The health determinants extend beyond health care; housing, education, and
transportation may significantly influence populations' health. Numerous factors in one's life might affect one's health; nevertheless, these variables can be broadly classified into four related categories known as "determinants of health."; Genetics, behaviour, environmental and physical variables, and social issues are among them. If these components are accessible, they may be used to explain a community's disease patterns and prevalence rates.
Genetics
A person's health is influenced by various biological factors, including genetic makeup. Specific biological and genetic characteristics influence certain populations more strongly than others. Biological and genetic variables include hemophilia, the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, which increases the chance of breast and ovarian cancer, and a family history of heart disease (Petrucelli, Daly & Pal, 2016). Genetics plays an essential role in one's life expectancy, health and development of certain diseases inherited from parents.
Behaviour
People display a complex pattern of evolving behaviours throughout their life. These changes might be minor or significant. These actions may also be intentional or unintentional, and they can be helpful or harmful to one's health as well as the health of others. These include smoking, drug use, unsafe sexual conduct, lack of exercise, and bad food habits (Adhikari & Rijal, 2014). Anxiety, anger, and melancholy are all examples of psychosocial qualities that seem to be linked to physical health. Avoiding emotional disorders and hazardous behaviours are two components of mental health promotion. Personal characteristics, as well as several psychological variables, are among the causes behind this. Significant life events and continuing disagreements all influence the degree to which a person is stressed, the frequency with which they are worried, and the consequences of stress on their mental and physical health.
Environmental
The term "environmental determinants of health" refers to any external element that has the potential to influence a person's present state of health. According to Badulescu et al. (2019), environmental factors account for 13-20% of the illness burden in Europe. These issues include poor access to clean water and sanitary sanitation, adequate housing, good air quality, a safe working environment, and exposure to severe weather. Several hazards to a person's health are produced by their surroundings, which differ depending on their geography and socioeconomic position. Environmental factors influence people's health in my community. Environmental risks significantly impact human lives and are the principal
source of suffering for most of my city's citizens. Many people suffer from respiratory disorders due to poor living conditions and exposure to airborne contaminants, particularly aerosol sprays. Another significant issue is population growth, which accounts for around half of all occurrences of malaria and diarrhea among children. Everyone's living level is degraded because most people live in poverty. This has influenced a few people's mental health and health-related habits, such as nutrition, degree of exercise, and excessive use of alcohol and cigarettes.
Social Factors
The last category is the social factors, which encompasses social and economic
elements that affect people's and communities' health. A person's socioeconomic standing comprises money, power, and resources, and political and socioeconomic difficulties influence it. A person's socioeconomic status may be impacted by various factors, including income, occupation, and education (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021). These factors, known as social determinants, affect people's physical and mental well-being and just people's physical and mental well-being but also the communities in which they live and work.
References
Adhikari, D., & Rijal, D. P. (2014). Factors affecting health-seeking behaviour of senior citizens of Dharan. Journal of Nobel Medical College, 3(1), 50-57. https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/JoNMC/article/view/10055
Badulescu, D., Simut, R., Badulescu, A., & Badulescu, A. V. (2019). The relative effects of economic growth, environmental pollution and non-communicable diseases on health expenditures in European Union countries. International journal of environmental research and public health, 16(24), 5115.https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5115
Hill-Briggs, F., Adler, N. E., Berkowitz, S. A., Chin, M. H., Gary-Webb, T. L., Navas-Acien, A.,... & Haire-Joshu, D. (2021). Social determinants of health and diabetes: a scientific review. Diabetes care, 44(1), 258-279.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33139407/
Petrucelli, N., Daly, M. B., & Pal, T. (2016). BRCA1-and BRCA2-associated hereditary breast and ovarian cancer.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1247/
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