This document discusses how various biological, environmental, social, and lifestyle factors can impact individual health. It identifies several key factors, including genetic inheritance, pollution exposure, socioeconomic status, employment, education, and personal habits around diet, exercise, substance use, and sexual practices. The document also examines different types of abuse and their emotional health consequences. Finally, it notes that people can work to minimize adverse impacts and plan goals to improve their health over the short, medium, and long term.

1. Chapter III

2.  Individuals are affected by the body they
are born with and the physical world they
live in:
1. biological inheritance
2. environment.

3. 1.Biological inheritance
 chromosomes and genes
 cystic fibrosis
 Haemophilia
 Down’s syndrome

4. 2. Environment
 environment of the womb
 air pollution
 noise pollution
 water pollution
 natural disasters –famines, droughts,
earthquakes, floods etc.
 temperature of surroundings

5. The society we live in and the resources
available to us affect our health. These
include such factors as:
 social class
 employment
 housing
 Income
 Education
 accessibility of services
 Media
 Gender
 Culture
 religion.

6.  Social class
•Social class can affect our health.
•The higher the social class, the better the
mortality and morbidity rates.
•Higher social classes may be more educated
about healthy lifestyles.
•Higher social classes are more likely to practice
healthier lifestyles.
•Higher social classes are more likely to use
health services, especially preventative health
services.
•Higher social classes are more likely to receive
better treatment from health services.

7.  Employment
•Different jobs can be more physically
dangerous or demanding.
•Different jobs can be associated with more
stress, upset, etc.
•Employment helps to provide a purpose,
income, a sense of belonging, etc.
•Unemployment may lead to depression,
debt, relationship problems, etc.

8.  Housing
•Different housing provides different levels
of physical security.
•Different housing provides different levels
of comfort.
•Housing can affect our ability to study,
relax, entertain, etc.

9.  Income
•More income allows us to purchase
healthier lifestyles.
•Lack of income can lead to stress, angst,
etc.
•The more income we have, the more we
can save for the future, which is reassuring
for people.

10.  Education
•Education can be the pre-requisite to many
other factors affecting health.
•Education → qualifications → employment
→ income →social class, etc.
•Education provides a sense of satisfaction,
boosts self-esteem, etc.

11.  Accessibility to services
•If a service beneficial to health isn’t there,
people can’t use it.
•More affluent areas are usually better provided
for than poorer areas.
•More urban areas are usually better provided
for than rural.
•Poor accessibility to services can lead to ‘social
exclusion’.
•People may not be able to access services for a
variety of reasons: e.g. low income, a
disability or impairment, a learning difficulty,
mobility or communication difficulties, etc.

12.  The media
•The media comprise TV, film, newspapers,
magazines, advertising, radio, etc.
•The media can actively encourage or
discourage healthy behaviour, e.g. healthy
cooking/ dieting/exercise programmes.
•The media can subliminally encourage or
discourage healthy behaviour, e.g. actors
smoking.

13.  Gender
•Men and women can behave differently in
many ways, including health behavior,
lifestyle choices and use of health services.
•Men and women also have different body
structures.
•Men on average die younger.
•However, women have a higher rate of
morbidity.

14.  Culture
•There are cultural differences as to how
people define health, how they behave
when ill, different treatment and healing
practices, etc.
•Hence different cultures have different
health needs.
•However, not all health services cater for
all cultures.

15.  Religion
•People’s religious beliefs affect how they
should behave and how they view health.
•Religion can define the times when
treatment is acceptable and by whom it is
administered.
•Religion can define how and what
treatment is acceptable.

16.  How we live our lives affects our health, for
example:
•personal hygiene
•diet
•physical exercise
•substance abuse
•smoking
•stress
•sexual practices.

17.  Personal hygiene
•This refers to keeping our body clean and
fresh, especially personal areas.
•Poor personal hygiene can lead to body
odor, bad skin, greasy hair, bad breath,
etc.
•Poor personal hygiene can also affect
people socially and emotionally.
•People have to be especially hygienic when
working with other people, food, animals,
etc. to prevent the spreading of infection.

18.  Diet
•The quality of the food eaten can affect health
–people who eat lots of fresh fruit and
vegetables, and minimize their intake of fat,
sugar, salt and processed food, etc. are more
likely to be healthier and live longer.
•The quantity of food eaten can affect health –
obesity, malnutrition, anorexia, bulimia, etc.
•A poor diet can affect the heart, weaken the
bones, cause digestive problems, lethargy, etc.

