Poverty exacerbates sickness, and wealth protects well-being—two sides of the same coin viewed from opposite sides.
“Financial well-being, measured using various metrics, affects nearly every health indicator, from birth weight to longevity. Income is perhaps the most obvious financial metric linked to health. The richest 1% of people in the United States live 10 and 14 years longer (for women and men, respectively) than the poorest 1%.”
Smartly, in the higher net worth and longer life span study, sibling and twin cohorts were compared, thus minimizing differences in genetic background and early childhood experiences. By midlife, the net worths of the 5,000+ participants varied by about $139,000 and were “associated with a 13% relative decrease in the probability of death nearly 24 years later,” with the wealthier cohort living longer.
Complex statistical analysis graphically demonstrated differences in survival curves as noted below. For those unfamiliar with survival curves, these graphs march out over time when subjects die. This life expectancy data is accurate because in modern times birth and death dates are precise in the U.S. for the past over 100 years.
How can this scenario be changed? Many thoughtful and well-meaning solutions exist from changing attitudes, increasing productivity, improving efficiency, boosting education, employing technology, removing waste, redistributing wealth, breaking down multigenerational “learned helplessness,” and others.
All suggestions can create politically charged debate, and none is absolutely curative. However, understanding the important effects of poverty and wealth on well-being, health, and life span can change the focus of traditional healthcare services from supporting a repair shop mentality to addressing prevention-accelerating processes.