How rich or poor you are may determine your health

A group of researchers have shown that your social status — that is, how rich or poor you are — will also determine how healthy you’re likely to be

The scientists, led by an Assistant Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology and Biology at Duke University, Jenny Tung, warn that the difference in life expectancy between the rich and the poor is estimated to be 14.6 years.

In other words, the richer you are, the more likely you are to live long.

The group of scientists who carried out the research at the Yerkes National Primate Research Centre of Emory University, United States of America, conclude that poverty has the tendency to destroy or alter a person’s immune system.

The immune system is made up of a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the body.

One of the important cells involved are white blood cells, which combine to seek out and destroy disease-causing organisms or substances.

The researchers warn that in America, for instance, people in the lowest socio-economic bracket are more prone to heart disease and diabetes.

“Several factors are responsible for this, though; and they include disparity in access to medical care and differences in habits such as exercise, diet, and smoking,” the researchers note.

They assert that it is becoming evident that the chronic stress of life that the poor are generally exposed to can negatively influence the way in which the immune system functions.

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