Author Lives In Mississauga City, Canada. And Her Background

Heart disease is the number on killer in the United States. Nearly 787,000 people in the U.S. died from heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases in 2011. That’s about one of every three deaths in America. About 2,150 Americans die each day from these diseases.

Determinants of health are specific categories in a person 's life which impact their mental and physical health. Brought into light by a report produced for the Government of Canada by the minister of national health and welfare Marc Lalonde in 1974 titled A new perspective on the health of Canadians Ottawa. The report sought to move healthcare in Canada from a purely physiological process into one which included preventative measures from environment and lifestyle. This behavioural approach was a step in the right direction and paved the way for the shift in thinking beyond just that of treatment of the disease. In 1986 the Ottawa charter for health promotion put into motion the move from medical/behavioural approach to the socioeconomic approach. This approach includes peace, shelter, education, food, income, a stable ecosystem, social justice and equity (World health organization [WHO], 1986.) These would be used as a framework for how Canada views the health of an individual. Today these are broken down into 12 categories; income and social status, social support networks, education and literacy, employment and working conditions, physical environments, biological and genetic endowment, individual health practices and coping skills, healthy child development, health service, gender, culture and social environments (Ross-Kerr, J. C., & Wood, M. J. (Eds.) (2014). Each of these categories have been chosen for their impact on canadians health and while on their own each

In order to propogate the knowledge of above determinants and improve health status of Canadians, Health Canada has set up a number of community heath organizations and agencies. The work of these agencies can consist of creating awareness, improving socio-economic status, advocating better working conditions and so on. Unfortunately, many groups such as aboriginal people, recent immigrants and people with disabilities experience challenges in accessing these resources and still cotinue to lead an unhealthy life.

Like most other places in the world, Canada has an obesity epidemic. According to the CMA Journal, obesity will soon become the top cause of preventable death in this country. It is estimated that 25 percent of adults in Canada

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major cause of death and disability in the United States among adults. More than one-half of all deaths were caused by heart disease, cancer or

Although the term cardiovascular disease refers to a disorder of the cardiovascular system, it is usually associated with atherosclerosis, also known as arterial disease. It is considered the leading cause of deaths in the world, taking 17.1 million lives a year. There are only a few factors that are non-modifiable, these being the persons age, gender, family history and their race and ethnicity. Although there are non-modifiable risk factors, there are multiple multiple risk factors that are modifiable that anyone can use to prevent getting any type of cardiovascular disease. These people just need to have the motivation to be able to change themselves and their lifestyles in order to better

It is significant in underserved communities and it is most preventable. The risk factors to name a few are high blood pressure, poor diet & physical inactivity and obesity. It is pivotal to address these risks to prevent heart failure and strokes. The risk is controllable if certain life style changes are made. More than one in three adults which is 81.1 million lives with heart disease. In the Healthy people 2020 statistics the target for deaths caused by heart disease and stroke has declined from 1999 and 2011 from 194.6 to 109.2 deaths per 100,000 populations. This shows some progress. To maximize these results I would push for promotion of healthy eating habits and physical activities for people of all ages in underserved communities along with education specifically for unfortunate people.

As an unhealthy culture of obesity continues to spread through out Canada the life style that many practice continue to worsen and influence the young around us. The shifting of our basic norms, values, practices and beliefs about healthy eating have not been challenged by anyone openly. The need for the federal government and the health minster is

Social Determinants of Health in Canada Introduction Canada is considered to be the second richest developed nation globally. Despite the high economic status in the nation, there have been warnings concerning the consequences of increased economic inequality according to the sectors of social development in the nation. Conversely, as the nation is increasing in its overall economic capacity, the wealth distribution divides increasing the rift between the wealthy individuals and the poor. According to the 19th-century research by Rudolph Virchow and his colleagues, there exist an association between the lifestyle opportunities of a population and its health outcomes.

A Canadian community health survey proves that in youngsters and adolescents, 8% were obese while 18% were overweight, in Canadians who are 18 years or older 29% were obese while 41% were overweight. Obesity is correlated to a number of health conditions which includes, type II Diabetes, cancers, gallbladder disease, gallstones, osteoarthritis, High blood pressure, stokes, Breathing problems and most importantly heart

There are many risk factors that one should take into consideration. Having high blood pressure, being inactive and overweight are both very high risk factors. If a family member has diabetes or if a person is African, American Indian, Asian, Pacific Islander, Hispanic or Latino descent, they also have a greater risk of the disease.

Nowadays obesity is also impacting children’s health since they spend hours in front of TV, play video games and remain inactive. In Ontario alone, the obesity rates among children have tripled over one generation. Because of the serious impact of obesity Health Canada has launched programs and studies to address the problem. The

Overall the people polled for in this survey that declared they had Heart Disease were very similar in age, sex, marital status, body mass index and many other variables. One of the major differences is that forty five percent of Canadians suffering heart disease had below a high school education (Cutler and Pozen 2009). Overall this trend caused people in Canada to earn on average less then those in the United States that had Heart Disease. The P- values for their results were relatively low therefore the null hypothesis could be rejected. The most important statistic taken from the study was that out of the

Social determinants of health are social, economic and physical factors that affect the health of individuals in any given population. There are fourteen social determinants of health but Income is perhaps the most important of these because it shapes living conditions, influences health related behaviors, and determines food security. In Canada, people with lower incomes are more susceptible to disease/ conditions, higher mortality rate, decreased life expectancy and poorer perceived health than people with high incomes. In numerous Canadian studies and reports, there has been more emphasis on health being based on an individual’s characteristics, choices and behaviours, rather than the role that income plays as a social determinant of health. Although Canada has one of the highest income economies in the world and is comprised of a free health care system, many low income families are a burden on the system because of the physical and mental health issues influenced by income insecurity. Low income individuals are heavier users of health care services because they have lower levels of health and more health problems than do people with higher incomes. This essay will address income as a social determinant of health in three key sections: what is known on the issue, why the issue is important and how can health and public policies address the issue. The main theme that runs through the essay is the income related health inequalities among low income groups compared to

Beginning with the final section of the Williams (1997) ‘basic causes’ model, being the health status resulting from the prior sections in this model, cardiovascular disease in Maori will be addressed and the disparities when compared to the dominant group in society. The cardiovascular disease burden falls disproportionately and inequitably on the Maori population (Curtis, Harwood, & Riddell, 2007). Cardiovascular disease accounts for a third of the deaths in Maori people, with it being their most prevalent cause of mortality. Between 2000 and 2004, the death rates for Maori with cardiovascular disease were 2.3 times higher than the rate for non-Maori (Robson & Purdie, 2007). Cardiovascular disease, of all chronic conditions, is the main cause of the disparities in life expectancy increasing between Maori and