The 'healthy migrant effect' - not merely a fallacy of inaccurate denominator figures

Abstract

Ringbäck Weitoft et al. present intriguing evidence indicating that the lower mortality among immigrants compared to the host population in register studies could largely be explained by inaccurate denominator figures. Their findings suggest that immigrants to Sweden, particularly those from Turkey and Southern Europe, frequently remain registered on the national population registry even after returning to their home countries. Thus, an inflated denominator basis would lead to an underestimate of their mortality rate.