Social determinants of health in Mexico

Social determinants of health in Mexico are factors that influence the status of health among certain populations in Mexico. These factors consist of circumstances in which people grow, live, work, and age, as well as the systems put in place to deal with illnesses.

In Mexico, the health inequality among the population is influenced by such social factors. In the past decade, Mexico has witnessed immense progress within their health care system that has allowed for greater access to health care and a decrease in mortality rate, yet there are still various health inequalities caused by social factors.

Social determinants of health are useful when identifying risk factors that affect the health of an individual or group. Health is defined as "the overall condition of someone's body or mind." As accessed by the World Health Organization, some major determinants of whether one is healthy or not include "the social and economic environment, the physical environment, and the person’s individual characteristics and behaviours." Social determinants of health, as described by the World Health Organization, include income and social status, education, social support networks, health services, gender, employment status and conditions, and race and ethnicity.

In Mexico, poverty is reported using the Multidimensional Poverty Index and the Human Development Index. Together, these indicators suggest the overall poverty gradient of Mexico. The government’s social development agency reported a 0.6 percent drop of Mexico’s poverty rate from 2010 to 2012, but there are still 53.3 million people under the poverty line. A major effect of this poverty rate is the continuation of a huge wealth gap. Although there is a huge gap between the top ten percent and the bottom ten percent, Mexico has seen an increase in the percentage of Mexicans who are within the middle-class category.

The poverty within Mexico can be separated into two categories: moderate and extreme. Both categories total to about 45.5 percent of the total population of 117.3 million people. According to El Consejo Nacional de Evaluación de la Política de Desarrollo Social, also known as Coneval, there was a decrease in the percent of the Mexican population in extreme poverty, but an overall increase in the number of people that fall under the poverty line. The study showed that the extreme poverty rate fell from 11.3 percent to 9.8 percent, while the moderate poverty rate increased from 34.8 percent to 35.6 percent.

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