Elizabeth Steele
11/12/2012
I talked to Loreen Nichols,
director of Community Health in the Multnomah County, Oregon public health
department about the health trends in the Portland area.
Drug Use
Drugs are all over Portland and
surrounding areas. I was honestly
shocked when the legalization of marijuana failed in Oregon this past
election. There is clear evidence of the
problem just stepping out into the city of Portland. It seems you can’t escape it! I mainly have seen the homeless (there are a
lot) smoking or doing other drugs. This
could be a result of the high depression rates of the city. Marijuana use has constantly been on the
rise, and although new laws restricting the sale of cold medicine (ingredient
in meth production) have decreased the number of meth labs found, Mexican drug
cartels are working to pick up that slack.
Colon and Lung Cancer
Overall,
colon cancer rates in Oregon have decreased from 2004-2008 in very small increments. Lung cancer rates have basically remained
steady. In both cases (as with all
cancers) the rates ought to be decreasing as we advance medically, but they are
not. Colon cancer may be caused by
alcohol use and smoking, obesity and diet, environment, and/or genetics. Lung cancer is usually caused by smoking tobacco
and use of similar drugs. Drug use is so
prevalent in Portland and if we work on getting specifically the drug use rate
down, it will in return bring down the rate of these cancers and the following
health trends.
High Blood Pressure/Stroke
High blood pressure can be a
result of a poor, fatty diet, lack of exercise, stress (tension, hypertension),
and regular tobacco use. The high rates
of drug use and depression in Oregon contribute to the stroke and heart attack
rates, as they are caused mainly by high blood pressure. About 25% of women in Oregon have been told
they have high blood pressure. Although
Oregon has one of the lower (they’re all too high) obesity rates, another major
contributor to high blood pressure, in the country, we still have high rates
due to other factors. Oregonians can
help prevent and minimize their risk for stroke by lowering their blood
pressure by: monitoring cholesterol, exercising, quitting smoking, minimizing
(preferably eliminating) alcohol use, eating well, and managing their life in a
way that they are happy.
Depression
Portland has been constantly
ranked as one of the most (if not the
most) miserable cities in the United States.
The high homeless rate of Portland highly contributes to this, as does
the nature of city work life. Arguably
one of the highest contributors to the depression is the extreme number of cloudy
or rainy days in the city – about 60-65% of the year is spent without sun. Depression often leads people to develop
eating disorders which contribute to the nation’s obesity rate. It can also lead people to develop drug
and/or alcohol use. A large number of
the depressed people rely on anti-depressant medications that usually result in
two extremes – the people become happier, or even more depressed.
Suicide
In addition to severe depression, Oregon
has one of the highest adolescent suicide rates in the country. Addictions to prescription drugs or other drugs
can lead the youth to commit suicide because they see it as an easy escape from
their addictions and other problems. The
depression of the area also highly effects teens – many of them are on
anti-depressants like Zoloft which commonly has negative side effects, creating
suicidal thoughts. Unfortunately, I had experiences
with people in my school and my best friend in both of these situations. While Portland has its own efforts to combat
suicide and depression, each one of us need to become familiar with signs and
symptoms of suicidal people so we are able to help them and avoid unnecessary,
traumatizing, and damaging situations.
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