Thursday, November 14, 2019

Exercise and physical activity: what is the difference?

Learn the difference between physical activity and exercise and how each movement can contribute to physical fitness.

Physical activity is movement in which the muscles contract. All the activities we do during the day and include the movement - housework, gardening, walking, climbing stairs - are examples of physical activity.

Sport is a specific form of physical activity - planned, purposeful physical activity aimed at achieving fitness or other health benefits, says David Bassett, Jr., PhD, a professor in the Department of Sports, Physical Activity and Leisure at the University of Tennessee , Knoxville. Exercising in a gym, swimming, cycling, running and doing sports like golf and tennis are all forms of exercise.

Physical Activity and Movement: Understand the difference

Most daily physical activity is considered mild to moderately intense. However, there are certain health benefits that can only be achieved with more strenuous physical activity. The improvement of cardiovascular fitness is an example. Jogging or running offers greater cardiovascular benefits than, for example, walking leisurely. In addition, improved fitness depends not only on your physical activity, but also on how intense and how long you continue your activity. For this reason, it is important that you train in cardio training within your target heart rate range, for example, to achieve a certain intensity.

Physical Activity and Exercise: Understanding Intensity

How can you tell if an activity is considered moderate or intensive? If you can talk while you are doing it, it is moderate. If you have to stop to catch your breath after a few words, this is a hefty affair. Depending on your level of fitness, a game of double tennis is likely to be of moderate intensity, while a game of individual is more intense. Likewise, ballroom dancing would be moderate, but aerobic dancing would be considered powerful. Again, it's not just your choice of activity, it's how much effort it takes.

Physical Activity and Exercise: Components of Physical Fitness

Ideally, an exercise program should include elements to improve each of these components:
• cardiopulmonary endurance. Improve your airway endurance - your ability to work aerobically - through activities such as walking, jogging, running, cycling, swimming, jumping rope, rowing or cross-country skiing. When you reach distance or intensity goals, reset them higher or switch to another activity to challenge yourself further.

• Muscle strength. You can most effectively increase muscle power by lifting weights, either with free weights such as barbells and dumbbells, or with weight machines.
• muscular endurance. Improve your stamina through gymnastics (strength training), strength training and activities such as running or swimming.
• Flexibility. Increase your flexibility by doing stretching exercises as part of your workout, or by a discipline such as yoga or Pilates, which includes stretching exercises.

While it's possible to treat all these fitness components with a physically active lifestyle, a workout program can help you get even greater benefits.
Increasing physical activity in your daily life is a good place to start - like parking a few blocks from your destination to do some walking. However, to truly achieve your fitness goals, you should include structured, intense activities in your schedule to better meet your fitness and health goals.

The lifelong benefits of exercise

Stop hesitating and start training! The benefits of physical fitness are too great to ignore.
Feel younger, live longer. It's not a buzzword - these are the real benefits of regular exercise. According to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, people with high levels of physical fitness have a lower risk of dying from a variety of causes.

Physical Fitness: What the benefits of exercise mean to you

There is more good news. Research also shows that exercise improves sleep, prevents weight gain and lowers the risk of high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes and even depression.

"One study found that physical activity, strength, weight maintenance and social well-being were significantly improved when athletes operated on breast cancer survivors," explains Drs. Rachel Permuth-Levine, Deputy Director of the Office of Strategic and Innovative Measures Programs at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health.

"Another study looked at patients with stable heart failure and found that physical activity eases symptoms, improves quality of life, reduces hospitalization and, in some cases, reduces the risk of death," adds Dr. Permuth-Levine added. She points out that exercise is not only important for people who are already suffering from health conditions: "Recognizing the benefits of moderate exercise in people recovering from illnesses may give us even greater benefits for those of us see, which are generally affected by it. "

Physical fitness: exercise basics

Physical activity does not have to be tiring to get results. Even moderate training five to six times a week can lead to lasting health benefits.

Consider three simple guidelines as you incorporate more physical activity into your life:

1. Exercise with moderate intensity for at least 2 hours and 30 minutes over a week.
2. Avoid periods of inactivity. Some exercises at any intensity are better than none.
3. Add aerobic exercise (cardio) at least twice a week through weight-bearing activities that strengthen all major muscle groups.

