social-determinants

Sorry for another theoretical post, but I just finished writing a 5-page paper for ethics, and had something on my mind.

Daniels, one of the authors we have read from, submits the idea that health is more determined by social factors than by health care or even access to health care.  Life is so multifaceted!  Why would our health be any different?  Our health is determined by our lifestyles and culture and cultural foods and coping mechanisms and beliefs and the list goes on and on and on.

In this regard, chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes could ACTUALLY be viewed as communicable diseases!  While you can't catch them from direct contact, they are actually behaviors that are learned from life.  If you spend enough time and enough contact hours around certain environments, you are very likely to "catch" them.


When we view these chronic diseases as communicable, it changes our approach to curing them.  Obviously, this starts with a good dose of prevention.  Housing situations, work environments, eating habits, shopping and cooking knowledge, drug use, activity level, and education all contribute to the environment that these diseases could be transmitted.


I actually don't know how to solve this.  The problem is HUGE and complicated and infused with the complexities and fallen-ness of humanity.  But people are worth it.  If we can put huge medical efforts into traditional communicable diseases, then maybe we should start working on the more subtle ones person by person.  Because people are worth it.