Effects of environmental regulation on health of middle-aged and elderly people: Evidence from China

This paper examines the effects of environmental regulations on the health of middle-aged and elderly people based on the environmental administrative penalties and CHARLS (China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study) survey data from 2011 to 2018 in China. The study first found that environmental regulation can significantly improve the health level of middle-aged and elderly people. Second, the effects of environmental regulation on population health with different characteristics are heterogeneous. The mechanism analysis found that environmental regulation improving the health status of middle-aged and elderly people by promoting the level of urban green innovation and upgrading the industrial structure. Finally, this paper is further analyzed and concluded, environmental regulation can significantly reduce the degree of depression in middle-aged and elderly people. The research of this paper is helpful to evaluate the implementation effect of environmental regulation and protect public health has a reasonable reference value.