An emerging concern, public health has been discussed extensively since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. While health hazards and diseases have been observed and recorded since ancient times, it's important to note that health hazards have grown to become consistent and common across the globe due to many common factors.
A negative spike in public health is contributed by many factors such as a global catastrophe, outbreak of diseases, exposure to unsanitary usage of water, or other environmental factors, as well as the global atmosphere. All these factors can severely affect the quality of life.
A negative spike in public health is contributed by many factors such as a global catastrophe, outbreak of diseases, exposure to unsanitary usage of water, or other environmental factors, as well as the global atmosphere. All these factors can severely affect the quality of life.
Health Hazards
Global Catastrophic events such as the Chornobyl reactor explosion of 1986 caused about 150,000 sq. km. of radioactive hazard in the regions of Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, of which 30 Kilometres of area surrounding the plant are essentially inhabitable for any lifeform.
On a more recent note, the COVID-19 outbreak which caused a lockdown throughout the world, recorded a total of 702,457,917 cases, of which the casualties are estimated to be 6,974,353 in total. Health experts suggest that if preventive measures were observed sooner, the total number of casualties could be lesser. The outbreak severely affected the quality of life and caused a sharp negative spike in global public health.
The usage of unclean water and sanitary habits is also a leading cause of health hazards, with developing countries at a leading risk. The use of unclean drinking water in under-developed or developing countries has caused many diseases to break out such as E. coli infections, typhoid, diarrhea, and other diseases which if untreated can be life-threatening. Unsanitary environments such as living near dumping grounds or poorly sanitized areas have contributed to malaria and other diseases which have caused a record number of deaths.
Global atmospheric changes due to CO2 emissions from factories as well as vehicles, and the dumping of toxic waste in rivers and oceans, along with contributions from the fishing and mining industries all contribute to global warming which affects quality of life immensely. Lack of rainfall, inadequate rainfall, drought, global temperatures, as well as common diseases are all caused by these factors that affect quality of life negatively.
A total of 13.7 million deaths were recorded in 2016 due to environmental factors alone, out of which 4.2 million were due to fine particulate matter which is contributed by CO2 emissions, 3.2 million were due to the exposure to smoke from cooking fuels and other indoor pollution, and the rest were due to other environmental factors.
Preventive measures
The goal of public health bodies is to ensure that extensive research is made constantly in different areas such as environmental and social factors that can help determine the best solutions both nationally and internationally, for better quality and preservation of human life.
The study of preventive measures involves professionals who constantly develop policies and services that help the public to be provided with better quality of sustenance such as cleanliness drives, water sanitation, food safety, and accessible medical services, as well as international collaborations that ensure steps are taken by Global warming caused by CO2 emissions and other negative use of unregulated industrial practices. Other contributions include global drives to under-developed countries that help in providing food, water, and medical aid to prevent disease outbreaks, pandemics, and natural loss of life due to lack of basic needs.
The basic initiative that is taken before the prevention and detection of diseases is clean water supplies, as well as mandatory food safety protocols practiced by the food industry. Access to sanitary supplies and clean water supplies can prevent waterborne diseases effectively.
Medical Sciences have developed exponentially in the last century alone, with advances in chemical science as well as machinery. A huge part of tackling pandemics as well as common diseases is the development and usage of vaccinations.
Cleanliness drives help prevent unclean atmosphere around developed cities and regions as well as underdeveloped villages, this prevents exposure to mosquitoes, rats, and other insects and animals that can cause health hazards.
Vaccinations help in the prevention of diseases and are often injected before a particular disease is inflicted. Vaccination programs are crucial for a large body of the population to receive vaccinations and thus prevent outbreaks effectively.
Modern medical advances have also made it easy to detect any signs of disease in its premature stage by understanding the symptoms or even screening them through X-rays, CT scans, and other modern methods. A considerable number of lives have been saved due to such early detection of diseases and have been successful in curing them.
Public awareness drives locally as well as digitally, for diseases such as tuberculosis, and cancer screening, as well as education on healthy practices, help relay effective messages to the population as well as cause global awareness through social media, which can help prevent and help cure diseases and eradicate unhealthy practices.
Conclusion
World health departments work constantly with the help of international collaborations to take effective measures for the improvement of the environment and improve living conditions.
To help prevent negative climate change, industries directly contributing to air pollution, radiation hazards, chemical hazards, and other pollutants are constantly restricted and urged to reform practices that global warming.
Vaccination drives, as well as global and local awareness drives, continue to inform communities and the overall public through social media and government broadcasts, about healthy sanitary practices as well as preventive measures to be taken. Certain mandatory vaccinations are placed by governments free of charge for effective prevention of diseases such as leprosy.
Today, Modern medicine continues to develop better and more effective methods that can replace older and outdated methods, as well as modern machines that help effectively screen for symptoms and find new cures for diseases.
Personal practices and better sanitary habits must be observed daily and individually to collectively prevent pollution as well as health hazards that can cause diseases.
In conclusion, it is the responsibility of the government and public organizations as well as every individual to contribute to a healthy quality of life and thus contribute to the global improvement of public health.
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