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SACE Stage 2 Health and Wellbeing study materials
SACE Stage 2 Health and Wellbeing study resources

SACE Stage 2 Health and Wellbeing practice questions

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Question 1Influences on health and wellbeing

Which term describes the full range of factors that shape a person's health, including social, economic and environmental conditions?

  1. The principles of first aid
  2. The stages of change
  3. The determinants of health Correct answer.
  4. The components of fitness

Explanation

Determinants of health are the conditions and factors that influence health status, spanning individual, social, economic and environmental levels. They are used to explain why different groups experience different health outcomes. The other options name unrelated frameworks or categories.

Question 2Influences on health and wellbeing

A community has limited public transport and few supermarkets nearby. Which determinant of health does this situation best illustrate?

  1. Cultural identity
  2. Genetic inheritance
  3. Health literacy
  4. Built environment Correct answer.

Explanation

The built environment refers to human-made physical surroundings such as transport systems, housing and the layout of neighbourhoods. Limited transport and distant food outlets are physical features of a place that affect access to healthy food and services. This makes the built environment the most direct fit.

Question 3Influences on health and wellbeing

Which of the following is classified as a sociocultural influence on health and wellbeing?

  1. Blood pressure regulation
  2. Air quality in a suburb
  3. Family expectations about diet Correct answer.
  4. Availability of vaccines

Explanation

Sociocultural influences arise from relationships, family, peers, culture and community norms. Family expectations about what to eat shape food choices through shared values and social pressure. The other options describe biological, environmental or health-system factors.

Question 4Influences on health and wellbeing

What does socioeconomic status primarily refer to when analysing influences on health?

  1. A person's position based on income, education and occupation Correct answer.
  2. A person's access to emergency medical treatment
  3. A person's inherited physical capacity
  4. A person's level of physical activity each week

Explanation

Socioeconomic status is a combined measure of a person's economic and social position, usually indicated by income, education and occupation. It influences health through access to resources, housing, nutrition and services. Physical capacity, treatment access and activity levels are separate concepts.

Question 5Influences on health and wellbeing

Which influence on health and wellbeing is best described as biological?

  1. A family history of type 2 diabetes Correct answer.
  2. Unemployment in a household
  3. Peer pressure to drink alcohol
  4. Living near a busy highway

Explanation

Biological influences include genetics, hormones, body composition and inherited predispositions to disease. A family history of type 2 diabetes reflects inherited and physiological factors that raise risk. The other options describe social, environmental or economic conditions.

Question 6Influences on health and wellbeing

A person who believes they have little control over their own health is most likely to be described as having which characteristic?

  1. An external locus of control Correct answer.
  2. High resilience
  3. Strong health literacy
  4. High self-efficacy

Explanation

Locus of control describes whether a person attributes outcomes to their own actions or to outside forces. Believing that health is determined by luck, fate or powerful others reflects an external locus of control. Self-efficacy, health literacy and resilience describe different capacities.

Question 7Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best explains why social support can improve health and wellbeing?

  1. It removes the need for any medical treatment
  2. It replaces the influence of genetic factors
  3. It guarantees freedom from chronic disease
  4. It can reduce stress and encourage healthy behaviours Correct answer.

Explanation

Social support provides emotional and practical resources that buffer stress and promote healthy routines. Supportive relationships can encourage help-seeking and adherence to healthy behaviours. However, support does not eliminate the need for treatment, guarantee health or override genetics.

Question 8Influences on health and wellbeing

Which of these is an example of an environmental influence on health and wellbeing?

  1. A person's income level
  2. A person's attitude towards risk
  3. A person's knowledge of nutrition
  4. Exposure to second-hand smoke at home Correct answer.

Explanation

Environmental influences relate to the physical surroundings and conditions in which people live, work and play. Exposure to second-hand smoke in the home is a physical environmental hazard affecting health. Attitudes, income and knowledge belong to other categories of influence.

Question 9Influences on health and wellbeing

A school introduces free breakfasts and a later start time for senior students. Which two determinants of health are most directly being addressed?

  1. Cultural and spiritual factors
  2. Genetic and biological
  3. Nutritional and sleep-related lifestyle factors Correct answer.
  4. Occupational and economic factors

Explanation

Free breakfasts target dietary intake, while a later start time targets sleep duration and timing. Both are lifestyle behaviours that the school setting can influence. Genetics, culture and occupation are not directly modified by these measures.

Question 10Influences on health and wellbeing

Research shows that people in lower-income households are more likely to experience chronic illness. Which explanation best reflects a structural interpretation of this pattern?

