Public Health & Other Relevant Topics

  See the pregnant woman's hands? They rest on 'her body '. See the healthcare worker's hand pointing to the developing baby? That is the 'baby's body'. While the developing baby is attached, using it's mother's body to sustain life, it is not the mother's body. Talk to any biologist or genetics specialist and they will tell you the same. To break it down into smaller, scientific terms, the mother has her DNA & the developing baby has it's own DNA code.  It's pretty basic. Human DNA is 99.9% identical from person to person and the 0.1% difference actually represents millions of different locations within the genome where variation can occur. The mom has her own DNA that has coded for her eye and hair color and gender expression. As well, the developing baby has it's own genetic code that will give them their eye and hair color. Argument 1 -- Already I am reading, on social media, it's my body and my choice  It's not your ...

  I needed an elective so I took the very first Human Sexuality class at a local college. The professor was so cute and the class were all women; some conservative, some very religious, some not.  I saw a post on FB asking people to list all the slang names for male and female body parts. lol It reminded me of one night when the Professor said don't turn around but students and maintenance are looking through the windows to see what's on the movie we're watching lol. Everyone at the school knew what class it was and every time students got break early or maintenance was around they'd look through the window. lol One night he asked us to take out a piece of paper and write down every name we knew of to label the male and female private parts. lol Then we had to go around the room and read them out loud. lol Jesus! The loud roar of laughter, once again, drew the attention of others outside who peeked through the windows. At the end of that night's class, the Professor...

Did I learn this or not? Because it's super interesting to me; not sure how I missed this. In looking at incidence and the fatality rate, several things can be assumed: Ex: The number of liver cancer fatalities is very close to the deaths; 700, 000 new cases globally & 600,000 deaths globally. This means: Late diagnosis, because it takes another symptom or sign from a related body system; blood clotting problems to alert the person that something is wrong Metastasis Treatment is impossible at a late stage, it's just too late to do anything From a public health point of view, we would look for ways to decrease or widen the gap between fatalities and new cases; i.e., annual screening, looking at demographics for cases, lifestyle and diet .. early diagnosis as in all diseases is the key. Many liver cancers could be prevented by reducing exposure to known risk factors for this disease. Avoid and treat hepatitis B and C infections. ... Limit alcohol and tobacco use. ... Get to a...

Blood clotting [Coagulation process] I think I was at Cedars and we dispensed a drug used by Hemophiliacs  [[Hemophilia B is the second most common type of hemophilia. 1,2. It is also known as factor IX deficiency, or Christmas disease. It was originally named “Christmas disease” after the first person diagnosed with the disorder back in 1952.]] So, I went to the medical library and learned about the process [steps taken] for blood to clot. Each step needs an enzyme to begin the next step & if one of those steps does not take place, then the blood doesn't clot. If you are a Hemophiliac your blood doesn't clot, so rough tumble and play can be fatal, there is an accident, or you get cut. ~ The clotting factors are: Factor I (fibrinogen) Factor II (prothrombin) Factor III (tissue thromboplastin or tissue factor) Factor IV (ionized calcium) Factor V (labile factor or proaccelerin) Factor VII (stable factor or proconvertin) Factor VIII (antihemophilic factor).  Factor IX (plasm...

Doctor Deception: AMA Takes Aim Against Physician Disinformation The American Medical Association (AMA) this week enacted a new policy designed to combat public health disinformation at the annual meeting of its House of Delegates. The policy focuses on healthcare professionals who spread misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines and promote unproven treatments for the disease. But it has wider implications for other public health issues, as well. Some components of the policy could be brought to bear against the licensing and board certification of physicians who participate in this kind of disinformation. According to an AMA statement, the new policy "provides a comprehensive strategy aimed at stopping the spread of disinformation and protecting the health of the public, including actions that can be taken by the AMA, social medial companies, publishers, state licensing bodies, credentialing boards, state and specialty health professional societies, and by those who accredit contin...

  The GMO came up for discussion, a lot, when I was in grad school. Personally, I am torn as to how I feel. Of course,  the field of Public Health weighs in as liberal and usually votes the Democratic ticket. For the most part, I kept my mouth shut. That being said, if you're Public Health you're supposed to subscribe to how the industry thinks. I have issues with the work of Bill & Melinda Gates and the broadcasts found on Ted Talks. Oh well. So, together we can investigate the pros and cons of GMO foods; hopefully by the end of thus blog post I will have formulated a more cohesive stance on the issue of genetically modified organisms.  My research will include non-biased resources, in other words, I'm not using against or for websites for a description. What is GMO? A genetically modified organism contains DNA that has been altered using genetic engineering. Genetically modified animals are mainly used for research purposes, while genetically modified plants are com...

Threats to Bees In 2007, honey bees began disappearing. Beekeepers across the United States reported that adult worker bees were leaving their nests, queens, larvae, and resources with no apparent cause. Large, industrial bee keepers suffered dramatic losses. Colony collapse disorder (CCD) brought public attention to the importance of pollinators, human impact on their health, and the consequences of their potential loss. Multiple factors contribute to honey bee colony loss: Diseases Parasites Pesticides Long-distance transportation of colonies Winter survival rates Limited floral resources Fluctuations in the honey market The most pressing threats to long-term bee survival include: Climate change Habitat loss and fragmentation Invasive plants and bees Low genetic diversity Pathogens spread by commercially managed bees Pesticides Help? Build a pollinator garden with wildflowers Bees, butterflies, and other pollinators need nectar as their primary food source, and female bees collect po...

  What is a perceived risk while driving? Risk perception refers to drivers' experience of risk in potential traffic hazards. Risk perception is determined by the information of the potential hazards in traffic environment, and on the ability of driver to perceive the potential hazards resulting into actual accidents (Brown & Groeger, 1988). What is meant by perceived risk? Definition . This term refers to an individual's subjective evaluation of his or her risk of an illness or an adverse outcome, often in relation to performing a certain risky behavior. Perceived risk is risk predicted by models and actual risk is the fundamental underlying risk. We measure perceived risk and care about actual risk. [Dec 12, 2018] What are six types of perceived risk? Image result Perceived risk Functional Risk. Physical Risk. Financial Risk. Social/psychological Risk. Time risk. What is one reason why teenage drivers tend to have a higher level of risk? Teen drivers, particularly 16- and...