Expanding the environmental scope: an environment-wide association study for mental well-being

This study investigates the association between environmental factors and well-being using an environment-wide association study (EnWAS) design. By linking well-being data from the Netherlands Twin Register (NTR) with environmental data from the Geoscience and Health Cohort Consortium (GECCO), the researchers examined 139 neighborhood-level environmental exposures. The analysis identified 21 environmental factors associated with well-being, primarily related to housing stock, income, core neighborhood characteristics, livability, and socioeconomic status (SES). Neighborhood safety and SES emerged as the most crucial factors. No evidence of gene-environment correlation was found. These findings provide valuable insights for policymakers in developing strategies to improve well-being.

Margot P. van de Weijer, Bart M. L. Baselmans, Jouke-Jan Hottenga, Conor V. Dolan, Gonneke Willemsen, Meike Bartels