Recent orders

Obesity as an Ethical Public Health Issue

Obesity as an Ethical Public Health Issue

Name:

Institution:

Course:

Tutor:

Date:

Obesity as an Ethical Public Health Issue

In a normal social setting, ethics refers to the acceptable code of conduct upon which the behavior of an individual can be evaluated as acceptable or not acceptable, or as either right or wrong. However, the means of setting up a universally acceptable code of conduct has had controversies with different philosophers coming up with various theories and plethora of literature in attempting to develop the standards. This has led to diverse views/conceptualization on what is ethical and what is not ethical among different communities or social groups. Philosophy and religion are the major ways of attempting to establish the generally acceptable principles in these settings (Becker, 2009). This paper will discuss public health issue that was published in the ScienceDaily titled, Is ‘Nanny State’ ethical when policing obesity?

Obesity has been a major concern within the public health sector. The article indicates that when aiming at reducing this public health pandemic, the state proposed to restrict the sale of sugar sweetened be averages in schools and levying significant taxes on them, as well as prohibiting the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs. This is a serious ethical issue specifically in the context of the organizations that are involved in the promotion of such unhealthy eating behaviors. The involvement of ethics in business is considered essential even to this date (Becker, 2009). In deed, this is a view that is consistent with the above view concerning conformity to a kind of legislation. Desirable qualities in a business like business courtesy, honesty, office etiquette, and transparency all derive their roots from good ethics. However, the chords of conduct need to be practiced by all the parties involved in the business set-up. This has never been the case and the effect is a total lose on the side of the firms that maintain their morals (The NewYork Times, 1997). The few firms that abide by the set business rules often find their business progress slower than the other more powerful firms that do not follow the rules. ‘While in public life it is ultimately the law that sets enforceable limits to business leaders and their deals, the law is neither able or the best possible tool for the protection of the interest of the companies, shareholders, employees, and consumers’ (Becker, 2009, p.3). Thus, for a continued success in the business industry, legislation alone may not be sufficient. Instead, of more importance is a high standard of morals for all the stakeholders in the industry.

Conventional morality is concerned with the moral standards in a given societal setting. Those with conventional moral reasoning consider what the society say or feel about their behaviors. Participants here accept the social norms as provided in the society and are bound to them regardless of their consequences. Such conventional moral reasoning has the weakness in establishing its strength or appropriateness and there may be difficulties in abiding by them. Conventional morality is also subject to frequent changes and what is conventionally moral in one society can be immoral in an adjacent society and it is still subject to debate (Becker, 2009). However, if all the business stakeholders in a given society were to act in the conventional manner, then the success of their businesses would not be threatened. It has been observed that ‘conventional rules are arbitrary, situation-dependent rules that facilitate social co-ordination and organization, they do not have an objective, prescriptive force, and they can be suspended or changed by an appropriate authoritative individual or institution’ (Golan, 2005).

Despite the legislations that are put in place aimed at curbing the prevalence of obesity within the public health system. The organizations and businesses involved should behave ethically to ensure that this is a success. Legislations alone might not be effective without the ethical goodwill of the businesses involved. A business that is to survive in the current market is one that advances with the global market advances. Conventional morality is confined within a society and may not survive in the global market. A set of universally acceptable chords of conduct is thus essential if a business has to succeed globally. As Becker (2009, p.4) observed, ‘moral leaders represent values that are not confined to the secrecy of the boardrooms and centers of power but are universally recognized as the fundamental building blocks of a life worth living’.

Some philosophers and political theorists like Herbert Spencer (mid-1800s) believed that when it comes to matters concerning business battle in a market place, then there should be no government’s involvement in putting any form of legislation (Zain, 2008, p108). They derive their argument from Charles Darwin’s theory of Natural selection and survival of the fittest. This theory put in a social context and termed Social Darwinism, postulates that business enterprises should be left to go it alone in a competitive local or global market. ‘Many business leaders were drawn to this philosophy and made it the basis of their belief in laissez-faire capitalism (Howard & Pintozzi 2006, p108). They suggest that the government should not be involved in making certain legislation governing business operations and that, businesses should be left to fight out for them in the market. These people believed that ‘the natural economic laws of demand and supply should dictate business practices without the “unnatural” disturbance of government interference’ (Zain, 2008, p108). However, this paper is from the school of thought that the legislations are a good idea for the public health sector, but the businesses involved should have ethical responsibility in ensuring the legislations are implemented.

