2.A - is there a link between disease and levels of economic development?

Question 1

definition of epidemiological transition

Answer 1

• the change in the incidence, distribution and control of diseases both temporarily and spatially
• (changing as a place develops)

Question 2

DoA

Answer 2

disease of affluence

Question 3

DoP

Answer 3

disease of pestilence

Question 4

what is stage 1 of the epidemiological transition model?

Answer 4

• THE AGE OF PESTILENCE AND FAMINE
• very few entire countries still in this stage
• rainforest tribes, Mongolian herdsmen
• life expectancy low and variable = 30 yrs
• nothing = no healthcare, medicines (traditional medicine)
• people highly susceptible to infectious diseases.
• poor sanitation, contaminated drinking water
• main cause of death = infectious/communicable diseases.

Question 5

what is stage 2 of the epidemiological transition model?

Answer 5

• THE AGE OF RECEDING PANDEMICS
• LIDCs
• basic healthcare and santiation
• pre-industrial societies
• mortality high but fluctuates year to year
• basic sanitation, education and healthcare present.
• people highly susceptible to infectious diseases.
• poor sanitation, contaminated drinking water
• main cause of death = infectious/communicable diseases.
• life expectancy rises beyond 50yrs e.g. Uganda
• international aid = v important

Question 6

what is stage 3 of the epidemiological transition model?

Answer 6

• **ERA OF DEGENERATIVE AND MAN-MADE DISEASES
• life expectancy from 60-70yrs
• diet and hygiene advancing
• INDIA
• living standard improving and epidemics causing large scale mortality ↑ rate
• there are still infectious diseases but non-communicable diseases becoming more common
• industrial society including EDCs
• man made diseases associated with environmental change and degradation becomes more common due to industrialisation and lack of medical care to treat
• healthcare, sanitation, education are all good enough to mostly prevent majority of infectious diseases.

Question 7

what is stage 4 of the epidemiological transition model?

Answer 7

• AGE OF DELAYED DEGENERATIVE DISEASES
• ACs, live long enought to get NCDs, but able to treat it
• further improvements in medical care and technology, hygiene and living standards
• medical advances in these developed countries mean that we can delay the onset of degenerative disease
• diabetes and obesity becomes most sig. health issues but can laregly be managed with medical advances
• mortality from infectious diseases are rare
• degenerative diseases become the main cause of death
• life expectancy rises to mid 70s-80s. e.g. Japan

Question 8

due to good medical care, what is the result in terms of the general morbidity of the population?

Answer 8

• communicable diseases have largely been eliminated thanks to advancements in medical diagnoses and treatments, high standards of living, proper sanitation, clean water supplies and appropriate food intake

Question 9

what is over nutrition leading to?

Answer 9

• in ACs, overnutrition and excessive consumption of sugar, carbohydrates, fats and salt are ↑ health risks and the prevalence of NCDs e.g. CVD, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and several types of cancer
• exacerbated by obesity and physical inactivity are ↑ apparent in younger age groups

Question 10

is overnutrition only a developed world issue?

Answer 10

• overnutrition, once confined to the developed world, is becoming a significant health problem in the developing world.
• 1974 in Brazil = 2 cases of underweight adults for every 1 who was obese. 1997 ratio had reversed.

Question 11

where do most cancer deaths occur?

Answer 11

• 70% of all cancer deaths today are low to middle income countries
• incidence of cancer in poorer countries is rising rapidly and is expected to double by 2030.

Question 12

why is it limited looking at absolute numbers?

Answer 12

• if we ignore absolute numbers the incidence of cancer standardised by age structure remains much greater in ACs.

Question 13

failure to control communicable disease in LIDCs reflects what?

Answer 13

• reflects inadequate healthcare services and a lack of resources to tackle the cause of disease.
• other factors include inadequate nutrition, poor environmental and living conditions and geography

Question 14

what are undernutrition and malnutrition? what issues do they cause?

Answer 14

• undernutrition results from too little food intake to maintain body weight
• malnutrition is the result of an unbalanced diet, in particular shortages of protein and essential vitamins
• both are widespread in poorest countries
• weaken immune system = ↑ in risk of bacterial and viral infections

Question 15

how are health and diet linked?

Answer 15

• malnutrition, caused by protein deficiency, is responsible for NCDs e.g. marasmus

Question 16

how do environmental factors tied to lack of development affect the spread of communicable diseases?

Answer 16

• water pollution caused by a lack of proper sanitation and hygiene
• polluted water from wells and surface streams = disease reservoir for cholera, typhoid and diarrhea
• poor drainage = breeding sites for disease vectors like mosquities and water snails (bilharzia)
• slum housing and overcrowding linked to TB

Question 17

most LIDCs are often in the tropics. what issues does this create?

Answer 17

• high temps and abudant rainfall = epidemiology for wide range of infectious diseases