  1. Genetic differences are the main cause of the pattern
  2. Chronic illness is randomly distributed across all income groups
  3. Limited income restricts access to nutritious food, secure housing and preventive care Correct answer.
  4. Individuals in these households make poorer choices by nature

Explanation

A structural interpretation focuses on how unequal access to resources shapes health opportunities. Lower income can restrict nutritious food, stable housing and timely preventive care, which raises chronic disease risk. This is a material and social explanation rather than a blame-based or purely genetic one.

Question 11Influences on health and wellbeing

Two students live in the same town. One has a parent who smokes indoors, and the other does not. How does this difference most plausibly influence their health outcomes?

  1. It changes their genetic code
  2. It determines their level of health literacy
  3. It alters their exposure to environmental health risks Correct answer.
  4. It changes their cultural background

Explanation

Indoor smoking creates second-hand smoke exposure, an environmental health hazard that can affect respiratory and cardiovascular health. Living in the same town means shared services and climate, so the key difference is exposure within the home. Genetics, health literacy and culture are not altered by household smoking alone.

Question 12Influences on health and wellbeing

Which scenario best demonstrates the influence of peer norms on health behaviour?

  1. A student recovers faster because of prescribed antibiotics
  2. A student catches a cold after exposure to a virus
  3. A student avoids vaping because their friendship group disapproves of it Correct answer.
  4. A student avoids a food because of a diagnosed allergy

Explanation

Peer norms are shared expectations within a social group that shape what members see as acceptable. Avoiding vaping because friends disapprove shows behaviour shaped by group approval. Allergy, infection and recovery involve biological rather than social mechanisms.

Question 13Influences on health and wellbeing

A workplace offers flexible hours and a quiet room for rest breaks. Which determinant of health is being most directly modified?

  1. Genetic predisposition
  2. Cultural beliefs about illness
  3. Access to clean drinking water
  4. The occupational setting and working conditions Correct answer.

Explanation

Working conditions are part of the occupational setting, which is a recognised determinant of health. Flexible hours and rest facilities reduce stress and support recovery during the working day. The other options refer to biological, cultural or environmental factors unrelated to these changes.

Question 14Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement about the relationship between education and health is most accurate?

  1. Education only affects health through income and nothing else
  2. Higher education is generally associated with better health literacy and healthier behaviour Correct answer.
  3. Education guarantees good health regardless of other factors
  4. Education has no measurable relationship with health outcomes

Explanation

Education is generally associated with greater health literacy, better problem-solving and healthier behaviour. It also tends to improve employment and income, which further supports health. However, education is one influence among many and does not guarantee outcomes or work through income alone.

Question 15Influences on health and wellbeing

A government raises the price of tobacco and restricts where it can be sold. Which type of influence on health behaviour is this primarily?

  1. Policy and regulatory Correct answer.
  2. Biological
  3. Spiritual
  4. Genetic

Explanation

Pricing and sales restrictions are policy measures that change the environment in which health decisions are made. They operate at a population level by making an unhealthy product less accessible and affordable. Biological, genetic and spiritual factors are not being targeted here.

Question 16Influences on health and wellbeing

Which factor best explains why a person with strong health literacy may still make unhealthy choices?

  1. Health literacy is unrelated to health behaviour
  2. People with health literacy cannot experience stress
  3. Health literacy always overrides every other influence
  4. Other determinants such as cost, stress and social pressure also shape behaviour Correct answer.

Explanation

Health literacy is only one determinant among many and interacts with cost, stress, social norms and environment. A person may understand health information yet face barriers or pressures that lead to unhealthy choices. Health literacy is neither all-powerful nor irrelevant.

Question 17Influences on health and wellbeing

A community group installs shaded seating and drinking fountains in a local park. Which outcome is the most likely intended health benefit?

  1. Increased physical activity and hydration with lower heat exposure Correct answer.
  2. Improved access to surgical care
  3. Higher household income
  4. Reduced genetic risk of disease

Explanation

Shade and water in public spaces make outdoor activity safer and more comfortable, encouraging physical activity and hydration. This is an environmental modification designed to support healthy behaviour. It does not affect genetics, surgical access or income.

Question 18Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best describes the concept of a 'health inequity'?

  1. A difference caused only by genetic variation
  2. A difference that cannot be changed by policy
  3. Any difference in health status between individuals
  4. An avoidable and unfair difference in health between groups Correct answer.

