Public Health Issues Paper

Public Health Issues Paper

Public Health Issues Paper

Obesity as an epidemic, and its contributing factors, pose a great threat to the health and wellbeing of American citizens. In her article “Experts say obesity increases risk for severe illness,” Beausoleil (2020) examined the risks of COVID-19 infections among Texas residents who are obese. In her interview with an 85-year-old resident of Texas, Beausoleil discovered that while some healthy elderly patients recover quickly from COVID-19 infections, younger overweight COVID-19 patients exhibit prolonged illness. The author then highlights the need for healthy eating as a means of improving one’s overall health, noting that such foods as fruits, vegetables, nuts, lean protein etc. play a significant role in health and anti-inflammatory properties. Public Health Issues Paper

Public Health Issues Paper

 Access to healthcare insurance remains a pertinent challenge in Texas. In fact, according to Maddox (2020), Texas is home to the second least insured large city in the U.S., Dallas, which ranks at the bottom 3 percent. Further, drawing his analysis from a recent WalletHub’s ranking of uninsured cities, Maddox reports that Fort Worth also falls in the bottom 10 of the least insured cities, an observation attributable to the fact that Texas State is yet to expand Medicaid. With such low healthcare coverage, residents of Fort Worth, which are mostly of Hispanic descent, receive no medical care and are forced to do without regular check-ups and medications that would help them realize low medical costs. Public Health Issues Paper

I consider the articles by Beausoleil and Maddox to be relevant to public and community health because the authors attempt to address pertinent issues within the society. The article by Beausoleil (2020), for instance, educates the public on the effects of the pandemic in relation to obesity among young generations. This is particularly relevant today since the younger generation of Americans are yet to begin receiving COVID-19 vaccines, and awareness on healthy lifestyles remains imperative. Similarly, the article by Maddox (2020) is public- and community-health oriented as it highlights the rates and effects of low insurance coverage in Fort Worth and Dallas, and by extension, the state of Texas. Public Health Issues Paper

Public Health Issues Paper References

Public Health Issues Paper Instructions

Browse your local newspaper or other local publications for articles that focus on public health issues at the local, state, and/or national level. For example, reports or articles that discuss a train collision, an earthquake in California, the dedication of a new park in your neighborhood, an outbreak of the flu in Texas, low-cost child immunization clinics, or a free traveling mammogram program for low-income women are all examples of public or community health issues. Public Health Issues Paper
Locate two examples of community or public health issues from a local publication, magazine, or newspaper. The examples you select should focus on completely different topics – for example, select one article that discusses a new park and another article that focuses on plans for a new coal-fired power plant. Public Health Issues Paper
Write a one paragraph summary of each article. Include a proper reference to the source of the article.
Include an additional paragraph that explains why you consider these articles to be public or community health.
Your original post should consist of complete sentences and include three paragraphs.
Reply to at least two of your online colleagues’ posts with reflective questions, substantive comments, or relevant personal experiences.
Comments / Note