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Physical Fitness: Exercise to make a habit

The main reason why most people say they are not exercising is lack of time. If you find it difficult to include longer physical activities in your schedule, remember that short physical activities in 10-minute intervals will still help you achieve health benefits. Permuth-Levine recommends: "Even without weight loss, relatively short daily exercise periods reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease."

Set realistic goals and take small steps to bring more exercise into your daily life. For example, take the stairs instead of the elevator and go to the grocery instead of driving. "The key is to start gradually and be prepared," says Permuth-Levine. "Have shoes, pedometers and music ready so you do not have any excuses."

To help you maintain your new exercise habits, vary your routine, such as: B. swimming in one day and walking the next. Go out and start a baseball or football game with your kids. Even if the weather does not work, you should have a Plan B - use an exercise bike in your home, look for exercise equipment in a nearby community center or consider joining a fitness club. The trick is to get to the point of doing sports such as brushing your teeth and getting enough sleep - which is vital to your well-being.

Remember that physical fitness is achievable. Even with small changes, you can make big profits that will pay off for years to come.

One in three young adults is lonely - and that affects their mental health

According to a new report from Swinburne University and VicHealth, more than one in three young adults aged 18 to 25 reported problematic loneliness.

We interviewed 1,520 Victorians between the ages of 12 to 25 years and examined their experience of loneliness. We also asked about the symptoms of depression and social anxiety.
In total, one in four adolescents (12 to 25 years old) said they felt lonely for three or more days in the last week.

Among the 18- to 25-year-olds, one in three (35%) said they felt lonely three or more times a week. We also found that a higher degree of loneliness increases the risk of depression for a young adult by 12% and social anxiety by 10%.
Young people between the ages of 12 and 17 gave better results, with one in seven (13%) feeling lonely three or more times a week. Participants in this age group also reported fewer symptoms of depression and social anxiety than 18- to 25-year-olds.

Young adulthood can be a lonely time

Everyone can experience loneliness at any time in their lives, but is often triggered by significant events in life - both positive (like new parenting or new work) and negative (sadness, separation or health problems).
Young adults master new challenges such as relocating from home and starting university, TAFE or work. Almost half (48%) of young adults in our survey lived away from family members and caregivers. Almost 77% were also engaged in some kind of work.

Adolescents in high school can be kept from loneliness because they are surrounded by peers, many of whom have known them for years. However, once they leave the security of this familiar environment, they will likely need to make extra efforts to make new connections. You may also feel more disconnected from the existing friends that have them.
During this transition to independence, young adults may find themselves in evolving social networks, including interacting with peers and peers of various ages. Learning to navigate these various relationships requires adjustments and a lot of trial and error.

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Is social media blamed?

It is often assumed that trust in social media leads to loneliness.
No studies known to me have investigated the cause of loneliness and use of social media.
There is evidence that those who are lonely use the Internet more for social interactions and spend less time on real interactions. However, it is unclear whether the use of social media causes more loneliness.

While social media can be used to replace offline relationships with online relationships, it can also be used to enhance existing relationships and provide new social opportunities.
In addition, a recent study found that the link between social media use and mental stress was weak.

Is loneliness the cause or consequence of a mental illness?
Loneliness is bad for our physical and mental health. Over a period of six months, people who are lonely are more likely to be affected by depression, social anxiety, and paranoia. Social anxiety can also lead to more loneliness at a later stage.
The solution is not as simple as joining a group or trying to make friends, especially when you are already afraid to be with people.

While lonely people are motivated to connect with others, social interactions are more likely to be stressful. Brain imaging studies show that lonely people are less rewarded by social interactions and are more focused on the needs of others than less lonely colleagues
When lonely people socialize, they are more likely to defeat themselves. For example, they may be less cooperative and tend to show negative emotions and body language. This happens in an (often unconscious) attempt to break away and protect oneself from rejection.

It is also more likely that lonely people will find reasons they can not trust or who will not meet certain social expectations, and believe that others will rate them more negatively than they actually do.

What can we do against it?

One way to counter these invisible forces is to help young people think more positively about friendship and understand how they can influence others through their emotions and behavior.
Parents, educators and counselors can help educate children and adolescents about the dynamics of developing friendships. This may mean helping young people to evaluate their own behaviors and thought patterns, to understand how they play an active role in building relationships, and to help them interact differently.

More specific strategies could include:

• question unhelpful thinking or negative views about others
• help young people identify their strengths and learn how important they are to building strong, meaningful relationships. Identifying humor as strength, for example, may mean discussing how to use one's humor to build relationships with others.

