According to an investigative report issued by the World Health Organization on August 28, social inequality affects the health of the world's population. It comes as a reminder to attach more importance to a fair distribution of wealth while developing the economy.
The report, named "Closing the Gap in one Generation," is the result of a three-year investigation by the World Health Organization's Commission on the Social Determinants of Health.
It reveals that "wealth is not necessarily a determinant." Some low-income and developing countries such as Cuba, Costa Rica, China and Sri Lanka have achieved good levels of health despite a relatively low national income. While the toxic combination of economics and politics causes large gaps in health among different countries and different regions in the same country, those gaps were caused by social inequality, not biological factors. And they appear among Northern European countries, most undeveloped countries, and different regions in Australia and Britain.
The report also reveals that although economic development has increased several countries'incomes in recent years, the increase in a nation's wealth does not necessarily improve the nation's health. If a fair distribution can not be attained, economic development could possibly aggravate social inequality.
By People's Daily Online
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