Impact of Lifestyle on Health (overview) Flashcards
Every person’s health is ultimately a combination of?
Indivual decision & social pressures
Many social factors influence lifestyle, which influences health
Factors that influence lifestyle
- To what extent is are these factors under our control?
Factor NOT within individual control → age, gender, ethnicity
Environment → locally (yes) but globally (no)
Occupation & Class → to some extent, but most ppl stay in same class as parents
No control over broader structure of social inequality or running of HC system
Diet & Exercise → have some control over but not quite that simple
Alcohol
alcohol → can be fatal (alc poisoning) & has ruined many ppls life (alcoholism)
- BUT most ppl who drink dont become alcoholics → relaxant at end of day
modern medicine accepts that regular consumption of small quantities of alcohol is actually beneficial to health
→ USED by majority, ABUSED by minority
- its social pressures that drives them to drink (abuse, poverty, discrimination, bereavement)
- Prohibition shows alcoholism cant be cured by banning alc
To get rid of alcoholism?
Need to get rid of social problems (beyond individual control)
Tobacco In USA
Tobacco for US = fur trade for Canada
USA was originally built on Tobacco Industry
- original Am colony failing economically until grew tobacco & export to Europe
ADs imply smoking = part of American lifestyle & act of patriotism
Evidence of Health Risks of Smoking
Tobacco industry tried to hide growing evidence of harmful health consequences of smoking
Despite this, 1970s → overwhelming evidence
- declining rates of smoking across N.A.
- 2012 → only 19% of US adults & 16% of CDN adults smoke
- however, rate of decline has leveled off
- affecting only minority BUT persistant minority
- millions still turn to tobacco for stress relief of everyday life
- both stress & tobacco have health risks
- millions still turn to tobacco for stress relief of everyday life
DAMNED IF YOU DO, DAMNED IF YOU DONT
Illegal Drugs
- current stance
told illegal drugs are such major health risk that govs spend billions trying to ban drugs through War on Drugs policy
- still continue with this policy despite failure of prohibition & the fact that this policy has NOT reduced availability or use of drugs
Implications of War on Drugs policy
danger & allure of drugs = so great that individual can’t be trusted to make decisions about its use
-
government must make decision for them by making drugs unavailable
*
Problems of the Implications of the War on Drugs Policy
govs have wildly exaggerated health risks of most illegal drugs
Most widely used & prosecuted illegal drug → Marijuana
Marijuana - Health Risks?
CDN Medical Association officially stated that health risks of MJ are minimal for adults
If the health risks of MJ are actually minimal for adults, why has MJ been made illegal?
War on MJ began in 19th C Mexico → spanish immigrant doctors fought for monopoly on right to prescribe meds
- problem: many patients preferred local herbal meds
Spanish docs launched propoganda campaign on MJ → made up that MJ made ppl crazy, sterile etc. (NOT scientifically based evidence)
1920s → US took up war on MJ (mostly bc MXCNs coming to US & bringing MJ)
- translated spanish documents & accepted it as true
When did people figure out claims of MJ health risks were false/exagerrated?
1960s → Western docs & med researchers gathered enough evidence that claims of MJ health risks = false or exaggerated
US Surgeon General put together major stating this & recommending MJ be legalized
From Harper to Nixon, Politicians continue to ignore scientific evidence & imprison ppl for MJ
Only in recent years, war on MJ began to crumble
- partial legaization in Holland, Portugal, Some US states & Latin-Am countries
- Trudeau declared himself in favor of MJ legalization
