Stress as a Social Determinant of Health - Literature review Example

Stress as a social determinant of health Name Course number University Date Introduction The field of health is a multidisciplinary field that has sparked different approaches by scholars and researches. It is described by (Vázquez, Hervás, Rahona, & Gómez, 2009) as resource that is needed for everyday living. However, it is almost agreeable that everybody wants to experience sound health in all aspects of health. It is sad though that all populations regardless of the conditions they live in struggle with health related issues and they dedicate numerous resources to solving these issues. There are many factors that influence health globally and this paper lays focus on the social determinants of health. These are factors that are defined by the conditions in which people live and grow in, but have a relative influence on health. Specific attention will be given to stress as a social determinant of health. The essay seeks to establish how stress plays part as a positive and negative social determinant of health. However, it is important to remember that stress is a state of mind or being that is brought about by a number of factors, yet has the power to influence an individual’s state of health both positively and negatively. In what ways is stress a positive social determinant of health Nordqvist (2013) argues that stress may be a positive social determinant of health in that to some extent, the absence of stress would give rise to a dull and meaningless life. He further reports that a certain level of stress is good for the mind. Therefore we believe that stress can be a positive social determinant of health only when it is perceived positively. Thian, Kannusamy & Yobas (2013) explore the aspect of Positive affectivity which is the ability to be optimistic across a myriad of situations at all times. They further assert that Positive affectivity may be associated with lower chances of poor coping mechanism while exposed to stress. In this regard, an individual is able to turn the energy involved with stress into something productive. According to McCann et al (2013), stress in especially in the aspect of work may be a pointer to something that needs attention, and being in this type of awareness, one then is able to develop efficient coping strategies and enjoy a higher quality of life. Stress can be an indicator of cracks in ones support system and this enables one to reconsider seeking support for their social system. In this case the experience of stress motivates one to mend relations with his/her social support network and this makes a positive contribution to the general well being of the individual as well as of those around him/her. In what way is stress a negative social determinant of health Indeed stress is an active negative social determinant of health across a variety of settings. However, we appreciate the fact that on its own stress is not an independent factor which means that there are certain situations or factors that trigger people to be stressed. However, when not managed properly stress becomes a negative social determinant of health, especially when it is combined with other social determinants of health. According to Lang et al (2012), stress results from the psychological reactions individuals have towards certain stressors. On the other hand, life events that are perceived as stressful place individuals at a risk of poor heath (Bermúdez-Millán, Damio & Pérez-Escamilla, 2011). This is evident in people across all walks of life regardless of the situations or circumstances that are perceived as being stressful. To begin with, work related stress is a negative social determinant of health across the world today. According to Thian, Kannusamy & Yobas (2013), work stress is very prevalent in the nursing profession internationally and it has been associated with major effects on the psychological and physical health of nurses. Additionally it is a major contributor to medical related illnesses such a blood pressure and heart diseases (Lim, Bogossian & Ahem, 2010). Works stress is the result of failing to balance work and life and as a result workers may experience burnout in their work which leads to chronic stress. On the other hand, perceived poor working conditions, general dissatisfaction with ones job as well as job insecurities may result to high stress levels which have been known to have a negative impact on the health of an individual physically and psychologically (Viljoen & Rothman, 2009). Bültman (2009) further elaborates that work related stress is also a function of the physical injuries one may incur at the work place such as spinal injuries that result to redundancy. In such experiences, mental health is also at high risk. As highlighted earlier, moderate levels of stress can be helpful and encourage productivity, but once the level of stress becomes too much for one to cope with, then it acute or chronic stress results and is manifested in the physical body. Experiences of fatigue, restlessness, irritability and psychosomatic illnesses such as chronic headaches are an indication that something is wrong with the stress coping mechanism an individual applies in his or her life. According to Thian, Kannusamy & Yobas (2013), nurses are prone to work stress due to the nature of their work which exposes them to frequent conflicts. For instance they highlight the case of nurses working in the emergency department who have very little autonomy when it comes to making work related decisions, yet their work environment is also very stressful. As a result intrapersonal and interpersonal conflict arises, which may affect their ability to cope with stress and consequently, this may manifest in poor physical and psychological health. Whether the conflicts are between colleagues or they arise from their interactions with patients, as well as those arising from adverse events, they all are situations that evoke stressful feelings and frequent exposure to such circumstances may result into chronic stress. Consequently, poor management of stress results to anxiety and on a more fatal note progresses to depression which is highly detrimental to mental and physical health. Stress is an underlying factor in cases where social isolation is experienced. According to Nordqvist (2013), it is possible for an individual to be in a state of stress yet he/she is a not able to identify the source. On the other hand, when people react to general life situations with negativity, they are likely to go through life feeling frustrated, angry and anxious thus putting their psychological health at risk. As a result they are likely to isolate themselves from their social networks such as family, work colleagues and friends. Therefore they lack the moral and material support which comes with this support system, and this lack of support exposes one to high chances of experiencing poor physical health (Lang et al, 2012). Therefore, this means that one withdrawal from the social support system exposes an individual to poor well being manifested through depression and attacks by chronic illnesses such as