From digital growth to health benefits: assessing the impact of digital economy development on residents’ health in China
Xuhan Yang, Wenhao Ling · BMC Public Health · 2026
The rapid development of the digital economy has created new opportunities for global public health governance. This study aims to assess the impact of development of the digital economy on residents’ health in China, providing empirical evidence and discussing policy implications to understand how digital growth can be translated into health benefits. In this study, a city-level digital economy development index for China is constructed and combined with data from the 2016, 2018, and 2020 waves of the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). A two-way fixed effects model is used to empirically assess the impact of digital economy development on residents’ health, with particular attention given to the mechanisms affecting subjective well-being and associated with depressive tendencies as well as to the moderating role of physical activity participation. First, digital economy development is significantly and positively associated with residents’ health. For each 1% increase in the city-level digital economy development index, residents’ self-rated health score increases on average by approximately 0.255%; a city-level digital economy development index increase of one standard deviation (0.981) corresponds to an approximately 0.25-unit increase in residents’ self-rated health score. This conclusion remains valid after a series of robustness checks, including the instrumental variable test, propensity score matching, replacing the dependent variable, and changing the regression model. Second, digital economy development is significantly associated with higher residents’ subjective well-being and lower depressive tendencies, both of which are further associated with better residents’ health. Third, individuals’ physical activity participation strengthens the positive association between the digital economy and residents’ health. Finally, the positive health-related association of the digital economy appears to be inclusive, as it is more pronounced among socially disadvantaged groups and residents of less-developed regions. The digital economy is not only a new engine of economic growth but may also become an important force for improving residents’ health. Future policies should focus on strengthening digital health infrastructure, establishing a multilevel digital mental health support system, advancing digital support for physical activity participation, and adhering to inclusive development to fully unleash the health dividends of the digital economy.