Introduction
This paper investigates the influence of socioeconomic status on people’s health. According to literature, socio-economic status refers to a measure of an individual’s rank in terms of income, occupation and education. Research has established a positive correlation between health and socioeconomic status. That is, people who are in lower socioeconomic status (SES) have poorer health compared to those in a higher socioeconomic status.
Children
Children belonging to families in a lower socioeconomic status have access to inadequate nutrition. This exposes them to a variety of diseases caused by nutritional deficiency and weakened immune systems since their parents or guardians cannot afford to provide balanced diets to their kids. These children, therefore, succumb to ailments such as scurvy, rickets and several opportunistic infections. Child care plays a crucial role in children’s health. Families in Lower socio-economic status provide poorer child care compared to those in higher socioeconomic status. Children enjoying better child care have reduced the risk of acquiring infections and getting involved in household accidents. Well-to-do families have the luxury of hiring babysitters who can watch over the small children (Winkleby, Cubbin, & Ahn, page 222).
The environment that children live in also has an impact on their health. Well-off families live in safe, clean and serene environments that are good for the children to grow and play in. On the other hand, families in lower socio-economic status cannot afford the kind of environment that is appropriate and safe for kids to play and grow and is free from pollution and environmental-acquired infections (Jun, page 234).
Adolescents
Amongst adolescents, it is also evident that those in lower-income families have limited access to health care. This is because they can barely afford it. Adolescents belonging to affluent families have better health because they access better health facilities. Adolescents belonging to lower socioeconomic status, because of lower family incomes live in poorer quality neighborhoods. These localities have fewer public facilities such as parks, playgrounds, and community centers. This poses huge health risks since they have fewer tendencies to exercise and can be prone to diseases like diabetes. Lower-income neighborhoods also tend to be more prone to violent crimes and penetration of illegal drugs. Adolescents, therefore, abuse drugs more and engage in violent crimes such as robbery. This poses a risk to their health (Winkleby, Cubbin, & Ahn, page 222).
Middle age
In adults, socioeconomic status affects health as a result of disparity in levels of education, income, occupation, behavior and lifestyle. Research has established that persons with low levels of income and education are more likely to use tobacco. Under occupation, it has been proven that employed people generally have better health than the unemployed. Adults with higher income generally have better health as they can afford better health care and health insurance. Individuals having a low socioeconomic status tend to reside in poor quality neighborhoods that have high levels of pollution, crowding and violent crimes. This is detrimental to their health (Winkleby, Cubbin, & Ahn, page 222).
Elderly
Amongst the elderly, socioeconomic status seemed to affect mostly mortality. Generally, elderly people with a higher income and prestigious occupations have much lower mortality compared to those with low income. This could be attributed to the ease of access to proper health care. Levels of income will also determine the kind of neighborhood they live in, their ability to afford medication, healthy foods and supplements. People in high socio-economic status also tend to be watchful of their diet and exercise more. They also smoked tobacco less frequently than their underprivileged counterparts (Jun, page 234).
Unemployment
Studies have shown that unemployment generally has a detrimental effect on the health of individuals. An unemployed person tends to suffer more from depressive illnesses, stress, and hypertension. This could be a result of frustration of not having a job. Unemployed people are more likely to turn to drugs and alcohol as a way of escaping from their realities. This is harmful to their health. Unemployed people generally have a limited source of income. This means proper health care is not amongst their top priorities. Affording health insurance would be a problem. Limited income also means restrained access to a balanced diet, therefore, leading to a higher incidence of dietary diseases (Victor, Johnston, Lanier, Fernandez & Pandurang, page 932).
Educational level
It has been extensively demonstrated that individuals with more years of schooling have better well-being. This could be because they are more engaged in mental and physical exercises. Education also seems to provide a window of escape from the normal life sufferings. Socially, educated people are better placed and have more extensive networks and interactions. This is beneficial to their health.
Educated individuals also tend to be more cautious of their diet and lifestyle due to the enlightenment that comes with acquiring knowledge. Education has however been associated with negative effects on health. In many cases, people with more levels of education seem to have more depressive illnesses. This could be as a result of the stress associated with academic endeavors (Neil, Marjorie, Julia, Henry and Jacquelyn, page 192).
Wealth
Health and wealth seem to have a positive correlation. That is, the wealthier you are, the better your health. This could be true, in the sense that if one is wealthy, they probably lead a better quality of life. This means that they can afford proper medical care, live in a clean, safe and unpolluted environment and take balanced diets. However, this is not always the case. People having a lot of wealth usually suffer more from diseases like obesity, diabetes and cancer, because of their lifestyles.
This is mostly due to over-indulgence. Some wealthy individuals, due to their busy lives, become sedentary. This is deleterious to their health. Wealth gives someone a false sense of security and therefore wealthy people engage in extreme activities without caring for their lives. Alcoholism, drug addiction, sexual immorality and violent acts are common amongst the wealthy. All of which could be potentially harmful to their health (Jun, page 234).
In conclusion, most of these impacts do not occur in isolation. Rather they influence one another. With regards to having good health, the buck stops with the individual concerned. Whether you are rich, poor, black or white, your health is mostly determined by your lifestyle and the choices you make.
References
Jun, H.-J., Subramanian, S. V., Gortmaker, S., & Kawachi, I. (2004). Socioeconomic disadvantage, parenting responsibility, and women’s smoking in the United States. American Journal of Public Health, 94, 2170–2176.
Neil Schneiderman, Marjorie Speers, Julia Silvav, Henry Tomes, and Jacquelyn Gentry, (2011). Integrating Behavioral and Social Sciences with Public Health. New York, N.Y.: Free Press.
Victor, R. V., Johnston, C. H., Lanier, J. O., Fernandez, A., & Pandurang, A. K. (2007). Correlation between high risk obesity groups and low socioeconomic status in school children. Southern Medical Journal, 100(1), 1–7.
Winkleby, M., Cubbin, C., & Ahn, D. (2006). Effect of cross-level interaction between individual and neighborhood socioeconomic status on adult mortality rates. American Journal of Public Health, 96(12), 2145–2153.