Social determinants of asthma in Australian children

This paper discusses the social determinants of asthma in Australian children, focusing on children aged 10-15 years. It explores the prevalence of asthma in children, the impact of socioeconomic status on asthma prevalence, and the role of education in asthma prevention and management.

Running Head: SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF ASTHMAIN AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN
Social determinants of asthma in Australian children
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SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF ASTHMAIN AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN
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Social determinants of asthma in children
Introduction
Asthma has been declared as a National Health urgency area not only for the Australian
government but also for other countries. This is because asthma is a chronic health condition
with a important impact on the public and has well-defined interventions which have the
potential of reducing its impacts on the community and individuals. The paper will discuss
asthma as an Australian health priority and the social determinants of asthma especially in
children who are aged between 10 and 15 years.
Prevalence of Asthma in children in Australia
Based on the Australian Health statistics of 2012-2013, among the children aged between
0-14, asthma is prevalent in males while among the individuals aged 15 years and over
((Backman et al. 2017), it is more prevalent in females. In the country around 3 million people
have asthma while in children aged 5-14 years, it is one of the leading causes of total burden
(Backman et al. 2017). In general children from poorer economic or social circumstances are
normally at greater risk of poor health, live shorter lives and have higher rates of death,
disability, and illness as compared to those who are more advantaged in the society. In 2014-
2015, there were about 40000 hospitalizations where asthma was the major diagnosis, that is,
175 cases per 100000 population. children who were aged 15 years were more likely to be
diagnosed with asthma, that is, 460 cases per 100000 population as compared to those who were
aged 15 years and over (Backman et al. 2017). Traditionally, individual indicators like income,
occupation, and education have been used to describe the socioeconomic status of the people.
Children who are exposed to unsafe and unhealthy living standards in their early childhood years

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are likely to become primed for poor health. Children who live in socioeconomically
disadvantaged areas suffer the brunt of cardiovascular diseases like asthma. Normally they are
exposed to greater direct physical experiences and challenges and emotional stressors like
domestic instability, family conflict, etc. For instance, take a child whose parents live in a ‘poor’
neighborhood. The parents can be having stressful jobs; their home is situated near transportation
or industrial sites which cause air pollution (Maikawa et al. 2016).
Biology, genetic endowment, Education and asthma
Health determinants are the features which influence how likely people stay healthy or
become injured or ill. There are three major determinants of health, that is, behavioral risk
factors, biomedical risk factors, and social determinants of health (Phillips et al. 2016). World
Health Organization describes social determinants of health is defined as the conditions in which
individuals live, grow, age, and work as well as the systems established to deal with diseases and
illness. Thus, the situations in which individuals live are shaped by economic, social, and
political factors (Chen et al. 2016). The situations in which individuals work are born or live are
the key most vital determinant of ill health or good health. Uncontrollable and unpredictable
situations exacerbate the stress level of the child, which in turn, consequently affects how the
genes of the child are expressed. The socially established health status has life-long impacts on
the wellbeing of the child. The poor like the indigenous Australian children have been reported
to suffer from asthma more than their non-indigenous children. For instance, the prevalence of
asthma is higher among indigenous children (16%) than in non-indigenous children (14%). It is
believed that most of the asthma cases in Australia are hereditary (Febriawan & da Silva Sodre,
2018). Most children suffer from atopy which is the tendency to develop asthma in the country,
thus, causing an increased sensitivity to some allergens especially those in the air and food.

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Children having atopic dermatitis or eczema have been reported to suffer from asthma. Empirical
studies have shown that children suffering atopic dermatitis suffer severely and have persistent
asthma than adults. Education is a social determinant to asthma prevalence in the country. For
instance, children whose parents have low education standards normally do not have the
knowledge and prerequisite information concerning asthma prevention, management, and
alleviation (Andersen et al. 2016). Coupled with social determinants like poverty levels and low-
income status, children whose parents lack knowledge do not find the right and available health
care resources which can help in diagnosing and treating asthma. Non-remote areas enhance the
risk of prevalence of asthma in Australia. For instance, the majority of indigenous people live in
non-remote areas indicating that the risk of suffering from asthma is generally high (Iqbal et al.
2014). These areas have reduced economic opportunities which result in lower socioeconomic
status which is highly linked to asthma prevalence in children. Financial poverty influences the
locality in which the indigenous people reside which usually mean living on or in closeness to
major industrialized areas thus getting exposed to polluants which casue asthma to children.
Conclusion
Asthma prevalence is higher in areas where there is low socioeconomic status especially
the aboriginal children in the country. The increased prevalence of asthma can be attributed to
prolonged or increased exposure to specific risk factors and the culturally-appropriate asthma
service delivery and education. To alleviate asthma prevalence in children in the country,
healthcare professionals must understand the social determinants of the disease and apply a
holistic approach in diagnosing, treating and preventing the disease

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