Educational programs can do more for the social health of young people, and these discussions can be integrated into health education courses.
Since young people are already familiar with technology often and competently, carefully crafted digital tools could be developed to tackle loneliness.
These tools could help young people learn skills to build and maintain meaningful relationships. And because lonely people tend to avoid others, digital tools could also serve as a way to help young people build social trust and practice new skills in a safe space.

However, a cornerstone of any solution is the normalization of feelings of loneliness. A sense of loneliness is not seen as weakness, but as an innate human need for connection. Loneliness can be detrimental to your health if it is ignored or not treated properly, so the stress continues.
Recognizing and normalizing feelings of loneliness can help lonely people to consider different options for action.

We do not yet know the lifelong effects of loneliness on today's young people. Therefore, it is important to take action now to raise awareness and give young people the tools to build meaningful social relationships.
Michelle Lim, the author of this piece, will be available for questions on this topic on Tuesday, October 1, 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm AEST. Please post your questions in the comments below.

No, portion sizes food labels do not indicate how much we should eat

The Australian Healthy Eating Guide sets out how much we should eat from each food group. If we consume the recommended number of "standard servings" of each food group for our age and gender, we are in a good position to be healthy and well-balanced.
But what is a standard markup? And does it match what's on our food labels?

Served standard

Despite the name, standard servers are not very standard, even in the Australian Healthy Eating Guide. Portions can be described by energy (kilojoules or short kJ), which is contained in one serving, units of foods such as "a medium apple" or "a slice of bread", by weight or by volume like a cup.
A "markup" also differs between each of the food groups and even within the food groups.
A serving of cereal is about 500kJ. This is an English muffin, but only half a roll. Or it could be half a cup of porridge, a quarter of a cup of cereal, or three quarters of a cup of wheat flakes.

A serving of milk is 500-600kJ, that could be a cup of milk, but it's only three quarters of a cup of yogurt or half a cup of ricotta. Hard cheese is defined by slices, two slices being in one serving, provided each slice has about 20g.

Serves on food labels

Almost all packaged foods in Australia have nutritional information boards. This includes information to help us choose better foods.
The exact details depend on the food. However, you must at least specify how much energy (kJ), protein, fat (total and saturated), carbohydrates (total and sugars) and salt (sodium) are contained in the product. This content is always given twice per 100 g (100 ml for liquids) and serving.

The portion of the label, however, has nothing to do with the standard portions of the Australian Healthy Eating Guide. The serving size on the label is not a recommendation on how much you should eat - it is determined by the manufacturer. It depends on how much a person normally consumes or the size of the unit in which the product is consumed.

This can be very different from a standard markup. For example, the labeled serving size on a candy bar might be "one board" - 53 grams of chocolate at 1,020 kJ. However, according to the Australian Healthy Eating Guide, one serving equals half a bar (25 g) or about 600 kJ, and it is recommended that you do not over-confin (junk food) to one serving a day.

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Compare portion sizes between brand and pack sizes

In Australia, there are no rules on how these portion sizes are set. One serving may not be the same in similar products or brands of the same product.
This can make the comparison of products difficult. The serving size of a soy sauce in a brand may be, for example, one-tenth of a soy sauce from another manufacturer.
To increase the confusion, a serving does not necessarily reflect the serving size: how much a person consumes in a meal or sitting.

For example, a 250g packet of white microwave rice could contain two 125g portions. This is because the manufacturer expects two people to be served. But one of these labeled portions are almost two standard servings of cereal.
To make it even more confusing, a 450g family pack with four servings of 112g each could be labeled in the same rice brand. That's 10% less than the portion size in the smaller package. However, it is believed that a family of four could divide the pack during a meal. In this pack, a serving size equals about 1.7 standard servings of cereals.

How labels affect our food choices

Although labeled portion sizes are not related to standard portions or to the recommended amounts that should be consumed, consumers often interpret the labeled portions as recommendations for serving size or for adhering to dietary guidelines, according to studies.

Studies show that the given portion size has an impact on how much people eat. Larger portions on labels may seem like a large portion is recommended, causing people to eat more or serve themselves more. This has been shown on several foods, including biscuits, cereals, lasagna and cheese crackers.
However, with some foods, such as lozenges, larger portion sizes can compromise your health, resulting in lower consumption or smaller portion sizes. This is likely because the large number of kilojoules in the data per serving is noticeable.

