What is the social organization of health? Illness is a personal and a social experience. Not everyone gets the same care; health and illness vary by race, class, gender, and age. Life expectancy is...

What is the social organization of health? Illness is a personal and a social experience. Not everyone gets the same care; health and illness vary by race, class, gender, and age. Life expectancy is increasing; people are living longer and experiencing more chronic illnesses. Health is related to nutrition, access to health care, and standard of living. The poor are concentrated in dangerous jobs and poor housing and have less access to insurance. Poor urban Black people have the worst health in the United States. With regard to gender, women outlive men, in part because norms of masculinity discourage men from seeking health care and because of the success of the women’s health movement. Global inequality is enormous; infectious diseases are rampant in developing countries but not in the wealthier ones.