Fighting Chronic Disease and Community Nutrition Intervention
The differences in public health’s role in preventing infectious and chronic diseases. Which will be more critical to the health of our nations over the next 20 to 30 years?
Public health is a discipline dedicated to improving populations’ health by preventing diseases and injuries before they occur through promotion, research, and education on healthy lifestyles (Brownson et al., 2017). Both public health and infection health are focused on preventing disease spread. Prevention interventions and strategies from both fields can be directed to the medical care practices and human behavior. Both also participate in collaborative partnerships on a global, national, state, and local level (Gostin & Wiley, 2016).
According to Blue et al. (2016), elements of public health are necessary for infection control and prevention and include developing policies and guidelines, providing education to the general public and healthcare providers, contagious disease reporting, goal setting, public reporting, data validation, surveillance; serve as a regulatory authority/ licensing; conduct control research and infection prevention; providing governmental incentives to report Hospital Acquired Infection data and improve performance on the HAI process and outcome measures; ensure effectiveness and safety of drugs, vaccines, and medical devices; liaise during bioterrorism attacks, significant events, and disasters to provide situational awareness and conduct active surveillance.
The consequences of ignoring the critical public health concepts include higher HAI incidences, disease outbreaks, and ongoing infection transmission; increased cost of healthcare because of HAI treatment; spread of organisms that are resistant to antibiotics resulting in difficult-to-treat and more costly infections; public distrust; fines and citations from accrediting or licensing bodies; and decreased reimbursements of healthcare (Blue et al., 2016). We offer assignment help with high professionalism.
Six of every ten Americans have chronic diseases such as diabetes, stroke, and heart disease, also leading drivers of healthcare costs. Most chronic diseases can be prevented by avoiding alcohol and tobacco, being physically active, and eating well. Chronic disease infectiousness is associated with behavioral risk factors (Raghupathi & Raghupathi, 2018). Behavioral risk factors such as physical inactivity, poor nutrition, excess alcohol consumption, and smoking are transferable. This is possible through modern communication and international travel. Physical contact is not necessary for transferring chronic diseases. Ideas on physical inactivity and smoking can be transmitted instantly and globally through the internet. Hence, I believe that public health ought to focus on the prevention of chronic diseases more than it does on infectious diseases.
The role of prevention in fighting and controlling the spread of chronic diseases and the impact of chronic diseases on healthcare spending
Coordinated practice in the prevention of chronic diseases by state health departments aims to leverage resources to address common risk factors through services, programs, and evidence-based policies (DeSalvo et al., 2017). These approaches may involve collaboration across program areas that have had a history of categorical funding, reorganized patterns of staffing to apply core disciplines in public health across several programs, cooperation within the healthcare system on system-wide policies, development of messages that are consistent in state health department funded organization; and collectively approaching problem-solving strategies.
Chronic disease prevalence started to become the dominant cause of illness in the US. As the prevalence increased, so did the healthcare costs (McPhail, 2016). For example, in the 1980s, the majority of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure, rose to upwards of 40 and 150 percent, with the expenditure on healthcare tripling. In 2016, the healthcare cost for chronic diseases such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease totaled $1.1 trillion. The total goes up to $3.7 trillion when considering the total economic impact of 20% of the US GDP (Waters & Graf, 2018). About risk factors, being obese or overweight accounted for 47 percent of the cost, which was $1.7 trillion. Close to 8.7% of healthcare spending is linked to tobacco use, with 60 percent of this cost paid by Medicaid, Medicare, and other US state and federal health programs (Waters & Graf, 2018).
