Essays

Essay Option 1: How does poverty affect people’s health and well- being' Introduction Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well- being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO, 1946). People with low incomes, particularly those who live in poverty, face particular challenges in maintaining their health. The term poverty is usually used to simply refer to a lack of money, but living in a state of financial instability is both physically and emotionally damaging. To be able to achieve this, one has to take into account the whole person and Ronald Labonte interpretes these three dimensions such as physical capability, including vitality and energy, mental health essentially described as having meaning and purpose in life, and a social context of connection to family and others in the community. People need energy and connection to others to enjoy good social relationships, connection to community and a sense of purpose to feel some control over life, and both energy and a sense of purpose to be able to live enjoyable lives (Hashagen,2003 cited by K101,2010). This essay will explain health and well- being according to Labonte’s model and outline the effects of poverty on people’s health and well- being. Labonte’s model of health shows that the three components, physical, mental, and social well- being are interconnected. According to him, people need to have energy that is physical capability and a sense of purpose (good mental health). They have to be able to enjoy good social relationship by feeling connected to others (social well- being) and to have energy. They need to feel a sense of purpose and connection to others to be able to feel in control of their lives. Then finally, when they can do things they enjoy and have good social relationships and feel in control of their lives, then they feel a sense of well- being. However, all these can be affected by poverty which is having an income less than 60% of the national average (Knight, 2005). Absolute poverty can be defined as “a minimum subsistence level based on essentials for survival. It takes account of people’s basic human needs: food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education and information (Spicker, 2007 cited by K101, 2010). Whereas, relative poverty is defined in relation to the standard of living enjoyed by the majority of people in a society. People with low incomes, particularly those who live in poverty, face particular challenges in maintaining their health. They are more likely than those with higher incomes to become ill, and to die at younger ages. They are also more likely to live in poor environmental situations with limited health care resources—factors that can compromise health status and access to care. The impact of poverty on health is a key focus of public health. Studies have firmly established that those with low incomes have lower health status than those with higher incomes. In Health, United States, 1998, the United States Department of Health and Human Services highlighted many of the disparities in health status by income and documented a stairstep pattern of worsening outcomes from rich to poor that holds true for almost all risk factors, diseases, and causes of death, and persists within racial and ethnic groups. Poor Americans are significantly more likely than those with high incomes to have health risk factors that include smoking, being overweight, and having a sedentary lifestyle. However, they also use less health care than most Americans and are less likely than the nonpoor to have had a recent physician contact, receive preventive care such as immunizations or cancer screening, or to avoid hospitalization for serious conditions by receiving preventive, office-based care. People living in poverty have a higher prevalence of disability and chronic illness and shorter life expectancy than those at higher income levels. Internationally, the relationship between income and health is even more striking. In poor nations, up to 20 percent of children die before the age of five (versus less than 1% in richer countries), and 50 percent of children are malnourished (versus less than 5% in wealthier nations). Maternal mortality rates are also higher in poor nations. Life expectancy—one of the most revealing indicators of health status—is sixteen years shorter for men and twenty years shorter for women in poor countries than in high-income countries. The relationship between poverty and health is complex. Many factors play into this link, including poor environmental conditions, low education levels and awareness of needed medical care, financial barriers in accessing health services, and a lack of resources necessary to maintain good health status. As Figure 3 shows, people in poverty live on very stretched incomes and have difficulty meeting day-to-day costs of living, leaving little room in their limited budget for anything beyond the essentials of food and shelter. Low-income Americans are more likely to live in older homes, which—particularly in the inner city—may expose them to lead paint, which causes developmental problems in children. People in poverty may have limited budgets for food and may only be able to afford inexpensive foods, which tend to be processed, fatty, and lacking important nutrients. And low-income Americans may not be able to access preventive, acute, or long-term medical care when they need it. . Other "third factor" explanations look to the adverse health effects of unemployment (such as depression) or the connection between educational attainment and positive health behaviour to understand why income is related to health status. In recent years, a growing body of research has looked to psychosocial factors to explain that it is not always income per se that affects health, but rather the social stratification or level of income inequality in society in general that affects health status Social relationship Poverty affects people’s relationship with their children. For example, children feel sad when parents cannot afford school clothes and this situation threatens them not to go to school as they fear peer pressure. Bangladeshi woman from Sandwell reports that children’s disappointment and sadness reflect back to them as parents and they feel sad too as well as their children (Yeandle et al, 2007 cited by Johnson et al, 2005). Mental health is another area which is impacted by growing up in poverty. The stressful situations that often accompany poverty, such as divorce, death, job loss, or drug addiction, can create feelings of anxiety and depression that can last well into adulthood. Parents who are struggling to provide basic necessities are often unable to spend much quality time with their children, leading to low self esteem and lifelong difficulties forming strong relationships with others. Spending large amounts of time in poor quality daycare, a situation which is much more common among children in poverty, can also have a negative impact on a child's emotional health. The low income can provoke some tensions in homes and distort relationships and undermine friendships. Some relatives are avoided for not being able to pay back borrowed money. Frequent arguments noticed between husbands and wives as a mother in Sheffield mentions that she argues all the time with her husband about money. Deprived neighbourhood According to Acheson report, living in a deprived neighbourhood can affect one’s health. People feel trapped in their neighbourhood because they cannot afford the increased bus fares thus feel a sense of isolation and alienation. Some sense fear and insecurity because of children gangs. Conditions of everyday life for the poor, such as exposure to hazardous environmental and occupational conditions (e.g., neighbourhood violence or pollution) or employment in dangerous, stressful jobs that offer few fringe benefits, also influence their health care. Children Unfortunately, poverty becomes an obstacle to future success before a child is even born. Since poor women are more likely to be uninsured, they often wait to seek proper prenatal care. In addition, they may suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, or other medical conditions that place their child at risk of premature birth. This often leads to physical and/or developmental delays that cause a child to lag behind his or her peers. Even accounting for the problems associated with their mother's poor prenatal care, children in poverty have greater health concerns than their more affluent counterparts. For example, problems with asthma are more common among kids who live in older buildings with poor ventilation. Obesity is also significantly more common among poor children, since a diet rich in lean protein and fresh produce is typically too expensive for a low income family even with the assistance of food st Once they reach elementary school, children who live in poverty often receive a substandard education because they are forced to move frequently or attend under-funded schools. This is one of the most troubling long term effects of poverty. A child who does not learn to read and write proficiently while in elementary school is likely to continue to struggle as a high school student. With poor grades in high school, his/her prospects for attending college are seriously limited. Since career advancement in the modern economy is often tied to educational attainment, the lack of a college degree sets the poor child up for a lifetime of struggle. Teenagers who live in poverty are significantly more likely to experiment with drugs, alcohol, and risky sexual behavior. Poor teens are also more likely to engage in unlawful acts, ranging from minor shoplifting to serious gang activity. At a time when they should be laying the foundation for their success as adults, teenagers who live in poverty are often making bad decisions that will only serve to further complicate their lives.