Winnable Battles: HIV/Sexually Transmitted Infections

In 2010, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) began their efforts in addressing emerging public health challenges with their “Winnable Battles”. Led by CDC Director Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, along with other CDC leaders, the Winnable Battles was a call to arms for all public health professionals to take notice to some of the leading causes of death and disability, including providing efficient strategies of intervention.  The CDC’s Winnable Battles detailed the extensive impact that these areas have on the overall health of the public, as well as providing evidence-based strategies to address the challenges presented in each of these areas. Chosen based on the magnitude of health issues and the ability to make important headway in improvement, the CDC’s Winnable Battles include: Healthcare-Associated Infections; Tobacco; Teen Pregnancy; Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity; and HIV/Sexually Transmitted Infections

Immunizations

Immunizations protect more than just the individual.  The more people vaccinated in a community, the lower the chance that infections will spread.  If a disease is introduced to a population with low vaccination rates, it will spread and affect more people, causing a greater health problem.  An example is the measles outbreak that spread in Texas and New York.  The incidences occurred in areas with low vaccination rates as the disease quickly spread from person to person.

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/whatifstop.htm

Air quality

Nature lovers never think that being in the great outdoors could be detrimental to their health. Poor air quality affects everyone, some more directly than others but even the cyclists and runners come in contact with air pollutants. The leading causes of poor air quality include: high levels of traffic, industrial waste, and secondhand smoking, which lead to health issues like, asthma, lung cancer, heart disease, and respiratory illness such as pneumonia or bronchitis. Efforts have been put forth to help increase better air quality by inventions such as all electric cars, smokeless cigarettes, promotions for carpooling, and less industrial waste production.

How does smoking affect students on college campuses?: Programs and preventative measures that can help alleviate the issue

Image

In the time of '40s and '50s, cigarettes were one in the same with sex appeal and sophistication. Smokers could spark up just about anywhere. It wasn't until the 1960s when warnings against the dangers with reports linking cigarettes to cancer, heart disease and emphysema. Since then, we've come a long way in our understanding of smoking's health effects. It's now common knowledge that tobacco use can play a role in many other serious illnesses and health problems; not to mention how it directly or indirectly causes the death of hundreds of thousands each year. As a result, greater regulations have been placed on cigarettes, limiting their marketing, sale and use in a variety of ways. Why are smoking bans such a big deal on college campuses?

The Labors of Teen Pregnancy

What can be said about teenage pregnancy when it comes to public health policy and education? Is the solution to encourage safe-sex, preventative measures, and open discussion? Is there a healthy measure in accepting teen pregnancy as a societal norm and put funding into supporting the health of the mother and child? Is there any hope in abstinence only education? Evidence is gathering on the impact of teen pregnancy, both on the individual level and the populous level, and that evidence is suggesting both good and bad news.

Childhood Obesity: Not Just A Child's Problem

Childhood Obesity: Not Just A Child’s Problem

http://www.voluntarybenefitsmagazine.com/article/preventing-cancer.html

Childhood obesity is a serious issue that affects 12.7 million children in America. Most of you likely have a Aunt, cousin or friend who has dealt with some sort of weight issue. Obesity should not be taken lightly, many medical conditions that don't materialize until adulthood are occurring in children. Some of these diseases are hypertension, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. Children who suffer from obesity are also more likely to develop depression and low self-esteem (Centers for Disease Control, 2014). In the United States 18 % of children under the age of 12 are considered obese and this number has risen from 7% to 18% in the last thirty years (Anderson, 2006).

Depression

Poverty has been linked to a variety of health, learning and behavioral problems, including depressive symptoms for both adults and children (Butler, 2014).  Americans who are in poverty are more likely than those who aren’t to struggle with chronic health problems and depression disproportionately affects those in poverty the most.  According to Brown, about 31% of American in poverty say that have at some point been diagnosed with depression compared with 15.8% of those not in poverty (Brown 2013).  Some of the most common symptoms for both children and adults include feelings of loneliness, sadness, hopelessness, worthlessness, having little interest of pleasure in activities, fatigue, insomnia and thoughts of suicide.