Explanation

Health inequities are differences in health that are avoidable, unjust and rooted in social conditions. Not every difference in health is inequitable, because some variation is biological or unavoidable. The key features are unfairness and the potential to be addressed.

Question 19Influences on health and wellbeing

A young person's friendship group begins to normalise heavy drinking at weekend gatherings. Which mechanism best explains the effect on that person's behaviour?

  1. Genetic predisposition to alcohol dependence
  2. Reduced access to alcohol
  3. Social modelling and perceived group norms Correct answer.
  4. Improved health literacy

Explanation

Social modelling occurs when people observe and imitate the behaviour of those around them. Perceived group norms also signal what is acceptable, increasing the likelihood of similar behaviour. Genetics may contribute to risk but do not explain the group-driven shift described.

Question 20Influences on health and wellbeing

Which combination of determinants best explains why residents of a remote town have higher rates of untreated chronic disease?

  1. Genetics and spiritual beliefs alone
  2. Random chance with no identifiable pattern
  3. Geographic isolation, limited health services and lower health literacy Correct answer.
  4. Personal motivation and willpower alone

Explanation

Remote location can reduce access to services, and limited services combined with lower health literacy can delay diagnosis and treatment. This is a multi-level explanation involving environmental, health-system and individual factors. Single-factor explanations such as genetics, willpower or chance are insufficient.

Question 21Influences on health and wellbeing

A researcher finds that a health-promotion program works well for high-income groups but not for low-income groups, widening the gap between them. What does this illustrate?

  1. The intervention has an inequitable effect across socioeconomic groups Correct answer.
  2. The intervention is effective for everyone equally
  3. The low-income group lacks motivation
  4. Socioeconomic status is irrelevant to program outcomes

Explanation

When a program improves outcomes for advantaged groups more than disadvantaged groups, the gap widens. This is an inequitable effect because the intervention fails to account for differing resources and barriers. It does not show equal effectiveness or a lack of motivation.

Question 22Influences on health and wellbeing

Which explanation best accounts for the observation that health behaviours cluster together within social groups over time?

  1. Shared norms, environments and networks reinforce similar patterns of behaviour Correct answer.
  2. Behaviours are entirely determined at birth
  3. Health behaviour never changes across a lifetime
  4. Each person acts in complete isolation from others

Explanation

Behaviours cluster because people share social norms, physical environments and social networks that reinforce similar habits. Over time these shared influences sustain patterns within groups. Behaviour is not fixed at birth, isolated or unchanging.

Question 23Influences on health and wellbeing

A community has high unemployment, poor housing and limited green space, and also reports high rates of mental distress. Which interpretation is most defensible?

  1. The pattern is coincidental and unrelated to living conditions
  2. Mental distress in this area is purely genetic
  3. Multiple social and environmental determinants interact to raise mental distress risk Correct answer.
  4. The mental distress causes all of the area's economic problems

Explanation

Economic insecurity, poor housing and limited green space are established social and environmental stressors that can elevate mental distress. Interacting determinants offer a more defensible explanation than single-cause claims. Dismissing the pattern as coincidence ignores evidence linking living conditions to mental health.

Question 24Influences on health and wellbeing

Why might an intervention that targets only individual behaviour produce limited population-level health improvement?

  1. Population health is unaffected by any intervention
  2. Individual behaviour is the only factor that matters
  3. Behaviour change never influences health
  4. It may leave the social and environmental conditions shaping behaviour unchanged Correct answer.

Explanation

Individual-focused interventions can be limited because social, economic and environmental conditions continue to shape and constrain behaviour. Without changing these upstream determinants, gains may be small or unevenly distributed. Behaviour still matters, but it is not the only factor.

Question 25Influences on health and wellbeing

Which reasoning best explains why measuring only biological risk factors would give an incomplete picture of a community's health?

  1. Social, economic and environmental determinants also strongly shape health outcomes Correct answer.
  2. Biological factors have no effect on health at all
  3. Community health depends only on individual choices
  4. Biological factors cannot be measured reliably

Explanation

Biological risk factors matter, but health outcomes are also strongly shaped by social, economic and environmental conditions. Ignoring these determinants produces an incomplete explanation of community health. Biological factors do influence health and can be measured.

Question 26Influences on health and wellbeing

Which term describes the circumstances in which people are born, grow, live, work and age, including the systems shaping daily life?

