The Assessment of the Lifestyle Factors to Influence the Health Status of the Individual - Term Paper Example

Health Behaviour Challenge Name Institution Health Behaviour Challenge Introduction The purpose of this report is to identifying factors, which affect health and wellbeing in individuals. In addition, the report will focus on the development of skills to apply knowledge of the health, as well as wellbeing with the intention of enhancing the health status of the individual. Similarly, the report will concentrate on the assessment of the lifestyle factors with the potentiality to influence the health status of the individual. In order to achieve these objectives, the report will outline a clear rationale to address the health issue, the behaviour change model to guide the behaviour change, illustration of the national guidelines to guide the change behaviour, and integration of four clear recommendations to address the health issue. Rationale to address the Health Issue From the assessment of the survey results, Jeanette should focus on the improvement of health behaviour towards the attainment of healthy weight or BMI. Her BMI is 27, which means that she is overweight. According to her story, she tends to feed more on the junk food from the fast food restaurant rather than consume the slow food components. The attainment, as well as the preservation of a healthy weight is critical for the overall health of an individual. This is because of the influence of a healthy weight in prevention and controlling of numerous diseases, as well as conditions. Overweight or obese individuals have the tendency of being at higher risk of developing or contracting diverse serious health issues inclusive of the heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, breathing issue, certain cancers, and gallstones. It is highly recommended for the people with obesity or overweight to lose weight. From this perspective, even a small weight loss has the ability to help reduce the risks of developing diverse diseases relating to obesity. Additionally, overweight people do not have a high waist measurement. Moreover, they tend to have less than two risk factors, which might require prevention of continuous weight gain rather than weight loss to improve the health status or condition of the individual in context. From the above illustrations, there are diverse risks in relation to the overweight condition of Jeanette. These risks include high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease, cancer, abnormal blood fats, reproductive issues, sleep apnoea, and gallstones (Wing et al, 2011). On the other hand, reduction of the body weight would lead to diverse benefits such as enabling the individual to feel better through increased energy, fewer aches and pains, easier to breathe, improved immune system, and improved ability to move and get around. Similarly, reduction in weight is essential in limiting the tendency of the individuals to contract the aforementioned diseases or health conditions, thus the perfect platform towards improvement of the health of the individual (Wing et al., 2011). Based on the information or data on measured height and weight from the 2011-2012 Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian Health Survey in the course of calculating BMI, it is ideal to note that almost 2 in 3 adults (63 percent) are overweight or obese. In addition, 10 percent more adults prove to be overweight or obese in comparison to the case of 1995 (Olds et al, 2010). Moreover, 1 in 4 Australian children (25 percent) are obese or overweight, thus illustration of the increased incidents of obesity in the case of Australia (Walls et al., 2012). Overweight and obesity (high BMI) come out as the second highest contributor in relation to the burden of disease after the dietary risks. Smoking habit is the third highest contributor in the case of Australia. It is also crucial to note that 15 percent more people living in the outer regional, as well as remote areas are overweight or obese in comparison to the people living in the major urban areas (Thorburn, 2005). SMART goals are essential in the course of measuring performance progress, as well as personal development. SMART goals are a great way to organize and initiate the changes one would like to make in the course of transforming their conditions. In the first aspect, ‘specific’ element tend to ask diverse questions relating to who, what, where, why, when, and how. Secondly, ‘measurable’ enables the individual to measure their progress in the course of obtaining or attaining the goal. Thirdly, the ‘attainable’ element enables individuals to formulate effective strategies for the specific and reasonable result. Fourthly, the ‘realistic/relevant’ element ensures that individuals do not set themselves up for failure. Finally, the ‘timely’ element ensures that the individual is accountable to the specific or particular deadline, thus provision of the sense of accomplishment. SMART Goals Specific Jeanette will lose one pound a week through doing or executing 30-minute cardio workouts, four times a week. Similarly, she will