Good Health and the Middle Class Dilemma

It would not hurt to invest a little money when it comes to good health. This statement is true but it limits the discussion of health to economics. The realization of good health is both a social phenomenon and a communal effort which requires active and constructive participation and maintenance by members of a social class. 

Good health is relative to social class and by this I do not mean that the poor are the least healthy and the wealthy are the most vibrant due to their access to health care. No, there is another dimension that remains untouched in the discussion of health among social classes.  The struggling yet socially mobile middle class are potentially the unhealthiest among the social classes.  And this is not  because  of  access to health  care or issues of economics  and affordability  rather  this is  an issue  of  lifestyle options  and alternatives as  determined  or  limited by  an established  middle class social  life—food, leisure,  expectations, aspirations,  etc.  

My discussion  of health in  the middle class  will  go as  far as figuring  out why the  middle class  are less interested  in  having  a healthy lifestyle  than their  lower  and  upper class  counterparts.  Since I cannot give  a detailed  demographic  description of  who the middle  class  are for this  discussion,  I would like  to assume  that there is such a  thing  as  a  “middle  class  way of life” – a lifestyle  commonly  associated with  the middle  class  but  is openly  and  unconsciously practiced by  all  social  classes. To  put it  more  simply,  these  are the people  who spend  their mornings,  break  times or  idle moments,  and  evenings  connected  to  the  Internet consuming loads  of  information  and  data. Given this assumption, I think it is safe to say that these people  possess or  have access to computers or  mobile  phones.  

My Assumptions (not based on  empirical  evidence and  are subject to  further  research  in  the Philippine  context,  or  Los  Banos context   in our  case)

-          -Good  health is social

-       -   Good health practices  should be replicable  and  practical to  everyone  who are  willing  to lead  a  healthy  life

-        -  Farmers and lower  class  citizens  have access  to  organic food  since their  own  organic  produce  revolves  around their families and small communities

-          - Upper class citizens,  already  given that they have the  financial capacity  to  purchase organic  goods, are  closer  to  organic specialty  shops  since  they are  its target  market

-          - Middle class citizens are  usually  stuck in  a  sort of  “health  limbo”  because, generally, they don’t  want to get their hands  dirty  and  grow  produce themselves  and at the  same time they strive for a life  of luxury

-          - The middle  class  are the most susceptible  to  illness and  disease

-        -  The middle  class  diet includes  high  amounts of  sodium, caffeine, sugar,  and  cholesterol

-          - Increased  stress and expectations  leads  the  middle  class  to  consume  energy  -rich foods like  fatty  and  sugary ready-to-eat snacks  and meals.

What the Middle Class Need

-      -     A supportive environment to encourage good health  among the middle  class

-       -   Personal efforts/individual efforts and lifestyle choices by healthy individuals should  be  supported by  a  healthy social environment

-        -  A  social  environment with  a positive attitude towards  good health

-         - A social  environment that promotes organic agriculture

-         - A  social environment  that  views  healthy  living as a normal way  of life  and not just  for those of the  upper  or  lower  classes

-        -  A  healthy  social environment  that  gives emphasis  on  the  role of  the  community  for good health

My Recommendations

-     -      Responsible  entrepreneurship that would help  expand  healthy  options  and  lifestyle  alternatives in the  community

-       -   Organic  agriculture  and  backyard farming for self-consumption

-        -  Health-conscious  educational  curricula in  schools

-         - Health-sensitive  business  ideas and practices

-         - Los  Banos  has  already done  well in  promoting  fitness, now  it should be  augmented by  the  promotion  of  good  health  through proper  diet  by  way  of  organic  and healthy  food  businesses and  establishments like  local restaurants,  eateries and  organic vegetable markets. This would  give  the middle  class other  options  aside  from  fast foods,  convenience  stores,  and  tapsilog  stalls

-          - Emphasis of the UP Open University on Organic Agriculture in their PED and NEP courses to encourage and develop health-conscious entrepreneurs.  Emulating the  way UP  Rural High School  promoted and emphasized agriculture  to its students during our  time.

-          - The  link  between  organic  agriculture  and  entrepreneurship is a practical  solution in creating a  healthy  social  environment  and  supportive  community  of  good health.

Objective

-           To help formulate a practical approach  to healthy living in the  social context  of  today’s  middle  class society.

Other Problem/s:

-          Middle class living is  like a bouncing ball,  it never stays up or down for  a long  time.  When will the middle  class realize that health is a  major lifestyle  issue/concern when, generally, their main  focus  shifts up  and down from survival to  living  lavish  lifestyles?