PH 101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 13: Health Education, Institute For Operations Research And The Management Sciences, Gonorrhea
29 Apr 2018
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Chapter 13: Do People Choose Their Own Health?
-Introduction:
●Early successes of public health often came from focusing on specific diseases or groups
of diseases, seeking particular causes, and finding ways to interrupt the cause-and-effect
relationships. In the 20th century, this strategy was effective in breaking the chains of
infection, often by removing etiologic agents (bacteria, viruses, parasites) from the
environment or by developing vaccines to immunize potential hosts.
●The top three leading causes of death in the U.S. in 1900 were pneumonia and influenza;
tuberculosis; and diarrhea, enteritis, and ulceration of intestines. The top three leading
causes as of 2013 were diseases of heart, cancer, and chronic lower respiratory disease.
●In 1990, a group of public health experts from the CDC came up with a list of nongenetic
factors that they called the leading actual causes of death. This is important because they
are preventable causes of death and disability and they provide targets for public health
intervention. The top three actual causes as of 2000 were tobacco, poor diet and physical
inactivity, and alcohol consumption. Tobacco is linked to cancer, cardiovascular disease,
and infant deaths due to low birth weights; poor diet and physical inactivity are linked to
heart disease, stroke, and diabetes; and alcohol consumption is linked to motor vehicle
accidents, cirrhosis, and chronic liver disease.
●Next on the list of actual causes of death were microbial agents, toxic agents, motor
vehicle accidents, firearms, sexual behavior, and illicit drug use. In total, these nine
causes of actual death account for about 50% of all deaths in the U.S. These factors are
significant to public health because they cause premature deaths, they are often preceded
by impaired quality of life, and many of them could be prevented by public health
measures.
●The two approaches that the government has traditionally taken to promote healthy
behavior are education and regulation.
-Education:
●Education informs the public about healthy and unhealthy behavior, and many people
who are concerned about their health do adjust their behavior in accordance with new
information.
●The 1964 Surgeon General report called Smoking and Health
, was the first statement
from the government that smoking causes life-threatening diseases, had a significant
impact on the prevalence of smoking in the U.S.
●Information on healthful eating habits has traditionally been provided by the federal
government. In the 1900s, the government conducted research on requirements for
various vitamins and minerals. This led to the FDA requirements for labeling of prepared
foods.
Document Summary
Early successes of public health often came from focusing on specific diseases or groups of diseases, seeking particular causes, and finding ways to interrupt the cause-and-effect relationships. In the 20th century, this strategy was effective in breaking the chains of infection, often by removing etiologic agents (bacteria, viruses, parasites) from the environment or by developing vaccines to immunize potential hosts. The top three leading causes of death in the u. s. in 1900 were pneumonia and influenza; tuberculosis; and diarrhea, enteritis, and ulceration of intestines. The top three leading causes as of 2013 were diseases of heart, cancer, and chronic lower respiratory disease. In 1990, a group of public health experts from the cdc came up with a list of nongenetic factors that they called the leading actual causes of death. This is important because they are preventable causes of death and disability and they provide targets for public health intervention.
