The evolution of health status and chronic conditions in Catalonia, 1994-2006: the paradox of health revisited using the Blinder - Oaxaca decomposition

[EN] Background: The paradox of health refers to the improvement in objective measures of health and the increase in the reported prevalence of chronic conditions. The objective of this paper is to test the paradox of health in Catalonia from 1994 to 2006. Methods: Longitudinal cross-sectional study using the Catalonia Health Interview Survey of 1994 and 2006. The approach used was the three-fold Blinder - Oaxaca decomposition, separating the part of the differential in mean visual analogue scale value (VAS) due to group differences in the predictors (prevalence effect), due to differences in the coefficients (severity effect), and an interaction term. Variables included were the VAS value, education level, labour status, marital status, all common chronic conditions over the two cross-sections, and a variable for non-common chronic conditions and other conditions. Sample weights have been applied. Results: Results show that there is an increase in mean VAS for men aged 15-44, and a decrease in mean VAS for women aged 65-74 and 75 and more. The increase in mean VAS for men aged 15-44 could be explained by a decrease in the severity effect, which offsets the increase in the prevalence effect. The decrease in mean VAS for women aged 65-74 and 75 and more could be explained by an increase in the prevalence effect, which does not offset the decrease in the severity effect. Conclusions: The results of the present analysis corroborate the paradox of health hypothesis for the population of Catalonia, and highlight the need to be careful when measuring population health over time, as well as their usefulness to detect population's perceptions.

Horacio y el sexo: amor y seducción en la poesía de Horacio

[ES]En el presente trabajo se ofrece una panorámica sobre el tema amoroso en la poesía de Horacio. El amor es un tema importante, aunque no nuclear, en su poesía. Se analizan todas las modalidades de amor que contempla Horacio, según la destinataria de la relación: amor conyugal a la esposa, amor adúltero con esposas ajenas, amor no adúltero con cortesanas y sexo con prostitutas vulgares. Horacio elogia idealmente el amor matrimonial tradicional y denuesta el adulterio, pero prefiere personalmente un amor donjuanesco con múltiples parejas. Esta inclinación tiene una base literaria (pues era el sesgo dominante en el epigrama griego de época helenística), pero también responde a los gustos personales de Horacio. Se concluye que los datos extraídos de su poesía son relevantes para comprender las preferencias eróticas del Horacio hombre.