Aboriginal Nutrition in Australia - Assignment Example

Exercise 1 Aboriginal nutrition in Australia In Australia, indigenous people have had an increasingly risk in diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular. This is because aboriginal health has significantly been affected by the modern diet which consist a high quantities of fat which cause low nutritional value. Before the settlement of whites in Australia, Aboriginal people used to be hunters and gatherers who used to hunt for uncultivated plants or hunt for wild animals for food. The traditional food for aboriginal people used to be mainly carbohydrates, nutrients and proteins. They also used to take foods with low fat and sugars (Michael, 2007).  This practice made diseases such as cardiovascular and diabetes uncommon to them. However, the introduction of modern diets has significantly affected the nutrition for aboriginal people. This is because most of the food is now in high amount of fat as well as sugar yet low in important nutrients such as fiber and carbohydrates which improve nutritional value of the body. As a result of this, there has been reported an increase in the rate of people catching diseases such as cardiovascular and diabetes. Traditional diet for aboriginal people The major diet or bush food taken by aboriginal people used to be low kilojoule together with others such as carbohydrates, protein, fibre and nutrients. Since the people here used to hunt for food, their diet changed according to the kind of animal or plant they caught daily. They could therefore eat what was available at a certain period of time. Better Health (2010) describe s that the Aboriginal people therefore had wide knowledge regarding the plants and animals that would be available as a particular season. This was by necessity and they also knew the effects of weather changes at every given time of the year. They knew the food that consists of high amount of energy foods and those that had plenty amount of kikojoules in a gram for example meat, honey and offal and insects for example the witchetty grubs. The women used to gather their daily food which included reptiles, plants and honey. Men on the other hand used to hunt both land and sea animals. Most of the food gathered was eaten raw though meat had to be roasted. Children were their mothers would introduce them to solid foods. Hunting and gathering also gave the aboriginal people much of physical exercise for example in chasing after wild animals (Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, 2006). Change in diet after the white settlement After the Europeans settled in Australia, the traditional diet for aboriginal people changed. It now became foods which included flour, processed meat and sugar. This changed as indigenous people did not have much opportunity for hunting food for example those working at government settlements and relied on European foods. Kurongjurl (2008) puts it that this made the aboriginal diet lack certain essential nutrients such as vitamin, protein and minerals. The settlement of Europeans also introduced rearing of animals and growing plants. This was uncommon in Australia before and it reduced people’s access to land and it also increased bush fires. The aboriginal people could therefore not hunt and gather food as they used to. Modern diet and nutrition Today, high kilojoule, fats, sugars and low nutritional value is the typical diet for Aboriginal people. This is because they do not find the need to hunt and gather and this has also lowered their physical activity. Most surveys have shown that indigenous people living in urban places take more fast foods and much salt as compared to non-indigenous people. Other people living in remote communities also lack various range of foods such as fruits and vegetables. People living in the Northern Territory tend to take in more sugar, carbonated drinks and white flour as compared to the average Australians. Typically, the modern Aboriginal diet lack vitamin C, magnesium and calcium in both city or in remote communities. The Australian indigenous people are faced with various diseases as a result of their diet. These include diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, stroke and many others. Cardiovascular disease causes many deaths to indigenous Australian for example it is 3 times higher as compared to non-indigenous people (Fejo and Hobson, 1998).  Information sources A book or a book chapter- Fejo, L. & Hobson, V. (1998). Strong women, strong babies, strong culture program. Stories and ideas from around Australia. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. I chose to use this book as it gives more information of what happened in the traditional times of the Aboriginal people. It shows their nutrition before the settlement of the Europeans. A journal article- Michael, S.G. (2007). Nutrition-related disorders in indigenous Australians, How things have changed: The medical Journal of Australia, 186 (1): 15-17. The reason why I used this source is because it creates awareness of a serious health problem to indigenous people in Australia. The journal also gives ways how government can commit its task in cooperation and collaboration with the organisation and other communities to stop nutritional diseases. A web-site- Better Health (2010). Aboriginal diet and nutrition. Government of Victoria The reason why I decide to use this source of information is because it is provided for education and information purposes. The contents have also been prepared for residents living in Australia so as for them to be aware of the danger of taking the modern foods. A thesis- Kurongjurl, K. (2008). Review of nutrition and growth among indigenous peoples. Centre for indigenous Australian Education and research: Edith Cowan University. The thesis was use in collection of information as it clearly analyses and shows the nutritional and growth of Aboriginal people in Australia and how this affects their health. A government publication, e.g. a report, conference proceedings- Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. (2006). National Diabetes