The Profound Influence of Social Factors on Public Health

This essay comprehensively examines the multifaceted ways in which social factors shape health outcomes. It delves into the impact of industrialization, education, income, and environmental conditions on individual and public health. The essay highlights how socio-economic factors, such as education and income, influence access to healthcare, healthy lifestyles, and overall well-being. It also explores the roles of gender, cultural beliefs, and religious practices in shaping health behaviors and outcomes. Furthermore, the essay discusses the effects of environmental factors, including pollution and access to resources, on health. The author emphasizes the need for improved education systems and awareness campaigns to address health disparities and promote healthier living. The essay provides a detailed analysis, supported by various references, to illustrate the complex interplay of social factors and health.

Running Head: HOW SOCIAL FACTORS HELP SHAPE HEALTH 1
How Social Factors Help Shape Health
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Institution Affiliate

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Sociology and Social Science
Social factors are experiences and truths that tend to influence people attitudes,
personalities, and lifestyles. Health on the other hand is the current state of an individual physical
or mental condition. Social factors like the environment, gender, mental and physical health,
one’s lifestyle and socio-economic conditions such as income, education and nutrition influence
one`s health both positively and negatively. The listed social factors above have been discussed
in details below and also the effects they have on people life. (Bolívar, Daponte, Rodríguez, &
Sánchez, 2010)
Industrialization leads to the growth of economies in well-developed countries like the
USA, Australia among other European countries. This leads to higher age expectancy than
developing or third world countries in Africa. Improvement of social amenities such as schools
and hospitals aid in growing the health of its citizens. (Rodney, 2018). Education gives essential
tools that help people come up with wise decisions that help shape their health. Having higher
levels of education helps a person be aware of the importance of healthy activities such as
exercising from time to time and also the importance of seeing one`s doctor regularly. Education
also allows people to acquire well-paying jobs that can help them boost their health levels. This
is achieved through applying for health insurance, availability of healthier working conditions
and also becoming aware of life-threatening practices such as extreme smoking and alcoholism.
(Zhu & Owen, 2017). People who are not well educated tend not to know the importance of a
clean environment and maintaining good health. Improvement of social amenities such as
gymnasiums where people can do their exercises helps in improving their physical health which
leads to improvement of mental health. Consumption of a balanced diet influences the growth,

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management, and prevention of several mental health conditions such as depression. This leads
to improvement in one’s health.
Income also aids in enhancing people livelihoods where individuals with steady jobs are
able to get basic needs such as housing, clothing, and food. Rich people tend to live in safer
neighborhoods with efficient security while poor people live in dangerous neighborhoods which
are prone to crime. These areas have poor housing and also lack easy access to healthy food.
They also cannot afford to make regular visits to the doctors and are not able to acquire a health
insurance thus making them unable to support their health. (Inter-parliamentary Union &
Organization,, 2016.). The United States lacks federal laws regarding health care as a basic
human right and this has led to the existence of lower, middle class and the upper-class people.
The lower-class compromises of poor people who are unable to access efficient medical facilities
since they cannot acquire health insurances while the higher class has the ability to access them
thus living much healthier lives. (Williams, 2017).
Gender plays a vital role in social health. In most parts of the world men tend to be more
alcoholic than women hence women suffer lesser health threatening situations than men.
Excessive consumption of alcohol leads to death in many ways. People may die from fatal
accidents or intoxication of the body. This leads to the poor health hence making the body
vulnerable to diseases. An example of the disease is liver cirrhosis which causes liver failure and
mostly leads to the death of the victim (Dowdall, 2013.). Smoking also deteriorates one’s health.
Both men and women may suffer from cancer and die if they do not acquire medical health early.
Extensive alcoholism and smoking in females tend to affect their pregnancy. Children born from
parents with these practices may suffer from poor health and have a weak immune system.
Females also get exposed to a lot of violence which can be physical, sexual or physiological

