Closing the gap in a generation: Health equity through action on the social determinants of health
Author(s)/Editor(s): Commission on Social Determinants of Health
Publisher/Journal: WHO
Publication date: 2008
Number of pages: 256
Language: English
Executive summary:
Executive summary
Overview
"... The report of the World Health Organization’s Commission on Social Determinants of Health synthesises evidence from a large and disparate range of sources, while recognising that what constitutes evidence is itself contested and not value free.2 It presents a wealth of data to show the unquestionable link between economic, social, and bodily wellbeing—within and across countries. In the case of life expectancy, these embodied facts of social inequity3 can span the equivalent of a lifetime: women born in Botswana can anticipate living an average of 43 years, half that of the 86 years for women in Japan; between the poorest and most affluent parts of Glasgow life expectancy in men ranges from 54 to 82 years." [Extracts from the Editorial by George Davey Smith and Nancy Krieger. BMJ 2008;337:a1526, doi: 10.1136/bmj.a1526 - Published 3 September 2008]