References

Becker, K (2009). Moral Leadership in Business A journal of International Business Ethics Vol.2 No.1.

Golan, P (2005). Employee relations The international journal, Volume 27, Issue 3 London: Emerald Group Publishing.

Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics. (March 19, 2014). Is ‘Nanny State’ ethical when policing obesity? ScienceDaily. Retrieved on March 21, 2014 from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140319143738.htm

The NewYork Times (1997). Opinion: Eastern Europe’s Wild Capitalism. February 18, 1997. New York Times

Zain, M (2008). Social Responsibility in Business: Friedman and Carroll’s Differing Views on Business Responsibility, Cengage Learning.

Obesity as a medical condition

Obesity as a medical condition

Obesity is a medical condition, which causes accumulation of fats in the body. Obesity majorly originates from bad eating habits. From the videos, there are several social aspects of obesity observed. Obesity in some cases affects the family members to a certain extent. The key comments, images, and behaviors witnessed all lead to one conclusion. The excessive amount of body weight has various effects on the body of the person involved.

One of the obvious effects is reduced life expectancy. Obesity brings certain complications that cut down the life of the individual involved. Obesity increases chances of the individual having certain diseases (Navarro, 2008). These diseases include heart attack and high blood pressure. The individual reduces the amount of daily activities due to the quick way they get exhausted. This physical inactivity opens up a possibility of other diseases such as diabetes among others. Apart from obesity, the individual is therefore likely to undergo other challenges such as diseases caused by the condition.

There are various causes of obesity. The most common cause is improper nutrition. A food intake of excess fats and carbohydrates is highly likely to lead to obesity. To certain people, the cause of obesity is genetic. This explains cases whereby an entire family has the problem of obesity. In most cases, maintenance of proper diets prevents occurrence of obesity. The third probable cause is lack of physical activities. After eating, it is advisable to use up some of the gained carbohydrates. People leading a dormant life end up accumulation the fats, which later leads to obesity.

There are various methods applied in the treatment of obesity. Proper nutrition and exercise are the obvious ones. The dietary method includes increase of fiber and fresh produce. Reduction of consumption of processed food ensures avoidance of obesity. These foods have lower calories and help in the reduction of the fat accumulated in the body. The second method mostly produces faster results. The individual could hire a personal trainer to see them through the process. There are drugs that reduce the condition among individuals. Another possible solution is surgery (Navarro, 2008). In this case, the excess fat extracted from the body mostly happens through suction. There are Special machines used to remove the fat from the body of the individual.

In terms of society, individuals with obesity usually go through a lot of stigmatization. In modern society, obesity is a sign of laziness and to an extent, laziness. Most traditional society perceived obesity as a sign of wealth among people. Modern society however embraces the idea of fitness. For this reason, obese individuals might go through aspects of victimization and stigma.

Obesity might not directly cause the death of an individual, but it greatly increases the chances of the individual loosing the life. The diseases associated with obesity and societal stigma is enough to push an individual to live a healthy lifestyle (Navarro, 2008). Issues such as high blood pressure and possible heart failure greatly result in endangering an individual’s life.

Obesity does not only upset the individual but also members of the family. Some members end up forced to look out for the obese individual. The family might also incur costs while indulging in attaining medication for the individual. The videos all show cast the negativity of obesity. One common factor shown is that obesity scenario prevention is better than cure.