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harm. In Europe the highest levels of violence occur in poor countries. Women tend to get raped
and suffer from various life-threatening diseases. In addition, constant physical abuse from their
spouses leads to internal bleeding which tends to reduce their mortality rate. Sexual preference
is common in some European countries like China and India in the past years. This is where sex-
selective abortion is highest. If the sex of a baby is known to be a girl and not a boy abortion of
the unborn child may be taken into consideration. Girls born in these countries tend to be married
at tender ages since they are viewed as liabilities while boys born tend to work in the family
fields or run family businesses. Female Genital Mutilation (F.G.M) is also practiced in some
African countries. This is a practice that tends to endanger the lives of females since the tools
used are unsafe and lack of proper medical attention leading to the death of the women. Tools
used can also lead to spreading of various viral diseases such as AIDS among other sexually
transmitted diseases. (World Health Organization, 2013.).
The environment also plays a greater role where any drastic change in the air, water or
climate may cause diseases that diminish one’s health. Poor environments such as the Sub
Saharan in Africa where two-thirds of the world's population of AIDS is located is a toxic
environment and lots of people have died since the emergence of the disease. Cultural beliefs
such as an infected man can get cured by having sex with a virgin leads to an increase in the
number of people infected by this deadly disease. The low economy of some countries in Africa,
causes herbal medicine to be used as the common means of treatment for AIDS. This is because
not everyone in Africa has the means to acquire the required drugs for the medication.
(Gustafsson & Nettleton, The sociology of health and illness Reader, 2006.). In Australia in the
early 1870s during the time of colonialization when urbanization was taking its roots, the country
experienced some diseases that the immune system of Australia`s Indigenous people was not

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able to battle. The natives at the time believed in their traditional methods to cure diseases and
this resulted to the loss of many of the people. During colonization, nutrition of the country
affected the rich and the poor differently and this led to the native’s making poor life health
choices. The rich had unhealthy food consumption which led to developing diseases such as type
2 diabetes, obesity while the poor suffered from malnutrition and deadly ailments such as
malaria. Drug usage was also on a rise in the early 1960s and 70s. The government tried to fight
this but met some obstacles such as manufactures of wine in Australia. (Gustafsson & Nettleton,
2006).
Religion also influences better health among people. Some religious organizations
influence the better living of people by advocating against some practices such as smoking and
alcoholism. Religious organizations may create support and self-awareness groups which help
those attending make better life-changing choices. (Smith & Company., 2009.) Some of the
religious rites practiced in the respective places of worship tend to have a calming effect on
members of the religion attending the masses offered. The religious faith may increase the
expectation and bring about positive health outcomes for the congregation. Prayers in the places
of worship tend to sooth the parishioner’s minds and help them overcome stress and depression.
This improves the mental health and emotional health of the worshipers. Support groups found in
these places of worship aid the people who are either addicted to drugs or have been subjected to
sexual abuse in their lives. The conveying of these victims together tends to reinsure them that
they are not alone in their daily struggles and that the people in their communities are there to
support them (TerKeurst, 2018).
Social factors such as the development and growth of countries play a major role in a
nation’s health. Some nations take time to adapt since not all nations have the same resources as

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the other. In addition, inequality in nations be it among races, gender and religion have led to the
death of many innocent people. Lack of efficient awareness about certain health condition such
as causes, prevention, signs and symptoms of diseases leads to poor health and death of people.
Thus, the levels of education systems in undeveloped countries should be improved to aid in
creating awareness about healthy living and the advantages that come along with it.

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References
Bolívar, J., Daponte, A., Rodríguez, M., & Sánchez, J. J. (2010, January 5). Int J Environ Res
Public Health. Retrieved from The Influence of Individual, Social and Physical
Environment Factors on Physical Activity in the Adult Population in Andalusia, Spain:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2819776/
Dowdall, G. W. (2013.). College drinking : reframing a social problem/changing the culture.
Sterling, Va: Stylus Pub.
Gustafsson, U., & Nettleton, S. (2006.). The sociology of health and illness Reader. Cambridge:
Polity Press.
Gustafsson, U., & Nettleton, S. (2006.). The sociology of health and illness Reader. Cambridge:
Polity Press.
Inter-parliamentary Union, & Organization,, W. H. (2016.). Child, early and forced marriage
legislation in 37 Asia-Pacific countries. Geneva: World Health Organization.
Rodney, W. (2018). How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. La Vergne: Verso.
Smith, H., & Company., 3. (2009.). Why Religion Matters. HarperCollins.
TerKeurst, L. (2018). It's not supposed to be this way : finding unexpected strength when
disappointments leave you shattered. Nashville: Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas
Nelson.
Williams, J. (2017). White working class : overcoming class cluelessness in America. Boston,
Massachusetts : Harvard Business Review Press.
World Health Organization. (2013.). Responding to intimate partner violence and sexual
violence against women : WHO clinical and policy guidelines. Geneva: World Health
Organization.
Zhu, W., & Owen, N. (2017). Sedentary behavior and health : concepts, assessments, and
interventions. Champaign, Illinois : Human Kinetics.