diabetes and cardiovascular illnesses. However it is important to understand that in relations to stress and the need to withdraw from the social support system, there are chances that people may feel so overwhelmed by the events in their life, to the extent that they are may feel socially isolated even in when the social support is readily available. In a study conducted by Bermúdez-Millán, Damio & Pérez-Escamilla, (2011) on stress and the social determinants of maternal health, a participant who is a single mother reported that she often experienced high levels stress because she was not able to count on the support of her family mainly because sometimes the members are unwilling to provide the support. On the other hand she has to provide support for her children and this becomes a strenuous and difficult experience. Stress as a negative social determinant of health may be the function of ethnicity, race and discrimination. Paradies et al (2013) argue that individuals develop unhealthy stress coping mechanisms when dealing with discrimination arising from ethnic or racial affiliations. As a result there is a tendency to participate in unhealthy and self destructive behaviour which has a negative impact on the health of an individual in the long run. A review by Brondolo et al (2011) indicates that there is a relationship between hypertension and racism that has been institutionalized into the social system. Bermúdez-Millán, Damio & Pérez-Escamilla, (2011) in their study found out that some of the participants experienced stress due because they felt they could not acquire employment due to racial discrimination. Lang et al (2012) on the other hand argues that stress does arise from an individual’s perception of discrimination in his/her life, and this affects the quality of life which consequently has a negative impact on psychological and physical health. Poor stress management and coping ability is responsible for job loss which results into unemployment. On the other hand, stress is also brought about by unemployment and regardless of what the causative factors are; stress related to unemployment is linked to poor health (Bambra et al, 2010). In addition Lang et al (2012) highlights that the effects of stress experienced due to unemployment and job insecurity gives rise to adverse effects on the cardiovascular health of an individual. This is best explained with the view that while coping with this kind of stress, individuals experience feelings of anxiety, frustration and uncertainty which gives rise to hopelessness and helplessness. As a result, it is easier for an individual going through this to get involved in self destructive behaviour such as smoking, heavy alcohol use and poor eating habits which results to addiction, bringing about a myriad of health problems. There is a higher prevalence of stress in people who are living in low socioeconomic status. Low income directly affects the quality of life in regard to aspects such as housing and diet. According to Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (2013), this affects the quality of health and is associated with poor mental health and higher rates of mortality. With increased low income levels, individuals acquire mental disturbances because they are in constant thought trying to figure out how to make ends meet. However populations on the other end of high socioeconomic status also experience stress which is mainly self- inflicted through irrational thoughts. These extreme populations may experience the same magnitude of stress though arising from different situations. Therefore, the most important factor in this case is how strong the individual stress coping mechanisms are; and if poor then here is a tendency to fall into self defeating and destructive behaviour, which is harmful to all aspects of health. Individuals experience stressful events on a daily basis and the most detrimental thing is the inability to handle the feelings of stress, such that they accumulate and become harmful. Transport form one place to another is a stressful event for many especially when they have to travel on a daily basis. This occurs mainly when people are exposed to long hours of traffic jam every now and then which generates stresses and strains to the body; not forgetting the physical stress experienced as a result of air and noise pollution by the automobiles and other forms of transport. However, Grant, Bird & Marno (2012) argue that transport may offer a solution to stress reduction by enabling people to travel and connect with the people in their social networks. Nevertheless it is unfortunate that the working middle class especially in the developing countries in Africa experience stress related to the transport systems in their countries which are very poorly organized (Eshetu & Woldesenbet, 2011). Overall stress related disorders have the ability to undermine the health status of an individual as manifested through disturbances such as the lack of sleep, Poor eating habits, social isolation and depression just to mention a few. On another note, once stress is allowed to accumulate over a period of time it develops into acute and chronic stress which has a negative impact on all aspects of human health. As a result individuals develop negative coping mechanisms which are manifested in destructive behaviour such as substance abuse, smoking, and drug abuse which has a direct negative impact on health. In addition to this, stress may result into socially deviant behaviour such as crime and in others leads to suicidal thoughts and tendencies and this is an indicator that their psychological well being is at risk. Conclusion Stress on its own is a very wide and in exhaustive topic and it has been known to result into a myriad of problems. However, our focus was on identifying ways in which stress is a social determinant of health positively and negatively. In concluding we believe that stress has more negative than positive consequences in its contribution to the aspect of health. The most significant consideration is that all situations have the ability to be stressful but ones interpretation of the situation matters largely. Therefore, the ability to handle and manage stress will determine how it takes toll on one’s health. It is important to understand that stress can be manageable and as such it bears a positive implication on health. Stress becomes a negative social determinant of health once it is allowed to accumulate, and as a result it affects the mental health of an individual. As a consequence, psychological disturbances result and thereafter it is manifested in the physical aspect of health through the experience of psychosomatic illnesses. This does affect the other aspects of health such as the spiritual, environmental and social aspects. This can also account decreased levels of life expectancy in many societies across the world today. References Bambra, C., Gibson, M., Sowden, A., Wright, K., Whitehead, M. & Petticrew, M. (2010). Tackling the wider social determinants of health and health inequalities: evidence from systematic reviews. 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