Reference

Navarro, E. (2008) Culture of Obesity in Traditional and Modern Times. Palgrave: Macmillan

Publishers

Obesity and Indwelling Catheter use Among Long

Obesity and Indwelling Catheter use Among Long-term Care Facility Residents

Name

Institution

Date

The methodology used by this research exhausted divergent analytic methods in displaying a specific pattern among the variables used in testing the subject matter, that is, the effect of obesity on the indwelling urinary catheter indicator over time. Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) model () was used to examine the effect of obesity on the indwelling urinary catheter indicator over time (Holly, Jeffrey, Zoran, & B, 2013). These results were spread over four quarters of the base time to distinguish various levels of this phenomenon. It was found that obese residents had a significant higher prevalence rate of indwelling urinary catheters than non-obese residents at admission and a borderline significantly higher prevalence rate at the second quarter than non-obese residents (Flegal, Carrol, Ogden, & Curtin, 2008). The GEE model indicated that residents with severe obesity had an increased odds of having an indwelling urinary catheter (Flegal et al., 2008). Generally, as observed from the trend depicted in the research, along with severe obesity, gender, race and time also had significant statistical effects with respect to indwelling urinary catheters. A research of Older Arkansas long-term care facility is used to demonstrate patterns on the relationship between the weight of the patients with respect to admission and association with indwelling urinary catheters. A time span of one year is used as the base time factor. The results were tabled in percentages of older long-term care facility residents with indwelling urinary catheters in relation to obesity status, spread into four quarters. This research is an explanation of the relationship, through a case study, between the patients’ weight and the administration of the indwelling catheters.

As shown by the results in the research, indwelling urinary catheter use can increase the risk of infections, other medical complications or even death; hence, long-term administration is not recommended. For instance, the link with obesity, as proven by the research, puts patients in long term care in great danger. Is it advisable to use the medical service to patients with lower weight in comparison to those with obese conditions (Rogers et al., 2008)? This question can only be answered if a perfect relationship is established between weight and this medical activity. However, the factor of time introduces a partial remedy for this condition with respect to the obese population. These findings indicate that quality improvement efforts (consistent continence care monitoring and treatment by nursing staff) can improve long-term care and resident outcomes. Though, further discussions are encouraged to help display clear results on the patterns and relationships related to using indwelling urinary catheter use. For instance, it was not known where the residents resided prior to admission in the research. h, where the residents who were admitted resided. There could be a situational trend that would link the patterns observed with their locations of settlement, hence introducing a newer variable to the equation.

In the context of science and health studies, there is little evidence on the consequences or potential advantages of indwelling urinary catheter in an obese long-term care facility population. There are other challenges associated with this phenomenon that are not unique to obese patients, which might account for the odds in the results. However, the study did not analyze patient preferences with respect to Urinary Incontinence (UI). It is, therefore, expected that future research should examine indwelling urinary catheter use with respect to obese long-term patients and embed the cases of patient specific preferences in UI administration (Flegal et al., 2008).

Essentially, male long-term care facility residents were more likely than female long-term care facility residents to have an indwelling urinary catheter, and African-American long-term care facility residents were more likely than Caucasian long-term care facility residents to have an indwelling urinary catheter. This is according to this specific research (Holly et al., , 2013). It shows that there are numerous other factors that determine how severe the consequences of the administration would be. The factors of age, race, weight, and gender can be considered as the most important factors with respect to indwelling urinary catheter as far as the research is considered.

In conclusion, statistical analysis and the evaluation of another population will depict divergent factors and the introduction of new variables; this is not only unique to professional activities in the health sector but also a characteristic of other activities. As a matter of fact, the observable consequences depicted by this research is a course of worry given that no scientific evidence can be attached to indwelling urinary catheter with respect to obesity(Holly et al., 2013). . Therefore, the research provides the slightest of evidence that can be used to support this relationship.

References

Flegal, K., Carrol, M., Ogden, C., & Curtin, L. (2008). Prevalence and trends in obesity

among US adults. Journal of the Medical Association, 5, 235-241.

Holly, C., Jeffrey, D., Zoran, B., & B, C. (2013). Effect of weight on indwelling catheter use

among long-term care facility residents. , Urologic Nursing, 3, 194-200.

Rogers, M., Mody, L., Kaufman, S., Fries, B., MacMahon, L., & Saint, S. (2008). Use of

urinary collection devices in skilled nursing facilities in five states. Journal of the

American Geriatrics Society, 2, 854-861.