scholarly journals Vaping Restrictions: Is Priority to the Young Justified?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Magalhaes
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Young People ◽  
Harm Reduction ◽  
Ethical Dilemma ◽  
The United States ◽  
Youth Smoking ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities

Abstract The vast majority of smokers become dependent on nicotine in youth. Preventing dependence has therefore been crucial to the recent decline in youth smoking. The advent of vaping creates an opportunity for harm reduction to existing smokers (mostly adults) but simultaneously also undermines prevention efforts by becoming a new vehicle for young people to become dependent on nicotine, creating an ethical dilemma. Restrictions to access to some vaping products enacted in response to the increase in vaping among youth observed in the United States since 2018 have arguably prioritized prevention of new cases of dependence—protecting the young—over harm reduction to already dependent adults. Can this prioritization of the young be justified? This article surveys the main bioethical arguments for prioritizing giving health benefits to the young and finds that none can justify prioritizing dependence prevention over harm reduction: any reasons for prioritizing the current cohort of young people at risk from vaping will equally apply to current adult smokers, who are overwhelmingly likely to have become nicotine-dependent in their own youth. Public health authorities’ current tendency to prioritize the young, therefore, does not seem to be ethically justified. Implications This article argues that commonsense reasons for prioritizing the young do not apply to the ethical dilemma surrounding restricting access to vaping products.

scholarly journals Syndromic Surveillance Practice in the United States 2014: Results from a Nationwide Survey

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tera Reynolds ◽  
Scott Gordon ◽  
Paula Soper ◽  
James Buehler ◽  
Richard Hopkins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Capacity Building ◽  
Syndromic Surveillance ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Surveillance Practice

Presentation of the results of a nationwide survey designed to assess the syndromic surveillance practices and capacity-building assistance needs of state and territorial public health authorities in the United States.

scholarly journals Risk factors for death and illness in dogs imported into the United States, 2010--2018

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Pieracci ◽  
Brian Maskery ◽  
Kendra Stauffer ◽  
Alida Gertz ◽  
Clive Brown
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Emerging Diseases ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Morbidity And Mortality ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities

CDC estimates 1 million dogs are imported into the United States annually. With the movement of large numbers of animals into the United States the risk of disease importation is a concern, especially for emerging diseases. Dogs that arrive to the United States ill or dead are investigated by public health authorities to ensure dogs are not infected with diseases of concern (such as rabies). We identified factors associated with illness and death in imported dogs and estimated the initial investigation cost to public health authorities. Dog importation data from the CDC’s Quarantine Activity Reporting System were reviewed from 2010–2018. The date of entry, country of origin, port of entry, transportation method, and breed were extracted to examine factors associated with illness and death in dogs during international travel. Costs for public health investigations were estimated from data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Office of Personal Management. Death or illness was more likely to occur in brachycephalic breeds (aOR=3.88, 95%CI 2.74–5.51). Transportation of dogs via cargo (aOR=2.41, 95%CI 1.57–3.70) or as checked baggage (aOR=5.74, 95%CI 3.65–9.03) were also associated with death or illness. On average, 19 dog illnesses or deaths were reported annually from 2010–2018. The estimated annual cost to public health authorities to conduct initial public health assessments ranged from $2,071–$104,648. Current regulations do not provide adequate resources or mechanisms to monitor the rates of morbidity and mortality of imported dogs. There are growing attempts to assess animal welfare and communicable disease importation risks; however, responsibility for dogs’ health and well-being is overseen by multiple agencies. A joint federal agency approach to identify interventions that reduce dog morbidity and mortality during flights while continuing to protect U.S. borders from public health and foreign animal disease threats could be beneficial.

Portion Sizes of Ultra-Processed Foods in the United States, 2002 to 2021

2021 ◽  
Vol 111 (12) ◽  
pp. 2223-2226
Author(s):  
Lisa R. Young ◽  
Marion Nestle
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Portion Size ◽  
Processed Foods ◽  
Fast Foods ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
The Us ◽  
Portion Sizes ◽  
Public Health Authorities

Objectives. To assess the US food industry’s response to calls from public health authorities to reduce portion sizes by comparing current with past sizes of selected examples of single-serve ultra-processed packaged and fast foods. Methods. We obtained manufacturers’ information about current portion sizes and compared it with sizes when first introduced and in 2002. Results. Few companies in our sample reduced portion sizes since 2002; all still sold portions of ultra-processed foods in up to 5-times-larger sizes than when first introduced. Conclusions. Policies and practices focused on reducing portion size could help discourage the consumption of excessive amounts of ultra-processed foods. (Am J Public Health. 2021;111(12):2223–2226. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306513 )

scholarly journals Measuring the Outreach Efforts of Public Health Authorities and the Public Response on Facebook During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Early 2020: Cross-Country Comparison (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aravind Sesagiri Raamkumar ◽  
Soon Guan Tan ◽  
Hwee Lin Wee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
The United States ◽  
Media Analysis ◽  
Public Response ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities

