"Low socioeconomic status is one of the strongest predictors of premature mortality worldwide, but health policymakers often do not consider it a risk factor to target," Lifepath said in a statement.
"Because these circumstances are modifiable, they should be included in the list of risk factors targeted by global health strategies," said Silvia Stringhini of the Lausanne University Hospital, the lead author of the study.
Smoking, drinking and physical inactivity are already the focus of national and global public health policies.
Social rank could be improved by government policies on tax or education, for example, said the study, published in The Lancet.
The researchers reviewed data from 48 previous studies covering more than 1.7 million people from seven countries -- Australia, Britain, France, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland and the United States.
They conceded that their research was limited by the fact that they had used the participants' occupation -- whether a street sweeper or a CEO -- as the sole measure of socioeconomic status.
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