Question

The next two questions relate to the dynamic model: health today influences income today, which in turn influences health tomorrow.

Describe how the relationship between health today and health tomorrow might take on an S shape. In particular, explain why health could be a) increasing over time when the initial level is very low, b) falling over time when the initial level is low, c) rising over time when the initial level is moderate, and d) falling again when the initial level is high.

Explain how this relationship creates a poverty trap. That is, why is it difficult for someone with initially poor health to reach good health in the long run?

Answer 1

Investment in health is not only a desirable, but also an essential priority for most societies. However, in a day to day basis individuals face tough and complex challenges, in part derived from new pressures, such as ageing and growing prevalence of chronic illnesses.There is a profound relationship between health today and health tomorrow. What this means is people who take care of their health in a present moment will be economically sound in the future.Moreover individuals who have bad health today it is because of limited access to income or they are often more socially isolated, experience more stress, have poorer mental and physical health and fewer opportunities for early childhood development and post-secondary education. In the reverse, it has been found that chronic conditions, especially those that limit a person’s ability to maintain viable stable employment, can contribute to a downwards spiral into poverty. The relationship between them take on an S shape because of cumulative growth. Means there will be lower level of uncertainty. In other words one can identify steepness and ceiling across the trends. The relationship creates a poverty trap , it becomes difficult for someone with initialy poor health to reach good health in the long run thereby it seems impossible for them to escape poverty. It is created when an economic system requires a significant amount of various forms of capital in order to earn enough to escape poverty. When individuals lack the capital because of bad health today, they may also find it difficult to acquire it, creating a self-reinforcing cycle of poverty.