Chapter Five: Health-Compromising Behaviors Flashcards
Characteristics of Health-compromising Behaviors:
Habitual & addictive
Window of vulnerability in adolescence
Influenced by peer pressure
Pleasureable & helps cope with stress at times
Develops gradually
Has similar causative factors
Common in the lower social classes
Derived from one’s need to be accepted.
Exposure to other kids doing unhealthy behaviors.
Peer Pressure
Kids who do drugs typically do badly in school, have problems with parents, have defiant behavior, low IQ, difficult temperament, and might have low self-esteem.
Def: obesity
excessive accumulation of body fat.
Risks of obesity
Obesity contributes to: death rates for most cancers & cardiovascular diseases.
Atherosclerosis, hypertension, Type II diabetes, & heart failure.
Increases risks in surgery, anesthesia, administration, & childbearing
Major cause of disability
Lowers the motivation to exercise
Difficulty performing basic tasks
Tied to poor cognitive functioning as early as adolescence, advances over time.
Associated with early mortality - 3 years earlier than an average person
Can cause psychological, social, and economic stress.
More reactive to stress
Judgements from others can cause: biological response to stress, social alienation, & lower self-esteem.
Potential causes of obesity
Genetics
Vigorous feeding style
Sedentary lifestyle - too much tv, video games, and the internet, consumption of snacks, and super sugary drinks.
Low SES
Obesity depends on the _______ & size of an individual’s fat cells. Big fat cells = ________. Even if there’s not too much of them.
number, obesity
Factors that influence obesity:
Social status & culture
Depression
High in neuroticism, extraversion, and impulsivity
Social networks
Siblings & friends who are also obese
Like animals, we have complex systems for __________ food consumption.
regulating
The ________ system plays an important role when choosing and rejecting certain foods.
Sensory
_______ is important for weight control bc it’s secreted by fat cells. It signals neurons in the _____________ to tell whether or not the body has enough energy stores of fat or if the body needs more energy.
Leptin, hypothalamus
Kids who take too many ____ in infancy and in their childhood are _____ likely to be obese later on.
cals, more
________ might play a role as to why dieters who lose weight will often gain it back quickly. Ghrelin is secreted by specialized cells in the __________, spikes before meals and then drops after.
Ghrelin, stomach
People who want to lose weight will find ways to ______ their ghrelin levels.
block
Obesity spreads thru ____________.
social networks
Overweight ppl have more anxiety, ______, and __________ than those with normal weight.
hostility, depression
Obesity interventions:
Exercising
Sleep
Dieting
Surgery
Reduce calorie intake
Stick to an eating plan
Changing lifestyle if diets don’t work
Def: yo-yo dieting
successive cycles of dieting & weight gain.
Enhances the efficiency of food use
Lowers metabolic rate
Def: Set point theory of weight
each individual has an ideal biological weight, which cannot be greatly modified.
Def: stress + eating habits =
affects eating habits of different ppl in different ways.
Can disinhibit food consumption
Def: stress eating
the practice of eating in response to one’s stress.
Tied to anxiety & depression
Ways to treat obesity
Dieting
Surgery
CBT: screening, self-monitoring, stimulus control, controlling eating, self reinforcement, controlling self-talk, adding exercise, stress management, social support, and relapse prevention
Preventive Measures for Obesity
Training parents on sensible meal planning & eating habits
Changing lifestyles at a young age
School-based interventions
Social engineering strategies
Interventions with kids and teens tend to have the best results.
Eating disorders are developed in the pursuit of _________
thinness
Eating disorders have the highest _________ and mortality rates of all behavioral disorders.
disability
Eating disorders will lead to
Depression
Anxiety
Low self-esteem
Poor sense of mastery
Def: anorexia nervosa
an obsessive disorder amounting to self-starvation to some extent
Causes of anorexia nervosa
Caused by genetics with genes involving serotonin, dopamine, and estrogen systems.
Interactions between genetic and environmental factors
Dysregulated biological stress systems Personality characteristics
Family interaction patterns.
History of SA
How is anorexia treated?
Therapy: cbt or family therapy
hospitalization
Prevention of eating disorders
Addressing social norms regarding thinness
Stressing the health risks of eating disorders
Urging symptomatic individuals to accept treatments
Def: bulimia nervosa
characterized by alternating cycles of binge eating & purging
Ppl with binge eating disorders are characterized by:
Excessive concern with body & weight
Preoccupation with dieting
History of depression, psychopathology, Y alcohol and/or drug abuse
Difficulties with managing work & social settings
Causes of bulimia nervosa
Altered stress responses
High cortisol levels
Large body mass than is desired
Depression
Genetics & hormonal dysfunctions
Family values
Low leptin functioning
Hypothalamic dysfunction
Food allergies
Disordered task responsivity
Disorder of the endogenous opioid system
Neurological disorder
Treating Bulimia
Convincing bulimics abt the seriousness of the disease
Combo of meds and cbt
Using relapse prevention techniques
Alcoholism is associated with
High blood pressure
Stroke
Cirrhosis of the liver
Certain forms of cancer
Brain atrophy
Sleep disorders
Possible infections
Def: physical dependency
when the body has adjusted to the substance and incorporates the use of that substance into the normal functioning of the body’s tissues.