Strategy. The government publication is important source of information as it gives the strategies that may be introduced to curb the increased intake of foods lacking necessary nutrients. The publication also specifies on the diseases faced by aged and children. Exercise 2 Table of contents Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..6 Demographic factors………………………………………………………………………………6 Cognitive factors…………………………………………………………………………………..6 Psychosocial factors……………………………………………………………………………….7 Health and lifestyle factors………………………………………………………………………..7 Cultural factors……………………………………………………………………………………7 Heath system factors……………………………………………………………………………....8 References…………………………………………………………………………………………9 Factors influencing consumer participation in medical screening-cancer screening Introduction Consumer participation in medical screening has significantly been embraced as a component for building quality in health care services. Vernon (1997) describes that though nurses have the greatest contact with patients, less is known of the consumer participation and how they facilitate medical screening. The factors influencing consumer participation include demographic, psychosocial, cognitive, cultural, health and lifestyle and health systems factors. Demographic factors The demographic factors related to how one relates to population characteristics. The factors influencing include age, sex, disability and mobility, employment status and many others. Cokkinides et al. (2007) describes that there is an association between cancer screening and age as more participants are above 65 years. Gender also applies as more women participate as compared to men. Cognitive factors Cognitive factors also influence consumer participation as it involves the reasoning and perception. McCaul et al. (1996) explains that in cancer screening knowledge of the risks involved, knowledge of the screening process and the knowledge of screening guidelines may influence participation. The perception that a health problem may arise once precautions are not taken also influence consumer participation for cancer screening. The cognitive factors influencing participation include literacy, cancer related knowledge, perceives risk and perceived ambiguity. Psychosocial factors Psychosocial factors which include emotions may influence participation for cancer screening. Fear, worry and anxiety affect cancer screening if not effectively regulated. Fear of screening components, fear of cancer and fear of screening outcome influence screening behaviour. Social networks also play a major role in the outcomes related to health. This is because people fear denial and repression (Consedine et al., 2004). Health and lifestyle factors Health and lifestyle factors include the physical and mental health as people with physical and mental health are likely to participate less in screening. Individual using drug and alcohol are also less likely to be involved in screening for example there are lower rates of women who smoke. Previous dissimilar screening and repeat screening also influence the participation by consumers (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2009). Cultural factors In cultural factors, it is shown that low screening rates are achieved from people living in low social economic status, people with low education level, poverty, cost of screening and acculturation. Understanding of diverse beliefs and conceptions about health by indigenous people is important as it develops cancer prevention. Jepson et al. (2000) shows acculturation or being in one culture for along time contributed to lower screening participation than those who have been used to diverse culture for example people who have been to USA have a better understanding of why it is necessary to participate in cancer screening. Fatalism is the other cultural aspects for example where people believe that death is inevitable to cancer patients. Other cultural factors influencing consumer participation include embarrassment and shame, medical mistrust, communalism and religiosity (Petersen, 2002). Heath system factors Health system factors influencing cancer screening include the availability or the geographical distribution of healthy facilities and services. A location with enough facilities is likely to have a higher level of participation. Accessibility of the services also matters for example transport and roads. Guessous et al. (2010) puts it that individuals at convenient places are likely to respond more than those living in a place where transport is a problem. Affordability is also important as where there is free cancer screening people are likely to participate more. Acceptability is also important as involving cultural and social factors may affect screening participation. References Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2009). Breast cancer in Australia. Canberra: AIHW. Cancer series no. 50, Cat no. 46. Cokkinides, V. Bandi, P. Seigel, R. Wardm E. & Thun, M. (2007). Cancer Prevention & Early Detection Facts & Figures 2008. Atlanta, GA: American Cancer Society. Consedine, N. Magai, C. Krivoshekova, Y. Ryzewicz, L. & Neugut, A. (2004). Fear, anxiety, worry, and breast cancer screening behavior: A critical review. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention. 13(4): 501‐510. Guessous, I. Dash, C. Lapin, P. Doroshenk, M. Smith, R. & Klabunde, C. (2010). Colorectal cancer screening barriers and facilitators in older persons. Preventive Medicine. 50(1‐2): 3‐10. Jepson, R. Clegg, A. Forbes, C. Lewis, R. Sowden, A. & Kleijnen, J. (2000). The determinants of screening uptake and interventions for increasing uptake: A systematic review. Health Technology Assessment. 4 (14). McCaul, K. Branstetter, A. Glasgow, R. & Schroeder, D. (1996). What is the relationship between breast cancer risk and mammography screening? A meta‐analytic review. Health Psychol. 15: 423‐429. Petersen, G. (2002). Barriers to preventive intervention. Gastroenterology Clinics of North America. 31(4): 1061‐1068. Vernon, S. (1997). Participation in colorectal cancer screening: A review. J Natl Cancer Inst: 89(19):1406‐1422. Read More