Posts

, ,

Common Diseases in Andorra

Common Diseases in AndorraAndorra is one of the smallest countries in Europe, residing between the French and Spanish borders. In recent years, Andorra has become a tourist destination, drawing in more than eight million visitors every year. This tourism is due to the country’s winter sports, a summer climate and an international commercial center for shopping. For the people who live in Andorra, preventable disease acts as one of their leading causes of death. Below are some of the most common diseases in Andorra:

Ischemic Heart Disease
One of the most common diseases in Andorra is ischemic heart disease (IHD). IHD occurs when blood flow is restricted in the body and arteries in the heart become narrowed. When heart arteries are narrowed, the victims of this disease have less blood transported to the heart and can ultimately lead to a heart attack.

About 22 percent of Andorrans suffer from IHD, and it is the leading preventable cause of death in Andorra. The disease has become more prevalent in recent years due to increased economic prosperity, allowing people to live a more sedentary lifestyle. In fact, there has been a 43 percent increase in the past twenty years of the occurrence of IHD.

Lung Cancer
Lung cancer is the third most common disease in Andorra. The disease is an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells that start off in the lungs and has the potential to spread to other regions of the body. This spread can compromise other organs in the body, leading to death. Currently, six percent of Andorrans suffer from lung cancer, which is a 36 percent increase from when it was last measured in 1990.

Andorra suffers from this disease due to preventable actions. About 44 percent of males and 28 percent of females in Andorra smoke tobacco products on a regular basis, which is one of the leading causes of lung cancer. Even though the knowledge about the dangers of this disease are well-documented and known throughout the country, many individuals do not take the proper actions to avoid lung cancer.

Diabetes
Due to the economic prosperity of Andorra, food is easily available in the country, often leading to diabetes. Diabetes is a disease that affects a person’s ability to produce or use insulin. This inability to use insulin can cause a surplus of blood sugar in the body. Prolonged exposure to increased levels of blood sugar causes a person suffering from diabetes to risk getting kidney disease, heart disease and blindness.

Currently, three percent of Andorrans suffer from diabetes. Similarly to lung cancer, although many know of the risks associated with diabetes, many individuals do not take the proper actions to avoid the disease.

The most common diseases in Andorra are also the most preventable ones. Proper diet, exercise and the avoidance of intoxicants are one method that an individual can avoid a higher chance of getting any of the above illnesses. Although the information on these diseases is well known, many in Andorra have not taken steps to avoid them.

– Nicholas Beauchamp

Photo: Flickr

, ,

The Association Between Poverty and Lung Cancer

Poverty and Lung Cancer
Poverty predisposes individuals to a spectrum of conditions that result from an amalgamation of lifestyle factors, health, hygiene and living conditions. Mortality from lung cancer is a more significant factor in impoverished communities compared to developed economies.

One of the major predisposing factors for high lung cancer mortality rates in developing countries is smoking. Cigarette smoke contains toxic particles which can inflict damage to cells present in the airways. Over time, these affected cells can become abnormal and lose their normal function.

The World Bank has established that smoking is more prevalent among poor groups compared to the rich, not only as a consequence of poverty but also in part due to the education individuals receive. Due to incognizance of the health risks associated with smoking, poor individuals may engage in this habit as a result of stress or poor family relationships.

Strategies to reduce lung cancer mortality in developing countries should focus on increasing access to education. Increased education can be achieved by building schooling facilities, implementing laws where education is compulsory until a certain age and subsidizing education for families who are unable to afford school fees.

A composition of diet also plays a crucial role in the development of lung cancer in impoverished countries. Some households are likely to be contingent with foods that are often processed, cheap and have poor nutritional value. As a result of low intake of fruit and vegetables, individuals are likely to be deficient in essential vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that play an important role in the body’s defense mechanisms against cancer development.

Measures to overcome poor dietary habits can include campaigns educating individuals about healthy eating. Subsidies can be offered to local supermarkets to ensure that fresh, affordable produce is readily available to individuals.

Rural communities often have poor access to health care services which can impede their ability to seek professional help at early stages. This prevents cases of lung cancer from being diagnosed and treated in the inchoate stages. Cancer can eventually progress to a serious stage where it is completely incurable and has a risk of significant mortality. Higher mortality in poor communities can also stem from a reluctance to utilize health care resources, possibly as a result of personal prejudice or concerns about a financial expense.

A recent study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that 40 percent of identified cancer cases are associated with tobacco usage. This represents a significant proportion of cases that can be attributed to smoking, which is a preventable risk factor.