So, what should you do?

Since portion sizes may vary by product and manufacturer, it is easiest to use the data per 100g or 100ml instead of the data per serving for product comparison. However, think of the actual weight or volume you need as a consumer when considering how to fit your daily intake.
The recommended diet for an average adult is based on consuming 8,700 kJ of energy per day. To gain so much energy from a balanced diet, these are 50 g protein, 70 g fat and 310 g carbohydrates. We also want to go for 24 grams or less of saturated fats and 30 grams or more of fiber.

However, needs are differentiated by life phase, activity level, gender, current weight and weight goals. There are online calculators to estimate your needs.
Memorizing portion sizes and guidelines can be difficult. To simplify this, you can print a copy of the Australian Healthy Eating Guide and save the portion sizes to display when preparing food.

It is safest to avoid e-cigarettes altogether - unless Vaping helps you stop smoking

Health authorities in the United States are investigating 530 cases of lung disease, including seven deaths allegedly related to vaping. Some of these patients were diagnosed with pneumonia caused by the inhalation of oil.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that many samples tested contained tetrahydrocannabidol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, as well as significant amounts of vitamin E.

So far, no cases of vapor-related lung disease have been reported in Australia. However, we know that a small proportion of people in Australia (about 1.2% of the population) are vapourous and may therefore be concerned about the development of this severe lung disease.
Among the people who are vapors, it is those who rely on the practice to avoid smoking cigarettes that most confront the current headlines.

Vaping as an alternative to cigarette smoking

Many experts find that dispensing nicotine by evaporation is less risky than smoking conventional cigarettes because it avoids most of the cigarette smoke inhaled harmful combustion products.
Whether Vaping helps quit smoking continues to be debated, although some clinical studies show it is more effective than other medications such as nicotine patches. We know that some people who travel in Australia do so because they have used the practice to quit smoking cigarettes.


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While nicotine-containing steam products are banned in Australia, some people illegally refer to them or get a prescription to bring them from overseas. For others, the behavior of evaporating nicotine-free products may be enough to prevent them from smoking cigarettes again.
The widespread reports of outbreaks of sudden and serious lung disease related to vaping may make this group wonder if it is better to stop vaping and smoke again.
The simple answer is no, they would not. Research has shown that vapors are less harmful to health than smoking traditional cigarettes. That does not mean that it is without risk.

The chemicals in steam

Most commercially available steam liquids contain water-soluble liquids (propylene glycol, glycerin), nicotine (but not in Australia) and flavorings. The liquid is heated by the evaporator to produce a mist that is inhaled into the lungs.
Other substances can also be used in steam appliances. The evaporation of cannabis extracts and concentrates such as THC oil (referred to as "dabbing") has increased in recent years, particularly in the US, where 11 states have introduced recreational cannabis use and over 30 legalizing medical cannabis. It is likely that this type of product is also circulating among people who are using cannabis illegally in Australia.

Cannabis vapor liquids are often based on oil, unlike most nicotine vapor liquids. Many come from the black market and may be contaminated with pesticides, fungi and heavy metals. There can also be serious risks from added ingredients such as vitamin E oil, which are the subject of the current US investigation. This additive is used to dilute the fluid and then thicken it to hide the dilution.
The risks of inhaling these vaporized cannabis fluids are not fully understood, but are likely to differ from those of vaporizing water-soluble fluids.

Not a single chemical has been identified as the cause of all outbreaks in the US. This may not be possible because in some cases there are no vapor liquid residues to test, in some cases several products have been used and some people may not want to admit to using illegal substances.
Based on evidence of a strong link between illnesses and the evaporation of illicit cannabis fluids, the FDA recommends that consumers "avoid the purchase of steam products on the road and the use of THC oil or modify / add substances to Shops bought products ".

Australia was required to ban all vaping products in response to the US outbreak. However, since most outbreaks have admitted the evaporation of illegal THC oil fluids, similar cases are unlikely to occur.
No recall of commercial nicotine products has been reported in the US, suggesting that the regulator is currently not suspecting that these products are responsible for the outbreak.

The short-term risk associated with the vaporization of commercial nicotine fluids appears to be very low. The long-term risks are less certain, but there is widespread agreement that vaporizing nicotine fluids is less risky than smoking cigarettes.