Public health responsibilities and how they have had an impact on nutritional issues in America
According to Allison et al. (2015), the factors influencing policy agenda on nutrition include scientific insights development, national disease profile, new technologies, professional and public awareness, changing the meal source patterns, economies, and US demographic profile. Fundamentally, most public health agendas are primarily driven by the disability and disease profile of the public, the nature of the problem, and the rate of change of these. Nutritional requirement has an impact on nutrient needs throughout the lifecycle due to the significance of identifying metabolic changes that occur at different ages of a person. Another determining factor is the bioavailability and nutrient interactions in recognizing the human diet’s integrative nature and the need to be aware of the broader secular trend’s systemic effects linked to supplement and fiber consumption. Chronic diseases and nutrition also impact the nutritional issue because of an increased appreciation of the health factor’s central importance to the occurrence of chronic disease. Lastly, eating disorders, including obesity and energy regulation because of the disproportionate obesity prevalence in the US and the likelihood of association with different health problems, also impact the policy agenda.
I do not believe that public health responsibility has been effective because, in the US, poor diet has been linked to obesity and undernutrition. Poor diet is often associated with excessive calories, added sugars, trans fats, sodium, and saturated calories. The sedentary lives and a poor diet have led to an acceleration of overweight and obesity and chronic diet-related diseases, including dyslipidemia, hypertension, CVD, osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancer types (Hurby & Hu, 2015). In the US, the leading causes of death are stroke, cancer, and heart disease. Alongside diabetes, the 6th leading cause of death, they are the country’s top contributors to healthcare costs, mortality, and morbidity. All these chronic diseases are made likely by the obesity and overweight epidemic.
The role of State government in this area and how it differs from that of the Federal government
While most public schools have federal funding for school meals, federal food procurement law acts only as a baseline. These allow local and State governments to set more requirements for those schools that prefer local foods. The Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR) takes place every five years and establishes policy and funding for federal programs for child nutrition, including the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); Summer Food Service Program (SFSP); School Breakfast Program (SBP); and National School Lunch Program (NSLP) (Harvard Law School, 2016). These programs altogether are critical nutrition sources for more than 40 million children. While the division of power and structure may vary across the different governments, most states have a Department of Environmental Protection/Quality, Department of Human Services, Department of Education, Department of Public Health, and Department of Agriculture. State agencies may also develop regulations that go beyond federal laws.
Why is nutrition important in health and disease treatment, control, and prevention, and how is food related to any Social Determinants of Health?
The nutrients consumed by the body play a vital role in the development, growth, and health of the prevention of diseases and the development of functional abilities. The finest nutrition provides all the recommended nutrients and quality and is the foundation for disease prevention and good health. In 2020, it was estimated that the percentage of non-communicable diseases was to increase to 57% (Wang & Wang, 2020). Close to 50% of the deaths caused by chronic diseases can be attributed to diabetes, CVD, and obesity. The chronic disease burden is increasing quickly worldwide. In this scenario, the part of nutrients as chronic NCDs determinants are well established and hence is essential in the prevention activities (Wang & Wang, 2020).
Social determinants of health (SDOH) define the environmental, economic, social, and personal factors that impact a person’s health status. Social factors include concentrated poverty, residential segregation, public safety, transportation option quality of schools, exposure to technology and media, early childhood development and experiences, community inclusivity and social support, exposure to violent behavior, crime rates, discrimination, safe drinking water, and nutritious food access, living wages, and job and educational opportunities among others (Bharmal et al., 2015).
Social determinants of healthcare are shaped by the distribution of resources, power, and money at the global, national, and local levels. According to WHO, the SDOH are responsible for most health status differences between and within countries. A change in these social factors can cause many other changes that can impact health. For example, education affects health literacy. Still, several other factors also influence the ability of one to attain an education, including racism, income, sexism, and other forms of discrimination, bias, and stigma (Bharmal et al., 2015).
Which organizations are involved in public health nutrition? Of the organizations identified, which one has the most influence over public policy for public health nutrition?
