Filipino Americans

Pollan defines the American problem as “unhealthy people obsessed by the idea of eating healthily.” (Pg. 3) The vast majority of consumers in our society are ones that envision themselves as striving towards a healthy lifestyle, yet many of these consumers don’t realize that in their attempts at eating healthy they are on a slow decline. A large sum of the population garners their information on which foods to eat from their daily news sources, trying new fad diets and picking up any food that Buzzfeed or the Huffington Post tells them will better their health (Pg. 1). This behavior in turn leaves those desperate for a slimmer and healthier bodies utterly confused and desolate.

In Michael Pollan’s essay, “The American Paradox”, Pollan argues that American’s hold falsified ideas if one is more focused on nutrition. Americans have too much going on in their head with trying to be healthy, that they do not actually become healthy. The notion that “a notably unhealthy population preoccupied with nutrition and the idea of eating healthy” (Pollan 268) is what Pollan defines as the “American paradox”. The amount of time spent focusing on healthy eating habits decreases the joy one contains. Pollan identifies many issues that contribute to what is wrong with the way Americans think about eating today. For instance, we spend too much time and money trying to be healthy, we have strayed away from the past as new inventions occurred and last being we listen to “flawed science”. Despite the fact that many may say they see positive results from focusing on nutrition and health, Americans actually receive negative outcomes from nutrition and health.

The cultural factor is not the only thing responsible for these habits, also because many Latino Americans in a household where both parents work is sometimes easier and cheaper to just get some fatty or junk food instead of buying fruits and vegetables (Heart Association, 2015). We also have to consider the social-economical factor within the Latino American population where resources are less available than other groups in the United States and their limitation and understanding the role of maintaining a healthy lifestyle can benefit their overall health. Latino Americans are less likely to afford the resources and time to exercise, most of Latino Americans cannot afford the high cost of fitness facilities and professional trainers unlike other Americans. It is important also to highlight that the number of Latino Americans are employed in physical labor jobs which make them tired and often they lack the time and energy to engage in fitness programs that can help them minimize their risks of heart

The roots of the tree suggest the requirement of understanding the conditions that conclude health and ill health; biological inheritance, physical environment, cultural, social, political and economic circumstances. The understanding of who, when and where is affected enables possible interventions to be identified. The trunk of the tree illustrates the importance of organisational commitment to improving health. Lastly, the branches describe key areas for health promotion activity and those elements of the setting that contribute to health. Health promotion works by the belief system. The belief system is when an individual is experiencing change in their health. The belief system is made up of many positive factors such as; health, aesthetic gain, benefits to family, pariah status and financial gain. This belief system can be used in many health issues such as overcoming obesity. There are many positives for overcoming obesity which are; reducing the chance of getting illnesses/diseases, heart disease, infertility, type 2 diabetes, some cancers and strokes. The aesthetic gain It would be that people would lose weight more and then would look/be thinner. Benefits to family The benefits to the family would be that by them being healthier the rest of the family may be influenced to start being healthy to avoid the risk of developing any illness/disease.

The Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, 1986, defined Health Promotion as being ‘the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health’. There are three key approaches to HP. The first one looks at population subgroups. It is well documented that not all cultures view health as a prime goal. For example, an addict will chose to facilitate his habit over basic sanitary and physical necessities. The ‘population subgroup’ approach looks to focus on targeted solutions for smaller groups

Pollan believes that Western diet is the primary cause of many of the different ailments that are impacting contemporary society. A few of the most notable include: heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. This is because there is no vested interest in supporting primary care and preventive medicine. As the health care industry wants to create drugs that can treat these conditions. Yet, they do not deal with the root causes of the problem. Instead, they allow the individual to engage in a pattern of destructive lifestyle choices. This increases the profit margins for everyone inside the health care industry by taking this approach. (Pollan)

Though Asians make up the largest portion of the world’s population, Asian-Americans are one of the least represented minority groups within the United States. Out of an estimated 318 million people living in the U.S., Asians account for 5.2%, or approximately 17 million people. Compared to Hispanics at 54 million and African-Americans at 42 million, Asians and/or Asian-Americans are vastly outnumbered by the two other major minority groups and even more so by the majority, European-Americans. Even though Asians are typically considered the “model minority”, they are faced with the same issues that plague many other minority groups within the U.S. today to include stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination and ethnocentrism. There has been a history of discriminatory national policies directed at the immigration of Asians to the U.S. and in times of duress, the labeling and targeted institutional discrimination of specific ethnicities of Asian-Americans as traitors based solely on country of origin and not on the deeds and actions of said U.S. citizens (Japanese internment camps of World War II).

