Many studies have provided evidence for an association between poverty and ill health. The exact reason for this association is not understood, but a number of theories exist. In third world countries, the association between poverty and ill health is likely a result of the relative high cost of animal protein, a factor that makes it unavailable to the poorest in society. The low protein intake results in a deficient immune system, and this in turn increases the risk of upper respiratory tract infections. However, in western nations, the association is more difficult to explain because animal protein foods are relatively cheap and available, and so other factors must therefore explain the association between poverty and ill health. This is suggested by evidence showing that while upper respiratory tract infections are the main cause of ill health in the poorest in third world societies, other western diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and obesity plague the poorest inhabitant living in the developed nations.
That poverty is associated with ill health was nicely illustrated by a particular study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 20151. In the study, the researchers assessed the body mass indices of a number of children over time, and related this data to the income of the children. What the study showed was that for girls, gains in the wealth of the family that the child belonged to, as measured by a poverty to income ratio, were associated with a reduction in the body mass indices of the children, compared to those whose family did not have gains in wealth. For boys this relationship was only evident in children born preterm. These data therefore suggest that improving the wealth of a family may decrease the the risk of obesity of the children in that family, and therefore may decrease the risk of obesity related diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Poverty therefore may therefore be associated with disease in Western nations because it increases the risk of unhealthy weight gain.
RdB
