Challenging Health Inequalities. From Acheson to 'choosing Health'

This book offers a unique multi-disciplinary perspective on tackling health inequalities in a rich country, examining the New Labour policy agenda for tackling health inequalities and its inherent challenges.The book presents an overview of progress since the publication of the seminal and ambitious 1998 Acheson Inquiry into health inequalities, and the theoretical and methodological issues underpinning health inequalities. Contents include: progress in tackling health inequalities - a policy maker's perspective; inequalities in mortality rates under New Labour; explaining inequalities in health - theoretical, conceptual and methodological agendas; inequalities in pregnancy and early years and the impact across the lifecourse - progress and future challenges; inequalities and ethnicity: evidence and intervention; housing conditions and health; inequalities in food and nutrition - challenging 'lifestyles'; behaving badly? Smoking and the role of behaviour change in tackling health inequalities; health inequalities and user involvement; gilding the ghetto again? Community development approaches to tackling health inequalities; a new agenda for social work: tackling health inequalities in physical health.