Def: craving
a strong desire to engage in a behavior or to consume a substance
Def: addiction
when one has become physically or psychologically dependent on a substance following a repeated routine with the substance
Alcoholism will lead to:
Economic loss
Social problems
Substance dependence
Def: Substance dependence
repeatedly self-administration of substances.
Physical dependence on substances bc the body adjusts to the substance & incorporates its use into normal everyday functioning of the body’s tissues.
Body increasingly adapts to the use of substance
Strong desire to engage in a behavior or consume a substance
People become physically or psychologically dependent 9n a substance following repeated use over time.
Unpleasant symptoms experienced by ppl when they stop using the dependent substance.
Characteristics of withdrawl symptoms
Anxiety, irritability, intense cravings for the substance, nausea, headaches, tremors, & hallucinations.
Patterns of behaviors with alcoholism
Inability to cut down on drinking
Repeated efforts to control drinking
Binge drinking
Occasional consumption of large quantities
Loss of memory while intoxicated
Drinking despite health issues
Drinking of non-beverage alcohol
Physical addiction
Withdrawal symptoms
High tolerance for alcohol.
Potential causes for alcohol/substance addiction
Genetics
Sociodemographic factors
Stress: financial & social
Low social support
Unemployment
Depression
Treatments for alcohol abuse
CBT or any other cognitive-behavioral modification programs
Family therapy &/or group counseling
Treatment programs like detoxification
Relapse prevention.
Placebo drinking
Controlled drinking
Def: Detoxification
conducted in a carefully supervised & monitored medical setting for hard-core alcoholics
Factors associated with successful alcohol treatment programs:
Environmental factors
Moderate length of participation
Involvement of family employers
Social engineering approaches are required to complement formal intervention efforts.
Teaching college students how to control their drinking
Inducing adolescents to avoid drinking or to control it
Promoting social influence programs in schools to prevent alcoholism
Enhance adolescents’ self efficacy
Change social norms
Can be low-cost options for low-income areas
Drinking & driving results in _________ of vehicular fatalities each year.
thousands
Drinking & driving can be controlled by
Programs like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)
Adopting self-regulatory techniques
Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable death
Increases the risk of many ________ & disorders
Coworkers & family members are affected by _________.
diseases, 2nd-hand smoke
Synergistic effects ________ the damaging effects of other risk factors of smoking.
boost
Stress & smoking interact in dangerous ways
In males: nicotine increases heart rate reactivity to stress
In women: smoking reduces heart rate but increases blood pressure as a response to stress, increases their risk of breast cancer after menopause.
Effects of smoking
Weight & smoking can interact to increase mortality
Smoking & depression can interact to substantially increase the risk for cancer
Smoking is related to anxiety in adolescence.
Little to no physical activity
Increases carbon monoxide levels
Reduces blood oxygen capacity
Death
Factors associated with smoking in adolescents
Initial experimentation
Peer pressure
Interacting with other smokers
Lack of discipline & monitoring in schools
Familial attitude & influence
Socioeconomic status
Increase in stress
Depression
Anxiety
Influence of mass media
Low self-esteem
Dependency
Feelings of powerlessness
Social isolation
Why do ppl smoke?
Genetics
Those who are less health conscious
Smokers are more impulsive
History of smoking
Smoking used to be sophisticated.
Cigarette ads promoted smoking and claimed to be dr approved - more directed towards men
Women smoked in large quantities until the ‘40’s.
Why is smoking so hard to change?
Associated with pleasurable activities
Highly individualized patterns
Leads to short term unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when stopped abruptly
Elevates mood
Keeps weight down
Benefits of being abstinent aren’t known
Changing attitudes toward smoking nicotine replacement therapy
Therapeutic approach to the issue
Smoking prevention
Social support & stress management
Interventions with adolescents
Relapse prevention evaluation of interventions
Brief interventions
Workplace interventions like self-help aids that encourage smokers to quit
Catch potential smokers early & attack the underlying motivations that lead to smoking
Implementation in schools emphasize the negative effects of smoking, conveying a positive image of a nonsmoker.
Peer groups are used to foster nonsmoking.
Anti-smoking behavior on social media and the internet
Anti-smoking tips and tricks on social media
Products made to stop smoking. Ex: the fidget smoke thingy.
Smoking replacement therapy - nicotine patches, E cigs, etc.
Social support
Social engineering
