ABSTRACT
Health inequality refers to the variation in health outcomes and mortality rates between individuals, usually dependent on some demographic variable (e.g., socio-economic class, gender or ethnicity). Although various factors create health inequalities, this chapter will mainly focus on socio-economic differences—one of the major barriers to a long and healthy life expectancy. The discrepancy in life expectancy or health status outcomes may result from many factors, such as income level, environment, health behaviours, lifestyle choices and their complex inter-relationships. Interventions attempting to reduce these health inequalities have focussed on lifestyle interventions along with more systemic policy-based advancements.
