12 Social Determinants of Health

The correlations between level of education and socioeconomic status, and therefore the general health of an individual, are repeatedly proven to be evident across the globe.

High-quality social relationships, wherein people experience camaraderie and happiness, yield substantial health benefits. For instance, social ties such as marriage and religious involvement have been linked to healthier choices with diet and exercise, possibly because these connections promote positive behavioral norms (Umberson and Montez, 2010). High-quality social relationships also promote mental health by offering individuals a sense of place within a meaningful environment. When people feel connected and supported, they tend to experience a greater sense of control, a psychological state shown to be both associated and causally linked to good health (Lachman and Weaver, 1998). Positive psychological effects of social relationships improve physical health by making it easier for the body to maintain chemical homeostasis over long periods of time by alleviating its “allostatic load” (Umberson and Montez, 2010). Ultimately, these components of high-quality social relationships make people less likely to get sick and die.

There are three main theories that try to explain why higher socioeconomic status people have better health. The three theories are selection theory, which is the connection

There is not singe factor that determine the quality of health and wellbeing. Many intersecting social and individual factors control the societies health. Income inequality is one of the leading determinant for our health. The effects of income inequality on health maybe understood by examining some social mechanisms, such as public education and healthcare, structural violence, disruption of social cohesion and social capital; and individual risky behaviors. (Kawachi and Kennedy, 1999)

Social Economical status is one of the major risk factor to health and health care disparity. In the past few years the death rate in the United States has decreased but, there exists a widening gap between the death rates of blacks compared to whites (Japanese National Health, n.d.). It has been documented that people that are poor or not well educated have poorer health than rich people or well educated people. Social Economic status effects not only the individual but the entire family and community as a whole. If one is living in poverty they may not have the money to seek out appropriate medical care and they may rely on home remedies due to affordability. They may also wait until their condition has reached an emergency level and seek out care in the emergency

Referring to a news article I read, researchers at the University of North Carolina found that the quantity and quality of one’s social relationships affect certain health measures at different points in their lives, for example, “adolescents who are socially isolated face the same risk for developing inflammation as those who don’t exercise” and “Older adults are more at risk for developing hypertension from social isolation than from diabetes” (Izadi, 2016, pg1). In the same article it explains four surveys that were performed on more than 14,000 participants at different stages of their lives to capture the essential qualities of their social lives followed by their physical well-being. They found that social relationships can not only prevent some of the effects caused by stress but they can also help with coping. According to the universal class website, studies have shown that “the more social relationships someone has, the greater the person's ability to fight the common cold” and “those with a strong social network have been shown twice as likely to survive after a heart attack than those lacking strong relationships” (The Benefits of Social Relationships, 2018). They found that being more socially connected is protective when it comes to our health, whereas being less socially connected is associated with risk factors when it comes to our health.

Furthermore, something else I found to be interesting was within the article “Social Determinants of Health”. The article mentioned how important being included socially

This essay will discuss ways in which a person’s socioeconomic class and his/her social situation can have an impact on his/her health, using examples. We believe that there is a direct link between socioeconomic/social class and health (Adler et al. 1994). I will be defining the key terms: socioeconomic and health, social class then proceed to discuss about how poverty, income, employability, environment and housing can impact on a person’s social situation and their health.

Social determinants have immense important role in the health of people. Socio-economic position and ethnic identity are two factors which affected the health and wellbeing of people. This essay looks into two important social determinants of health.

The health of a person can vary depending on their social status and ethnic group. People with a lower social status have a disadvantage when it comes to their health. Lower classes don’t always have the luxuries that the upper classes have. The upper class however is able to enjoy more health-related advantages. One advantage that the upper class has is the lifestyle choices that they are able to make involving how they exercise, their diet and their stress levels. The upper class also has the ability to gain knowledge about the newest medical care and also the ability to afford that medical care.

& Blazer (2006), “An independent social determinant of health is the extent, strength, and quality of our social connections with others. Recognition of the importance of social connections for health dates back as far as the work of Emile Durkheim. More recently John Bowlby maintained that secure attachments are not only necessary for food, warmth, and other material resources, but also because they provide love, security, and other nonmaterial resources that are necessary for normal human development” (para 27). It seems as though this is a positive social determinant of health for many people. The reality is many people do not have a positive family system or even friends as positive supports. In my case, I was lucky enough to have family

I agree that the socioeconomic status affects individual health. While some diseases can happen unexpectedly to anyone such as cancer and heart disease, the outcome is dramatically different. The survival rate of cancer and heart disease for upper class is significantly higher than the middle class and the underclass, because upper class can get the timely better treatment. When it comes to some infectious diseases, we can see more different consequences among different classes. Minorities, who live in urban areas, would be more likely affected by AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases and Malaria than those whites. The living environment decides individual healthy condition. People who are considered as underclass usually live in the community

Income also plays a huge role in one’s social status and the ability to achieve better health outcomes. Health disparities are brought on more by the inability to provide or maintine a healthy life style. Those who live in a low social economic class are force to gamble with their health by not being able to attend regular healthcare check-ups and pay for monthly perscriptions. Whereas in the high economic class they are more proactive and knowledgable and have the means to take better care of themselves.

The University of Rochester Medical Center found that social interaction is important for health, and loneliness leads to medical problems. One study found "fewer colds, lower blood pressure, and lower heart rates in seniors with strong social ties. Statistics show that marriage, perhaps the strongest tie, adds years to life expectancy. And suicide, mental illness and alcoholism rates are much lower when people feel a sense of belonging."

Social interactions can significantly impact health outcome of a societal environment. Social interactions are exchange of daily human activities between two or more individuals of a community that is primarily focused on the building block of a neighborhood. Social interactions occur when members of the community agree on established rules, regulations and systems that peacefully govern their existence and communicate their expectations to their fellow individuals of the neighborhood establish a built environment. Social interactions can impact health outcomes of a neighborhood base on three major health variables and mechanisms; social support, social integration, and negative interactions. Social support is a social interaction that impact