BACKGROUND The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic presents one of the most challenging global crises at the dawn of a new decade. Public health authorities (PHAs) are increasingly adopting the use of social media such as Facebook to rapidly communicate and disseminate pandemic response measures to the public. Understanding of communication strategies across different PHAs and examining the public response on the social media landscapes can help improve practices for disseminating information to the public. OBJECTIVE This study aims to examine COVID-19-related outreach efforts of PHAs in Singapore, the United States, and England, and the corresponding public response to these outreach efforts on Facebook. METHODS Posts and comments from the Facebook pages of the Ministry of Health (MOH) in Singapore, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States, and Public Health England (PHE) in England were extracted from January 1, 2019, to March 18, 2020. Posts published before January 1, 2020, were categorized as pre-COVID-19, while the remaining posts were categorized as peri-COVID-19 posts. COVID-19-related posts were identified and classified into themes. Metrics used for measuring outreach and engagement were frequency, mean posts per day (PPD), mean reactions per post, mean shares per post, and mean comments per post. Responses to the COVID-19 posts were measured using frequency, mean sentiment polarity, positive to negative sentiments ratio (PNSR), and positive to negative emotions ratio (PNER). Toxicity in comments were identified and analyzed using frequency, mean likes per toxic comment, and mean replies per toxic comment. Trend analysis was performed to examine how the metrics varied with key events such as when COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. RESULTS The MOH published more COVID-19 posts (n=271; mean PPD 5.0) compared to the CDC (n=94; mean PPD 2.2) and PHE (n=45; mean PPD 1.4). The mean number of comments per COVID-19 post was highest for the CDC (mean CPP 255.3) compared to the MOH (mean CPP 15.6) and PHE (mean CPP 12.5). Six major themes were identified, with posts about prevention and safety measures and situation updates being prevalent across the three PHAs. The themes of the MOH’s posts were diverse, while the CDC and PHE posts focused on a few themes. Overall, response sentiments for the MOH posts (PNSR 0.94) were more favorable compared to response sentiments for the CDC (PNSR 0.57) and PHE (PNSR 0.55) posts. Toxic comments were rare (0.01%) across all PHAs. CONCLUSIONS PHAs’ extent of Facebook use for outreach purposes during the COVID-19 pandemic varied among the three PHAs, highlighting the strategies and approaches that other PHAs can potentially adopt. Our study showed that social media analysis was capable of providing insights about the communication strategies of PHAs during disease outbreaks.

scholarly journals Users’ Beliefs Toward Physical Distancing in Facebook Pages of Public Health Authorities During COVID-19 Pandemic in Early 2020

2021 ◽  
pp. 109019812110144
Author(s):  
Soon Guan Tan ◽  
Aravind Sesagiri Raamkumar ◽  
Hwee Lin Wee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Belief Model ◽  
United States Public Health ◽  
Health Belief ◽  
The United States ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Control And Prevention ◽  
Belief Model ◽  
The Health Belief Model

This study aims to describe Facebook users’ beliefs toward physical distancing measures implemented during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic using the key constructs of the health belief model. A combination of rule-based filtering and manual classification methods was used to classify user comments on COVID-19 Facebook posts of three public health authorities: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States, Public Health England, and Ministry of Health, Singapore. A total of 104,304 comments were analyzed for posts published between 1 January, 2020, and 31 March, 2020, along with COVID-19 cases and deaths count data from the three countries. Findings indicate that the perceived benefits of physical distancing measures ( n = 3,463; 3.3%) was three times higher than perceived barriers ( n = 1,062; 1.0%). Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 ( n = 2,934; 2.8%) was higher compared with perceived severity ( n = 2,081; 2.0%). Although susceptibility aspects of physical distancing were discussed more often at the start of the year, mentions on the benefits of intervention emerged stronger toward the end of the analysis period, highlighting the shift in beliefs. The health belief model is useful for understanding Facebook users’ beliefs at a basic level, and it provides a scope for further improvement.

Creating an Environment in Which Youths Are Encouraged to Eat a Healthier Diet

2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marvin E. Goldberg ◽  
Kunter Gunasti
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Young People ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
The United States ◽  
Product Price ◽  
End Points ◽  
Convenience Stores ◽  
Marketing Activities ◽  
Youth Obesity

More than one-third of young people in the United States are either obese or at risk of becoming obese. The authors consider how food marketers have contributed to this problem and how they might help resolve it. The article organizes the marketing activities of food-related companies around the classic four Ps. The authors first discuss product, price, and promotion in terms of past, present, and potential future industry actions. They then discuss place as a function of four key commercial end points in the food channel: (1) supermarkets, (2) convenience stores, (3) restaurants, and (4) schools. The authors consider government actions in terms of how they affect the actions of both the food industry and consumers. Throughout the article, the authors consider how extant research can be extended in an effort to better understand and address the youth obesity problem.

