Socioeconomic Stress and Health Disparities

Abstract

Health outcomes are shaped by the conditions of society and economy. The poorer ones do not earn much, do not accumulate much wealth unlike richer ones. They die older and experience poor health unlike richer ones. The socio-economic status (SES), particularly education, is seen as an important social determinant of health. People who have a low socio-economic status (SES) and a low education level are always getting sick, and dying more often than others in the same population and time. It is observed that these people have a lot more chronic heart disease, diabetes, asthma and other illnesses. The occurrence of health disparities is not random, it is patterned and stratified socially. People who have lower incomes and less education are more likely to engage in risk taking behaviors like smoking, bad eating, and classic couch potato exercise patterns. The clustering of these actions makes health inequalities worse.