ABSTRACT
This book describes some of the fi ndings of a research network that examined the relation between contemporary globalization and social determinants of health (SDH), with particular attention to health equity. By social determinants of health, we mean simply those conditions of life and work that make it relatively easy for some people to lead long and healthy lives, and all but impossible for others to do the same. Especially in the global frame of reference, taking SDH seriously means starting from a recognition “that many of the most devastating problems that plague the daily lives of billions of people are problems that emerge from a single, fundamental source: the consequences of poverty and inequality” (Paluzzi & Farmer, 2005, p. 12). We defi ne health equity as “the absence of disparities in health (and in its key social determinants) that are systematically associated with social advantage/disadvantage” (Braveman & Gruskin, 2003, p. 256).
