Prevalence And Prevention Of Diabetes, Cancer, And Obesity In New Zealand

Prevalence of Diabetes in New Zealand

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Health is one of the very essential elements in a human life. It is, therefore, of vital importance to undertake necessary precautions that will help in ensuring the people in a given state remain healthy. Most of the common health-related issues identified to affect New Zealand are inclusive of diabetes, cancer and obesity. Both the adults and children have been highly affected by diabetes, with the rate of increase in diabetes among the adults increasing from 27% to 32% since 2006 to 2017 (Ministry of Health NZ. 2018). However, according to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), the increase in diabetes from 2006 till 2017 for children was from 8% to 12%. Cancer and obesity have been highly linked with the development of diabetes in New Zealand, thereby prompting the need to examine how the health issue develops, the health related issues brought about by the development of these diseases, how they can be prevented and the regions in which they are mostly prevalent. 

Cancer is one of the diseases identified to cause a lot of health related issues in Nez Zealand. According to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), cancer occurs as a result of an inflammation within the body of an individual, which develops and is to be cut off for normal growth. The causes of caner may differ depending on which type of cancer occurs. According to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), cancer prevalence in New Zealand is very high, with about 20% of the people especially those living in deprived areas being affected by the condition. Moreover, among the Maori children, about 5% of them were diagnosed as being affected by cancer, which shows that the disease is highly prevalent in the region.

The development of cancer among the people in New Zealand brings about many health defects in their bodies. Some of the cancerous cells develop near the legs, breast, and neck and even in the brain, which is commonly referred to as brain tumors. These cancerous cells thus limit the operations that an individual can comfortably handle, and at worst times, they may result in the death of the individual. According to Elwood et al., (2018), majority of the individuals identified to be affected by cancer in the state have already been subjected to proper medication and therapies that are expected to lower the overall adverse effects of the disease.

Prevalence of Cancer in New Zealand

Obesity is a condition in which the patient’s body has accumulated a lot of fat such that it becomes harmful to their body. According to Hawley, and McGarvey, (2015), the excess fat in the body may cause major organs such as the liver and the heart to fail in performing their tasks, which will limit the operations of the human body. Moreover, the blood veins may be clogged due to the accumulated fats in the body, which also affects the overall flow of blood in the human body. According to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), both the children and adults in New Zealand are subjects of obesity. A study conducted in 2017 shows that in every 3 adults in New Zealand, there is at least 1 of them who is affected by diabetes (Smith, et al., 2015). In Maori, for instance, 50% of the people in the region were considered to be obese while in the Pacific, about 69% of the adults were noticed to be obese. The research also showed that the adults living within regions which are deprived were 1.5 times more likely to be obese compared to those who were living in regions that were less deprived (Torre et al., 2015).

According to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), 18% of the Children in Maori region in New Zealand are said to be obese, and the most affected ages are between 2 and 14 years. On the other hand, 29% of t children in Pacific are obese, which is slightly higher than those in Maori. In about 8 children, one of them is found to be obese and about 21% being overweight but not obese. However, the children who are overweight face the risk of being obese with time. Children who live within the regions which are deprived have a 2.5 times risk more of being affected by obesity as compared to those who live within regions that are less deprived. According to Harding et al., (2015), the children, compared to the adults, are at a higher risk of being affected by diabetes in Mori.

Diabetes is a healthcare disease that affects the metabolic operations of the human body depending on the glucose levels in the blood. There are two types of diabetes which only differ depending on the amount of glucose level in the human blood. According to Lawrenson et al., (2016), majority of its causes emanate from the feeding habits of human beings and it is directly related to the development of obesity among the humans. In New Zealand, Diabetes is a common health problem especially among older adults aged between 40 years and above. According to a study conducted in the state, it is evident that about 30% of the older adults are affected by diabetes. Moreover, about 25% of the individuals affected by obesity are also affected by diabetes and even cancer.

Prevalence of Obesity in New Zealand

On the other hand, diabetes is not as common in children as it is in the older adults. However, about 5% of the children who are diagnosed with cancer and obesity are also identified to be highly at the risk of contracting diabetes (Vaidyanathan et al., 2017). According to Ministry of Health NZ. (2018), about 1 in every 30 children is found to be affected by diabetes in New Zealand, but this counts as a large population since the disease is mostly in conjunction with other healthcare diseases. 

