social determinants of health
Last updatedDefinition
The social determinants of health (sometimes abbreviated SDOH or SDH) are the conditions in which a person is born, lives, and works, and are divided into five areas: economic stability; education access and quality; health care access and quality; neighborhood and the built environment; and social and community context. Public health practitioners see these factors as impacting both individual health and broader national or global health disparities. For example, a higher level of air pollution in a given neighborhood may impact an individual’s risk of asthma and related illnesses.
Social determinants of health cover many factors that may be referred to as “lifestyle factors” or “lifestyle risks,” such as tobacco use, diet, or exercise. It is more accurate to refer to such factors either as “risk factors” or as a specific social determinant of health, as a person does not have control over every single quality that impacts their health. The social determinants of health recognize this in the way that risk factors are organized and labeled “social,” not “individual.” For example, under the heading “lifestyle risks,” a person may be negatively judged for not exercising, and seen as directly contributing to their own health problems. However, a person may not exercise because, for instance, they live in a neighborhood that does not provide safe, walkable access to a public park. The social determinants of health recognize this level of complexity in health-related behaviors and the ways that systemic discrimination shapes which decisions and behaviors are possible.
Additional resources
- Advancing Health Equity by Addressing the Social Determinants of Health in Family Medicine (American Academy of Family Physicians)
- What are social determinants of health? (Health.gov)
- Beyond Health Care: The Role of Social Determinants in Promoting Health and Health Equity (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Summary
Social determinants of health are five factors that impact an individual’s health and well-being, and contribute to health disparities and inequities. It’s a public health term that includes factors such as economic stability and health care access. Social determinants of health cover many factors that may be referred to as “lifestyle factors” or “lifestyle risks,” such as tobacco use, diet, or exercise. A person does not have control over every single quality that impacts their health; the social determinants of health recognize this in the way that risk factors are organized and labeled “social,” not “individual.”