reduce her calorie intake by 250 calories through elimination of soda for her diet, thus incorporating water into the diet. Measurable Jeanette will measure her progress by weighing herself at the same time of the day on Wednesday mornings. She will use the same scale, wear the same clothes, and weighs at the same time of the day prior to breakfast for increased or enhanced accuracy. Attainable Jeanette will make this commitment to herself because of effective understanding of the risks of overweight, as well as benefits of substantive weight loss. Realistic The goal is appropriate for her physical activity level, time, and availability, thus increased commitment level. Timely By the end of the sixth week, she will have lost 6 pounds, thus the opportunity to set a new SMART goal. From the above tabular illustration, the SMART goal should indicate, “Jeanette will engage in losing 6 pounds through daily execution of cardio-workouts for six weeks to facilitate effective and efficient burnout of the excess calories.” Determination of the individual’s readiness for the health behaviour change is vital for the attainment of success in the course of adopting and implementing appropriate strategies. This is because of the influence of the readiness of the individual to change on the development of the treatment goals and targets in accordance with the behaviour of interest. In the course of executing this issue, Jeanette had low readiness level to change her health behaviour. This mainly associates with lack of substantive information about the problem. In addition, the issue might relate to lack of interest or concern in relation to the current weight status. I had to integrate appropriate intervention through provision of ideal information concerning the risks of obesity, as well as the benefits of weight loss. The approach or intervention was effective and efficient into convincing Jeanette on the need and importance of losing weight to improve her health condition. Recommendations for Action to Address the Health Issue There are diverse interventions or strategies, which might be appropriate for the handling of the case of overweight with reference to the context of Jeanette’s situation. In the first instance, it is essential to focus on the incorporation of lifestyle interventions. This is through integration of the behavioural therapies, as well as nutritional and corporeal motion encoding and support with the intention of providing the first line of the treatment of the patients or individuals with overweight or obesity conditions. In this context, it would be appropriate for Jeanette to engage in the cardio-workout activities with the intention of losing substantial amount or percentage of weight, thus the perfect platform for the improvement of her health status or condition (Krebs et al, 2007). It is also essential for the individual to transform her diet. This will entail elimination of the junk food from her diet with the intention of reducing the amount or volume of calories accumulating in her body leading to the increase in weight. The approach is manageable and attainable. In the course of executing this intervention, it is critical for the family members and other relevant stakeholders to offer ideal support for the patient. This provides the opportunity and moral support to aid the achievement or attainment of the goals and targets at the end of the strategic period. Secondly, it is appropriate to focus on the integration of the behavioural interventions in the course of handling the issue of obesity or overweight with the intention of improving health condition of the patient in context. According to different researchers, there is significant confirmation, which proposes that obesity is not just an issue or a problem of will power or self-discipline. Overweight or obesity is a multifaceted syndrome involving craving directive and energy absorption in association with diverse comorbid conditions (Lang & Froelicher, 2006). From this perspective, operative strategies of the weight loss would require integration of appropriate management strategies in a combined approach of the dietary therapy, as well as physical activities under the influence of behavioural interventions or strategies. It is critical for the individual with overweight or obese condition to transform his or her health behaviour, thus substantive changes to the dietary elements, engagement in the physical activities, and transformation of the food basket. These attributes are ideal in understanding the needs of the individual while relating to the reduction in body weight and improving of the health condition of the person in question. Thirdly, it is essential for the individual to consider prevention of further weight gain as a precaution towards improvement of the health status and condition of the individual at risk of contracting diverse diseases because of overweight or obese conditions. The recommendation, strategy, or intervention is highly effective in the case of healthy adults from the age of 18 years. In addition, it is critical to note that the case or intervention does not apply to the