The Incidence of Coronary Heart Disease among the Population of Scotland - Essay Example

May 31, Need to reduce the incidence of Coronary Heart Disease among the population of Scotland Recent evidence suggests the looming prevalence of Coronary Heart Disease gaining more and more strength, since almost one-fifth of deaths are caused by CHD in Scotland. There is no denying the many noble efforts exercised and important steps taken to help reducing the frequency of the disease, still the pace at which it continues to grow among the residents of Scotland is worrisome. "CHD is a priority in Scotland where prevalence of the associated risk factors such as smoking, diet and physical inactivity is high." (Corbet et al, 2009). Authentic research suggests the people from the most deprived areas of Scotland to be at increased risk for mortality from CHD. So there exists a direct relationship between social deprivation and risks of this disease. It is an extremely serious disease, so the idea of getting relaxed because of a little decrease in CHD mortality rates only at a few places is only empty foolery. The whole appalling point of CHD is the accumulation of fats in the coronary arteries which happens quite subtly causing heart attack straight-off. It is also related to many other risk factors including smoking, sedentary life style and poor diet. Now here exists a great paradox that people at greater risk for different health problems have poor access to healthcare facilities and this fact is typical of the deprived nations all over the globe. The access to reasonable medical care unfortunately varies inversely withtheneedforthepopulation served. The result is ultimate frustration met by the public who are already depressed by the prospect of diseases like CHD. "Health inequalities remain a significant challenge inScotland withthepoorest in our society dying earlier and experiencing higher rates ofdisease." (www.scotland.gov.uk). This means that the Scottish Government is not really ignorant of the sensitivity of the situation. In order to tackle this scenario, the government summoned a Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities in 2008. The key point of this strategy was to provide easily accessible health care to the Scottish people by sensitively considering the underlying arcane causes which are related to social and economic deprivation, unemployment and financial backgrounds. This was an impressive measure taken by government to reduce the prevalence of coronary heart disease. Early life circumstances prove to be the bedrock for later health conditions. Where jobs are few and lay-offs are common, where expenses are increasing and incomes are meager and where health problems are mounting and health services are poor-the result is only unemployment, depression and diseases. All this culminates in a vicious circle laying the foundation for premature CHD. Negative emotions indirectly stimulate this premature CHD coupling with other risk factors like excessive alcohol consumption and immobile life style. "Emotions may also influence CHD through their effects on decreased social support and increased social isolation." (Peterson et al, 2001). People experiencing depression, social and economic problems and poor physical health almost from their youth are at a greater chance of affected by CHD. Depression, associated with poor physical health, significantly increasesthechance of this heart disease. Researches suggest that depression not only elevates the development of CHD in women, but also there is a positive association between depression and increased risk of CHD in men as well. Smoking is a huge risk factor shared by CHD both in men and women. It causes fatty plague formation in the coronary arteries leading to coronary heart disease which culminates in congestive heart failure. It is an undeniable fact aided by research that CHD is the primary cause of deaths occurring by smoking especially among the population of Scotland. "Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and has negative health impacts on people at all stages of life." (Martin, 2009). Scottish Health Surveys are special efforts made to review the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases. The frequency of smoking among the population has significantly plummeted since the publication of 1998 Survey. Quite a number of people got aware of the unhealthy complexities caused by smoking and the way it relates to the increased risk of CHD. The Scottish Parliament especially showed great responsibility to enhance the health