Assignment: Health and Well being

Assignment: Health and Well being
Assignment: Health and Well being
Assignment: Health and Well being
Week 6 discussion Discussion Part One Genetics and Epidemiology Pick one friend or family member and gather their family health history. Pick one possible genetic risk for disease in that person and provide the following: Gender, age Genetic risk for a specific disease Define the disease Evidence to link risk to development Identify if genetics is confounded or linked to any other epidemiological risk factors for disease development that might be modified in this patient. Discussion Part Two Discuss screening tools that might be an option for this person and why or why you would not recommend them at this time. Remember to provide evidence to support your answer. Discussion Part Three Please provide a summary of the case or information you have discussed this week. E-mail Tweet Like Share Pin it Share WhatsApp
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Health and wellbeing are affected by many factors – those linked to poor health, disability, disease or death, are known as risk factors. A risk factor is a characteristic, condition, or behaviour that increases the likelihood of getting a disease or injury. Risk factors are often presented individually, however in practice they do not occur alone. They often coexist and interact with one another. For example, physical inactivity will, over time, cause weight gain, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. Together, these significantly increase the chance of developing chronic heart diseases and other health related problems. Ageing populations and longer life expectancy have led to an increase in long-term (chronic), expensive-to-treat diseases and disabilities.
There is a rising demand for healthcare, placing the sector under increasing budget pressure which is not always met. It is important that we, as a society and users of healthcare systems, understand the causes and risk factors behind diseases, so that we can actively take part in available cost effective prevention and treatment programmes.
In general, risk factors can be categorised into the following groups:
Behavioural
Physiological
Demographic
Environmental
Genetic
These are described in more detail below.
Types of risk factors
Behavioural risk factors
Behavioural risk factors usually relate to ‘actions’ that the individual has chosen to take. They can therefore be eliminated or reduced through lifestyle or behavioural choices. Examples include:
smoking tobacco
drinking too much alcohol
nutritional choices
physical inactivity
spending too much time in the sun without proper protection
not having certain vaccinations
unprotected sex.
Physiological risk factors
Physiological risk factors are those relating to an individual’s body or biology. They may be influenced by a combination of genetic, lifestyle and other broad factors. Examples include:
being overweight or obese
high blood pressure
high blood cholesterol
high blood sugar (glucose).
Demographic risk factors
Demographic risk factors are those that relate to the overall population. Examples include:
age
gender
population subgroups, such as occupation, religion, or income.
Environmental risk factors
Environmental risk factors cover a wide range of topics such as social, economic, cultural and political factors as well as physical, chemical and biological factors. Examples include:
access to clean water and sanitation
risks in the workplace
air pollution
social settings.
Genetic risk factors
Genetic risk factors are based on an individual’s genes. Some diseases, such as cystic fibrosis and muscular dystrophy, come entirely from an individual’s ‘genetic make-up’. Many other diseases, such as asthma or diabetes, reflect the interaction between the genes of the individual and environmental factors. Other diseases, like sickle cell anaemia, are more prevalent in certain population subgroups.