Health outcomes

One of the most shocking manifestations of the lack of fairness in our society is that people with different levels of income and other social circumstances experience avoidable differences in health, with the better off living longer lives in better health than the disadvantaged. This has little to do with the provision of health services or people’s individual lifestyle choices; instead, some people are dying (or becoming ill) years younger than they should because of poverty, poor-quality housing, and low-paid or unstable jobs. These factors damage their mental and physical health in a variety of ways, for example by increasing their stress levels and blood pressure and by weakening their immune systems.