Social Determinants Of Health Essay

Words: 1568
Pages: 7

Question 1:
The social determinants of health are the inequalities in health status across many cultures and countries based on socioeconomic status or the social and environmental condition people live in, and the circumstances people are in; the social gradient (Baum 2015). There are nine other social determinants of health and they include: stress, early life, social exclusion, work, unemployment, social support, addiction, food and transport (Wilkinson & Marmot 2003).

Question 2:
Out of the ten social determinants of health, three were chosen that are impacting ‘Natasha Willmer’: stress, unemployment and social support. First, certain social and psychological circumstances cause stress, which leads to other psychological or mental issues
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Inequalities in socioeconomic health result from the unequal distribution of education, the level of employment, which includes working environment and income, housing quality and place of residence, including neighbourhood and community (Turrell & Kavanagh, 2004). The framework suggests that these societal resources are influenced by more upstream (macro) factors, for example, government policies and historical, economical, political/ideological influences (Turrell & Kavanagh, 2004). The level of social, physical, economical and environmental resources influence health, either indirectly psychosocially and health damaging behaviours, or more directly physically (accidents, injuries and violence). This is the influence by the midstream (intermediate) factors (Turrell & Kavanagh, 2004). Downstream (micro) factors are the biological reactions occurring from disruptions or damages to the physiological systems, as well as the psychosocial processes acting independently or inter-dependently with health behaviours and physiological problems (Turrell & Kavanagh,