Discuss the Social Aspects of Health Issues Related to Poverty and DeprivationSubject - Health Related To Poverty

Essay by wayne1111University, Bachelor's May 2010

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Discuss the social aspects of health issues related to poverty and deprivation.

The global health crisis has become a major problem in recent years. People living in the least developed countries are the main victims of this problem. Deadly infectious diseases such as malaria, pneumonia, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, influenza, diarrheal diseases such as cholera and dysentery, and respiratory infections are taking over the populations and killing millions of people. These diseases are seriously threatening less developed countries, such as South Africa, Latin America, South and Southeast Asia.

Health is defined as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity" (WHO, 1946). Thus achieving and maintaining health is a continuous process. There are various strategies for staying healthy and improving one's health. Such important elements are social activity, hygiene, stress management and health care.

There is a complex relationship between poverty and health.

Poverty leads to 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. Poor people live on a very stretched income 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. They have limited budgets for food and may only be able to afford inexpensive foods, which tend to be processed, fatty, and lacking important nutrients.

Poverty is a major problem all over the world especially in developing countries. Social, economical, political, and cultural factors all contribute to poverty. Poverty can be defined as an "economic condition in which people lack sufficient income to obtain basic needs for food, housing, clothing, health services and education." In other words, poverty is powerlessness, a lack of representation and...