Non-communicable diseases Flashcards
What are communicable diseases?
Diseases that can be transferred from one person to another, or from one organism to another, e.g. the flu
What are non-communicable diseases?
Diseases which are not transferred between people or other organisms
Give five examples of non-communicable diseases.
- cancer
- diabetes
- genetic diseases and conditions
- heart disease
- neurological disorders
What causes cancer?
Cells grow and divide uncontrollably
What are the two types of tumour?
- Benign
- Malignant
What are the characteristics of a benign tumour?
- Grows slowly
- Usually grow within a membrane, so easily removed
- Does not invade other parts of the body
What are the characteristics of a malignant tumour?
- Grows quickly
- Invades neighbouring tissues and spreads to other parts of the body in the bloodstream
- can form secondary tumours by metastasis
What are carcinogens?
Chemicals that can cause cancer by damaging DNA (causing mutations to occur)
What are some lifestyle factors that increase a person’s risk of developing cancer?
- Viruses such as HPV being spread through sexual intercourse
- Alcohol intake
- Exposures to carcinogens in cigarette smoke
- Exposure to ultraviolet radiation, part of which is ionising
- Diet, including fat and salt intake
What are four ways that smoking increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases?
- Damages the lining of the arteries, encouraging the build-up of fatty materials
- Inhalation of carbon monoxide decreases the amount of oxygen that can be carried in the blood
- Nicotine increases the heart rate, putting strain on the heart
- Chemicals increase the likelihood of blood clotting
How can smoking cause COPD?
- Smoking damages bronchioles and eventually destroys alveoli in the lungs
- Airways become inflamed and mucus builds up
- Patient becomes breathless, and finds it more difficult to obtain oxygen for respiration
What are some associated risks of smoking during pregnancy?
- Increased risk of miscarriage
- Babies more likely to suffer from asthma
- Affects child’s long-term physical growth and intellectual development
- Reduces birth weight of baby
What is the liver responsible for?
Processing and breaking down alcohol
Describe the different ways that alcohol can damage the liver.
- Causes lipids to build up in the liver (fatty liver disease)
- Causes alcoholic hepatitis (inflammation), which can lead to death
- Cirrhosis of the liver - liver scars and loses ability to function
Describe five ways that alcohol affects brain function.
- slows reaction time
- causes difficulty walking
- can impair memory
- causes slurred speech
- causes changes in sleep patterns and mood, including increased anxiety and depression
Describe four traits of a fetus with fetal alcohol syndrome.
- is smaller in size
- has a smaller brain with fewer neurones
- will have long-term learning and behavioural difficulties
- has distinct facial features
How can obesity cause cardiovascular disease?
Obesity leads to high blood pressure and the build-up of fatty deposits in the arteries
What is the cause of type 2 diabetes?
The body’s cells lose their sensitivity to insulin - they no longer respond, or respond less effectively, to the insulin that’s produced.
What are 2 diseases linked to obesity?
- Cardiovascular disease
- Type 2 diabetes
What is epidemiology?
The study of the distribution and patterns of health and disease, in and across populations.
