Non Communicable Diseases Flashcards
Communicable diseases
Diseases caused by pathogens that can be passed from one person to another
Non communicable diseases
Diseases that are not infectious and affect
people as a result of the genetic make-up, lifestyle and/or factors in their environment.
Risk factor
Something that increases the likelihood of developing a disease or injury.
Poor diet
Obesity
Undernutrition
Diseases such as diabetes
Deficiencies
Smoking
Increased risk of cancers,
heart disease
Damage to organs
Alcohol consumption
Weight gain
Less restful sleep
Damages liver and
digestive system
Increased risk of cancers
Lack of exercise
Loss of muscle
Fatty deposits around heart
Therefore increased risk of
heart disease
Unsafe sex
Increased risk of STDs
Reasons why non-com diseases are bad
Communities have to support people who are ill
Costs nations huge sums of money
Global economy suffers as working age people are affected
Can lead to depression/mental illnesses
Cancer
Cell DNA is damaged during
multiplication of the cell
The damaged cells are usually stopped at
the checkpoints and either repaired or
destroyed
Damaged cells can sometimes sneak
through a checkpoint
The damaged cell multiplies to form a
tumour
Benign tumour
Growth of abnormal cells contained in one place, usually within a membrane
They do not invade other parts of the body but they can grow very large very
quickly
If it causes pressure or damage to an organ this can be life-threatening
Malignant tumour
Can spread around the body, invading neighbouring, healthy cells
Initial tumour may split up and release small clumps of cells into the blood stream
or lymphatic system
They circulate and are carried to different parts of the body where they may lodge
in another organ
Causes of cancer
Genetic risk factors
Mutations
Ionising radiation
Viral infection
Mutations
Changes in the genetic material
Chemicals e.g asbestos, cigarette tar can cause mutations
Carcinogens
Cancer causing agents
Ionising radiation
Ionising radiation such as UV light and X-rays can interrupt the normal cell cycle
and cause tumours to form
Viral infections
e.g. cervical cancer is almost always due to infection by HPV
Radiotherapy
Cancer cells are destroyed by a dose of radiation. It stops mitosis of the cancer cells but can also damage healthy cells
Chemotherapy
Chemicals are used to either stop the cells dividing or to make them ‘self-destruct’
What is in a cigarette
Tar
Carbon monoxide
Nicotine
Heart disease
A disease that affects how well your heart can carry out its job
Commonly it is due to the narrowing of the arteries that can reduce blood flow to
parts of the body including the heart
How smoking can also increase risk of CHD
Mixture of chemicals in cigarettes can lead to an increase in blood pressure
Damage the lining of the arteries and can increase the risk of a clot formation
How smoking can cause an infection
Chemicals in cigarettes can anaesthetise the cilia in the trachea and bronchi which allows pathogens and dirt to enter the lungs and can cause an infection
Tar bad effects
Accumulates in lungs turning them grey
It increases the risk of bronchitis
A build-up of tar can lead to a breakdown in the structure of alveoli causing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Is a carcinogen
COPD
COPD reduces the surface are to volume ratio of the lungs leading to severe
breathlessness and eventually death
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide is found in tobacco smoke. It takes up some of the oxygen carrying-
capacity of your blood. After smoking a cigarette, up to 10% of the blood will be carrying carbon monoxide rather than oxygen.
What can carbon monoxide lead to
This can lead to a shortage of oxygen, one reason why many smokers get more breathless
when they exercise than non-smokers.
Smoking when pregnant
A foetus relies on the mother for oxygen. If there is carbon monoxide in the mother’s
blood the foetus doesn’t receive enough oxygen to develop properly.
What can smoking when pregnant cause
Low birth weights
Premature births
Still births
Why do you need some body fat
To cushion internal organs and act as an energy store
Weight gain
If there is energy left over, this is converted to fat and stored around our bodies
Weight loss
If you don’t eat enough, your fat stores are broken down and you will lose weight
People with fast metabolism
The chemical reactions in their body work faster, which demands more energy
People with low metabolic rate
Use energy more slowly/more difficult to lose weight
Increase your metabolic rate
Exercise can, even when you have stopped exercising
Why should you exercise
Fitter than people who don’t
exercise
Bigger muscles – muscle needs
more energy to be transferred
from food than fat (increased
metabolic rate)
Fitter hearts – better blood
supply
Bigger lungs
Balances the different
cholesterol – reduced risk of
fatty deposits in coronary
arteries
Problems with being overweight
Increased risk of cardiovascular
diseases – more risk of fatty
deposits in arteries that can lead
to coronary heart disease
Lower metabolic rate –
increased risk of arthritis,
diabetes and high blood pressure
How to test for diabetes
See if glucose is present in the blood by using Benedict’s reagent (will turn from blue to brick red)
Cirrhosis of the liver
Liver breaks down alcohol and too much will cause scar tissue on the organ which cannot carry out vital functions
Liver cancer
Alcohol is a carcinogen and can cause cancer in heavy drinkers. Liver cancer spreads quickly and is hard to treat
Stomach lining erosion
Too much alcohol will cause erosion of the stomach lining causing problems with digestion
Kidney failure
Too much alcohol can lead to kidney failure meaning fluids in the body can’t be regulated
Brain damage
In some alcoholics, the brain becomes soft and pulpy and can no longer properly function
How alcohol affects people
Relaxes
Slower reactions
Loss of inhibitions
Loss of coordination
Vomiting
Aggression/depression
Brain damage
Coma
Death
Pregnancy/alcohol
Alcohol can pass across the placenta into the developing baby
The developing liver can’t cope with the alcohol like an adult liver can
Development of brain and body is affected
What can alcohol/pregnancy lead to
Miscarriages, still births, premature births. low birth weights, learning disabilities, deformities, Foetal Alcohol Syndrome
Ionising radiation
Penetrates the cells and damages the chromosomes, leading to mutations in the DNA which can lead to cancer - carcinogen
Sources of ionising radiation
UV light (the sun, tanning beds)
Radioactive materials (in soil, water, air)
Medical and dental x-rays (x-ray machines)
Nuclear power plant accidents (plant + surrounding area
Obesity/Type 2 Diabetes link
Cells stop responding to insulin, this is worse for people with obesity as fat cells are more restricted to insulin that muscle cells
Exercise vs cardiovascular disease risk
Lowered by exercise as it keeps your blood pressure stable
Smoking vs cardiovascular disease
Smoking can create fatty deposits in the heart’s arteries
Contact inhibition
Process stopping additional cell growth when cells become crowded
Use data
V important
Why is a line graph appropriate
Continuous data
Epidemiological studies
Look for diseases that are caused by different risk factors
A good study
Looks at large number of people
Collects evidence to support/reject a link
Correlation and causation
not the same! correlation doesn have evidence
Correlation
Direct link between 2 things, evidence needed to back it up
Casual mechanism
process by which a cause brings about an effect