19.  Physical exercise
•Exercise affects physical well-being: e.g.
weight, heart and lung efficiency, muscle
tone, bone strength, stamina, suppleness,
etc.
•Exercise also affects emotional and social
well-being; helping relaxation, self-esteem,
forming and building of relationships, etc.

20.  Substance abuse
•This could include legal and illegal drugs,
solvent abuse, alcohol, etc.
•These have many negative physical effects.
•Uncontrolled (and sometimes controlled)
use can lead to death.
•There are also a variety of social and
emotional consequences: e.g. depression,
relationship breakdown, loss of
employment, personality changes, etc.

21.  Smoking
•It is widely known that smoking has a highly
detrimental effect on well-being.
•Heart and lung efficiency are affected by
smoking.
•Smoking is addictive and causes cancers.
•Smoking can also affect finances,
relationships, looks and overall sense of
well-being.
•Passive smoking is also a contributor to
illness and premature death.

22.  Stress
•Some degree of stress is good for us; it can
keep people on their toes, provide
excitement, a ‘buzz’.
•This can be why people like challenges at
work, in sport, etc.
•However, too much stress can have very
negative effects
•People can become depressed, anxious,
withdrawn, stop eating, become angry,
have trouble relaxing and/or sleeping,
become dependent on substances, etc.

23.  Sexual practices
•Sex is an enjoyable, natural way to share love
and affection.
•However, unsafe sex can lead to unplanned
pregnancies, which have long-term emotional,
financial, and social effects.
•Unsafe sex can also lead to STIs; if not treated
early enough, some STIscan never be fully
treated.
•Unsafe sex can also lead to HIV and AIDS.
•Sexual practices can also lead to guilt,
embarrassment, etc. People’s self-esteem can
also be affected.

24.  Abuse can occur in a variety of ways:
•physical
•emotional
•sexual
•financial
•neglect.

25.  Physical abuse
•Physical abuse includes behaviour that
causes physical pain or injury.
•Physical abuse can take the form of kicking,
punching, scratching, nipping, neglect, etc.
•Signs may include bruises, broken bones,
blisters, cuts, restraint marks or pressure
sores, etc.

26.  Emotional abuse
•Emotional abuse includes any behaviour
that hurts or injures people’s feelings.
•Emotional abuse can take the form of
bullying, name calling, shouting, ignoring,
etc.
•Signs may include loss of self-confidence
and self-esteem, becoming withdrawn,
lonely and isolated.

27.  Sexual
•Sexual abuse occurs when people are
sexually harassed, or exposed to
unwelcome sexual activity or used to
sexually gratify the abuser.
•Signs may include bleeding, bruising,
swelling, unwanted pregnancies.

28.  Financial
•Financial abuse occurs when people are
exploited for financial gain.
•Many service users are vulnerable; they
may often trust people who claim that they
are acting ‘in their best interest’.
•Financial abuse may be a one-off theft (e.g.
of some property) or continuous theft from
someone (their weekly pension or savings).

29.  Neglect
•Put simply, neglect occurs when service
users are not cared for as they should be.
•Signs may include service users being
unkempt (e.g. having long hair and nails,
being dirty), having pressure sores, and not
having their urine and faeces dealt with
appropriately.

30.  All types of abuse have a variety of
emotional consequences.
•People may stop sleeping or eating properly.
•People may start to suffer mental health
problems.
•People may become withdrawn or socially
isolated or lose self-respect.
•Some people may become abusers themselves
as they see the behaviour as ‘normal’.

31. •People may seem frightened.
•People may have difficulty trusting people or
forming relationships with people.
•People may feel ashamed, degraded and lose
dignity.
•People may also feel that they are ‘to
blame’.

32.  People can try to minimize or reverse the
effects of adverse factors.
 They can plan changes or improvements.
 When planning, they need goals, which can
be for the short, medium or long term.
 People may need to set objectives or
outcomes.
 All targets should be based on the SMART
criteria.

33.  Everyone is different because everyone
has been exposed to different factors.
 These factors can have positive or negative
consequences.
 The effects can be short, medium or long
term.
 People can plan to improve/change their
health.

34. As a reminder, the main
factors are
Lifestyle
Physical
Socio-economic
Abuse