A Conceptual Framework For Action On The Social Determinants Of Health

The identification of genes that confer susceptibility to adverse or beneficial responses following exposure to diverse social environments has only just begun. One caveat should be kept in mind in reading through the following review of evidence. Few of the cited studies drew their evidence from randomized experiments.

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Thus, to be healthy, newborns must make profound changes in gene expression as they transition from intrauterine to extrauterine environments. Genes may confer susceptibility only during a specific span of time, referred to as a critical period. The complex interrelationships between genetics and environmental stimuli are not clearly defined and are an active area of current research.

The effects of individual, family, and community attitudes and beliefs on health behavior have been well described. This work focused initially on asthma and diabetes and more recently on substance use and HIV/AIDS treatment . Examples of such programming during particular sensitive or critical periods of development are coming to light. Outcomes associated with programming early in life may also promote health.

We know that taking care of ourselves by eating well and staying active, not smoking, getting the recommended immunizations and screening tests, and seeing a doctor when we are sick all influence our health. The conditions in which we live explain in part why some Americans are healthier than others and why Americans more generally are not as healthy as they could be. Environmental wellness is recognizing the unstable state of the earth and the effects of daily habits on the physical environment. It consists of maintaining a way of life that maximizes harmony with the earth and minimizes harm to the environment. Stress contributes to an unwell state and causes a significant increase in risk to a person’s health including infections, heart disease, mental disorders, substance abuse and injury.

This appears to be a special case of the more general phenomenon of how environmental influences can be embedded in biology during critical and sensitive periods of development. Healthy development depends on gene expression being responsive to changes in the environment. For example, the radical change in the environment at birth is responsible for changing the expression of genes to enable the baby to make the transition from intrauterine to extrauterine life.

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• The health benefits of exercise include improved metabolism, increased muscle and bone strength, more efficient cardiovascular function, larger lung capacity, tension reduction, and improved sleep.
• At the same time, we must avoid, or at least minimize, the things that can compromise health-environmental stressors and our own destructive behaviors.
• It is tempting to ignore the environmental factors of health because they often seem beyond our personal control.
• But there are environmental factors we can and must control if optimum health is to be obtained and maintained.
• The body responds to these demands by becoming stronger and more efficient.

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Vector-borne pathogens include Lyme disease, highest among 5–9-year-olds , and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, most prevalent under age 10 . Cat scratch disease, carried by cats, has an estimated annual incidence of 22,000 cases, with the highest age-specific incidence in children less than age 10.

A number of diseases like heart diseases, cancer and diabetes are related to life – style. Good life – style like good food, sleep and exercise promotes better health.

Health begins where we live, work, learn, and play — long before we visit the doctor’s office or walk in our local pharmacies. Our health is largely determined by the social, economic, cultural, and physical environments we live in — everything from where we work and live to our level of education and our access to healthy food and water. Health starts in our homes, schools, workplaces, neighborhoods, and communities.

And few if any of the nonexperimental studies included all relevant variables in their data and analyses. A related problem is that few of the cited studies include data that represent the whole population of children. Thus, the findings that are reported as significant may be significant only in the population studied or similar populations. Nonetheless, the committee found the evidence to be sufficiently compelling to warrant inclusion when there was a plausible, well-supported connection between the influence and health. It includes culture, behaviour and also habits like smoking and alcoholism.