Less money means less nutritious food, less heat in winter, less fresh air in summer, less distance from sick people, less knowledge about illness or medicine, fewer doctor visits, fewer dental visits, less preventative care, and above all else, less first-quality medical attention when all these other deprivations take their toll and a poor person finds himself seriously ill” (Myth: The U.S. has the best).
Poverty is such a powerful force that it can catapult one into a long cycle of serious health problems. And breaking this cycle is a major task that can only be accomplished with steps such as informing the public of the effects poverty is having all across our country. There are three main ways that poverty can take its toll on an individual and their family. First is the effect it can have on stress and mental health. In 2006, a government site on minority health stated that adults living in poverty were four times more likely to have psychological problems than those with an income two times greater than the poverty level.
The second way that poverty can affect health is through obesity; this is especially a problem in the United States today, where “ more than 12 million children and adolescents are considered obese.”(A New Global Health Crisis). The third way that poverty cripples the lives of those affected is through infectious disease. Obesity, stress and mental health, and infectious disease spread at such a rapid rate particularly for those living in small and unsanitary conditions and they are the major ways that poverty can affect one’s health. It is important to be educated on these topics because so many people struggle with these realities every day.
Living in poverty heavily influences stress levels and mental health. Stressors include uncontrollable situations, illness, financial status, social isolation, a lack of sleep, and work overload (Koenker, Hannah). When these are experienced over a long period of time, such as living in poverty- it can be very harmful in that it increases the likelihood of developing a disease, being obese, or experiencing a heart attack. It can often play out in depression and anti-social behaviors among children who have experienced poverty over a long period of time. One explanation for this is summed up by Families in Poverty when they said “Parents with low and unstable incomes experience more emotional distress, depression, and see themselves as less effective parents that do parents with higher incomes.” But it doesn’t just affect the children; the adults feel the distress as well. They are less nurturing parents, harsher discipline is more common and as a result, children grow up with less secure attachments (Families in Poverty). The constant worry of poverty can lead to depression and anxiety as well.
The stress of not knowing how bills will be payed or who will cover the medical costs if something happens to someone in the family and many other worries all contribute to things such as child abuse and neglect and parental conflict. This has such an effect that ”Abusive violence is more likely to occur in poor homes. Specific social and demographic characteristics increase the likelihood that poverty will lead to abuse. Poor young parents who are raising young children have an elevated risk of using the most abusive forms of violence toward their children, as do poor single mothers” (Families in Poverty). When stress hormones are released over a long period of time-for months or years- it drains the body’s energy and takes its toll on one’s emotional health.
Because of the strain of living in impoverished conditions, there is no surprise that this has such a big impact on the mental health and stability of families. But perhaps what is shocking is other ways that poverty can affect a family. And it is becoming more and more prevalent each year. The issue that has become an epidemic throughout America is the problem of obesity. A recently published report states that families with lower incomes had higher rates of obesity. More specifically: “…35.3 percent of adults earning less than $15,000 per year were obese compared with 24.5 percent of adults earning $50,000 or more per year”(F as in Fat). This is especially alarming when you learn that “More than two-thirds of states have adult obesity rates above 25 percent. In 1991, no state had an obesity rate above 20 percent”(F as in Fat). Because these findings are so shocking, it would leave us wondering why people in poverty have such high obesity rates.
