Reasons Why Health Inequalities Exist A Consensus Some

Reasons Why Health Inequalities Exist

A Consensus? Some people (Individualists) blame lifestyle choices for inequalities in health Some people (Collectivists) blame society for inequalities in health In reality, in Scotland, most health professionals acknowledge the links between poverty, in all its forms, and poor health. Lifestyle choices do matter, but professional people find it easier to make good choices and there may even be a biological link between poverty and poor health.

THE GLASGOW EFFECT Glasgow, Scotland’s largest city, is often the focus when we analyse social class inequalities. Sociologists are keen to find out why Glasgow, in particular, has such extremes of income, health and educational inequalities. The Glasgow

HEALTH INEQUALITIES Deaths from heart disease are nearly five times higher in poorer areas, and cancer deaths almost twice as high. It is estimated that more than 6, 000 children in Glasgow are living with a parent with a substance abuse problem. Health Inequalities

DRUGS The number of drug-related deaths in Scotland soared to 1, 187 in 2018, according to official statistics. The figure is 27% higher than the previous year, and the highest since records began in 1996. Scotland has an ageing population of drug addicts, mainly men from low income backgrounds, who have been using heroin for decades and are now also taking new “street pills”. Having become addicted in the 1980 s, the men are now succumbing to the consequences of decades of problem drug use. Scotland Drug Problem

SMOKING TOO. EXPOSURE TO SECONDARY SMOKING BY INCOME Source: NHS Health Scotland, 2015 Smoke free Scotland?

SUICIDE The number of suicides in Scotland increased by 15% in 2018. 73% were men. The NHS Information Services Division (ISD) said there were 784 probable suicides in Scotland in 2018 - up from 680 in 2017. The sociologist Emile Durkheim many years ago concluded that suicide was most common in societies where there was a lack of community and social solidarity. Suicide Prevention Glasgow

LIFE EXPECTANC Y 2017 There are large variations between the Scottish local authorities with higher levels of deprivation and the rest.

Dr Harry Burns: The Biology of Poverty Sir Harry Burns was the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland. He spent a large part of his professional career researching the links between poverty and ill health. His conclusions are that there are clear links between poverty and health inequality. They are partly to do with lifestyles. A bad diet does lead to higher levels of cholesterol.

Why Inequalities? But health inequality statistics do not explain why middle class people who smoke, drink etc remain relatively healthy. What does? The Impact of stress on Health is one factor For professional people stress is manageable – Stress is more likely to be tolerable and short lived. Whereas for poorer people it is toxic – prolonged. The absence of control over their life and continuing supportive relationships fails to build resilience.

Early Years Burns’ conclusions are that difficult social circumstances, especially in the early years of life, have a dramatic effect on the body’s host defences. A child who is brought up in a chaotic environment, for example, having parents with drink or drugs issues, instability of care, neglect and/or poor housing will be brought up in an aggressive environment. Compare these two brains…

Alienation Sir Harry Burns also speaks of the impact of poverty on mental health, which, in turn, has an impact on physical health. He claims that the loss of control and sense of hopelessness for people in some communities explains poor health. He echoes Jimmy Reid’s famous speech about the negative impact of capitalism on people’s lives. Sir Harry Burns Ted. Talk