America is known for its advanced society and technology, but is also known to be one of the most obese populations. Found in “Down to Earth”, America is one of the most progressive countries to exist; therefore it should be the healthiest (“Obesity in America”). If America is so highly advanced, more advancement needs to be put towards obesity rates. As time goes on, adults and children are having to consequently expand their waistbands because of unhealthy habits. In an article previously discussed, Brown-well states that Americans are at an all-time low in exercising (Murray). By having less motivation to exercise, family health is at stake. Future generations need to be more pressured to keep physically fit for their health. With less motivation for a healthier lifestyle, communities across America will remain obese. According to CBS news, Americans prefer to consume Twinkies over Tofu (“The Blame Game”). With Americans not giving healthier options opportunity, less interest will be put into healthy options. Individuals are focusing on the pleasure of taste than their own well being. Internationally speaking, Americans have one of the strongest societies, but the weakest mindset for healthy living. With stubborn attitudes and continual unhealthy choices, obesity will not only stay but

Mexican American, Chinese American and Vietnamese American make up the 1.5 and second generation today in US. The majority of these immigrants come from the humblest sectors of their society on average they have only a few years of schooling or no schooling, limited urban job skills and little or no knowledge of English. Immigrants to the United States are usually called first-generation Americans, regardless of their citizenship status, and their children second-generation Americans.

including the Earned Income Tax Credit ( EITC) and the Child Tax Credit ( CTC) that directly

The history of Hispanic/Latino Americans extends the whole way back to 400 years ago and differs between the regions in the United States. Their existence is the second longest, right behind Native Americans. It is not unusual to hear Spanish being spoken while walking down the roads of an American city. Less than 4 million U.S. citizens were from Spanish-speaking countries in 1950. If we look at this number today, it has gone up to 45 million people. About 50 percent of Hispanics have backgrounds in Mexico, while the other 50 percent come from an assortment of countries. These countries include Colombia, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic. About 36 percent of Hispanics in the U.S. live in California. Many Hispanics populate states including

According to Adelle Davis “statistics of illness in the United States are too depressing to examine”. Illnesses that were never even heard of a century ago are striking out population harder than ever. What is worse is these diseases and illnesses have no limits; they strike infants, children and teenagers just as harshly as they do adults and the elderly. The most common disease is obesity and the alarming part is that children are now prone to obesity starting at just three years of age. Based on research done in 2002, obesity rates are rising amongst children younger than ten years old in the United States of America due to low income rates and ethnicity. According to this research, poor income leads to poor meal and entertainment decisions, these two decisions are highly balanced by the culture individuals that then carry on to their children. Our community is largely populated by Hispanics, and Nichman found that “The prevalence of obesity among Hispanic American populations is generally greater than among white populations in the United States”. Not only is our El Paso population highly vulnerable to these diseases because of the culture we carry, but we also house areas of high poverty. Our children are at high risk of this deadly disease, through seemingly harmless characteristics such as culture and economic status.

Nurses implement health promotion strategies in a variety of ways. Due to the high level of credibility nurse’s have with their patients, they greatly influence their patients with their passion. By emphasizing health promotion strategies such as self-responsibility, proper nutrition, exercise and stress management, nurses plant the seeds of wellness in the minds of their patients. While ultimately, it is up to the individual to make healthy changes in their lives, the role of the nurse practitioner plays a huge role in motivating individuals to adopt healthy habits.

People with more education have better health status, make better salaries, and are more likely to have children who become educated. (Douglas and Paquiao, 2010) Despite Filipino’s having higher rates of education, leading to better salaries, and having children who are educated, various health disparities exist. The root of the Filipino culture’s health disparities lies within their dietary intake. The Filipino culture is world renown for the exotic, intense flavors of their

Everybody sees it everywhere. “Lose 60 pounds in 6 weeks!” “Skinny is what’s in!” “Detox diet plan!” It’s a fair assumption to assume that the world, especially the United States, is obsessed with being healthy. From celebrity workout programs to expensive diet systems that make people lose weight, being fit is always what’s mainly focused on in the media, daily life, and nationwide. But with obsessions, come unhealthy actions and interests. Most people that anyone knows is most likely upset with some aspect of themselves. Whether it be the way they look, how they eat, or their lifestyle, obsession happens because of the nearly-impossible body types and lifestyles found on social media. On top of this, there are also restrictions and challenges that come with eating a healthy diet that seem simply irradical to address, and unhealthier foods are more available than ever. With these slowly arising issues, anyone would think the nation is making it hard for themselves to be healthy. The society the nation lives in is making it progressively harder and harder to be healthy because of the lifestyles that are easier to achieve.