Your Resume, Your Health

The more impressive your paycheck, your job, and your diplomas, the
more likely you are to be healthy.

Even in the most rarefied rungs of the socioeconomic ladder, those
of higher standing are healthier than those just below, say University of
California, San Francisco researchers.

Case in point: the highly stratified British Civil Service. "People
who run the civil service have lower mortality rates than those in a
grade just below, which is made up of doctors, lawyers, and other
professionals," reports Nancy Adler, M.D., in the American Psychologist
(Vol. 49, No. 1).

"The fact is, even though social class is one of the strongest
predictors of health, we really don't know how it works," admits Adler.
"Researchers usually just control for socioeconomic statistics (SES),
rather than explain it."

She believes there are psychosocial and behavioral differences
lurking between the rungs. Past research confirms that the better
educated, paid, and titled you are, the less likely you are to be
stressed, depressed, or hostile, all risk factors for heart disease. "And
looking at health behaviors, the higher you are on the scale the less
likely you are to smoke or to be obese."

But that's only part of the story. Her best guess is that
ultimately it has to do with exposure to stress and coping with it. She
points to research showing that high-ranking people are more likely to be
in the position to influence life events, compared to those below
them.

That sense of control directly contributes to a longer, healthier
life. Plus it affects choices about education, occupation, housing,
medical care, and other parts of the social class experience.

Access to health care can't fully explain: Health differences
persisted at all levels in the British Civil Service, despite Britain's
socialized health system.