A report examined the association between income and health, through a systematic review of the English language literature relating to countries within the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. It said that existing research suggested four main ways in which money affected outcomes: material (money bought goods and services that improved health); psychosocial (managing a low-income was stressful, causing biochemical changes in the body that affected health); behavioural (people on low incomes were more likely to adopt unhealthy behaviours for a variety of reasons, while those on higher incomes were more able to afford healthier lifestyles); and reverse causation (where poor health led to low income). The report concluded that the pathways interacted in multiple ways to influence health, such that broad-ranging policies were required to address health inequalities.
Source: Michaela Benzeval, Lyndal Bond, Mhairi Campbell, Mathew Egan, Theo Lorenc, Mark Petticrew, and Frank Popham, How Does Money Influence Health?, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Date: 2014-Mar