Monday, October 7, 2013

Pre-Midterm Research

As most of us know, America is one of the fattest countries in the world. As of this year we no longer hold the number one spot for "World's Fattest Country". According to Health Zone, a blog about health and medicine, 31.8% of Americans are considered to be obese a close second only to Mexico coming in at a whopping 32.8%... we're hanging in there America. (1) One of my areas of emphasis is Biology and the health care aspect of this report is astonishing. Astonishing but not new information. I think we are very aware of how rapidly our country is changing to accommodate our "growing" population. Just a few years ago The Happiest Place on Earth had to revamp the size of their seats on the famous "It's a Small World" ride in order to accommodate the passengers who were "getting bigger and heavier by the day." (2) Fast food restaurants have transformed every corner of cities and neighborhoods. Ultimately, I believe, transforming the way people eat and affecting their health greatly. The Main research article I have chosen comes from EBSCO Host database and I used the fancy new search tool on the Library website (pretty cool). The research conducted links "community" to rates of obesity in neighborhoods. By community I mean the availability of "green spaces" and "nearby grocery stores" small internal things within a neighborhood that can have an impact on (3) Another closely related study showed how even with the availability of fast food in a neighborhood the rates of obesity were still low. What did influence lower rates of obesity in neighborhoods were "neighborhood level factors" and the encouragement of neighborhood features that increased levels of physical activity. (Next) These articles only help support Sampson's theory of Collective Efficacy even further. This article could be very great especially because not very much research has been conducted on fast food in neighborhoods... or so was stated in one of the journals. 


Links to Articles:
(3) Neighborhood Linked Obesity Research Article from EBSCO Host database
(4)  Neighborhoods and Obesity - Journal Article from Nutrition Review from EBSCO Host database


To integrate my Spanish Emphasis into the idea of community I found this article conveniently titled, Collective Efficacy: A Community Level Health Promotion and Prevention Strategy.(5)This article could be very helpful for my research project in the future. It contains some data specific to Latino community. Stating that Hispanics are twice as likely to die from diabetes. This article is unique because it integrates both of my emphasis and collective efficacy. I may be taking a more nutritional side to my biological viewpoints because I am taking a nutrition course this semester. 


(5) Collective Efficacy: A Community Level Health Promotion and Prevention Strategy

3 comments:

  1. I found your biology topic of research very interesting. I also have biology as an emphasis and have strong interest in health as it relates to community. Some of the articles I looked over appeared to indicate lower health in disadvantaged communities. The number one health issue was high blood pressure, which is also typically associated with obesity. I wonder if there are some articles out there relating obesity to disorderly or disadvantaged neighborhoods that might help you narrow your topic of interest. Maybe you can even tie the spanish communities into that somehow since mexico apparently has the highest rate of obesity, putting us chubby americans in second.

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  2. I did a research paper a few years ago that illustrated the lack of quality food and access to supermarkets in the urban areas. when many of these communities have nothing but convenience stores and fast food restaurants; I think it makes sense why we are getting larger. If you can't get to a grocery store you will eat what is available... Just a thought...

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  3. I like the direction you took to blend your biology emphasis with the topic of community. Obesity is definitely an applicable subject to focus on for anyone looking at a career in health care. There are countless health issues hinging on obesity in America. In some ways it's a shame that corporations like Disneyland find themselves having to make increasing accommodations for this looming problem. Sure, it's in the greater interest of the company, but it's kind of like sweeping the whole problem under the rug. Rather than make accommodations, I feel like there needs to be a more proactive approach to solving this problem. Perhaps the key to such an approach lies in the power of the communities around us.

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