SOCIAL DETERMINANTS

Findings related to social factors that influence health

Social Stressors Predict Poor Health

Stressors involving threats to social safety, inclusion, and belonging are the strongest psychosocial predictors of biological dysregulation and poor health.

Economic Inequality and Health

"The difference in health between rich and poor varies in different countries, roughly correlating with the level of economic inequality in that country" - Jo Marchant, Cure (pg 143)

Occupation and Heart Disease

Lower job status is associated with higher risk of heart disease.

Social Support and Mortality

Higher levels of social support is associated with decreased risk of mortality.

Education and Disease

Individuals with higher levels of education are less likely to be diagnosed with hypertension, emphysema, or diabetes.

Discrimination and Heart Disease

African-American women who are chronically exposed to racial and non-racial discrimination are more likely to have early coronary calcification.

Support During Labor

Women who receive support from the same nurse throughout labor have shorter labors, less caesarean births, and use less medication for pain.

Social Support and Telomere Length

Low social support is associated with shorter leukocyte telomere length, which indicates faster cellular aging.

Neighborhood and Health

Living in a neighborhood deemed to be socioeconomically deprived is associated with greater mortality, lower self-rated health, and higher incidence of a variety of chronic diseases.

Social Class and Illness

Social class indices are the best predictors of when you get sick and how early you did.

Racism and Health

Self-reported racism was associated with greater occurence of hypertension, low birth weight, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and other physical and mental health outcomes.

Social Integration and Longevity

Highly socially integrated women live longer and are more likely to reach exceptional longevity than highly socially isolated women, beyond sociodemographic, health, and behavioral factors.