Week 2 Flashcards
Model of Factors Affecting Health
Social environment and Genetic affects individual (through agents)
Individual and physical environment affects individuals health (through behaviour and medical care)
The Role of the Environment
- people make choices based on the options presented to them
- to affect the determinants of health in a way which promotes healthy behaviour
Facts we know about the environment
- increased physical activity associated with environmental measures (sidewalks, aesthetics, street connectivity [cult a sacs limit this], mixed land-use [not just residential or shopping], recreational facilities, etc)
- increased intake of healthy foods associated with the availability of healthy foods in stores
- associations derived predominantly from cross-sectional studies mainly in Western countries (homogeneous environments)
PURE Canada Built Environment (BE) Study
To identify environmental determinants of CVD risk factors in urban and rural Canada
- Sports fields: not related to physical activity (less in semi-rural, most in semi-urban)
Study: Test the associations between the food environment (FE) and obesity risk in Canada
A 2:1 ratio of fast food to restaurants results in a 9% increase in odds of being obese
Supermarkets
- large food retail outlets that stock a variety of food items
- presence/absence of supermarkets associated with body mass index (BMI) of nearby residents
- caveat: assumes local residents shop locally and homogeneity of supermarkets
Two overarching strategies can change the environment
- programs
- policy
Programs for environmental change
- attempt to change the social values/norms at a societal level around a behaviour
- at a population level the strategies include: marketing (social), advertising and communications, mass public education (popular press, widespread community programs)
- difficult and a long time horizon
- multiple programs to reach the population may be very expensive
Policies for environmental change
- the development of healthy public policies that moderate the environmental context in which people make their choices
- often difficult because it requires the conviction of decision markers, but highly effective (urban zoning policy for restaurants, residential, commercial buildings)
- need a champion and broad partnership with individuals, community, organisations, associations, etc.
Influencing the Consumer
- education and awareness (Canadas food guide)
- popular media
- use more fresh produce, restrict additives
Challenges: - reach, scope
- affordability
- availability
- choosing the behaviour
Marketing
Constantly bombarded with both direct and indirect messages that have influence on our choices:
- billboards
- magazines
- internet advertisements
- movies
- sponsorships
Product placement
- Brown and Williamson paid $500,000 to smoke its cigarettes in five films
- movies echoed and reinforced the themes in tobacco advertising, both the rebel loner and the popular in-crowd type
Smoking in movies - suggested changes
- despite anti-tobacco legislation in Canada, there is no regulation on smoking in the movies
- suggestions for curbing smoking in movies:
- an R rating for new movies that depict smoking except depicting historical figures
- place anti-tobacco ads prior to movies that depict smoking
- transparency regarding any placement payments by tobacco companies
- reduce government subsidies for movies that depict smoking
- monitoring efforts regarding youth exposure to smoking in movies
Do smoking bans improve health?
- respiratory health of bar workers has improved following bans
- air quality in public places improve
- changes society’s attitudes and perceptions to smoking
Marketing to Children
- use of licensed products in many foods/products targeted to children
- placement of sugary cereal in supermarkets at levels to reach Childs eye
Concern: - young children cannot differentiate between regular TV and commercials
- young children lack ability to make decisions weighing risk
The Nag Factor
- the nag factor is the tendency of children, who are bombarded with marketers messages, to unrelentingly request advertised items
- all the participating mothers indicated that their young children engaged in some form of nagging
- mothers described packaging, characters, and commercials as the