It is not the first time that Vaping raises health concerns
In 2009, the FDA tested 18 e-cigarette cartridges and found that diethylene glycol, a component of antifreeze, contained 1% in a cartridge. In later studies, however, this contaminant was either not detected or only detected in the drug-approved lanes.
There were also fears that vapers could develop bronchiolitis obliterans, a serious and irreversible lung disease, because research found in some vapor fluids diacetyl, an aroma added to give a buttery taste.

This disease was termed "popcorn lung" after microwave popcorn factory workers exposed to diacetyl in the air developed this condition. The urban myth that vaping causes popcorn lung continues, although no cases of vaping have been reported.
Cigarette smokers are actually exposed to more diacetyl from tobacco than steamer from evaporating diacetyl-containing liquid. Nevertheless, the United Kingdom banned diacetyl 2016 as a precautionary ingredient in steam liquids.

In the vapor of commercially produced nicotine vapor products, other potentially harmful chemicals have been found. These include metals, acrolein and formaldehyde. But these chemicals are also much more common in cigarette smoke, along with more than 5,000 other chemicals, including many carcinogens.
In a study comparing the harmful chemicals in nicotine vapor and cigarette smoke, the lifelong risk of cancer from smoking was estimated to be 250 times that of vaporizing.
What is the takeaway message?

Vaping should not be considered a harmless practice. Cell and animal studies indicate that vapors can adversely affect lung tissue, although it is uncertain how these effects affect the risk of disease in humans. Overall, we still have much to learn about the health effects of fumes in the long run.
People who do not smoke tobacco should not start steaming.
 However, for someone who smokes tobacco, the choice is more complicated because of the very high risks of smoking. Ideally, it is safest not to smoke or smoke, but the priority for smokers should be to quit smoking.
Professional support through Quitline and nicotine medicines or prescription medications can help. But those who tried and failed to stop, and instead switched to vaping, should not smoke again on the basis of these cases in the United States.

For health reasons, people who are steaming should not take oily fluids, and especially no cannabis / THC fluids. Buy Vaping products only from reputable manufacturers, eg. For example, those that comply with European regulations. It is also recommended to stop steaming if this is possible without smoking again.

How can the health outcomes for indigenous peoples be improved by creating room for self-determination?

Indigenous public order fails consistently. The research results are convincing. In post-settlement colonial societies such as New Zealand, Australia and Canada, schooling for indigenous citizens is less effective, employment and housing are not as good and health conditions are poorer.
In Canada, the government said, the solution lay in closer ties between nation and nation between state and First Nations. In Australia, the federal government is proposing a stronger consultation to "fill the gaps in indigenous discrimination".

In New Zealand, the Waitangi Treaty is generally accepted as an agreement that offers solutions to the failure of politics. It protects Māori's right to self-determination and obliges the state to ensure that public policy is as effective for Māori as it is for everyone else.
Last week, the Waitangi Tribunal reaffirmed these two general principles of health policy, but in its comprehensive report on the primary health care system, it found that despite clear intentions, the state does not achieve good results for Māori.

Lack of self-determination

In fact, the Tribunal found that the state fails because it does not set aside to enforce Māori's self-determination. Self-determination is a right that belongs to everyone. According to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which accepts New Zealand as an "aspirational" document, self-determination means the following:

Indigenous peoples have the right to define and develop priorities and strategies for the exercise of their right to development. In particular, indigenous peoples have the right to actively participate in the development and establishment of health, housing and other economic and social programs that concern them and, as far as possible, manage those programs through their own institutions.

According to the Waitangi Treaty, the right to self-determination can be expressed in at least two ways. First, the treaty affirms Māori Rangatiratanga or, in the main, the authority over her own affairs. Second, it gives Māori the "rights and privileges of British subjects".
The latter was a relatively meaningless status in 1840, when the treaty was signed by representatives of the tribes of the Crown and Maori. But in 2019, citizenship has replaced subjectivity as the content of political rights and capabilities for many New Zealanders, but not always for Māori.


Proposal for the Māori Health Authority

The tribunal's report on health services and outcomes is explicit. Māori's poor health continues to exist as health policy does not respect the treaty. The solution lies in the contractual partnership between Māori and the Crown.

