4.2: Cultural Factors Affecting Health and Disease
- Page ID
- 49269
\( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)
In order to improve the health behaviors of the community, cultural factors affecting health behavior and health care services need to be clearly recognized [12, 13].
The individuals’ beliefs about health, attitudes and behaviors, past experiences, treatment practices, in short their culture, play a vital role in improving health, preventing and treating diseases [14].
Cultural variables can be motivational factors in health-disease relationships, [8].
Cultural factors/variables can be listed as in the following list
- Socioeconomic status
- Family pattern
- Gender roles and responsibilities
- Marriage patterns
- Sexual behavior
- Preventive patterns
- Population policy
- Pregnancy and birth practices
- Body
- Nutrition
- Dressing/wearing
- Personal hygiene
- Housing arrangements
- General health regulations
- Professions
- Religion
- Habits
- Culture-induced stress
- Status of immigrants
- Substance use
- Leisure time habits of
- Pets and birds
- Self-healing strategies and therapies [8].