Population and the Environment: food security, health, disease and populations

food security

means having reliable access to enough nutritious and affordable food

food security depends on

food availability

food access

food quality and use

food availability

a country must produce and or import a sufficient amount of food

food access

people must be able to regularly obtain food

food quality and use

food that is consumed must be nutritious enough for them to maintain a healthy life and stored in a way that is safe and hygienic

3 ways food security can be increased

producing more

sharing food more evenly

reducing food waste

how can food production be increased

agricultural expansion

intensive farming

changing types of food produced

technology

agricultural expansion

more land converted to agricultural use but this destroys ecosystems

intensive farming

means producing as much food as possible from the land available which reduces need for clearing land but increases use of artificial chemicals which can damage the environment

changing the food types produced

producing plants requires less water and land than meat and dairy so converting to arable farming where possible means more food can be made

technology

crops can be genetically modified to produce higher yields or resist pests and diseases which limits need for artificial pesticides but reduces biodiversity

hydroponics

growing plants in a nutrient solution rather than soil, means crops can be grown in places that lack fertile soil but it is very expensive so not viable in developing countries

ways to increase food access/share

trade

improving access to markets

aid

trade and food

food can be imported to countries that don’t have enough but prices must be low enough for countries to afford enough food

issues with cheap imports

may undercut local farmers making it hard for them to earn a living

improving access to food markets

improving transport links makes it easier for farmers to sell their produce but some countries can’t afford to invest in infrastructure

aid and food

food is donated during famine but this strategy isn’t sustainable in the long term

how can long term food security be ensured

strategies have to be sustainable so not use too many resources or cause too much environmental damage

food waste reduction at production stage

crop loss due to pests can be reduced by educating farmers on prevention and giving them pesticides

food waste reduction at distribution stage

many shops discard food that they don’t sell so improving storage, packaging and time to shelf increases shelf life

supermarkets donating surplus food to food banks

food waste reduction at consumption stage

public awareness campaigns like Think.Eat.Save encourages consumers to be less wasteful by sharing recipes to use up leftovers but it can take a long time for populations to change their behaviour on a large scale

definition of health

physical, mental and social wellbeing as well as the absence of disease

HALE

healthy life expectancy which is the number of years a newborn child can expect to live in full health without major disease

morbidity

the rate of disease in a population

how do global morbidity patterns change

depending on what type of disease it is, in HICs non communicable diseases are most common but this is the opposite in LICs

2 morbidity indicators

prevalence

incidence

prevalence

the total number of cases in a population at a particular time

incidence

the number of new cases in a population during a particular time period

reasons for high morbidity of communicable diseases in less developed countries

lack of clean water, sanitation and health care

limited health education

dense populations in urban areas

reasons for high morbidity of non communicable diseases in developed countries

higher proportion of older people due to better life expectancy

unhealthy lifestyle choices like lack of exercise and unhealthy food are more common in developed countries

non communicable disease examples

cancer and heart disease

communicable disease examples

HIV and malaria

mortality

means death

mortality rates

how many people die in a population over a period of time

link between mortality and morbidity

in general high morbidity is associated with high mortality and mortality patterns depend on ability to treat morbidity

why is the risk of dying from a disease much higher in less developed countries

malnutrition reduces the body’s ability to fight a disease

poor access to the healthcare needed to treat the disease

Cancer Rates in More vs Less Developed Areas

🔹 Higher Incidence in Developed Areas – due to better screening, aging populations, and lifestyle factors (e.g. obesity, smoking).
🔹 Higher Mortality (in numbers) – because more cases are detected.
🔹 Lower % Death Rate – thanks to early detection, advanced treatment, and stronger healthcare systems.
🔹 Less Developed Areas – lower diagnosis rates but higher % of deaths due to poor access to treatment and late presentation

what is epidemiological transition

it is a model that states that the main cause of mortality changes from communicable to non communicable diseases over time

basically changing mortality patterns

how many stages of the epidemiological transition model

3 but further stages have been suggested

stage 1 of the epidemiological transition model

the age of pestilence and famine with a high number of deaths from infectious diseases and life expectancy is low at under 50 years

ETM stage 1 example

Angola

ETM stage 2

the age of receding pandemics where the number of deaths from infectious diseases falls due to better living conditions and life expectancy around 60 years