The idea of ​​a contractual partnership is firmly anchored in New Zealand politics. The tribunal report, however, reiterates the notion that this is an unequal partnership in which the crown acts as a leading party and gives place to the leadership of the Māori policy. On the other hand, at least two potentially transformative recommendations are made.

On the one hand, Crown and Māori health care applicants agree on a methodology for assessing the under-funding of Māori healthcare providers. The tribunal found that underfunding violates the contract and one of the variables that explain Māori's poor health.

Second, the Tribunal advised the Crown and the petitioners "to consider the possibility of an independent Māori Health Authority". This authority could become the primary financier of primary care for the citizens of Māori. Māori healthcare providers would submit offers of countervailable funding to the agency, which, in contrast to district health authorities, consists primarily of Māori members.


The agency would assess self-defined Māori health needs based on the established cultural values ​​of the Māori. It could also have the capacity to commission research and contribute to the national political debate.

Māori at the center of political decisions

This is in line with a recommendation made in 2009 to the Australian Government by Kevin Rudd by a Health and Hospitals Reform Commission.
Services would be provided by the Aboriginal community-controlled health services, general health care services and hospitals, and other services. The Authority would ensure that all purchased services meet established criteria, including clinical standards, cultural adequacy, adequately trained workforce, data collection and performance reporting in relation to established objectives such as national gender equality objectives for indigenous health.
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The rejection of the proposal was never fully explained. But New Zealand remains instructive in enabling Māori policy to work through self-determination.
Independent Māori decisions about which health programs to fund and which providers they are from may place the people and values ​​of the Māori at the center of the political process. This means that the Māori are not the subject of state policy. They become their representatives, exercise meaningful citizenship and have the right to take responsibility for their own affairs. The concept of Māori as junior partner of the crown is replaced by decision-making authority.

An independent funding agency could also strengthen democratic accountability to the Māori, who would not have to wait for an invitation to join the political process, but would be at the center. Liberal democracies exclude indigenous peoples and perspectives to protect majority interests. But as the tribunal has stated, the exclusion can explain why politics is failing.

In the meantime, indigenous Australians have proposed to Parliament a constitutionally anchored "vote," a truth commission, and treaties between indigenous nations and the state to recognize enduring indigenous sovereignty. Victoria and the Northern Territory have begun the process of contract negotiation, but last year a new South Australian government interrupted negotiations initiated by its predecessor. It was unbelievable that treaties could contribute to a better life for the natives.

In Zealand, the contract for Māori is not a panacea for a better life. But in 2019, as the Minister of Māori Government, Sir Apirana Ngata, put it in 1922, it remains.
[It] is much discussed on all Marae. It is on the lips of the humble and the great, the ignorant and the thoughtful.
Ultimately, the ability of the contract to transform depends on how it is interpreted, and in particular on whether self-determination can outdo the partnership.

Equality in health care improves people's health

Promoting equitable health care will improve people's health. This can be cost effective and have a big impact. Based on more than 15 years of research, we provide concrete examples of actions that can be taken by healthcare professionals - and their impact on patients.

Our multidisciplinary team of EQUIP Health Care researchers from universities across Canada has studied strategies to improve care. We are among the first to show that equitable healthcare predicts an improvement in patient health outcomes over time.
This advantage occurs despite the negative consequences of poverty, racism and other forms of discrimination against people's health.

Justice influences mental health

Throughout the world, people are facing health challenges due to poverty, discrimination and the continuing effects of trauma and violence. This leads to health inequalities defined by the World Health Organization as avoidable and unfair differences in human health.
Our evidence shows that when cared for, patients feel more comfortable and safe with a fairer care. This leads to more confidence in their own ability to prevent and manage health problems. They also report less depression and trauma, less chronic pain and improved quality of life.

A focus on mitigation

Justice-related health care means paying particular attention to those who are most at risk. This usually means that people are most affected by the negative effects of social conditions such as poverty, lack of affordable housing, stigma, racism and other forms of discrimination.
It is trauma and violence information supply. That is, understanding the effects of trauma and violence on people's lives, their health and their health experiences, and working to limit them.

This also includes a culture-safe supply: reduction of power imbalances, racism and discrimination, which often occur in meetings in the health sector.
The dimension of mitigation is also important. This includes a focus on preventing the damage of substance use, including stigma.

