Social Issues: Health Inequalities

Question 1

Introduction

Answer 1

• Higher mortality rate due to individual lifestyle choices: diet, exercise and eating junk food.
• Disadvantage start at a young age - mothers do not have a good diet, smoke or abuse alcohol.
• Main lifestyle choices that can cause poor health:
  - Alcohol
  - Smoking
  - Obesity
  - Geography

Question 2

Alcohol

Answer 2

• Drinking is a series Problems in Scotland.
• There has been an increase in deaths, with them almost doubling in the last 10 years, due to alcohol related problems.
• Decades ago most people suffering from alcohol related illnesses were men in there 60s that drank a bottle of scotch a day worryingly now wards are filled with people in their 30s with advanced liver disease.
• Alcohol consumption is more common among different social classes. The middle classes are more likely to stick to the recommended weekly intake than the poorer classes.
• Supporting evidence shows that 2/3 of alcohol related earths occur in the most depressed areas of Scotland, while only 19% occurred in the least deprived.
• This proves that the lifestyle choice, alcohol, can result in poor health as there are many suffers of alcohol related problems throughout the classes.

Question 3

Smoking

Answer 3

•The number of people who smoke has decrease over the years, but has fallen slower in deprived areas.

-This is supported by the Scottish Household survey data which shows that the percentage of persons 16+ in Scotland who smoke has continued to fall, a significant amount in 10 years, from 30.7% in 1999 to 24.3% in 2009, this decline has been slower in deprived areas.

• Those in deprived areas are believed to smoke more due to the lack of understanding of the danger of smoking to dealing with server stress while dealing with having no job.
• This is supported by Sir Harry Burns (Scotland former chief medical officer) believes that deprivation and stress have a negative impact on the body.
• However, on the other hand, people in the middle class do smoke however, are seen to have less stress meaning it may explain why heart disses and cancer are more prevalent in deprived areas.
• This proves the lifestyle choice, smoking, can result in poor health as there are many preventable illness caused by smoking that could prevent or reduce premature deaths in Scotland.

Question 4

Obesity

Answer 4

• Western life is bad for your health with poor lifestyle choices including exercise, diet and eating junk food.
• For example, a massive number of Britons, over 50%, are overweight and the number of overweight children is a growing concern in many western countries, most of all Scotland.
• Obesity is causing serious issues for the UK’s health service.
• This is supported by the obesity crisis costing the nation £35 billion per year.
• If the nation continually puts on the pounds around the waist line we will be putting the pounds on the further taxes needed just to keep the NHS afloat.
• This proves the lifestyle choice, obesity, can result in poor health as obesity can cause the whole nation to suffer through tax rises.

Question 5

Geography

Answer 5

• People can suffer health inequalities for many reasons, due to the reasons such as geographical area or radical group.
• The common denominator of all those factors is that they all link to poverty.
• There is wealth evidence to demonstrate that the people living in the country enjoy better health, lower death rates and longer life expectancy than those living in the poorest areas.
• This shows that poverty is linked to geographical inequalities which is linked to social class.
• For example, poverty is greatest in areas such as West of Scotland and North England which all areas have high unemployment and high levels of social deprivation.
• However, there is a clear different standards of health between areas but also within areas.
• This is demonstrated clearly if we look at London. Despite the fact that London has had the biggest increase in life expectancy the figures reveal huge differences between the rich and poorer areas.
• This proves the lifestyle choice, geography, can result in poor health as where you live can affect your beginning in life preventing your chance to succeed in life.