Unit 1: Health, Wellness, and Assessing Credibility Flashcards
Life expectancy vs. Lifespan
Life expectancy: how long we are expected to live
Lifespan: how long we are capable of living (~120 years)
Top 3 leading causes of death in Canada
- Cancer
- Heart disease
- Accidents
Health vs. Wellbeing
Health: the overall condition of both body and mind and the presence or absence of illness or injury.
Wellness: optimal health or vitality, encompassing all the dimensions of well-being
Medical model of health (A.K.A Illness model) ~ 1800s
Viewed health as the absence of disease.
- the physician is responsible for your health by prescribing treatments
- Focused on the disorder rather than on the person
Goal of this model is to prevent morbidity (sickness) and mortality (death)
9 dimensions of wellness
- Physical
- Emotional
- Intellectual
- Interpersonal
- Cultural
- Spiritual
- Environmental
- Financial
- Occupational
Health through prevention model (1970s)
Shift in thinking towards health promotion.
- focused on prevention instead of treatment
- relates the main causes of mortality to known risk factors
3 levels of the Health through prevention model
Personal level: it is the responsibility of the person to change their health behaviours
Community level: health promoters can target high risk groups and focus on prevention or early detection
Health-care provider level: physicians can act as a resource to raise awareness of risk factors
The Framingham study
Showed that people who didn’t smoke/drink, were physically active, and ate 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day lived ~14 years longer than people who didn’t
Social determinants of health
(read textbook and be able to differentiate between these factors)
- Income
- Education
- Job security
- Early childhood development
- Food insecurity
- Housing
- Social exclusion
- Social safety net
- Health services
- Indigenous status
- Gender
- Ethnicity
- Disability
Strategies to improve social determinants of health
- Social inclusion
- Education
- Employment
- Reduced income disparities
- Universal health care access
- Housing and food security
- Helping individuals make informed health decisions
7 dimensions of wellness
(Fill in each with textbook)
- Physical
- Emotional
- Intellectual
- Interpersonal
- Cultural
- Spiritual
- Environmental
- Financial
- Occupational
stages of changing behaviour
- Pre-contemplation: raising consciousness
- Contemplation: self re-evaluating, emotional arousal
- Preparation: commitment
- Action: progress
- Maintenance: keep going
6.termination: rewards
S.M.A.R.T goals
S- Specific - Avoid vague goals
M-Measureable - trackable goals
A-Attainable - within your limits
R-Realistic - doable
T- Time-Frame Specific - reasonable amount of time
Self-efficacy
The belief in one’s ability to achieve a goal
Rule for assessing the credibility of health information
If it sounds too good to be true it probably isn’t true
Ex. “I got ripped in 4 weeks”
hierarchy of evidence for health claims
- Experimental
- Epidemiological
- Clinical
- Personal
- Anecdotal
Experimental evidence
scientific evidence, application of the scientific method
Epidemiological evidence
making observations in a population to link together variables
Ex. Dr. John Snow talked to people diagnosed with cholera and found out that the cause of cholera was a contaminated well.
Epidemiology: Correlation
The use of population data
Ex. Tracking the spread of a disease through a population
- can lead to association that do not necessarily imply cause and effect
Ex. Comparing global average temperature with number of pirates
Epidemiology: Causation
Our ability to ascertain cause and effect depends on several factors (using example of smoking and lung cancer):
strength of association
- smoking is associated w lung cancer
Dose-response
- risk for lung cancer increases the more cigarettes a person smokes
Consistency
- many studies link smoking w lung cancer
Temporally correct
- is the timing right? Lung cancer develops after years or decades
Specificity
- the increased risk is specific to smokers
Biological plausibility
- there is a mechanism that can explain cause and effect
Misinformation of health claims
- anecdotes are often untrue accusations
- social media tends to exaggerate health claims for views or attention
Steps to take when evaluating health information
-
Go to original source
- check if it is based on proper science -
Watch for misleading language
- words like “breakthrough” and “dramatic proof” are usually hype - Dont blindly trust anecdotes
-
Be skeptical
- if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is
Assessing credibility on the internet
-
What is the source
- government websites or trustworthy websites will guarantee truthful information -
How often is the site updated
- look for sites updated frequently - ** Is the site promotional**
- are they trying to make money - ** what do other sources say**
- be wary of claims exclusively from one website -
Is there a set of criteria for accuracy that the site conforms to
- respected sources tend to have a set of principles
Important takeaway
Association ≠ causation
(Learn abt this more in textbook)
Health disparity
A health difference linked to social, economic, or environmental disadvantage that affects a group of people.
Ex. Gender, race, income, disability, geographical location, etc.