situation by banning smoking in public places from 2006. A considerable reduction in tobacco consumption and hence CHD can be anticipated by taking such measures. Still the Scottish Survey conducted in 2003 has unveiled yet another issue. Evidence suggests increased mortality rates from CHD because of excessive alcohol consumption. Alcoholism is another major concern all over the world because of its specialty of being a potent cause of CHD. Compared with previous surveys, the 2003 Survey suggests an increase in the number of women who exceeded normal alcohol consumption limits. ". .diet, alcohol consumption and physical exercise need to improve if we are to prolong healthy life and minimize the impact of chronic disease." (Bromley et al, 2003). This report underlines the efforts made to improve health related issues in deprived population of Scotland so the chance of reduction in the incidence of CHD can be anticipated. It suggests that further work is necessary to improve diet, reduce levels of obesity and promote safe levels of alcohol consumption. Adult obesity is a very important disorder associated with coronary heart disease. Different reports underline the sad fact that obesity in Scotland is now increasing at the same pace as noted in the rest of the western world. Obesity leads to gradual but persistent accumulation of fat in the arteries, especially causing fatty clot formation in the coronary arteries. What can be more worrisome then the fact that obesity has recently been marked as the direct cause that can develop CHD Doctors believe that heart failure results from coronary heart disease directly linked with obesity. "Even if you're entirely healthy otherwise, being obese (or merely overweight) still places you at risk of developing heart failure." (Fogoros, 2003). Poorly sedentary lifestyles are leading to increase in the prevalence of CHD in Scotland. Being overweight in childhood is a noteworthy factor that helps in foreseeing the chance of obesity in adulthood and it will be a worthwhile effort to supervise the children on healthy diet. This can help in tapering the risk factors that can lead to CHD at a later stage of life. "Mortality rate for CHD continues to fall, from 124.6 per 100,000 population in 1995 to 56.0 per 100,000 population in 2008." (Redpath, 2009). This seems like an encouraging fact in much disquiet. This illuminates the point that media has got quite active in making the public aware of all the risk factors related to CHD and the precautionary measures to avoid them. Medical literature is also letting people know about the steps they can take to save themselves from CHD. Physically inactive or obese people have double risk of this disease so CHD mortality can be considerably decreased by adopting active lifestyle. Modest efforts by the people of Scotland to avoid the risk factors from the start can gain them many more years of healthy lives. The earlier the people have the knowledge related to prevention of CHD, the better. That is a crucial point because CHD is not a disease that happens all at once, rather it gets stronger gradually and mostly unknowingly. Why is it that the doctors agree that almost all the patients coming up with CHD have a sedentary life style or are habitual smokers from the very beginning Because the foundation of CHD is laid many years before the conditions get worse enough and the patient is told of the disease. References: Bromley, C. Chaudhury, M. Craig, R. Deverill, C. Erens, B. Fuller, E. Gray, L. Herrick, K. Hirani, V. Kelly, Y. Leyland, A. MacGregor, A. Moody, A. Prescott, A. Pickering, K. Primatesta, P. Scholes, S. Shelton, N. Speight, S. Stematakis, E. Wardle, H. Zaninotto, P. "The Scottish Health Survey, 2003." Scotland.gov.uk. 02 Dec. 2005. Web. 31 May. 2010. Corbett, J. Given, L. Gray, L. Leyland, A. MacGregor, A. Marryat, L. Miller, M. Reid, S. "The Scottish Health Survey 2008." Scotland.gov.uk. 29 Sep. 2009. Web. 30 May. 2010. Fogoros, R.N. "Obesity and Heart Failure." Heartdisease.about.com. 28 Nov. 2003. Web. 31 May. 2010. Martin, T. "Smoking-Related Heart diseases." Quitsmoking.about.com. 05 May. 2009. Web. 31 May. 2010. Peterson, J.Z. Byers, J.F. Valentine, D. "Depression as a Risk Factor for Coronary Heart Disease: Relationship Between Depression and CHD." Medscape.com. 2001. Web. 31 May. 2010. Redpath, A. "Coronary Heart Disease Statistics Update." Isdscotland.org. 24 Nov. 2009. Web. 31 May. 2010. "Reducedmortality fromcoronaryheartdisease amongtheunder 75s in deprived areas" Scotland.gov.uk. 11 Dec. 2009. Web. 30 May. 2010. Read More