  1. Clinical risk factors
  2. Biological determinants of health
  3. Social determinants of health Correct answer.
  4. Genetic predispositions

Explanation

Social determinants of health refer to the conditions of everyday life, such as income, housing, education and employment, that shape health outcomes. They are distinguished from biological or genetic factors because they arise from social and economic arrangements and can be changed through policy. Recognising this distinction helps explain why health varies between groups living in the same society.

Question 27Influences on health and wellbeing

A family cannot afford fresh fruit and vegetables and relies on cheap, energy-dense packaged food. Which influence on health is best illustrated?

  1. Technological influence
  2. Cultural influence
  3. Economic influence Correct answer.
  4. Genetic influence

Explanation

Income shapes what foods a household can buy, so affordability is an economic influence on dietary health. Economic determinants include income, cost of living and material resources, which directly affect access to nutritious food. This differs from cultural preferences, which concern shared beliefs and practices rather than purchasing power.

Question 28Influences on health and wellbeing

Which factor is an example of a biological influence on health and wellbeing?

  1. Inherited sickle cell trait Correct answer.
  2. Workplace shift rosters
  3. Neighbourhood noise levels
  4. Peer attitudes to exercise

Explanation

Biological influences are internal physiological or genetic factors, and an inherited blood condition is a clear example. Such traits are passed through families and can affect health independently of social circumstances. Noise, rosters and peer attitudes are external social or environmental factors.

Question 29Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best describes how culture can influence health behaviour?

  1. Culture shapes beliefs about what foods and treatments are acceptable. Correct answer.
  2. Culture controls the availability of hospital beds.
  3. Culture sets the price of health services.
  4. Culture determines a person's genetic risk of disease.

Explanation

Culture provides shared beliefs, values and customs that guide decisions such as what to eat, how illness is understood and which treatments are trusted. These beliefs can support or hinder healthy behaviour. Culture does not determine genes, prices or health-system capacity, which are separate influences.

Question 30Influences on health and wellbeing

A person lives in a suburb with no footpaths and fast traffic on the main road. Which influence on physical activity does this best illustrate?

  1. Built environment Correct answer.
  2. Peer influence
  3. Health literacy
  4. Genetic predisposition

Explanation

The built environment includes the human-made physical surroundings such as roads, footpaths, parks and transport, which can make walking safe or unsafe. When infrastructure discourages walking, physical activity levels can fall regardless of personal motivation. This is an environmental rather than a social or biological influence.

Question 31Influences on health and wellbeing

Which of these best describes a protective factor for health and wellbeing?

  1. A condition that increases the likelihood of harm
  2. A measure of disease prevalence in a region
  3. A type of medical treatment
  4. A circumstance that reduces the likelihood of harm Correct answer.

Explanation

Protective factors are conditions or resources that reduce the chance of poor health outcomes, such as strong family support or secure housing. They operate alongside risk factors, which increase the likelihood of harm. The balance between protective and risk factors helps explain differences in health among individuals and groups.

Question 32Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best explains how employment can influence health and wellbeing?

  1. Employment matters only for people over retirement age.
  2. Employment only affects income and has no other health effect.
  3. Employment provides income, structure and social contact that support health. Correct answer.
  4. Employment guarantees freedom from all illness.

Explanation

Employment influences health through multiple pathways: it provides income for housing and food, gives daily structure, and creates social connection and a sense of purpose. These benefits combine to support both physical and mental wellbeing. It does not, however, guarantee health, since job quality and working conditions also matter.

Question 33Influences on health and wellbeing

A person's friends regularly praise healthy meal preparation and invite them to cook together. Which influence is being described?

  1. Social influence Correct answer.
  2. Environmental influence
  3. Biological influence
  4. Economic influence

Explanation

Social influence comes from the people around us, including friends and family, whose approval and shared activities shape our behaviour. Praise and joint cooking create norms and support that encourage healthy eating. This differs from environmental influences, which concern physical surroundings, and economic influences, which concern cost and resources.

Question 34Influences on health and wellbeing

Which explanation best accounts for the link between low income and poorer health outcomes?

  1. Low income directly causes genetic mutations.
  2. Low income reduces access to nutritious food, secure housing and timely care. Correct answer.
  3. Low income only affects health through personal motivation.
  4. Low income is unrelated to material conditions.

Explanation

Low income constrains material resources, so households may struggle to afford nutritious food, stable housing, heating and health care. These material disadvantages accumulate and increase exposure to stress and illness. This pathway is about resources and access rather than genes or willpower.

Question 35Influences on health and wellbeing

A community has a strong network of neighbours who check on older residents and share meals. Which mechanism best explains the health benefit of this network?

