Lifestyle and Non communicable disease
Non-communicable diseases include things like cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity — illnesses that cannot be spread from person to person.
Cost of Non Communicable disease
1.To an individual:
Pain, disability, reduced quality of life, emotional stress, loss of income, cost of treatment.
2.To a local community:
Pressure on local hospitals, people missing work, less productivity, families needing support.
3.To the country:
NHS costs, fewer people able to work, government having to spend money on healthcare instead of other services.
4.Globally:
Huge burden on health systems, reduced economic development in poorer countries, global health inequality.
Explain how lifestyle affects disease rates
You should be able to talk about how lifestyle choices affect the chances of getting non-communicable diseases:
| Lifestyle factor | Effect |
|---|---|
| Diet | Poor diet can lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease. |
| Smoking | Increases risk of lung cancer, heart disease, respiratory diseases. |
| Alcohol | Can cause liver disease, brain damage, addiction, some cancers. |
And you must explain this at different scales:
1.Local level: e.g., higher smoking rates in a town = more lung disease locally
2.National level: e.g., obesity rates rising in the UK
3.Global level: e.g., worldwide increase in type 2 diabetes because of unhealthy diets
Risk Factors
Risk factors are linked to an increased rate of a disease.
This means that if a person has a risk factor, then they are more likely to suffer from a particular disease.
Risk factors could be:
1. Aspects of a person’s lifestyle
2.Substances in the person’s body or environment.
Aspects of a Person’s Lifestyle
| Aspects of a person’s lifestyle | Possible non communicable disease |
|---|---|
| Smoking | Lung cancer, heart disease |
| Poor diet | Obesity, diabetes, heart disease |
| Lack of exercise | Heart disease |
| Too much sun | Skin cancer |
Substances in the person’s body or environment.
| Substances in the body or environment | Possible non communicable disease |
|---|---|
| Asbestos (environment) | Lung disease/cancer |
| Air pollution (environment) | Asthma, lung disease |
| High cholesterol (in body) | Heart disease |
| Chemicals in tobacco smoke (body) | Cancer |
Causal mechanism
A causal mechanism has been proven for some risk factors, but not in others.
Causal mechanism proven means scientists have found the biological reason why a risk factor leads to a disease.
No proven mechanism yet this means scientists know there is a link, but they do not fully understand how it causes the disease.
| Risk Factor | Causal mechanism proven or unproven? | Mechanism |
|---|---|---|
| High-fat diet (cardiovascular disease) | Proven | high cholesterol → plaque in arteries → heart attacks |
| Smoking (cardiovascular disease) | Proven | Chemicals damage arteries → plaque formation |
| Lack of exercise (cardiovascular disease) | Proven | Obesity → strain on heart |
| Obesity (Type 2 diabetes) | Proven | Excess fat causes insulin resistance → blood glucose cannot be controlled → Type 2 diabetes develops |
| Alcohol (Liver and brain function) | Proven | Liver: Alcohol metabolised → toxic byproducts damage liver cells → cirrhosis Brain: Alcohol affects neurotransmitters → impaired brain function, memory, coordination |
| Smoking (Lung disease and lung cancer) | Proven | Chemicals in smoke damage lung tissue → chronic bronchitis / emphysema Mutagens in smoke → DNA mutations → lung cancer |
| Smoking and alcohol (effect on unborn babies) | Partially proven | Smoking: Carbon monoxide reduces oxygen → low birth weight Alcohol: Interferes with fetal development → Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Some exact mechanisms in development are still being studied |
| Carcinogens (e.g., ionising radiation) (cancer) | Proven | Radiation damages DNA → mutations accumulate → uncontrolled cell division → cancer |
Some risk factors (like smoking and cancer, obesity and diabetes) have clear causal mechanisms. Others (like stress and heart disease) are linked but the exact biological process is not fully understood.
Multiple factors
Many diseases are caused by multiple factors.
Example: Cardiovascular disease can be influenced by diet, smoking, exercise, genetics, and stress
Causal mechanisms may interact, making some effects harder to prove individually
Practice Questions
1.Describe what is meant by a non communicable disease
2. State 3 life style factors that can affect our health
3. Explain what is mean by the term proven causal mechanism.