ABSTRACT
A growing number of European countries acknowledge the importance of socioeconomic inequalities in health. Many of them are now committed to identifying and promoting policies that will reduce avoidable deaths and diseases associated with material and social disadvantage, but the evidence base to guide positive action is relatively weak. A recent review of policy recommendations for tackling inequalities in the United Kingdom (UK), for example, concludes that the goal of evidence-based public policy is currently an aspiration rather than a reality (1). This knowledge gap poses a challenge to the scientific community to make the most effective use of what is already known, but it also requires the development of new approaches to learning about effective methods of intervening to promote a more equitable distribution of health opportunities.