The organizations involved include the FDA, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Centre for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, and Food and Health Communication. The Centre for Nutrition Policy and Promotion is the one that has the most influence as it works at improving the well-being and health of Americans through the development and promotion of dietary guidance that links the nutrition needs of consumers to scientific research (CNPP, n.d). The center reports to the Office of the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services. The primary mission is to improve Americans’ health by developing and promoting dietary guidance, which links the consumer’s nutritional needs to scientific research. The center carries out its mission by serving as the authority mandated by the federal government to inform programs and policy on evidence-based nutrition, food, and economic analysis; translating science into actionable guidance on food and nutrition for all Americans; and leading communication initiatives on a national level that apply science-based messages to advance the economic and dietary behavior and knowledge of consumers.
References
Allison, D. B., Bassaganya-Riera, J., Burlingame, B., Brown, A. W., le Coutre, J., Dickson, S. L., … & Vögele, C. (2015). Goals in nutrition science 2015–2020. Frontiers in nutrition, 2, 26.
Bharmal, N., Derose, K. P., Felician, M., & Weden, M. M. (2015). Understanding the upstream social determinants of health. California: RAND, 1-18.
Blue, S., Shove, E., Carmona, C., & Kelly, M. P. (2016). Theories of practice and public health: understanding (un) healthy practices. Critical Public Health, 26(1), 36-50.
Brownson, R. C., Baker, E. A., Deshpande, A. D., & Gillespie, K. N. (2017). Evidence-based public health. Oxford University Press.
Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP)(n.d). https://www.usa.gov/federal-agencies/center-for-nutrition-policy-and-promotion
DeSalvo, K. B., Wang, Y. C., Harris, A., Auerbach, J., Koo, D., & O’Carroll, P. (2017). Peer reviewed: Public Health 3.0: A Call to Action for Public Health to Meet the Challenges of the 21st Century. Preventing chronic disease, 14.
Gostin, L. O., & Wiley, L. F. (2016). Public health law: power, duty, restraint. Univ of California Press.
Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic. “Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act: School Food.” January, 2016. Retrieved May 9th , 2021, from http://www.chlpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/FLPC_Child-Nutrition-Reauthorization-Policy-Brief-Jan-2016.pdf
Hruby, A., & Hu, F. B. (2015). The epidemiology of obesity: a big picture. Pharmacoeconomics, 33(7), 673-689.
McPhail, S. M. (2016). Multimorbidity in chronic disease: impact on health care resources and costs. Risk management and healthcare policy, 9, 143.
Raghupathi, W., & Raghupathi, V. (2018). An empirical study of chronic diseases in the United States: a visual analytics approach to public health. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(3), 431.
Waters, H & Graf, M(2018). Chronic diseases are taxing our health care system and our economy. https://www.statnews.com/2018/05/31/chronic-diseases-taxing-health-care-economy/#:~:text=As%20we%20write%20in%20a,economic%20impact%20was%20%243.7%20trillion.
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Question 
Module 4 – Case
Fighting Chronic Disease and Community Nutrition Intervention
FIGHTING CHRONIC DISEASE AND COMMUNITY NUTRITION INTERVENTION
Case Assignment
For this Case Assignment, you will expand your understanding of core public health roles, specifically nutrition. Please answer these questions:
Discuss the differences in the role of public health in the prevention of infectious diseases and chronic diseases.
In your opinion, which will be more critical to the health of our nations over the next 20 to 30 years?
Discuss and explain the role of prevention in fighting and controlling the spread of chronic diseases and the impact of chronic diseases on healthcare spending.
Discuss the core public health responsibilities and how they have impacted nutritional issues in America, including obesity and diabetes. Do you believe that public health agencies have effectively or ineffectively managed them? Define and discuss the role of State government in this area and how it differs from that of the Federal government.
How do community nutritionists, public health nutritionists, and clinical nutritionists differ?
Why is nutrition important in health and disease treatment, control, and prevention, and how is food related to any Social Determinants of Health?
Which organizations are involved in public health nutrition? Of the organizations identified, which one has the most influence over public policy for public health nutrition? Please justify your response.