In Le Roy, New York, in 2011, a mysterious medical condition emerged: Several teenage girls suddenly began to exhibit symptoms similar to those of Tourette’s Syndrome, including involuntary twitches, movements, and sounds. Soon after, the number of individuals experiencing comparable symptoms increased. As media attention toward the situation grew, questions and concerns intensified about the origin of this condition. Did an environmental exposure trigger this? Was it the result of an infectious disease? If so, why were some people in the region affected and not others? In other words, could genetic factors play a role in this?
This week, you have been exploring a number of environmental and genetic factors that influence population health. Understanding how environmental and genetic factors influence populations will support your work as an advanced practice nurse. Therefore, for this Discussion, you will investigate the relationship between an environmental agent or genetic factor and a population health problem. You will also give attention to health disparities that may arise within a population because of environment or genetics.
To prepare:
Review the Learning Resources, and select one environmental agent or one genetic factor and an associated population health problem. For example, you might consider lead paint and its effect on children, air pollution and its effect on individuals with asthma, genetic associations of various cancers, etc.
Conduct additional research using the Walden Library and credible websites, reviewing the literature on your selected health problem and the relevant environmental agent or genetic factor.
Explore health data resources and determine morbidity, mortality, incidence, prevalence, exposures, and costs to society as they relate to your chosen environmental agent or genetic factor.
How might your chosen environmental or genetic factor result in health disparities in populations?
By Day 3
Post a cohesive scholarly response that addresses the following:
Identify the environmental agent or genetic factor that you selected and the population health problem with which it is associated.
Evaluate the significance of the health risk resulting from your selected environmental agent or genetic factor, discussing such aspects as morbidity, mortality, incidence, prevalence, exposures, and costs to society. Support your response with references and data.
How might the environmental or genetic factor you identified result in health disparities in populations?
Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.
By Day 6
Respond to at least two of your colleagues in one or more of the following ways:
Note: Make sure you respond to at least one person that selected a different factor than you (e.g., if you picked a genetic factor, then respond to someone selected an environmental factor).
Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research. Share an insight from having read your colleagues’ postings, synthesizing the information to provide new perspectives. Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library. Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research. Make a suggestion based on additional evidence drawn from readings or after synthesizing multiple postings. Expand on your colleagues’ postings by providing additional insights or contrasting perspectives based on readings and evidence.
Note: For this Discussion, you are required to complete your initial post before you will be able to view and respond to your colleagues’ postings. Begin by clicking on the “Post to Discussion Question” link and then select “Create Thread” to complete your initial post. Remember, once you click on Submit, you cannot delete or edit your own posts, and you cannot post anonymously. Please check your post carefully before clicking on Submit!
Week 5 Discussion
NURS 8310
Second-Hand Smoking Health Risk in Children
Environmental Factor and Population Health Problem
Knowing the health risk caused by environmental and genetic agents will justify the control and prevention of population health problems. Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, and tobacco not only affects the smoker but also individuals that are exposed to it ( Tooley et al., 2015). Exposure to second-hand smoking (SHS) has many negative health risks to individuals resulting in an executive order that prohibits smoking in the workplace, restaurants, public buildings, and indoor spaces, nevertheless, children are likely to be exposed to SHS at home. Children exposed to indoor or outdoor parental or caregivers smoking are at risk of developing asthma, and also at risk of an asthma exacerbation requiring hospitalization.
Morbidity, Mortality, Incidence, Prevalence, Exposure, and Cost to Society
Tooley et al., (2015) found that parents of children diagnosed with asthma reported greater parental stressors than parents of children diagnosed with other health conditions such as cancer or cystic fibrosis, due to higher stress and lower social support especially for mothers of children with asthma. A study, identified by Tabuchi et al. (2014), showed that hospitalization for asthma among children whose father alone smoked indoors at home did not increase, however, if the mother also smoked indoors hospitalization vastly increased. The study further identified that maternal smoking was more detrimental to the development and severity of childhood asthma (Tabuchi et al., 2015). Friis and Sellers (2021) identified a study that consisted of 53,879 children, from 12 cross-sectional studies that found parental smoking was related to respiratory ailments that included wheezing, bronchitis, and asthma.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2021), smoking-related illnesses in the United States costs more than $300 billion each year, including $5.6 billion in lost productivity due to secondhand smoke exposure. SHS exposure in children between 3-11 years of age was significantly higher between 2013-2014 than among adults aged 20 years and older, 38% compared to 22% respectively ( Tsai et al., 2018). Among the estimated 58 million nonsmokers in the United States who were exposed to SHS during 2013-2014, approximately 14 million were children ( Tsai et al., 2018).
Population Health Disparities
Second-hand smoke exposure has declined in the United States from 87.5% to 25% during 1988-2014 but the prevalence remains highest among children aged 3-11 years (Tsai et al., 2018). Disparities in SHS exposure exist in children but specifically among non-Hispanic black children than among other racial-ethnic groups (Tsai et al., 2018). Evidence supports continued smoking in caregivers of children with chronic health issues such as asthma is due to limited social support and poorer psychological adjustment than parents with healthy children (Tooley et al., 2015). Tsai et al.(2018) concluded that more education and measures should be enforced to reduce SHS exposure across all populations, particularly to those individuals at greater risk.
References
Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) (2021). Smoking & Tobacco Use. Retrieved
Friis, R.H., & Sellers, T.A. (2021). Epidemiologic aspects of work and the environment.
Epidemiology for Public Health Practice (6th ed., pp.504-506). Jones & Bartlett.
Tabuchi, T., Fujiwara, T., Nakayama, T., Miyashiro, Tsukuma, H., Ozaki, K., & Kondo, N.
(2014). Maternal and paternal indoor or outdoor smoking and the risk of asthma in their
children: a nationwide prospective birth cohort study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence,
147(2015), 103-108. Retrieved from https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2014.12.001
Tooley, E.M., Busch, A., McQuaid, E.L., & Borrelli, B. (2015). Structural and functional support
in the prediction of smoking cessation in caregivers of children with asthma. Behavioral
Medicine, 41(4), 203-210. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1080/08964289.2014.931274
Tsai, J., Homa, D.M., Genmtzke, A.S., Mahoney, M., Sharapova, S.R., Sosnoff, C.S., Caron,
K.T., Wang, L., Maelstrom, P.C., & Trivers, K.F. (2018). Exposure to secondhand smoke
among nonsmokers-United States, 1988-2014. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 67(48), 1342-1346. Retrieved from
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