on-communicable diseases have surpassed infectious diseases as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Prevention and treatment of the causes and consequences of lifestyle-related diseases forms an important part of health policy in the twenty-first century. Public health economics - from quantifying the problem, to evaluating interventions and developing toolkits to assist decision makers - is an essential area for any postgraduate student and researcher with an interest in applied economics to understand.

Heather Brown is Lecturer in Health Economics at Newcastle University, UK. She completed an MRC early career fellowship in the economics of health at the University of Aberdeen, UK. Her research interests include applied econometrics with a focus on understanding the relationship between health behaviours and outcomes and inequalities. She has published many peer reviewed publications on economics and public health.