Lifestyle Development and Health

The social context or social environment is referred to as the immediate social and physical environment in which individuals live and execute their everyday actions. In health and social care, social content is seen to shape the lifestyle as well as health outcomes of the individuals. This is because the way individuals live and the social conditions that influence people to perform everyday acts are coherently related with their health and lifestyle development (Pitt et al., 2019). In this essay, through presentation of effective facts, it is to be mentioned to the extent to which social contexts play their role in shaping health-related lifestyle and outcomes of health for individuals.

One of the social contexts is income level of the individuals is seen to highly influence people's health outcomes (Hung et al., 2021). This is because high income is associated to provide individuals higher ability to spend money while maintaining financial stability in availing costly healthcare treatment for highly-effective and preventive measures to achieve better and positive health outcome compared to the low-income people (Gheorghe et al., 2018). However, poor people due to lack of adequate income and lower financial ability fail to avail enough treatment for achieving better and quality health outcome regarding any disease (Yusuf et al., 2020). For example, it is argued by Khaing et al. (2017),

cardiovascular diseases are seen to be present among people with low income compared to high-income people. This is because low-income people have limited availability of finances with which they are to arrange basic necessities of the family and living such as arranging home, maintaining education, food and others prior to think of spending money to arrange healthcare intervention and measures yearly for them. Thus, low-income people due to their have monetary constrains fails to maintain yearly check-up, avail early care and maintain effective diet to remain healthy for avoiding cardiovascular disease (Khaing et al., 2017).

In the UK, according to the report of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) it is seen that 22% of adults from the low-income households are suffering from cardiovascular diseases compared to 16% of adults from high-income families (NHS, 2018). This is because people from low-income households are unable to avail effective early intervention for the prior detection and prevention of the disease (Rosengren et al., 2019). Moreover, in respect to ischemic heart disease, it is seen that 8% of individuals in the low-income quartile are suffering from the condition compared to 3% of individuals who are in the high-income quartile. This is because the low-income quartile does not have enough opportunity and finances in taking preventive measures for avoiding and treating heart issues (healthsurvey, 2018). Thus, it indicates that income level has relation to the presence of health outcomes for example related to heart disease in people in the UK.

The income is also found to be highly responsible for influencing the health-related lifestyle of the people. For instance, to maintain a healthy diet with effective availability of foods in adequate amount is related to maintaining healthy lifestyle. This is because it ensures intake of specific amount of nutrient required by the body for supporting its health functioning (Tacon and Metian, 2018). In high-income quartile in the UK, it is seen that they buy more amount of fruits and vegetables compared to foods having saturated fats and increased sugar. However, people in low-income quartile are seen to be dependent on availing fatty and fast foods. This is evident as in 2010 it was seen that 2,167 g of fruits and vegetables was availed in the low-income quartile whereas 2,556g of fruits and vegetables are availed in the higher income quartile. Moreover, 35.3g of saturated fat is availed by each lower-income individuals whereas 30.4g of saturated fats was only availed by each individual in the high-income quartile (BHF, 2012). Thus, it indicates that people with higher income are seen to have capability in spending finances to avail more healthy fruit and vegetable to avail adequate nutrition compared to the people in the lower income quartile.

In respect to health-related lifestyles like physical activity, which is required for maintaining healthy physic and well-being is seen to be influenced also by the social factor that is level of income by individuals. This is evident from the study of Kari et al. (2015) which mentions that people who belong to the highest income group are seen to show 26% higher energy to experience and 3% increased intensity to exercise compared to people in the low-income group. According to Lora et al. (2020), people in the higher income group expresses increased energy and intensity for exercise as they have lower fatigue and distress. This is because high-income people are seen to have increased financial stability and scope to fulfil their basic needs which makes them motivated out of stress-free life and have more energy to involve in addition physical exercise. As argued by Smartt et al. (2016), people with lower income are seen to show less intensity to perform physical activity but spend less sedentary time. This is because people in the low-income group are seen to be more fatigue and distressed due to their jobs and financial constrains making them lack energy to further participate in additional physical activity that is related to healthy lifestyle. For example, in the study by Shuval et al. (2017) it is mentioned that people in the income quartile of ≥$75,000 involved in more than 4.6 minutes of daily exercise compared to the low-income group ($20,000).

The education and literacy level are another social determinant of health that influences people’s health outcome along with their health-related lifestyle (Schaeffer et al., 2017). As mentioned by Haghdoost et al. (2019), educated people have better self-awareness regarding the way lifestyle is to be maintained to achieve good health. This is because education leads the individuals have ability to confront and gather wide number of evidence and information to determine what is important for their health and way they are to be implemented in leading their lifestyle. However, it is argued by Mullan et al. (2017) that people with less literacy or uneducated people show higher irresponsibility in maintaining health-related lifestyle. This is because the non-educated people do not have enhanced information and evidence to differentiate between the good and bad impact of certain lifestyle, in turn, making them adopt hindered health-related lifestyle. For example, it is mentioned by the Kings Fund on analysing education and health relation in 26 OCED countries is that people with university degree or higher level of education are seen to live fiver year more compared to the people with lower level of education or who are illiterate. This is because lack of higher education led the people incapable to make informed choice regarding health lifestyle that would promote their increased living over the years (Williams et al., 2020).

The extent to which health-related lifestyle is influenced by education level of the people can also to be proved through the analysis of smoking prevalence in the UK. The report mentions that 6.3 millions of people who are 18 year of age and over in England smoked in 2016. Among them the people living in the least deprived areas where they have less or no education regarding health impact of smoking and other were found to be more concentrated in smoking than the people in the least deprived areas where people have high education about health-related services and deteriorated impact of smoking (ONS, 2018). The education is also related to create enhanced health outcome among individuals is evident from the study of Davies et al. (2018). The study by Davies et al. (2018) mentioned that people in the UK who remained in school and availed education after 15 years once the age of school leaving was increased were seen to produce high weight healthy babies, were less likely to smoke during pregnancy, have fewer siblings, more likely to breastfeed and expressed better quality of living. This suggests that education creates an informative impact on the people to realise which health decisions are better for them that leads them to have better holistic health outcome in life (Panagioti et al., 2018).

The performance and level of education was associated with addiction and substance abuse related health outcome in people. This is because higher education led the individuals understand the side-effect and negative impact of substance abuse that led them avoid involving in such activities (Agnafors et al., 2020). This is evident from the study of Esch et al. (2014) where it is mentioned early school drop-outs were more prone to develop association with substance abuse and addiction compared to educated individuals. In another study by Wallin et al. (2019), it was mentioned that student having low grade in education expressed higher depression in early adulthood compared to students having higher grades. This suggests improved performance in education leads the people to have better satisfaction with life out of their thing that good grades would lead them to have better career (Agnafors et al., 2020). However, the pupil with lower grades in education feel unsatisfied in life and bother for their future which negatively affects their mental health (Wallin et al., 2019).

The above discussion mentions that the question asked is true as social factors like income level and education do influence the health-related outcome and lifestyle of the people. This is because people belonging from lower-income families lack enhanced finances and stability compared to high income individuals that lead them unable to avail required treatment and maintain healthy diet for enhanced health. Moreover, the people with high education remains well informed about the best ways of healthy living and known regarding the side-effect of hindered lifestyle due to which they have enhanced health outcome and well-being.

References

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