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More handpicked essays just for you.
Explore the relationship between social determinants of health and health disparities
Socio economic influences on health
Social determinants of health
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In Monica Potts essay What’s Killing Poor White Women she details the steep decline in life expectancy for one very select group of people. That group is uneducated poor white women and that steep decline is a five year loss in life expectancy in the last 18 years. The problem with this is no one understands why and researchers have never seen such a sharp decline in such a short amount of time.
The main example for her essay is Crystal Wilson a 38 year old mother ordinary in every way. Crystal baby sat her granddaughter on the night of May 23, 2012, this night turned out to be her last. She was 38 years old and was carrying an unhealthy weight of more than 200 pounds. Crystal’s doctor had recently informed her that she was overweight and
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Montez and her co-author wanted to take a different approach from the obvious cause of death and look at quality of life indicators. Such were they employed, married and how educated their spouse was and health behaviors. It’s well documented that unhealthy behavior like smoking leads to an earlier death but Crystal didn’t smoke. The researchers found that having a job mattered and not for the money for the sense of purpose. Work also connects women to friends and other social outings they would otherwise never have without their jobs. In fact, the only two factors Montez found significant were smoking and employment. But the major problem with this is that uneducated women are the least likely to work. Men with similar lack of education can always fall back on manual labor to make a decent living or a trade. Whereas uneducated women end up cleaning houses, serving food, and child care providers. Also if this women have children it never makes sense for them to go back to work because childcare these days is much more than the minimum wage they were …show more content…
As group blacks are more likely to die young but black have recently closed the life expectancy gap. One theory suggests that uneducated white women tend to smoke, drink and abuse drugs more than black women. Meth and prescription drug abuse kill quickly and it could be that white women are just better at killing themselves. Factors like where you live and who your neighbors are also play a role because they can sometimes contribute to risky behavior. But something less tangible that researchers found is that white women in this demo are not only raising their children but their husbands as well. They’re typically the bread winners of the families and don’t take the benefits of that as a man would. So some would say the South is what’s really killing these
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are increasingly becoming a major problem of Public Health around the World. The impact of resources and material deprivation among people and populations has resulted in an increase in mortality rate on a planetary scale. Social determinants of health are defined as the personal, social, economic and the environmental conditions which determines the health status of an individual or population (Gardner, 2013). Today’s society is characterized by inequalities in health, education, income and many other factors which as a result is becoming a burden for Public Health around the world. Research studies have shown that the conditions in which people live and work strongly influenced their health. Individuals with high levels of education and fall within the high income bracket turn to have stable jobs, live in the best neighborhood and have access to quality health care system than individuals who have low education and fall with the low income bracket. This paper is to explain different social determinants of health and how they play ...
“Well, Alice, my father said, if it had to happen to one of you, I’m glad it was you and not your sister” (57). Even though Alice was the victim of the horrid crime, she had to stabilize her own emotions, so that she could help her sister cope with this tragedy. Throughout Alice’s childhood, Jane struggled with alcoholism and panic attacks. “I wished my mother were normal, like other moms, smiling and caring, seemingly, only for her family” (37).
People in lower classes are more likely to get sicker more often and to die quicker. People in metro Louisville reveal 5- and 10-year gaps in life expectancy between the city’s rich, middle- and working-class neighborhoods. Those who live in the working class neighborhood face more stressors like unpaid bills, jobs that pay little to nothing, unsafe living conditions, and the fewest resources available to help them, all of these contribute to the health issues.
Words have quite a powerful impact on an individual’s emotions which therefore affects how that individual views the world around them and themselves. Natasha Rodriguez explains this in her well-written article “Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?” The article explains how Rodriguez received a pamphlet from the college, she had applied for. This pamphlet was given to Rodriguez providing her with vital information about “Help for Underprivileged Students.” The college she was applying for was not aware of what Natasha Rodriguez financial situation was at the time because she had not sent any information to them about it yet which is the main reason why she wrote the article “Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?” She had received this information
Throughout a person’s lifetime there are a few defining moments that determine the kind of person they become. In Margaret Atwood’s Weight marriage, careers, and children play significant roles in the lives of Molly and her friend the narrator. The narrator’s flashbacks provide insight into the highs and lows of her own life along with Molly’s. Weight is an enjoyable short story because the struggles and triumphs of the characters may resonate with the reader’s own life. Atwood’s Weight is an effective and thought provoking short story. A complex plot, point of view, setting, theme, and characterization deliver mechanisms to stimulate thoughts and feelings in the reader.
Furthermore, Wilkinson and Pickett (2010) argue that health and social problems are worse in more unequal societies. Because of inequality, poverty, social exclusion with the underclass and their welfare dependency, life expectancy is less, mental illness and drug use is high and educational success and social mobility is limited. Data about the United States’ society also finds a correlation between lower death rates and higher incomes, a core t...
Variations in life expectancy and its changes are one major cause of rising income inequality. How long a person lives, as well as their quality of health, can have an important and huge impact on their income and social mobility. The life expectancy of the bottom 10% increases at only half the rate that the life expectancy of the top 10% does (Belsie). This shows that improvements in medicine benefit the wealthy more than the poor. The less wealthy have decreased access to good medical insurance and cannot afford more expensive, quality medical care. The poor are less likely to invest in healthy food and exercise, lowering life expectancy and overall health. These changes result in a cycle that causes the poor to be less healthy, and the less healthy to become increasingly poor. On the other side, the rich have different variations of habits, education, and environments, which can affect life expectancy, often positively for the
Discrimination is “the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things.” On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks was ordered to give up her bus seat to a white passenger and refused. This act of opposition defied all normalities for the average black woman. The treatment of a woman who was black compared to the treatment of a white woman in that age was completely discriminatory. Rosa Park’s strength to influence justice against racial segregation has slowly influenced justice against all discrimination. “The Help,” a 2009 novel written by American author, Kathryn Stockett, is a story about African-American maids working for white households in Jackson, Mississippi set in the early 1960’s. “The Help” depicts these women as individuals similar to Rosa Parks, who want to influence change and equality. Through “The Help,” the reader can relate the thoughts and views of the characters to our society today, particularly on the grounds of race, class and gender.
