When the topic of health comes to our mind, we usually think of hospitals, doctors, medications, and treatments. However, most parts of our health outcomes are already determined by the conditions in which we live long before we visit a clinic. Where we live, learn, work, and our relations with others have a great impact on our total health.
These non-medical factors are referred to as social determinants of health (SDOH), and it is very important to grasp their meaning if we want to have better health outcomes both at the individual and population levels.
What Are These Everyday Life Factors?
Social determinants of health refer to the different environmental, social, and economic conditions people experience. Some examples of these are:
- Income and job security: Having a job with good conditions and getting paid a decent wage helps the person to avoid stress and gives the opportunity to have good nutrition, an adequate place of living, and get medical care.
- Education and literacy: People with higher education levels tend to have healthier lifestyles and are better at making decisions that relate to their well-being.
- Neighborhood and housing: Living in secure neighborhoods with clean air, places where it is possible to walk, and houses that are not very expensive contributes not only to the physical health of a person but also to their mental health.
- Access to healthy food: Food plays a significant role in the body, from weight management to the risk of various diseases.
- Social support and community ties: Being socially connected to a group gives a person the emotional support he/she need, helps in fighting anxiety, and increases one’s ability to recover quickly from difficult situations.
- Transportation and connectivity: Having means of transport that one can always rely on facilitates reaching the workplace, the hospital, the school, and the place where one can socialize with others.
All these factors are like a team that is constantly working together and pushing each other. For example, an individual who does not have enough income may be living in a place that has limited grocery stores, thus it would be hard to get fresh food, which will in turn cause health problems that last for a long time.
Why Do These Factors Matter So Much?
Globally, about 7 million early deaths each year are attributed to air pollution – a key environmental social determinant. The implication of this is that health should not be regarded as merely a consequence of medical intervention, but rather it is largely determined by what people do in their daily lives.
People living in neglected areas may have to endure high levels of pollution due to which will limit their opportunities for fresh foods and fewer safe spaces for physical activity. Mainly, people with weak social support networks are at higher risk of depression, chronic stress, and even heart disease.
Research suggests that clinical care influences only about 20% of overall health outcomes, while social and environmental determinants have a far greater impact on long-term well-being.
Not having enough means of transportation can make you miss your important medical care, which is likely to bring serious health problems later. To sum up, our living conditions can have equal if not more impact than the care we get.
The Role of Technology in Addressing Social Determinants
With healthcare changing to a more comprehensive, patient-centered, and integrative model, technology is becoming increasingly instrumental in the process of recognizing and tackling social determinants of health.
Digital innovations such as electronic health records (EHRs), predictive analytics, and AI-generated risk models now utilize information not only about housing but also about food and social support networks. For instance:
- Telehealth opens up medical care access to people living in distant or disadvantaged areas.
- Health applications on smartphones allow users to keep a record of their dietary habits, exercise, and stress management.
- Technology-enabled health devices in real-time provide patient monitoring and timely alerts to health care providers if any danger.
- Public health tools leverage the power of aggregated data to pinpoint those areas with communities that have the greatest social and economic challenges and thus require the most support and resources.
Such a radical move in treatment has been made possible only by means of these disruptive technologies, so that healthcare providers can now go beyond the visible symptoms and actually spot the underlying causes of the illnesses.
Taking a Holistic Approach to Health
Improving health outcomes requires collaboration across healthcare providers, policymakers, community organizations, employers, and technology innovators. It means designing solutions that go beyond treatments and medications to support healthier environments and lifestyles.
When we recognize that health begins in our homes, schools, workplaces, and communities, we open the door to more meaningful, lasting change.
FAQs
1. What does “everyday life factors” in health mean?
Everyday life factors are non-medical influences that include income, education, housing, food access, work environment, and social support. These factors are commonly referred to as social determinants of health (SDOH), and they have a significant impact on both our physical and mental health.
2. Are social determinants more important than medical treatments?
Without a doubt, medical care is necessary; nevertheless, studies indicate that clinical care is responsible for only about 20% of the total health, whereas lifestyle, environment, and socioeconomic factors make up the rest.
3. How does where I live affect my health?
Where you live determines the air quality, access to parks, availability of fresh foods, safety, and healthcare facilities. To illustrate, residing in a walkable, low-pollution area where fresh foods are easily accessible promotes healthier living, whereas living in a high-pollution area or an area with a high crime rate can increase stress levels, which may eventually lead to various diseases.
4. What role does education play in health outcomes?
Education determines access to job opportunities, financial security, health awareness, and the ability to make wise decisions.
5. How does technology help in addressing these social determinants?
Remote health services such as telemedicine, predictive analytics, electronic health records, wearable technologies, and community health programs are some of the digital health tools that enable healthcare providers to identify the risks at an early stage and provide the required assistance in a personalized way.
Dive deeper into the future of healthcare – Keep reading on Health Technology Insights.
To participate in our interviews, please write to our HealthTech Media Room at sudipto@intentamplify.com