individuals or adults with eating disorders, underweight, and pregnant women. It is highly advisable for the practitioners to avoid provision of formal, structured interventions aiming at deterrence of the increase in body weight in relation to the absolute weight for adults. From this perspective, it is critical to note that adults who are weighty or obese might be the contenders for the reduction in weight therapy, thus effective platform for the implementation or incorporation, as well as application of this intervention to curb or management overweight conditions (Daniels et al., 2005). Finally, it would be appropriate to adopt and implement appropriate interventions and strategies, which are essential in controlling increase in weight and obesity. These recommendations tend to apply to adults above the age of 18 years who are overweight or obese. In addition, the intervention provides the guidelines on the exclusion of pregnant women from the treatment. It is also essential to note that the mode of treatment might not relate to the individuals with a BMI of 40 or greater since such individuals might benefit from the specialised bariatric programs (Centre for Public Health Excellence at NICE, 2006). For instance, obese adults who are at high risk of contracting diabetes need to adhere to the organised interactive interventions aimed at loss or reduction of body weight. On the other hand, overweight or obese adults should seek structured behavioural intervention aimed at weight loss. These attributes are vital in managing the incidents of overweight or obesity with the objective of improving health conditions of the individual under question. Conclusion Overweight or obese individuals have the tendency of being at higher risk of developing or contracting diverse serious health issues inclusive of the heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, breathing issue, certain cancers, and gallstones. Reduction of the body weight would lead to diverse benefits such as enabling the individual to feel better through increased energy, fewer aches and pains, easier to breathe, improved immune system, and improved ability to move and get around. The report recommends on the need to integrate lifestyle interventions, behavioural interventions, management of overweight or obese, and prevention of further weight gain to manage the case of Jeanette, as well as improve the health condition of the patient in context. References Lang, A., & Froelicher, E. S. (2006). Management of overweight and obesity in adults: behavioral intervention for long-term weight loss and maintenance. European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing, 5(2), 102-114. Krebs, N. F., Himes, J. H., Jacobson, D., Nicklas, T. A., Guilday, P., & Styne, D. (2007). Assessment of child and adolescent overweight and obesity. Pediatrics, 120(Supplement 4), S193-S228. Daniels, S. R., Arnett, D. K., Eckel, R. H., Gidding, S. S., Hayman, L. L., Kumanyika, S., ... & Williams, C. L. (2005). Overweight in children and adolescents pathophysiology, consequences, prevention, and treatment. Circulation, 111(15), 1999-2012. Centre for Public Health Excellence at NICE (UK, & National Collaborating Centre for Primary Care (UK. (2006). Obesity: the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children. Olds, T. S., Tomkinson, G. R., Ferrar, K. E., & Maher, C. A. (2010). Trends in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity in Australia between 1985 and 2008. International Journal of Obesity, 34(1), 57-66. Thorburn, A. W. (2005). Prevalence of obesity in Australia. Obesity Reviews, 6(3), 187-189. Walls, H. L., Magliano, D. J., Stevenson, C. E., Backholer, K., Mannan, H. R., Shaw, J. E., & Peeters, A. (2012). Projected progression of the prevalence of obesity in Australia. Obesity, 20(4), 872-878. Wing, R. R., Lang, W., Wadden, T. A., Safford, M., Knowler, W. C., Bertoni, A. G., ... & Wagenknecht, L. (2011). Benefits of modest weight loss in improving cardiovascular risk factors in overweight and obese individuals with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes care, 34(7), 1481-1486. Appendix Health Assessment Survey Please respond to the following questions: Ask a friend/colleague to complete the survey below either electronically or print it up and write on it in pen. Remember to keep a note of the responses. Please refer to the comments at the end of each question as this will assist you to decide upon a health issue that can be approached with a SMART goal, to address in the report. Use the responses and guiding information after each question to select a health issue to approach in Assignment 2. _________________________________________________________________________________ Elevated Blood Sugars 1 Have you ever been found to have high blood glucose (sugar) (for example, in a health examination, during an illness, during pregnancy)? a. Yes No If you responded with ‘Yes’, you may be at an elevated risk of CVD, diabetes and a range of other chronic diseases. Discuss measures to reduce your Blood pressure with your GP, for example physical activity and dietary interventions can be