Socio- economic class can affect the health of individuals discuss Essay

Socio- economic class can affect the health of individuals discuss - Essay Example These three components of socioeconomic position influence an individual’s life chances and living standards. Each of them can act as a reference point when constructing hierarchical classification of socioeconomic position. For example, people can be classified based on skill level from unskilled manual jobs to professional jobs or from low income to high income (Liu, 2011, P.258). Occupation, educational achievement and income capture critical dimensions of people’s material and social endowment, and also act as substitute for other unmeasured progressions which profiles an individual’s health. In this respect, researchers aim to capture unmeasured factors, which vary in line with these three factors when they classify individuals or households using them. The common trend is that people in higher socioeconomic groups tend to have better health and fewer disabling conditions that those in lower groups. Health inequalities are evident from the beginning of life as exemplified by gradients in birth weight, which influence cognitive and physical development (Lu and Jonsson, 2007, P.267). Social economic status (SES) is often implicated as a cause of health disparities among different groups. It can be defined as the relative position of a household or an individual in a hierarchical society, based on their access to wealth, prestige and power. SES is related to health status and captures an individual’s or groups ability to access basic resources required to achieve and maintain good health (Lu and Jonsson, 2007, P.267). There is a strong correlation between health outcomes and income, educational achievement, wealth, community environment and race or ethnicity. People with higher incomes, higher educational qualification and those who live in a healthy and safe environment have on average longer life expectancies and better health outcomes. On the other hand, those with low