PH 101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: September 11 Attacks, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Environmental Health
23 Jan 2018
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Chapter 1: public health: science, politics, and prevention. One expectation about living in a civilized society is that the living conditions will be basically healthyunless something unusual happens, people assume that they are pretty much safe. This was not always the case, however: in the mid-19th century, death rates were very high, especially among children. In england and wales, only about 30% of children lived beyond the age of 25. Tuberculosis was the single largest cause of death in the mid-19th century, and there were also epidemics of cholera, typhoid, smallpox. Injuries to workers in mines and factories were common (and often fatal) due to unsafe equipment, child labor, and long working hours. People are generally healthier today than they were 150 years ago for many reasons: cleaner water, air, and food; safe disposal of sewage, better nutrition; more knowledge about healthy and unhealthy behaviors, etc. Most of these factors fall in the domain of public health.