explored. Smoking Do you currently smoke cigarettes or any other tobacco products on a daily basis? Yes No If you responded with yes, this increases your risk of a range of cancers. It is recommended that you seek support to reduce the number of cigarettes that you smoke or seek to quit completely. Physical activity Do you do muscle strengthening activities on at least 2 days each week. Yes No On average, would you say you do at least 2.5 hours of physical activity per week (for example, 30 minutes a day on 5 or more days a week)? Yes No I do not engage in any physical activity Physical inactivity is linked to poor health, including many chronic conditions and injuries, excess body weight and low bone-mineral density. Of the modifiable health risk factors, physical inactivity is the second largest contributor—after tobacco smoking—to the burden of disease and injury in Australia. Physical activity has been shown to have a protective benefit for Chronic diseases such as Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke. Nutrition If you respond with a ‘No’ to any of the listed questions below, this may be highlighted as an area of nutrition that you can seek to develop to improve your overall health and therefore approach in your SMART goal: Do you: Eat vegetables or fruit most days of the week? Yes No Eat at least 5 serves of vegetables every day? (F or example a serve is ½ cup cooked vegetables). or 1 cup of salad. Yes No Have at least 2 serves of reduced fat milk, yoghurt, cheese or alternatives every day (for example, 1 slice of reduced fat cheese, a small tub of yoghurt etc. Yes No Eat mostly wholegrain cereals (such as high fibre breakfast cereal and whole meal bread). Yes No Eat at least a small serve of lean meat or chicken (fat and/or skin cut off) or fish, or eggs or some nuts or legumes (for example, lentils every day. Yes No Drink plenty of water every day and limit drinks with added sugars, such as soft drinks, cordial, energy drinks and sports drinks. Yes No Limit takeaway foods such as pizzas, commercial burgers, hot chips or other deep fried foods to once a week or less. Yes No Limit store-bought cakes, muffins, pastries, pies and biscuits to once a week or less. Yes No Limit salty foods like processed meats (for example, salami and bacon), crisps and salty snacks to once a week or less, and avoid adding salt during cooking or at the table. Yes No How Much Caffeine Do You Consume Each Day? Virtually None. I don't drink coffee, tea or cola, and hardly ever eat chocolate. Only A Little. I have about a cup of coffee, tea or cola per day, or a moderate amount of chocolate. Some. I have 2-3 cups of coffee, tea or cola each day, or quite a bit of chocolate. A Lot. I have 4 or more cups of coffee, tea or cola. If I stopped drinking it, I would probably suffer withdrawal symptoms like headaches or intense cravings There is currently no recognised health-based guidance value, such as an Acceptable Daily Intake, for caffeine. However, a FSANZ Expert Working Group analysed the available literature in 2000 and concluded that there was evidence of increased anxiety levels in people at about 3 mg of caffeine per kilogram of bodyweight per day which equates to approximately three cups of instant coffee for adults( Food Standards Australia 2013). Mental Health How Much Sleep Do You Get Per Night, Or Combined With Naps? 8 or more hours Around 7 hours Around 6 hours Less than 6 hours It is recommended that adults get atleast 7 to 9 hours of quality sleep per night. If you are getting significantly less than 7 hours per night, consider changes to your lifestyle to accommodate more rest and sleep time (Sleep Health Foundation 2011). Do You Have Anyone To Talk To About The Things In Your Life That Upset Or Stress You? a. Yes, I have a very supportive network of people I can count on for emotional support and assistance if I need it. b. Yes, I have one or two people in my life who really listen when I need to talk about something that's bothering me. c. No, not really. I have some superficial friendships, which cheer me up when I'm down and provide companionship, but we don't talk about deeper feelings. d. No, I really have no one to talk to about my feelings at all If you selected responses c or d, it is important that you seek strategies and support to reduce stress in your life. Seek out professional support or speak to friends and family when you feel stressed or need to talk. Alcohol consumption On a given day how many standard drinks do you consume? 1 or less 2 or less No more than 4 6 or more None To reduce the risk of alcohol related injury arising from a single occasion, healthy men and women should drink no more than 4 standard drinks on any single occasion. For healthy men and women, drinking no more than two standard drinks on any day reduces the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol related disease or injury(NHMRC 2015). BMI- Healthy Weight Calculate your BMI (Body mass index) by clicking on the link below: http://livelighter.com.au/tools-and-resources/calculate-your-risk Record your result and compare it to the following: Underweight = Read More