Differences Between Healthy People 2010 and Healthy People 2020
The difference between the leading health indicators mentioned in Healthy People 2010 and Healthy People 2020 is the following: the second governmental program includes three new indicators. They are maternal, infant, and child health, oral health, and social determinants (Huang 19). Moreover, immunization indicator has become the part of clinical preventive services indicator and physical activity and obesity indicators are combined into one measure.
The new indicators, to my mind, are closely connected to the level of education and income. It means that those, who lack either educational background or financial resources, are likely to feel health disparities. These two factors result in unequal access to health care services among different races and ethnicities. Because no positive changes were achieved, disparities remain. So, eliminating them is one of the central objectives of Healthy People 2020 (Huang 15).
Interpreting the Results of a Health Indicator
The indicator under consideration is obesity. Based on the results presented in Table 1, there was a significant increase in the number of obese adolescents and young adults. The overall trend is the following: the proportion is higher among females compared to males. Furthermore, there is no significant difference between races, excluding Asian females, who are less susceptible to obesity (Harris et al. 77).
Such factors as the level of education or socioeconomic status of a respondent (i.e. a person is not acquainted with the principles of healthy nutrition or cannot afford a balanced diet due to low income) might explain this health disparity (Harris et al. 77). According to Figure 2, Panel F, violence rates decreased for females of all races (Harris et al. 80). This trend can be explained by better education, gender equality, and self-reporting of the severity of the problem as well as reporting of the cases of violence.
Summarizing Propositions of Omran’s The Epidemiologic Transition
The first proposition developed by the author is the following: young women and children experience the most profound changes in health condition during epidemiologic transitions (Omran 741). This assumption is backed up by the fact that females in reproductive age and children are more susceptible to the influence of infectious diseases compared to other groups of the population.
That is why the level of predisposition to any shifts in treating them is also higher. That said, mortality rates among children and young females are spectacular in case of changing disease patterns on the recession of pandemics due to higher standards of living, better sanitation conditions, and positive shifts in nutrition (Omran 741-742).
Another proposition under consideration is the assumption that the changes in mortality rates, causing epidemiologic transition, are closely related to socioeconomic and demographic transitions (Omran 744). The connection with demographic shifts can be explained by the widening of the so-called demographic gap (i.e. that between birth and death rates). Because it affects fertility and age and sex structure, population growth is fostered. The root cause of the new trend is an increase in infectious disease survival among women of reproductive age and adolescents (Omran 749).
As for the link between epidemiologic and socioeconomic transitions, there is the following trend: lower mortality rate entails higher labor performance and economic effectiveness. The background of this interrelation is the fact that adult members of the workforce function better because of better health conditions. Moreover, the volume of manpower expands due to a higher level of contagious disease survival among children and adolescents, who grow up to become involved in the economic life of their community (Omran 750).
Works Cited
Harris, Kathleen Mullan, Penny Gordon-Larsen, Kim Chantala and Richard Udry. “Longitudinal Trends in Race/Ethnicity Disparities in Leading Health Indicators from Adolescence to Young Adulthood.” Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine 160.1 (2006): 74-81. Print.
Huang, David T. Healthy People Data: Transitioning from 2010 to 2020. 2012. Web.
Omran, Abdel R. “The Epidemiologic Transition: A Theory of the Epidemiology of Population Change.” The Milbank Quarterly 83.4 (2005): 731-757. Print.