The hypothesis to support the claims that white women who are already unhealthy are less able to and are more likely to die did not hold up. She attributes the decline of white women to drug use and employment issues. Potts says,”It is well known that smoking shortens life; in fact, smoking led to the early deaths of both of Crystal’s parents and her sister and brother. Crystal, though, never smoke or drank. But the researchers discovered something else that was driving women like her to early graves: Whether the women had a job mattered, and it mattered more than income or other signs of financial stability . . . In fact, smoking and employment were the only two factors of any significance” (7). When comparing those two factors of smoking and employment to black women, Potts does not reinforce her hypothesis. She gives no thought to any women of a minority race the option of feeling like they have a sense of purpose in life. Potts says, “Black women are more likely to feel like they’re on an upward trajectory. Perhaps they have more control relative to the men in their communities”(11). Her assumptions are opinion based and they do not show factual evidence that black women are on an upward trajectory and do not struggle with drug abuse issues and a lack of self-importance. Participating in a community and working among others can give a women a “sense of purpose”. Women without a sense of purpose find the will to live harder. Having a reason to live is not a matter of race. Potts could be expressing her underlying feelings toward white feminism— that poor women as a whole may be struggling, but more importantly poor white
The author of this article, Monica Potts, writes for the American Prospect magazine. She has work that has been published in the Connecticut Post, the Stamford Advocate, and the New York Times. Her article, “What’s Killing Poor White Women”, first appeared in the July/August 2013 issue of the American Prospect. She starts out her essay by making her claim that, “For most Americans, life expectancy continues to rise- but not for uneducated white women. They have lost five years, and no one understand why” (591). There are three main points that make her claim ineffective and they include that: her emotional appeals are ineffective, her logical appeals are correct, but have no true impact on
During the Industrial Revolution of the Victorian Era, life expectancy was so low due to the lack of sanitation, working conditions, and less medical knowledge that we have now. At the time, the average age people were dying was at 35 years old (Lambert). The age, however, varied depending on where one lived. Normally, people who lived in cities died at a younger age than people who live in rural areas. The class that one was in also greatly impacted a person’s life span. It mainly impacted poor working-class communities, because of the poor conditions that came with being a member of that class (Wilde).
Her father works out of town and does not seem to be involved in his daughters lives as much. Her older sister, who works at the school, is nothing but plain Jane. Connie’s mother, who did nothing nag at her, to Connie, her mother’s words were nothing but jealousy from the beauty she had once had. The only thing Connie seems to enjoy is going out with her best friend to the mall, at times even sneaking into a drive-in restaurant across the road. Connie has two sides to herself, a version her family sees and a version everyone else sees.
The United States Department of Justice reports that women are more likely to be victims of nonfatal intimate partner violence. (Catalano, 2006) It is estimated that two million women a year are victims of physical abuse each year, and that number does not include any other form of intimate partner violence. (Connelly, et al. 2006) Intimate partner violence results in fatalities in thirty percent of all female homicides. (Catalano, 2006) For males, the percentage goes down to five percent. Men and woman ages twenty to thirty-four are at the highest risk for intimate partner violence. Again, both men and women who are married but separated are at higher risk for intimate partner violence. Black and white females are more likely to be victims of nonfatal intimate partner violence. However, white females are more likely to be victims of fatal intimate partner violence. Individuals with a lower income and socioeconomic status are at a greater risk, but females are at a greater risk regardless of income.
When I first viewed the trailer for Dear White People I was more than thrilled. I imagined the film was going to be it was going to be my generations’ version of the Spike Lee Joint School Daze based off of the perverse I viewed, but as I began to watch the movie I realized I was mistaken. Unlike School Daze, a film tailored to a black audience, while the latter is tailored for a broader audience. Dear White People beautifully depicts the different types of black people, how foolish stereotypes are, the struggles college students’ faces in finding themselves, and most importantly, that black empowerment is not the same as black supremacy. While the film has many great attributions it fails show positive relationships that does not involve a
Amanda, somehow, finds a way to be both selfish and selfless when it comes to Laura. Amanda wants Laura to be happy and successful, but does not understand that Laura is too shy and unmotivated to be either. When Amanda discovers that Laura has stopped going to typing class she is beyond disappointing. When discovered Amanda yells at her daughter saying, “Fifty dollars’ tuition, all our plans- my hopes and ambitions for you- just gone up the spout, just gone up the spout like that.” Laura quit something as simple as learning how to type; this realization struck Amanda because if she cannot do that there is no way Laura could provide for herself without a husband. Mrs. Wingfield’s worst nightmare is is for her children to become dependent on relatives and not being able to take care of themselves. After Laura drops out of typing school Amanda says, “What is there left but dependency all our lives? I know so well what becomes of unmarried women who aren’t prepared to occupy a position. I’ve seen such pitiful cases in the South—barely tolerated spinsters living upon the grudging patronage of sister’s husband or brother’s wife!—stuck away in some little mousetrap of a room—encouraged by one in-law to visit another—little birdlike women without any nest—eating the crust of humility all their life!. Amanda had always wanted for Laura to find a nice husband, but then the situation became desperate when the younger women