Health is affected by many factors in our daily lives. However, there are some
factors that affect our health more than others. Health is more dependent on the
distribution of wealth and public services than it is on personal lifestyle choices. For
instance, being born into a family with a lower social status immediately brings upon a
higher likelihood of sicknesses and complications during pregnancy, which is clearly a
main factor in our health throughout life. On the contrary being born into an upper class
family allows for much more self-embellishment and a favorable position in the hierarchy
of our medical care system, thus in turn allowing a longer life span than those not so
privileged. Therefore one can easily see that the social class which one is born into affects
his or her life more than any personal lifestyle simply because in our modern society you
can “get anything for time and money”.
In response to a British study that observed the differences between the longevity
of “gentlemen” and “laborers” and found that “gentlemen” lived twice as long on average
than “laborers”, Dr. Oliver Fein once stated that “person’s place in the social order
strongly affects health and longevity.” [1] This social study clearly showed that no matter
the chosen personal lifestyle, social order overpowered any other interfering stimuli. This
was later also proven by Sir Douglas Black whom stated, “there are marked inequalities
in health between the social classes in Britain,” [2] and through his study also noted that
unskilled occupants had a two and a half times greater chance of dying before retirement
than professional people. Through these two studies one can clearly conclude that health
and social order are factors that are directly affected by one another.
Money is able to buy health. A simple fact since if you cannot afford the
appropriate medication to fix what...