  1. It reduces social isolation and provides practical support. Correct answer.
  2. It raises the cost of health care.
  3. It increases exposure to infectious disease.
  4. It removes the need for any health services.

Explanation

Social networks benefit health by reducing isolation, offering emotional support and providing practical help such as meals and transport. These resources buffer stress and improve access to care. The benefit comes from connection and support, not from replacing services or raising costs.

Question 36Influences on health and wellbeing

A regional town has one general practitioner who visits fortnightly, and residents must travel three hours for specialist care. Which influence on health is most directly described?

  1. Cultural norms
  2. Access to health services Correct answer.
  3. Genetic risk
  4. Peer pressure

Explanation

Access to health services concerns the availability, distance and affordability of care, all of which are limited in this town. Poor access can delay diagnosis and treatment, worsening outcomes. Cultural norms, genes and peer pressure do not describe the supply and reach of services.

Question 37Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best explains why a person's socioeconomic position can affect health across the whole lifespan?

  1. Socioeconomic position affects only mental health.
  2. Socioeconomic position is fixed and cannot change.
  3. Socioeconomic position matters only during childhood.
  4. Socioeconomic position influences exposure to risk and access to resources at every life stage. Correct answer.

Explanation

Socioeconomic position shapes housing, nutrition, education, work conditions and health care access from childhood through older age. Cumulative exposure to advantage or disadvantage means its effects build over time. It is not limited to one life stage or to mental health alone, and it can change across a life.

Question 38Influences on health and wellbeing

A workplace introduces standing desks, stairwell signage and secure bicycle storage. Which determinant of health is being most directly modified?

  1. Biological determinants
  2. Cultural determinants
  3. Physical environment Correct answer.
  4. Genetic determinants

Explanation

Standing desks, stairwell prompts and bike storage change the physical setting in which employees work, making activity easier. The physical environment includes buildings, equipment and infrastructure that shape behaviour. Genetic, cultural and biological factors are not being altered by these changes.

Question 39Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best describes the relationship between social norms and health behaviour?

  1. Social norms only affect behaviour through written laws.
  2. Social norms have no effect once a person reaches adulthood.
  3. Social norms can make a behaviour seem normal and expected within a group. Correct answer.
  4. Social norms are identical in every community.

Explanation

Social norms are shared expectations about acceptable behaviour, and when a behaviour appears common and approved within a group, members are more likely to adopt it. Norms operate through informal approval and belonging rather than formal law. They vary between communities and continue to influence adults.

Question 40Influences on health and wellbeing

A young person has good knowledge of nutrition but eats poorly because healthy food is expensive where they live. Which conclusion is most reasonable?

  1. Economic factors never affect food choice.
  2. The person must lack health literacy.
  3. Knowledge alone does not guarantee healthy behaviour when economic barriers exist. Correct answer.
  4. Nutrition knowledge has no value for health behaviour.

Explanation

Health behaviour is shaped by the interaction of individual knowledge with economic and environmental conditions. When healthy food is unaffordable, knowing about nutrition is not enough to change what a person eats. This shows that interventions must address access as well as education.

Question 41Influences on health and wellbeing

Which example best illustrates an upstream approach to improving population health?

  1. Providing medication to people after they develop diabetes
  2. Teaching one patient to monitor their blood sugar
  3. Counselling an individual about their diet
  4. Introducing a policy that improves housing quality across a region Correct answer.

Explanation

Upstream approaches act on the social and environmental conditions that create health problems before individuals become ill. Improving housing quality across a region changes conditions for many people at once. Treating or counselling individuals after risk or illness appears is a downstream, individual-level response.

Question 42Influences on health and wellbeing

A community's air quality is poor because of nearby industry, and residents also report high stress from noise and traffic. Which statement best describes these influences?

  1. They are genetic influences passed between generations.
  2. They are environmental influences that can affect whole populations. Correct answer.
  3. They are purely individual lifestyle choices.
  4. They are cultural influences based on shared traditions.

Explanation

Air pollution, noise and traffic are features of the physical environment that affect everyone living in the area, not just individuals who choose certain behaviours. Because they are shared exposures, they can shift health outcomes across a whole population. This distinguishes environmental influences from genetic or cultural ones.

Question 43Influences on health and wellbeing

Which reasoning best explains why a health program that only educates individuals may widen health inequalities?

  1. Education always reaches everyone equally.
  2. Health inequalities are caused only by genetics.
  3. Education has no effect on behaviour.
  4. People with more resources may be better able to act on health advice. Correct answer.

