Bi-directional links between the environment and healthcare Flashcards
Give 3 examples of types of conditions that are caused by air pollution and other environmental pollutants?
Heart disease
Respiratory disease
Cancer
What is the relationship between individuals who have lower incomes and conditions caused by air pollution?
These conditions are prevalent in individuals with lower income, as they are more likely to live in more polluted areas.
Do environmental pollutants affect men, women and children equally?
No, they can cause conditions that have higher chance of affecting women and children than men
Give 4 examples of conditions that women are at higher risk of developing, due to exposure to environmental pollutants?
Miscarriage
Adverse birth outcomes
Infertility
Increased risk of breast cancer
Give 2 examples of conditions that children are at higher risk of developing, due to exposure to environmental pollutants?
Asthma
Lung growth and function deficits
Give 2 health benefits of having green space?
Improves mental health
Increases physical activity level (which also has mental health benefits)
What is the correlation between availability of green space in areas, and the health of individuals living in that area?
Individuals who live in areas with less green space are more likely to have poorer physical and mental health
Even though transport and traffic collisions generally effect health, are there any inequalities between areas?
Large inequalities in impact of transport with children in most deprived areas being 4x more likely to be hit by car
What other environmental effect can transport contribute to?
Increases air pollution
Give 2 health benefits of traffic interventions?
Reduce road accidents
Increase physical activity level
How can low income and deprived areas be result in poor diet?
They are barriers to accessing healthy food, which is needed for good diet
Give 2 ways in which bad housing conditions can especially affect children?
More likely to have mental health problems such as anxiety or depression
More likely to have other ill health effects
Give 3 examples of types of conditions that are affected by cold housing conditions?
Increases respiratory conditions such as asthma
Increase risk of heart disease and cardiac events
Worsens musculoskeletal conditions such as arthritic conditions
According to evidence, what 3 factors of a patient’s wellbeing are significantly improved by low-income household condition improvements?
Social functioning
Physical wellbeing
Emotional wellbeing
In areas of multiple deprivation, what other 2 psychological factors apart from social isolation are very common?
Stress
Depression
What is the correlation between social isolation, loneliness and mortality?
Social isolation in low levels can cause loneliness, these factors together significantly increase mortality
Define climate change?
Long-term shifts in temperature and weather patterns
Give 3 ways in which rising global temperature affects water resources?
Changes rainfall patterns
Increases water evaporation
More snow falls as rain
How can water security affected by rising global temperatures, have an effect on farming?
Flooding, unpredictable rain and evaporation create insufficient conditions for crop and livestock farming
What effect do rising temperatures have on air pollutants and allergens?
Increase in allergens and harmful air pollutants
What affect does rising temperatures have on wildlife, and how can this impact air quality?
Increased risk of wildfires which result in lower air quality and increased smoke exposure
How can rising temperatures increase the spread of pathogens, and what type of pathogen is especially affected?
Pathogens that were previously confined to warmer regions can spread to more distant regions, increasing spread
Especially vector-borne pathogens as they have increased chance of survival and breeding
How can extreme weather events caused by climate change affect infectious disease spread?
Produces ideal conditions for infectious disease spread such as cholera
What can be disrupted by climate change, which will have social and economic impacts?
Infrastructure