scholarly journals Plague and Pregnancy: Why Special Considerations Are Needed

2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S27-S29
Author(s):  
Dana Meaney-Delman ◽  
Nadia L Oussayef ◽  
Margaret A Honein ◽  
Christina A Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Yersinia Pestis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Highly Pathogenic ◽  
Pathogenic Organism ◽  
Public Health Emergencies ◽  
Life Threatening

Abstract Pregnant women are an important at-risk population to consider during public health emergencies. These women, like nonpregnant adults, may be faced with the risk of acquiring life-threatening infections during outbreaks or bioterrorism (BT) events and, in some cases, can experience increased severity of infection and higher morbidity compared with nonpregnant adults. Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes plague, is a highly pathogenic organism. There are 4 million births annually in the United States, and thus the unique needs of pregnant women and their infants should be considered in pre-event planning for a plague outbreak or BT event.

scholarly journals An evaluation of a community-based combination HIV prevention intervention for female sex workers (FSW) in Baltimore, Maryland: EMERALD study design (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bradley Silberzahn ◽  
Catherine A. Tomko ◽  
Emily Clouse ◽  
Katherine Haney ◽  
Sean T. Allen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Harm Reduction ◽  
Randomized Trial ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Female Sex Workers ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Empowerment ◽  
Outreach Program ◽  
Female Sex

BACKGROUND Cisgender female sex workers (FSW) experience high rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including chlamydia and gonorrhea. Community empowerment-based responses to the risk environment of female sex workers have been associated with significant reductions in HIV/STI risk and associated risk behaviors, yet evaluations of U.S. based interventions targeting FSW are limited. OBJECTIVE We describe the design, implementation, and evaluation of an ongoing comprehensive community-level intervention targeting FSW in Baltimore City, Maryland. METHODS The two intervention components are the SPARC drop-in center and the accompanying comprehensive mobile outreach program (in the west Baltimore area). The mission of SPARC is to provide low-barrier harm reduction services to at-risk non-men, with a special focus on women who sell sex and use drugs. SPARC addresses clients’ needs through nonjudgmental, convenient, safe, and non-stigmatizing interactions. Services are provided through a harm reduction framework and include: reproductive health and sexual health screenings; medication assisted treatment; legal aid, counseling; showers, lockers, laundry; and the distribution of harm reduction tools including naloxone and sterile drug use supplies (e.g., cookers, cotton, syringes, pipes). The SPARC intervention is being evaluated through the EMERALD study, which consists of: a prospective two-group comparative non-randomized trial (n=385); a cross sectional survey (n=100); and in-depth interviews assessing SPARC implementation (n=45). Participants enrolled in the non-randomized trial complete a survey and HIV/STI testing at four intervals (baseline, 6-, 12-, 18-months). Participants recruited from pre-defined areas closest to SPARC comprised the intervention group, and participants from all other areas of Baltimore were in the control. RESULTS We hypothesize that addressing structural drivers and more immediate medical needs, in combination with peer outreach, will lead to community empowerment and reduce FSWs’ HIV/STI cumulative incidence and behavioral risks. CONCLUSIONS In the United States, structural interventions aimed to reduce HIV and STIs among FSW are scarce, and to our knowledge this is the first intervention of its kind in the United States. The results of the EMERALD study can be used to inform the development of future interventions targeting FSW and other at-risk populations. CLINICALTRIAL NCT04413591

scholarly journals SARS: current overview, aetiology and epidemiology

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 46-55
Author(s):  
Semra Čavaljuga ◽  
Michael Faulde ◽  
Jerrold J. Scharninghausen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
World Health Organisation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Air Travel ◽  
World Health ◽  
New Disease ◽  
The Past ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
The World ◽  
Public Health Authorities

At this moment, public health authorities, physicians and scientists around the world are struggling to cope with a severe and rapidly spreading new disease in humans called severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. According to World Health Organisation (WHO) this appears to be the first severe and easily transmissible new disease to emerge in the 21st century. Though much about the disease remains poorly understood, including the details of the causative virus, we do know that it has features that allow it to spread rapidly along international air travel routes. As of 10 May 2003, a cumulative 7296 probable SARS cases with 526 deaths have been reported from 30 countries on three continents (WHO, ProMED). In the past week, more than 1000 new probable cases and 96 deaths were reported globally. This represents an increase of 119 new cases and 8 new deaths compared with 9 May 2003 (China (85), Taiwan (23), and Hong Kong (7) represented the overwhelming majority, with one additional case each reported from France, Malaysia, Singapore, and the United States). Only in China, as of 10 May 2003 (WHO) total of 4884 with 235 deaths have been reported. Some outbreaks have reassuring features.

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