Widespread smoking cessation campaigns in both developing and developed countries can be implemented to encourage individuals to reduce smoking gradually. This can be done through advertising, counseling with health care professionals or even offering alternatives to smoking such as nicotine replacement therapy.

With greater than 36 million smokers in the United States alone, urgent action must be taken to ensure both poverty and lung cancer are reduced through a combination of corrective measures such as education, health care advice, and smoking cessation campaigns.

– Tanvi Ambulkar

Photo: Flickr

, ,

7 Million Killed Annually by Air Pollution

air_pollution
Air pollution killed an estimated 7 million people in 2012 according to a World Health Organization (WHO) report published in March – a figure that is double what it was previously thought to be.

“The risks from air pollution are now far greater than previously thought or understood, particularly for heart disease and strokes,” says Dr. Maria Neira, Director of WHO’s Department for Public Health, Environmental and Social Determinants of Health.

The sharp increase comes from a better understanding of pollution’s wide-sweeping effects, taking in new data collected from rural areas and urban settings as well. Scientists have gained crucial knowledge to the link between air pollution and noncommunicable, chronic illnesses that result in premature deaths. In particular, new links were revealed between air pollution and cardiovascular diseases as well as between air pollution and cancer.

“Few risks have a greater impact on global health today than air pollution,” Dr. Niera continues. “The evidence signals the need for concerted action to clean up the air we all breathe.”

The report distinguishes between two types of pollution: indoor and outdoor. Indoor pollution results from the fumes produced by wood or coal burning stoves in kitchen areas of homes that often spread and linger throughout entire living areas with poor ventilation. Outdoor pollution is caused by industrial waste entering soil and water supplies, desert dust, raw sewage and from the soot produced by coal-burning power.

So, which is more dangerous – indoor or outdoor pollution? It turns out that indoor pollution, due to its containment and consistent, extended exposure, is the more deadly of the two. The estimates claim 4.3 million deaths were the result of indoor pollution in 2012 and 3.7 million deaths from outdoor air pollution. That gives a total figure of around 8 million, but the WHO lowered the total estimate to s7 million to account for possible overlap. With these totals, it can be assumed that air pollution kills more people annually than HIV, tuberculosis and malaria combined.

The WHO has been able to target which diseases are caused by pollution that result in early death. The disease breakdown for both types of pollutions goes as follows:

Outdoor air pollution-caused deaths – breakdown by disease

40 percent – ischaemic heart disease
40 percent – stroke
11 percent– chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
6 percent – lung cancer
3 percent – acute lower respiratory infections in children

Indoor air pollution-caused deaths – breakdown by disease

34 percent – stroke
26 percent – ischaemic heart disease
22 percent – COPD
12 percent – acute lower respiratory infections in children
6 percent – lung cancer

Those suffering most from the epidemic are the rural poor, and those living in extremely polluted areas in Asia. Since indoor pollution is more of a threat, women, children and the elderly are also at a higher risk.

“Poor women and children pay a heavy price from indoor air pollution since they spend more time at home breathing in smoke and soot from leaky coal and wood cook stoves,” says Dr. Flavia Bustreo, WHO Assistant Director-General Family, Women and Children’s Health. “Cleaning up the air we breathe prevents noncommunicable diseases as well as reduces disease risks among women and vulnerable groups, including children and the elderly.”

— Edward Heinrich

Sources: The Guardian, Scientific American, Media Centre
Photo: Green Peace

,

Russia Institutes Public Smoking Ban

Russia Institutes Public Smoking Ban
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill into law that has created Russia’s first public smoking ban. People will no longer be allowed to smoke in restaurants, trains or entranceways into public housing. Additionally, beaches, children’s playgrounds and other public places are now off-limits to smokers.

The measure had been a significant part of the government’s plan for bettering overall public health. Its effects include rolling prohibitions on where people can smoke, as well as new limits on marketing and selling tobacco products. All but one member of the State Duma voted in favor of the bill.

Lung cancers are the fourth-biggest cause of death in Russia, and more than 40 percent of Russians smoke cigarettes. The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a study of smoking in Russia in 2011, and the results pointed out many of the deficiencies which this bill solves. For example, “the retail price of a pack of 20 of the cheapest brand of cigarettes in 2010 was 11 roubles.” This is the equivalent of 36 US cents or roughly one-third of the cost of a bottle of water in Moscow.

Russia’s new smoking laws on public smoking ban increase the minimum price allowed to be charged for a pack of cigarettes, hoping to reduce the amount people spend on tobacco while increasing the tax revenue for each pack sold.

– Jake Simon

Sources: BBC, World Life Expectancy, Numbeo