The human body is bound to face many health issues and when healthy, the body should have the capability to resist most of the diseases affecting it. However, if the body is affected by conditions such as cancer and diabetes, it is paramount that the health status will reduce, thus giving rise and chances for more infections to affect it. According to Gounder et al., (2016), when the defense system of the human body is weak and unable to prevent further infection from other diseases, then the body becomes weak due to multiple infections from other diseases. This results in a health issue such that more medication is required to alleviate the state of the body (Torre et al., 2017).

Health related issues incur a lot of expenses especially because there is need for medication at all times to ensure that the disease is treated properly. For instance, cancer is among the diseases that is very expensive to treat and that takes a lot of time before it is completely treated. According to Maucort?Boulch et al., (2016), the therapies that are required for the treatment of cancer are very expensive especially if the cancer is diagnosed in the last stages. As a result, both the family of the patient and the patients themselves end up using a large amount to ensure the disease is treated.

In addition to the cost of medication and treatment, time is also consumed. According to Gounder et al., (2016), diseases such as obesity require one to cut short on eating fatty foods and engage in a lot of exercise to recover from the overweight and high amount of fat in their body. As a result, the patient is limited to working and engaging in their personal activities only for some short period and is expected to devote most of their time on ensuring that they get physically fit for better outcomes. As a result, both time and money is spent on regaining physical health, which is regarded as an issue brought about by the development of the mentioned diseases.

The Health-Related Issues of Diabetes, Cancer, and Obesity

Deteriorating health status forces an individual to be highly dependent on medication which is one of the health related challenges associated with being affected by cancer, obesity and diabetes. According to Bullen et al., (2015), it is paramount that the affected party will have to be taking medication on a regular basis to ensure that they remain healthy and are able to alleviate the health defects. However, the dependence on medication is not good as some of the medicine given has side effects such as drowsiness which will affect the performance of one’s tasks properly. 

In most times, people who are affected by diseases such as cancer and diabetes will feel that their lives are not worth living for any more. The stress especially accumulates when these diseases have already been confirmed and plans set for their treatment. Harding et al., (2016) argues that depression also occurs due to the fear of the disease, anticipation on the overall amount of money that will be required to ensure the disease is properly managed and even the expected dietary changes that may require monetary values. These changes cause the patients suffering from the mentioned diseases to feel stressed and at most times become depressed. Moreover, the families of these patients also face a similar challenge in that they feel stressed with the mandate of now having to take care of the patient and some of them are forced to quit working for the same (Richardson, et al., 2015). Therefore, depression and stress are among the core challenges that are faced as a result of the said health challenges.

The three mentioned diseases affecting New Zealand are harmful and possible measures that can help to prevent being affected by them are highly appreciated. For obesity and diabetes, proper selection of meals that are to be taken is key in the regulation of these diseases. According to Gounder et al., (2016), elimination of most of the fatty foods and junks that people usually take during the day is one of the methods that will help to prevent the development of obesity. Moreover, engaging in constant exercising will help to remain healthy and burn up most of the accumulated fat in the body. Additionally, diabetes can be prevented by taking meals that are not entirely sugary such that the body will not have high amounts of glucose and thereby preventing the contraction of the disease (Chelimo, and Elwood, 2015). Also, cancer is caused by varying fumes and consumer products that may contain harmful substances (Robinson, et al., 2015). The avoidance of using many and different consumer’s products such as face lotions and bathing products that may potentially be harmful to the body and thus cause cancer. The avoidance of these substances will help to prevent the development of cancer and improve the lives of the people in New Zealand. 

Preventive Measures for Diabetes, Cancer, and Obesity

Conclusion

Diseases affecting New Zealand are primarily prevalent among the adults and children as compared to the older adults. However, statistics show that a higher percentage of these diseases are inclusive of cancer, diabetes and even obesity. These diseases have been known to cause a lot of health challenges which prevent the patients from achieving their daily tasks, limit them to taking medication at all times and even cause a lot of financial usage in their treatment. Furthermore, these health challenges are especially significant when they affect children since they will determine how the lives of these kids must be lived. However, it is important to note that there are methods presumed to help in preventing the occurrence of the diseases, thus helping patients to lead a healthy lifestyle. As a result, it is highly advised that the community with higher prevalence of the diseases understand how to prevent them for better outcomes. 

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