative relationship between religiosity and marital fertility, while in urban areas there was no relationship. The results of this study suggest that the negative relationship in rural areas is because of differences in breast-feeding. Following Quranic recommendations, the more religious seem to breast-feed longer. Demographic, social, and economic characteristics of the more and less religious do not account for the negative relationship. Demographic, social, and economic characteristics and the use of contraceptive methods, however, do explain, in part, the absence of a negative relationship in urban areas.