Primary Submission Category: Place/Communities
Long-term Associations Between Housing, Neighborhood and Health Outcomes Among Low-income Households in the United States
Authors: Olumayowa Idowu,
Presenting Author: Olumayowa Idowu*
The social determinants of health (SDOH) are non-medical factors that influence health outcomes at the individual, community, and national levels. Research indicates that SDOH may have a greater impact on health outcomes than healthcare access or lifestyle choices, with SDOH accounting for an estimated 30-55% of health outcomes. One key determinant is the neighborhood and built environment, which includes housing and the conditions in which people are born, live, grow, play, work, and age. (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024; World Health Organization, 2025; Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, n.d.).
Housing and neighborhoods could influence health outcomes through multiple pathways. Environmental exposures, crime rates, and access to resources all shape the well-being of individuals and families. For example, children and young adults living in neighborhoods with high rates of illicit drug use may be more likely to engage in substance use due to increased exposure. A neighborhood with high crime rate could worsen health outcomes by increasing the chances of injury and death. A less walkable neighborhood could decrease the likelihood of personal exercise and increase the chances of sedentary lifestyle, and obesity. Exposure to lead or mold in housing units could increase the chances of learning difficulties, cognitive impairment, developmental delays in children, and asthma. Households in neighborhoods with limited access to healthy foods, but easy access to ultra processed foods could face increased risks of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Where children live is strongly correlated with whether they will experience poverty in the future because of the potential long-term impacts of housing and neighborhood characteristics on children’s future economic, educational, and health outcomes (Bess et al., 2023; Hock et al., 2024). It could be inferred from these findings that a poor health status of adults in low-income households due to poverty, low educational attainment, poor housing quality, poor neighborhood and environment and gene could also reduce the children’s present and future income, educational attainment, economic opportunities, wealth, social support, and health outcomes, and perpetuate intergenerational cycles of poverty and poor health.
Gaylord et al, (2018) reported that children that experienced residential change or housing instability more than three times before age seven had significantly more thought-and-attention related challenges when compared with children who experienced less than three residential changes before age seven. Impacts could also include poor mental and physical health, academic underachievement, tiredness, and delayed development. With more than 30% of US households reported to be experiencing financial or rent burden due to the high cost of housing, there is evidence that the housing crisis in the United States continues to grow, and the results are widespread negative downstream impacts for individuals, families, communities, states, and the nation (United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2014; Jones et al, 2021).