Government Shutdown: Impacts on Public Health

The government shutdown began on October 1, causing thousands of government workers, programs and national parks to come to a standstill. Among these programs is the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Without the CDC Americans have almost no protection or prevention against diseases and outbreaks. In the sixteen days of the shutdown the health of Americans has been threatened even more so than usual.

Many people take the CDC for granted when, for example, according to the CDC Director, Thomas R. Frieden (2013), every day outbreaks of Salmonella, Legionella and tuberculosis are being treated and researched by the CDC. In this article Frieden expresses his concern, “I did a back-of-the-envelope calculation. For every day of government shutdown, about one million emails at CDC go unread – millions of pieces of information…Our inspectors are all furloughed, but their inspected entities actually report directly to their designated inspector to say whether they’ve got a problem. No one has checked those emails”.

The CDC researches and investigates diseases we don’t yet understand or know how to cope with. By withholding of funds, the path to a cure or an answer moves farther and farther away. The CDC is really the driving force of America’s public health so we cannot afford to push these important matters aside.

Because the CDC is short-staffed and unable to quickly respond to matters with the appropriate funding, the numbers of outbreaks still climb. An outbreak in Salmonella recently has poisoned more than 300 people. Cases like these are piling up on the empty desks of the employees of the CDC until full funding is restored. The public health of America is being threatened, “For every day that goes by, there’s a less intensive investigation, less effective prevention of situations like this. If I had to use one phrase to describe what’s happening: This is a self-inflicted wound”(Frieden 2013).


References
Mckenna, M. (2014, October 13). CDC Director: In the Shutdown, ‘We Are Juggling Chainsaws’. Wired.com. Retrieved October 25, 2013, from http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/10/cdc-shutdown-director/

How Food Literate are You??

In honor of Food Day, a nationwide celebration of and movement towards healthy, affordable and sustainable food for all, take this food quiz to see just how food literate you really are!

http://www.wellness.uci.edu/foodday.html

Marion Nestle Speaks Out on the Big Business of School Food

School lunches are one of the main sources of nutrition, or lack thereof for students in K-12. At one point in our life we were the recipient of these meals. Whether the overall idea for school lunch was out of necessity at one point or convenience of that time, it certainly is everything but now. As a whole, the people are becoming more aware of what we need to eat to be healthier and what not to eat.

Zuckerman's article is an interview with a woman who she dubs the "badass," Professor Marion Nestle, researcher and author of several health-focused articles and books. Both of these women discussed a major issue concerning the poor quality of school breakfast/lunch. Obviously people don't get fed for free, and neither do these students. Zuckerman found that "the money that these kids generate through the breakfast and lunch programs are tremendous. Breakfast cost about $3 billion and the lunch at $11 billion. These companies are very interested in holding on to their share."

The article continues on how un-healthy the food is and while there is still a large amount of money that certain companies are making from schools, things are looking slightly better. According to Zuckerman, "There are now limits on the levels of saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, and calories...”

This article is great representation of public health. It's something that can help the future kids, and adults of America. If kids learn early through their schooling that eating right is one of the best ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle, maybe some other health issues won't surface. This type of problem solving would be more of preventative health which is what we need.

Calorie Accounting

NPR reported this morning on the state of obesity in Mexico (It's actually worse than in the U.S., which makes you wonder what's up with North America.) and what policymakers are doing to address this public health issue. Could a tax on high-calorie foods and sodas really induce the public to drink more water, as one interviewee suggests? What are the potential economic effects of a high-calorie food and soda tax or other economic incentive/disincentive programs to prevent public health issues?

http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/January-2009/Junk-Food/

Salmonella and the Shutdown: How the Government Shutdown is Affecting Public Health

For my media exploration assignment I found an article relating to how the government shutdown has been affecting public health. Michael Hiltzik of the Los Angeles Times interview food expert Marion Nestle about the recent salmonella outbreak at Foster Farms. The Centers for Disease Control were slow to respond, and she questions if this is due to the amount of workers who have been temporarily laid off due to the government shutdown. The outbreak has affected 278 people, with 42% of the victims in hospital and the strain appears to be resistant to antibiotics. An investigation has traced the bacteria to three of Foster Farm’s poultry plants, and so far they are not issuing a recall. They claim to have received a clean bill of health from the USDA, but reports have shown that the USDA found their plants to be unsanitary and a large threat to the public health. The USDA was able to issue the first report but it is the job of the CDC to monitor food-borne illnesses. Since the outbreak the CDC has regained 30 of its employees, and guarantees that the shutdown is not affecting the investigation.

            If government funding is not back to full soon, the effects on public health will become even more apparent. I also read an article that WIC, Women Infants and Children, is dangerously underfunded. They are only weeks away from being forced to close clinics, which would leave a huge part of the population without assistance. If the CDC cannot respond to a salmonella outbreak in a timely manner, what will happen if a dangerous strain of the flu hits this winter?   

The PSL & Public Health

What does the seasonally ubiquitous pumpkin spice latte (Or just "A pump. spice, please," or just, "I'll have a PSL.") have to do with public health?

...Not as much as I expected to find upon research, but, inspired by the beverage's especial zest this year, I did find an unexpected connection between Starbucks and public health: national newspapers recently circulated CEO Howard Schultz's open letter requesting that licensed carriers not pack their guns into the 'Bucks, several of which have brewed with rights protests since increased attention to the gun violence epidemic.

But I think Mr. Schultz should speak out a little bit farther upstream: Make PSLs, not guns.

If you happen to have succumbed to the annual pumpkin spice lattemptation, at least check out this economical recipe from the Huffington Post.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kathrynlynnphotography/5014174073/

USDA on the Job

Even if the government is shut down, public health needs persist. Interesting story about a big salmonella outbreak from NPR.