ETM stage 2 example

Haiti

ETM stage 3

age of degenerative and man made diseases where non communicable diseases replace communicable diseases as the main cause of death and life expectancy increases to around 70

example of ETM stage 3

Russia

potential stage 4 of ETM

delay of degenerative diseases, non communicable diseases may be prevented or their onset delayed so death rate reduced and average life expectancy high at around 80, UK

what reduces as development increases

malnutrition

lack of clean water

poor access to healthcare

poor health education

what do some people think is stage 5 ETM

re emergence of communicable diseases due to the evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria along with increased travel and trade making spread easier

environmental factors that increase the risk of disease

split into climate and typography see sep flashcards

crude birth rate

the number of live births per 1000 people per year

crude death rate

number of deaths per 1000 people per year

total fertility rate

the average number of children a woman will have when she is of reproductive age

reproductive age

usually considered to be between 15 and 44

infant mortality rate

number of children out of every 1000 born alive who will die before their 1st birthday

dependency ratio

the proportion of the population that has to be supported by the working population

working population

15-64

young people

0-14

older people

over 65

who are generally dependent on working population

young people and older people are usually dependent financially and or need to be looked after

what does the demographic transition model show

how the population of a country changes over time through 5 stages through birth rates, death rates and total population

stage 1 DTM

high birth rate and high death rate which fluctuate around 35/1000 so the population remains stable but low

examples of DTM 1 countries

no countries but some tribes in the rainforests of brazil are in stage 1

why is birth rate high in DTM 1

no birth control or family planning and infant mortality rates are very high

death rates and life expectancy DTM 1

death rate is high and life expectancy is low because of poor healthcare, sanitation and unbalanced diets causing disease and starvation

stage 2 DTM

high birth rate but death rate falls to around 15/1000 with birth rate staying the same as DTM 1 so the population increases rapidly

why do birth rates stay high in DTM 2

little birth control and family planning but also for labour reasons as family members all have to work like on farms, a larger family can have a larger farm

examples of DTM 2 countries

Chad and Afghanistan

DTM 3

birth rate falls a lot to about 13/1000 and death rate falls slightly to around 10/1000 so the population increases at a slower rate

why does the birth rate drop a lot at DTM 3

increased use of birth control and better education but also as the economy moves towards manufacturing as fewer children needed to work on farms so larger families aren’t as advantageous and more women working

DTM 3 country

Morocco

DTM stage 4

low birth rate and low death rate fluctuate at around 10/1000 each so population remains stable but high

why is birth rate low at DTM 4

access to luxuries like material possessions and holidays means less money for having children as they are expensive to raise in HICs, also fewer advantages to large families as they aren’t needed to work

DTM 4 examples

Most HICs like most of Europe and the USA

DTM stage 5

birth rate drops below 10/1000 but death rate remains stable so the population begins to decrease

why does birth rate decrease at DTM 5

children are expensive to raise and many people have dependent elderly relatives so more people chose not to have children

why does death rate remain steady at DTM 5

there are more elderly people so more people die of old age

DTM 5 examples

some highly developed countries like Japan

5 limits to the use of DTM

unrepresentative origninal data

extreme poverty might limit population growth

doesn’t consider migration

doesn’t consider many external factors

original data used to create the DTM

was from richer often european countries so what happened in them might not be the same as what is happening in others

DTM and migration

DTM doesn’t consider migration and international migration can cause significant population change

DTM and other factors

other factors like war and infectious disease can affect a population so it no longer fits the DTM

factors affecting birth rates and fertility rates

cultural controls

4 cultural controls

role of women

attitudes towards marriage

religion

population policies

role of women in fertility rates

female access to education and employment delays the age that women start families and cultural attitudes towards women affect how much choice they have over their family size

UK female labour force and fertility rate

nearly 50% of the workforce is female and fertility rate is 1.44 children per woman.

attitudes towards marriage and fertility rates

some countries have a culture of women getting married young so they are likely to have many children

Niger marriage rates and fertility rates

¾ of girls are married before they turn 18 and the total fertility rate is the highest in the world at 6.6 children per woman

religion and fertility rates

different religions have different views on birth control and abortion, the Catholic church condemns contraception and believes in natural family planning

religion and fertility rates example

East Timor in south east Asia is 98% Catholic and fertility rate is about 5 children per woman

population policies and fertility rates

high levels of population growth or decline have made some governments introduce policies encouraging or discouraging larger families

one child policy in china

1979-2015

French pro natalist policy

banned all contraception until 1967 and recently gov has introduced subsidised childcare to encourage larger families

UK birth rate

12.1/1000

UK death rate

9.4/1000

population growth in the UK

0.5% a year

what factors have helped the UK reach stage 4 of DTM

physical and human factors

How does the UK's climate support development?

The temperate climate and fertile soils create arable land for a reliable food supply.

How does the UK’s topography support development?

Much of the UK is low-lying and flat, making it easier to grow crops, transport resources, and build infrastructure.

What natural resources has the UK used to industrialise?

Coal, oil, natural gas, and minerals supported industrialisation and a diverse economy.

How has being surrounded by sea helped the UK develop?

It gives access to fish (marine resources) and international shipping trade.