Chapter 3- Health Bhvr - Part 1

What is health promotion?

A general philosophy that maintaining health is a personal and collective achievement.  It can occur through individual efforts, with medical practitioners, health psychologists and through community and national policy makers.

Health Promotion- individual

developing a program of good health habits

Health Promotion- medical practitioner

•teaching people how to achieve a healthy lifestyle

•helping people at risk for health problems offset or monitor those risks

Health Promotion- health psychologist

Involves the development of interventions to help people practice healthy behaviours.

Health Promotion- community and national policy makers

emphasizing good health and providing information and resources to help people change poor health habits

what is Health bhvrs

undertaken- enhance maintain health

what is health habit

firmly established and performed automatically. normally starts in childhood.

what was the necessary bhvrs in Belloc and Breslow 1972 and how is it diff now

7-8 hrs sleep (also matters when you sleep)
No smoking (still applicable)
Eating brekkie every day (still applicable)
No more than 1/2 alc drinks (no alc drinks)
Regular exercise (still applicable)
Not eating betn meals (snacks are ok just not too much)
No more than 10% overweight (BMI is no longer an accurate measure)

Results of the Belloc and Breslow study (1972)

lesser illness

overall better feels

less disabled

Change in mortality in the BNB study

7 habit men- 28% less than those with 0-3 habits

7 habit women- 43% less than those with 0-3 habits

What is primary prevention

Taking measures to combat risk factors for illness before it has a chance to develop.

• altering problematic bhvrs

• stop ppl from developing bad health habits in the 1st place

Factors affecting practice and change of health bhvrs

• demographic (younger, affluent, educated, low stress, high support are healthier)

• age ()

• cultural values (what habits are allowed in each culture, women can/t work out)

• personal control (ppl are healthier if they think that they’re in control of their health)

• social influence (if you have good support)

• personal goals and values (are your habits tied to your personal goals or nah)

• perceived symptoms (if u get smoker’s cough then ur prolly gonna cut back on smoking)

• access to the health care delivery system (more access less bad bhvrs)

• knowledge and cognition

Health: locus of control

: Internal- I cause my bhvrs
: Chance- based on luck, whether you get sick or not
: Powerful others- a good doc is gonna cure me, not me stopping smoking

Barriers in modifying health bhvrs- emotions

emotional factors- bhvr is pleasurable, addictive thus is harder to get rid of
- Threatening messages don’t work- cause psych distress and lead ppl to become defensive and dismiss health risks
-Ppl see health threats as less relevant than they are and have illusory optimism
- False sense of security, thus continuation of risky bhvr.

Barriers in modifying health bhvrs- instability

-diff factors control diff health habits
-diff factors may control the same health bhvr in diff ppl
-factors controlling health bhvr change over time
-factors controlling a health bhvr may change across a persons lifetime

Intervening with children and adolescents

Socialisation- influence of teachers and role models, esp parents

Window of vulnerability- times where ppl are 1st exposed to bad habits (not confined to childhood and adolescence)

Precautions taken young affect disease risk after 45

Teachable moments: suitable times for learning health practices

benefits of intervening with at risk ppl

• efficient use of health promotion dollars

• disease may be prevented altogether

• makes it easy to identify risk factors

Challenges of intervening with at risk ppl

• Risks aren’t always perceived correctly

• Testing positive for a risk factor may lead to hypervigilant bhvr

Genetic Testing