Chapter 3 Health and Diseases - Are we more vulnerable than before

GATEWAY 1: What are the global patterns of health and diseases? What are the indicators used to measure health? ● Health ​ is the state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. ● Infant mortality rate ​ is the number of infants that die before reaching one year old per 1,000 live births in a year. ○ LDCs ​ usually have a higher infant mortality rate than ​ DCs ​ . ● Life expectancy ​ is the average number of years from the time of birth that a person can expect to live. ○ DCs ​ usually have a higher life expectancy than ​ LDCs ​ . How and why does the health of people differ between DCs and LDCs? (SEE) Factors Aspect Description DCs LDCs Social Diet ● Diet ​ refers to the food and drink that people consume. ● Obesity ​ is a medical condition in which there is excessive fat accumulation in the body that can impair one’s health. ● If a person is obese, they are more likely to develop illnesses like hypertension or heart disease, which can directly impact their health. ● Malnutrition ​ is a condition in which the body does not get the sufficient or balanced amount of nutrients it needs to maintain healthy tissues or organ functions. ● If a person suffers from malnutrition, they may be more sickly as their immune systems may be more easily compromised. Lifestyle choices ● Lifestyle choices refer to how a person chooses to live and behave, according to attitudes, habits and values. ● A healthy lifestyle reduces the risk of many diseases including heart disease. ● People in DCs are more likely to be subject to physical inactivity, which can cause obesity and a heightened risk for various diseases. ● However, people in DC usually have more balanced diets, which allows them to have a stronger immune system and improved overall health. ● People in LDCs are more likely to smoke and hence run a higher risk of developing respiratory illnesses. Education ● Education ​ refers to the process of teaching and learning, often within the context of formal institutions such as a school or university. ● People in DCs are more likely to be better educated. ● This means they are better informed on how to lead a healthy lifestyle. ● They also earn higher incomes, that gives them better access to quality medical treatment. ● Higher level of women’s education means that they are more informed of nutrition and healthcare and hence can care for their children more effectively. ● Children who receive formal schooling are more likely to learn about healthcare and nutrition and hence can make better informed choices about diet and lifestyle. ● People in LDCs are not as well educated as education is not usually compulsory in LDCs and because poverty usually forces many children to quit school at an early age. ● They earn less and hence may not be able to afford quality healthcare. ● This means that they lose out on critical knowledge regarding their health and hence cannot make as well-informed choices about their lifestyle. Econo mic Poverty and affluence ● Poverty ​ is a state of not having enough money and material resources such as food, water, clothing and shelter. ● Affluence ​ is having an abundant supply of money, property and other material goods. ● There are more affluent people in DCs than in LDCs. ● Affluent people have a greater access to food and better quality health services, increasing their resistance to diseases and enabling them to deal with diseases. ● People with higher incomes can choose to adopt healthy and nutritious diets. ● People who are affluent can also consult well-trained healthcare professionals. ● However, people who are affluent are also more likely to consume high amounts of meat and other non-staple food which may lead to other health problems. ● There are more people in LDCs under the poverty line of US$1.90. ● Poverty limits the purchasing power that people have to afford basic healthcare. ● Poverty exposes people to health risks because of poor quality housing. ● Poverty exposes people to nutritional illnesses like kwashiorkor, caused by severe protein malnutrition. ● People living in poverty have less access to vaccinations, exposing them to more illnesses. Investment in health care and access to health services ● Access to health services ​ refers to people’s ability to obtain the services of healthcare. ● Doctor-patient ratio refers to ratio of the number of doctors to a given population. ● DCs often have greater investments in healthcare than LDCs due to the greater resources of their governments and private sector. ● There are more hospitals in DCs which means that people are better able to get access to healthcare in a timely manner. ● Hence, people in DCs are more likely to have better access to healthcare than ● LDCs often have smaller investments in healthcare than DCs due to the limited resources of their governments and private sector. ● LDCs do not have adequate health care infrastructure due to a lack of sufficient resources or inappropriate use of existing funds, causing the burden of healthcare to be Notes by some weirdo called Conrad Soon.. I don’t guarantee the full accuracy of the information here. Special thanks to Mrs Wong, the most wholesome and pure Geography ahma.

● Bed-patient ratio refers to the ratio of the number of hospital beds to a given population. people in LDCs ● This is evident in how DCs have larger bed-patient and doctor-patient ratios. transferred to patients who may not be able to afford it. Environ mental Living conditions ● Living conditions refer to a set of characteristics that includes housing, living spaces and access to basic services such as water, electricity and sanitation. ● People in DCs usually have better living conditions than LDCs. ● People in DCs usually live in permanent homes which have clean water, electricity and sanitation. ● This keeps the houses clean and reduces the incidence of diseases. ● People in LDCs usually have worse living conditions than DCs. ● Slums are common in LDCs and they often have poorly secured structures, poor ventilation and overcrowding. ● This allows diseases to spread easily and allows for vermin to breed.. Access to safe drinking water ● Drinking water ​ is defined by the WHO as water that is used for domestic purposes, such as for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene. ● People in DCs have reliable access to safe, potable drinking water. ● This eliminates the chances of contracting water-borne illnesses such as cholera. ● It also eliminates the chances of suffering from heavy metal poisoning. ● People in LDCs do not have reliable access to safe drinking water. ● THe water may be contaminated by heavy metals or have parasites like cholera. ● People who consume this water may develop water-borne illnesses or suffer from illnesses related to consumption of heavy metals. Proper sanitation ● Sanitation ​ refers to the safe storage, treatment and disposal of waste. ● This includes having functioning toilets, urinals, sewage pipes and treatment plants. ● DCs usually have properly sanitation facilities like functioning toilets, urinals, sewage pipes and treatment plants. ● They also have facilities which help manage, reuse and recycle trash, such as rubbish bins, garbage trucks and landfills. ● Sanitation facilities deal with human waste and can prevent people from being exposed to harmful microorganisms living in waste. ● THey also help keep the population of pests low and reduce the amount of vectors for diseases to sprea