HEALTH DISPARITIES

Health Disparities Based on Socioeconomic Status

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Health Disparities Based on Socioeconomic Status

Introduction

Health is unequally dispensed across socioeconomic status. An individual with substandard education, occupational status and income faces health problems, and usually died in early life as compared to better-off. In United States, there is a complex affiliation among health and socioeconomic status. Health disparity is strongly influenced by socioeconomic status of an individual or family. The socioeconomic status of a family has a significant effect on child health. The deprived families are unable to provide adequate health conditions and facilities to their children because of their socioeconomic status results in poor health of a child.

Discussion

Poverty is a complex problem, and it is difficult to address it in one aspect. Poverty has a direct influence on families' ability to meet the basic needs of children and provide basic necessities of life such as nutrition, shelter and health care. Poverty is a key factor that causes health disparities. Deprivation because of poverty leads to complex consequences to the family as well as has a negative impact on children including psychological distress, depression and low self-esteem. Poor children are exposed to health disparity based on socioeconomic status that lead to worse health problems such as perinatal stress, learning disabilities, experienced an increased neonatal health problems incidence, delinquency increased rates, mental retardation and teenage pregnancy (Backlund, Sorlie & Johnson, 1999).

Socioeconomic status may include education, income and occupation is associated to broader health problems range, such as cardiovascular disease, arthritis, diabetes, low birth-weight, hypertension, and cancer. Lower socioeconomic status is linked with health mortality and increased disparities particularly among children. Health disparities are based on socioeconomic status as it restricts individual access to health care facilities mainly because of poverty and due to this lack of basic necessities of life; health of a child is affected adversely.

During 1950s, United Nations gave the responsibilities to UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) to work for children welfare throughout the globe. There is three basic mission of UNICEF; to make sure the basic education, nutrition and health needs of children are fulfilled; to provide opportunities to children so that they can increase their potential and to craft international ethical behavioral standards regarding children (Wilken, & Furlong 2002).

Overall UNICEF administration and management and headquartered at New York. The supply division of UNICEF is in Copenhagen from where UNICEF distributes ...