Identify a potential future threat to the health of the public that we should be preparing for or should be attempting to alleviate now.

Identify a potential future threat to the health of the public that we should be preparing for or should be attempting to alleviate now.

Examples to consider: climate change, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, emerging infectious diseases, obesity, chronic disease, aging population, growing population, violence, etc, etc.
Pick any topic you deem a threat to future health and safety.

Respond to two of your fellow students (will be labeled as Peer #1 and Peer #2)

Peer 1:
One of the top concerns for public health, in my opinion, should be mental health. I believe this because,

for the most part, we only pay attention to disorders that can physically harm our bodies. This is largely

because we tend to look at mortality rather than morbidity and at quantity of life rather than quality.

However, a lot of people ignore the fact that, among other things, mental illness is one of the conditions

that most directly affects our physical health. This is because the mind and body are interdependent;

therefore, if one is unstable or unwell, the other will also be affected. Mental health can result in

obesity, promote diabetes, and, if not treated on time, even lead to brain damage (Fletcher, 2022).

Depression alone affects 350 million people globally and is one of the leading causes of disability. (Out

of the Shadows: Making Mental Health a Global Development Priority, 2016)

Peer 2: Climate change is a threat to future health and safety. Climate change in the forms of drought, floods, violent weather change, intense heat and wildfires have already caused deaths and destruction. Environmental air pollution which has greatly impacted individuals in low socioeconomic areas has caused and is causing deaths and illness. One illness in particular, asthma. PFAS, a long-standing plastic is found in most people and is linked to cancer, high blood pressure, decreased fertility, and increased cholesterol. By planting trees and installing an urban forest, cities can be cooler and decrease energy output in areas of higher energy use. We can protect carbon resources by stopping deforestation on a global level and try to replenish what has already been depleted by planting trees in these areas. There are so many more things we can do to decrease or slow down climate change. We can promote sustainability, secure water sources, and encourage use of renewable energy. We can walk, bike, use public transportation or even buy electric vehicles verses using independent gas vehicles. Using controlled burns in California can drastically decrease forest fires. We should avoid using plastics. Change our diet to consume more vegetables or plant-based foods as it produces fewer greenhouse emissions, requires less energy, land, and water. We can also clean our environment starting with parks, rivers and beaches and every year two billion tons of trash is produced and it’s choking our water supply and contaminating our soil. If the U.S. government would increase the budget for climate control, information can be more widely and effectively distributed. An increase in the budget can also address the cost of reforestation and the cleaning of our environment starting with parks, rivers, lakes, and beaches.

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