Another Inspirational Video

Inspirational Video

Change in research proposal

I have decided to make a change in the topic of my proposal. I will now research and write on the long term effects of concussions and athletes who experience them. My thesis isn't fully developed with this topic yet, but i know for certain that there are an abundant amount of sources available to take from because of the very popular discussion among health professionals regarding this topic right now. This is something that hits a little more home for me because I myself have experienced two concussions in my college football career within an 8 month span. I believe my motivation to complete this study is much higher than the previous topic that I picked.

Are Grade School Cafeteria Lunches in Low Income Areas Healthy? (Research Proposal)

This is not a new issue at all in the United States. Childhood obesity has grown into an epidemic in the past couple of decades because of our country’s eating and spending habits. In America’s pursuit of time efficiency and technological advancement, the eating habits and health of many have worsened. This problem has trickled even into the school systems, the ones who are supposedly trying to fix the problem of unhealthy eating in the U.S.  I remember in my years of grade school, we ate barely appetizing condiments like fried chicken patties with poorly cooked sides like overdone cabbage, which no one ate, or square pizza and cheeseburgers with French fries, which everyone ate. This is a problem to me because obesity is most prevalent in impoverished areas with families who live from paycheck to paycheck. The food being provided in public schools is a direct reflection of the economy surrounding these poor parts of town. In low income areas you will always find cheap, unhealthy, sub-standard fast food restaurants and liquor stores on every block. This is intentional. Business owners know that McDonald’s, Burger King, and Pizza Hut will thrive in an area of poor families who can’t to buy healthy groceries. Liquor store owners know that in a low income area where stress is high, the people want an escape from reality, something to numb the harsh realities of their current circumstances. Could it be that public school systems are contracting with sub-par companies with lesser quality food for the sake of cheaper expenses? Are public schools undermining the importance of student health with unhealthy food while simultaneously preaching the importance of it?  If diminishing obesity and childhood obesity in particular is a priority in our country, are the public school systems of America really aiding in this process or making the process counter-productive? While some schools will be the exception in this area, many are simply not putting forth enough effort to decrease the rate of childhood obesity. I hope to find more information on this topic by researching various health resources on the internet and perhaps I may even be able to obtain some case studies on this topic, I don’t feel like this will be too difficult considering how much of an issue this topic is in America and how many health experts are researching and documenting statistics about obesity. I guess the biggest challenge would be to know where to start my research in all of this. I have a feeling that after a few search engine inquiries I will be on the right track. Also, with access to the school’s library I will have access to an abundance of information in the database they have provided for the college. All in all, this should be an interesting ally to travel down and it will be interesting to see what gaps can be found in the school systems of America that can improve the eating habits and health of students.

Reflection

I would say my biggest challenge in this course by far is consistency with the posting of these blog assignments. It's so easy for me to overlook and forget about these type of assignments because of the demands of my course load this semester, which is not an excuse, it just means that I can plan and organize better. I've gotten everything I needed for our first portfolio assignment, now it's just a matter of getting everything together and making it presentable. Hopefully I can do better about all of this in the remainder of this semester.

Why Place Matters

After reading " Why Place Matters: Building The Movement For Healthier Communities", I was once again very informed and enlightened of the social and economic change taking place in our country. It's a great feeling to know that there are people in our country who do legitimately care about the betterment of lower income families and communities. Probably the most inspiring part of the article to me was reading about the leadership and economic development in Fresno, California. To me, this is where we will truly see the most significant change in the health and social well-being of our country's economy. People need to be be properly educated and trained so that they are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to better themselves and the people around them, it's contagious. If you travel to a urban neighborhood with section 8 housing, you'll often times see or hear of drug sales, gang violence, and unemployment. Why? Because alot of these people don't any other way to survive. Hustling is a necessity for young black males in an impoverished neighborhood. It's a good thing to see government programs taking action and training these neglected people to empower them and help them change.

Tuskeegee and Guatemala Syphylis Experiements

My blog posting hasn't been very consistent the past few weeks but I'm definitely going to change that.


I couple of weeks ago we read two articles on the two different instances of men being unethically tested for syphilis. In the year of 1932 in Macon County, Alabama, the Public Health Service alongside the Tuskegee institute conducted an experiment to test black men with syphilis, however what the men didn't know was that they in fact were being infected with the disease from the doctor. The doctors justified this practice by saying that they were looking for a cure for the disease and they offered the men free healthcare, meals, and burial insurance. This unethical study was supposed to only last 6 months but ended up lasting 40 years, from 1932 to 1972. It's incredible to me how such a demeaning, racist, and inhuman practice can go on for so long, but I guess I should take into consideration the time period this was in and the type of civil rights being granted to minorities at that time.

The other article was on case study similar to the Tuskegee experiment. In 1946 U.S. Public Health doctors conducted a study in a Guatemala prison, deliberately infecting 700 prisoners with syphilis. Because of the regulations of the prison in Guatemala, the doctors went about the experiment a different way. They had prostitutes who were infected with syphilis come and sleep with the prisoners so that they would contract the disease. If this was not successful, they would go so far as to literally pour the disease onto open scrapes on their penises, faces or arms, and would sometimes even inject it into their spine. All of this was going on for two years in Guatemala and the prisoners had no idea. This is mind boggling and really cause me to question what other unethical practices have been conducted for the benefit of our country. It's sad.