In our model, these three key dimensions overlap and can be tailored to any healthcare situation. We've isolated 10 strategies that emerge from these key dimensions to help healthcare workers and their organizations improve their ability to provide justice-based healthcare. This includes taking care of differences in power and taking active action against racism.

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Hire an elder, reduce stigma

Justice-oriented health care does not have to be expensive or time-consuming - many strategies aim to help people feel safe and comfortable.
This includes avoiding the language of judgment, not limiting the visits to "a problem" and welcoming and welcoming people on calls or visits. They can be as simple as providing water or coffee in the waiting room.

Here are some examples of how clinics in our first EQUIP study in different cities and communities have developed their practices to achieve a fairer focus:

1. The reception staff decided to change the phrasing and tone in response to phone calls from patients to book appointments. They wanted to make sure people did not feel dismissed or humiliated when they called.
2. A clinic serving a large number of Indigenous people has decided to hire a part-time senior who can talk to people while waiting for a doctor or nurse.
3. The staff set up a chronic pain group to teach pain management to patients. This has been important for humans as life with chronic pain is affected and deepened by poverty, substance use and loneliness.
4. Employees developed new mitigation strategies and practices to reduce stigma and improve support for people living with drug problems.
5. Employees deliberately used new trauma and violence-informed approaches to provide better care for new immigrants and refugees arriving in Canada and experiencing significant levels of trauma and violence.

Adaptation for emergency rooms

Given the impact of the EQUIP model, we have developed free online tools and Equipping for Equity modules designed to help healthcare decision makers, organizations and healthcare providers deliver justice-based healthcare. These include multimedia resources and organizational self-reviews.
New studies to adapt and test EQUIP in emergency departments, mental health facilities and hospital departments are underway - as we generate new insights into the transformative potential of this approach to improving care for all.

Friday, November 8, 2019

If you change the terminology in "people with obesity", the stigma is not mitigated against fat people

The British Psychological Society encourages us to change the way we talk about obesity and suggests that we no longer use the term "obese people" but "people with obesity" or "people with obesity Life".

These changes are suggested to recognize that fat is not about making personal decisions and that it is harmful to you.
However, this proposed language change is based on the idea that obesity is a disease to be cured and that fat people are not a natural part of the world. This serves to reinforce the stigma rather than prevent it.

How do stigmatization and shame affect fat people?


Fat stigma can damage people's physical health, mental health and relationships.
Regardless of the body mass index (BMI), the fat stigma increases blood pressure, inflammation and cortisol levels in the body due to the activation of the combat or escape response.
Fat stigma reduces self-esteem and increases depression. It isolates fat people and makes them less likely to deal with the world. This also affects the relationships of fat people to family, colleagues and friends.

People around the world and of all ages have a negative attitude towards fat and fat people. For example, in a study in the US, more than one-third of participants reported:
One of the worst things that could happen to a person is that he becomes obese.

How terminology reinforces the stigma

While many people feel fatigued with the term fat, fat activists prefer this term. They see it as an act of rebellion - accepting a word against them - but also because they think that it is the most appropriate word to describe their body.
Overweight means that there is a natural weight. Within human diversity we should all have the same ratio of size and weight.

Obesity is a medical term that has pathologized the fat body. The British Psychological Society's realization that we should not call them "obese people" but "people with obesity" confirms that obesity is a disease. A chronic disease that people suffer from.
The desire of the British Psychological Society to change to the first language is understandable. Person-first or people-first language is an attempt to define people not primarily by their illness or disability or another deviant factor.

Problem? The Solution:Afast Company.

The person-first language recognizes people as individuals with the right to dignity and care and puts the person and not their "condition" in the foreground.
Others, however, have argued that the first language attempts to erase, deny or ignore the aspect of the person who is not "normal" and affirms that their disability or illness has something vile or dehumanizing.

They promote an identity-defining language that enables people to be proud of who they are instead of separating a person from this aspect of themselves.
The problem with the first language is that these identities would be stigmatized. But without the stigma, there would be no concern about calling someone handicapped people, for example, rather than disabled people.

So, what should we do?

The best approach, especially for health professionals, is to ask people how they prefer their name.
And for the rest of us, it's up to them to acknowledge what an individual wants to be called, or how they want to talk about their experiences, not us. If a fat person wants to call himself fat, it's not up to the non-fats to correct it.
Changing the language to talk about fat and fat can reduce the fat stigma. But continuing to classify fat as a disease is not a helpful contribution.