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Health disparities exist in countries around the world. There are various theoretical approaches to social determinants, including the life-course perspective. Chronic stress, which is experienced more frequently by those living with adverse social and economic conditions, has been linked to poor health outcomes. [5]
Poor health outcomes appear to be an effect of economic inequality across a population. Nations and regions with greater economic inequality show poorer outcomes in life expectancy, [31]: Figure 1.1 mental health, [31]: Figure 5.1 drug abuse, [31]: Figure 5.3 obesity, [31]: Figure 7.1 educational performance, teenage birthrates, and ill health due to violence.
The World Health Organization defines the social determinants of health as "the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age" , [7] conditions that are determined by the distribution of money, power, and resources at global, national, and local levels. [7] There are two main determinants of health: structural and proximal ...
These are "health outcomes, patterns of health determinants, and policies and interventions". [1] A priority considered important in achieving the aim of population health is to reduce health inequities or disparities among different population groups due to, among other factors, the social determinants of health (SDOH).
The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined health as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." [1] Identified by the 2012 World Development Report as one of two key human capital endowments, health can influence an individual's ability to reach his or her full potential in society. [2]
These health disparities are root issues to the health equity crisis present not just in the United States, but even around the world. For example, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, [ 2 ] followed closely by cancer , with the fifth most deadly being diabetes .
Disparities in mental health outcomes are a result of a multitude of factors and social determinants, including fixed characteristics on an individual level – such as age, gender, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation – and environmental factors that stem from social and economic inequalities – such as inadequate access to proper food ...
Although health research is often organized by disease categories or organ systems, theoretical development in social epidemiology is typically organized around factors that influence health (i.e., health determinants rather than health outcomes). Many social factors are thought to be relevant for a wide range of health domains.