Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To determine whether exposure to an epidemic is associated with better health behaviors. METHODS: Using nationally representative survey data collected in 2011 and 2014, we identified middle-aged and older Chinese adults whose communities experienced an outbreak of the 2002-2004 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). We estimated logistic models of health behaviors in the years after the SARS epidemic. RESULTS: Compared to those who lived in communities not hit by the epidemic, respondents who lived in communities with a SARS outbreak in 2002-2004 were more likely to get a physical examination in 2010-2011 and have their blood pressure checked and participate in regular physical exercise in the years following the SARS epidemic. These associations varied by gender and rural-urban residence. DISCUSSION: Exposure to the SARS epidemic could be positively associated with health behavior among middle-aged and older Chinese adults.