Explanation

When a program relies on individuals acting on advice, those with money, time, transport and support are better placed to respond. As a result, the advantaged group improves more and the gap with disadvantaged groups can grow. This is why education-only approaches are often paired with changes to access and environment.

Question 44Influences on health and wellbeing

A study finds that people who report high stress also report more frequent illness, but the study cannot show which came first. Which limitation applies?

  1. The study proves causation.
  2. The study has no measurement of stress.
  3. The study ignores all social factors.
  4. The study cannot establish the direction of the relationship. Correct answer.

Explanation

Cross-sectional data collected at one point in time show association but cannot establish temporal order, so it is unclear whether stress preceded illness or illness increased stress. Establishing causation usually requires longitudinal or experimental evidence. The finding is therefore a correlation rather than proof of cause.

Question 45Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best explains why the social gradient in health is described as a gradient rather than a simple divide between rich and poor?

  1. Health tends to improve steadily as socioeconomic position rises across the whole range. Correct answer.
  2. Only the very poorest people experience any health disadvantage.
  3. Health is determined solely by access to hospitals.
  4. Health is equally good at every income level.

Explanation

The social gradient means health outcomes improve step by step as socioeconomic position increases, not only at the boundary between poorest and richest. People in the middle of the distribution generally fare better than those below and worse than those above. This pattern points to the cumulative effect of resources and conditions across society.

Question 46Influences on health and wellbeing

Two neighbourhoods have similar average incomes, but one has well-maintained parks, libraries and public transport while the other does not. Which explanation best accounts for the health difference between them?

  1. Public transport has no relationship with health and wellbeing.
  2. Income is the only determinant that matters.
  3. Health differences between neighbourhoods are always random.
  4. Community infrastructure and amenity can influence health independently of average income. Correct answer.

Explanation

Even where average income is similar, differences in parks, libraries and transport shape opportunities for activity, social connection and access to services. These amenities are environmental and social determinants that operate alongside income. This shows that neighbourhood-level conditions can produce health differences not captured by income alone.

Question 47Influences on health and wellbeing

A researcher finds that a smoking-prevention program reduces smoking among students whose parents do not smoke but has little effect among students whose parents smoke. Which conclusion is best supported?

  1. Family environment can moderate the effect of a school-based program. Correct answer.
  2. The program is ineffective for all students.
  3. School programs can never change smoking behaviour.
  4. Parental smoking has no influence on young people.

Explanation

The program's effect differs according to the home environment, which is an example of one influence moderating another. Where parents smoke, the home exposure and norms may counteract the school message. This suggests programs should also address family and social influences rather than relying on school education alone.

Question 48Influences on health and wellbeing

Why might a policy that raises the price of alcohol reduce harm across a population more than a campaign urging individuals to drink less?

  1. Campaigns are illegal in most countries.
  2. Price changes affect everyone who buys alcohol, while campaigns depend on individual response. Correct answer.
  3. Price changes are always popular with the public.
  4. Price changes eliminate all alcohol-related harm.

Explanation

A price measure changes the conditions of choice for the whole population, so even people who ignore health messages face a financial incentive to reduce consumption. A campaign relies on individuals noticing, accepting and acting on the message, which many will not do. Population-level measures therefore often produce broader shifts in behaviour.

Question 49Influences on health and wellbeing

A health team plans to reduce childhood obesity in a town. Which approach best reflects action on multiple determinants at once?

  1. Asking children to try harder to exercise
  2. Waiting until children develop health problems before acting
  3. Combining school food standards, safe walking routes and affordable fresh produce outlets Correct answer.
  4. Weighing every child and giving each family a pamphlet

Explanation

Childhood obesity is shaped by food available at school, opportunities for active travel and the affordability of healthy food, so effective action addresses several determinants together. Combining policy, environment and access changes alters the conditions in which families make choices. Single measures aimed at individuals are less likely to shift outcomes across a population.

Question 50Influences on health and wellbeing

Which statement best explains why historical policies such as restricted access to education for some groups can still affect health today?

  1. Historical policies affect only the people who lived through them.
  2. Disadvantage can be transmitted across generations through income, housing and opportunity. Correct answer.
  3. Health is entirely determined at birth.
  4. Past policies have no measurable long-term effects.

Explanation

When a group is excluded from education or employment, the resulting disadvantage in income, housing and opportunity can pass to their children and grandchildren. This intergenerational transmission means historical policies leave a lasting imprint on current health. It also explains why some health inequities persist long after formal barriers are removed.