Considering the urgency of addressing grand challenges that affect human health and achieving the ambitious health targets set by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the role of business in improving health has become critical. Yet, our systematic review of the business–health literature reveals that business research focuses primarily on occupational health and safety, health care organizations, and health regulations. To embrace the health externalities generated by business activities, we propose that future research should investigate the conditions under which business (a) articulates and participates in health challenges, (b) engages in multilevel actions toward tackling health challenges, and (c) improves health outcomes and its impact on the health of external stakeholders, including customers and local communities. We also urge business scholars to engage with the public health research community to increase impact.

考虑到解决影响人类健康的重大挑战和实现联合国可持续发展目标 (SDG) 设定的雄心勃勃的健康目标的紧迫性，企业在改善健康方面的作用变得至关重要。然而，我们对商业健康文献的系统回顾表明，商业研究主要集中在职业健康和安全、医疗保健组织和健康法规上。为了接受商业活动产生的健康外部性，我们建议未来的研究应该调查商业（a）表达和参与健康挑战，（b）参与应对健康挑战的多层次行动，以及（c）改善健康的条件结果及其对外部利益相关者（包括客户和当地社区）健康的影响。