Poverty is not simply a lack of income. It is a powerful predictor of life expectancy, child survival, chronic disease, and mental health. It shapes exposure, vulnerability, and access to care.

In this chapter, we examine the relationship between poverty and health through the lens of justice. Health disparities are not random - they follow social gradients. Those lower on the socioeconomic ladder experience higher mortality, greater morbidity, and shorter lives.

We explore how poverty operates through multiple pathways: inadequate housing, food insecurity, environmental exposure, limited education, insecure employment, psychosocial stress, and restricted healthcare access. Health inequalities are produced through cumulative disadvantage across the life course.

The chapter also engages with ethical frameworks. Are health inequalities inevitable? When do differences become unjust? The distinction between inequality and inequity becomes central - inequities are avoidable, unfair, and rooted in structural arrangements.

Addressing poverty-related health disparities requires policy beyond healthcare - taxation, labour markets, education systems, housing policy, and social protection.

This episode challenges us to see health inequity not merely as a technical problem, but as a moral one.

Key Takeaways

* Poverty is a major determinant of health outcomes across populations.

* Health follows a social gradient - not only the poorest are affected.

* Material deprivation and psychosocial stress both contribute to disease.

* Inequality becomes inequity when it is avoidable and unjust.

* Structural policies strongly influence health distribution.

* Interventions must address root economic and social conditions.

* Life course disadvantage compounds health risk.

* Equity-focused public health requires political commitment.

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