One difficulty with this oversimplification is that these attitudes reduce poverty (and related problems associated with lower SES) as a problem with the individual rather than a reflection of complex societal components that contribute to poor health and lower life expectancy. SES differences in health have long been associated by many Americans as related to poor impulse control, unhealthy habits, and an overall lack of motivation (Braveman, et al, 2010). Most definitions of the social classes in the United States entirely ignore the existence of parallel Black, Hispanic and minorities communities. Many Americans believe that in the country there are just three classes: the American rich the American middle class the American poor. Social class in the United States is a controversial issue, having many competing definitions, models, and even disagreements over its very existence. Overall, lower socioeconomic status has been linked to chronic stress, heart disease, ulcers, type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, certain types of cancer, and premature aging. American youth are particularly at risk for many health and social problems in the United States. In poorer areas, where food, shelter and safety are priority, education often takes a backseat – becomes less of a priority. This correlation suggests that it is not only the poor who tend to be sick when everyone else is healthy, but that there is a continual gradient, from the top to the bottom of the socio-economic ladder, relating status to health.Įducation in higher socioeconomic families is typically stressed as more important, both within the household, as well as the local community.
These health problems may be due to environmental conditions in living and workspaces, increased levels of stress, lack of access to healthcare, food scarcity or poor nutrition.
Low income and education levels have been shown to be strong predictors of a range of physical and mental health problems. Individuals higher in the social hierarchy, typically, enjoy better health than do those lower in the hierarchy. Socioeconomic status in the United States is related to health outcomes. Socioeconomic status is an important source of health inequity, as there is a very robust positive correlation between socioeconomic status and health. Recently, there has been increasing interest from researchers on the subject of economic inequality and its relation to the health of populations. Socioeconomic status is typically broken into three levels (high, middle, and low) to describe the three places a family or an individual may fall in relation to others. Socioeconomic status (SES) is an economic and social combined total measure of a person’s economic and social position in relation to others, based on income, education, and occupation however, SES is more commonly used to depict an economic difference in society as a whole.
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