Health issues of Australia's Youth.

1. Health issues of Australia's Youth. Madeline.

2. Youth is a very crucial and important part of an individuals life. During youth we encounter many experiences that are the stepping stones in determining our development and the way we evolve as a person. During youth we face milestones like driving for the first time or losing our virginity. According to data, Australia's youth is relatively healthy and the mortality rate is slowly decreasing. However, as youth, we can come across many complications that could hinder our well being. The main factors that affect a youth health are; Diabetes, mental health, Asthma, weight issues, drug use(illicit drugs, smoking, alcohol), sun protection, sexual and reproductive health, food allergies, living independently/homelessness and cyber safety.

3. Diabetes: Diabetesis a disease where a persons body struggles to convert food into energy so there body has too much glucose stored. • Mental Health: Can be described as a disturbance in the way a person thinks, feels and behaves. It has a negative affect on the way they function in everyday life. • Asthma: This is a respiratory condition that causes a persons airways to close up, making breathing difficult, sometimes impossible. • Sun protection: Sun protection in the action you take in order to prevent sun burn, melanoma or skin cancer. Things like wearing a sunglasses, a hat and sun screen are all parts of sun protection. • Sexual and Reproductive Health: These refer to a persons ability to participate and enjoy sexual intercourse and being able/ready to reproduce. • Food Allergies: Food allergies are very common and occur when a persons immune system has an abnormal reaction to a certain food. • Living Independently/Homelessness: Living on your own or being homeless can make looking after yourself a lot harder as you have more responsibilities and less people to help you. This can hinder your mental health, schooling, physical health and social health. • Cyber Safety: Is also becoming very important for youths. Things like cyber-bullyingare causing many youths to become emotionally unstable, often leading to intentional self harm or even suicide. • Substance Abuse: Youths who take part in consuming alcohol, smoking or taking illicit drugs on a regular basis are at risk of developing multiple diseases hindering their mental health. They can also be fatal. Although there are many negative things a youth can be faced with, these can be highly preventable and/or can be treated or even cured.

4. Weight Issues: • Suffering from a , or multiple weight issues such as anorexia or obesity is not only a physical disorder. It can also be a mental condition. Many mental health disorders can cause or are associated with eating disorders. These can include Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD), which is characterised by a persons underlying obsession or fixation on a certain body part that they believe is ugly/deformed or not pleasant. However, this is normally just an exaggeration and the so called ‘deformed’ body part is just as healthy or ‘normal’ as everybody else's. Other eating disorders such as binge eating, bulimia and anorexia can all be caused or influenced by a person’s mental state. Suffering from any sort of weight issue is obviously very damaging to a persons physical development. Being over or under weight can lead to many diseases and lead to an early death. Being overweight or underweight can put a big strain on how a person interacts with others and how they act in social situations. Sufferers could also have a love self esteem and self concept which can lead to major social problems as a person can start to avoid going out, seeing friends or even doing regular thing likes getting the groceries because they are too embarrassed to go out. Intellectual development can also be jeopardised as you tend to always be in a negative mindset and believe that what you are doing is okay/the right thing. Also, if you aren't eating properly your brain isn't getting enough energy to function properly or process information.

5. Incidence, prevalence & trends. • In Australia more then half of children and adolescents are overweight or obese. These statistics show that nearly 3 in 10 kids are suffering from obesity. This number has been doubled in recent years. • 1 in 100 girls suffer from Anorexia. • Anorexia is the 3rd most chronic illness in Australian teenage girls. • 5 in 100 teens suffer from Bulimia. • The mortality rate of Bulimia is 19%

6. Determinants & protective factors: • One of the main factors of youth obesity is the lifestyles and behaviours a person is exposed to. Socioeconomically disadvantaged families are more likely to have weight issues due to the way they live and the way the parents influence their children. Children often mimic the behaviour of their parents so if their parents avoid physical activity, the kids are more likely to neglect their physical health as well. • Although not heavily responsible, genetics can also determine a persons weight. • In order to prevent a person developing an eating disorder it is important that they have a positive role model, who they can look up to and learn healthy diet habits and exercise regimes. • Staying active is vital when managing eating disorders, no matter what exercise it is. • Participating in regular exercise is highly beneficial in a number of ways. • EAT HEALTHY!

7. Strategies.. • A simple but affective Government strategy could be placing a ban or reducing the amount of vending machines or junk food in Government schools, and replacing it with healthier snacks. • Communities that may be struggling more then others could have meetings, fundraisers even fairs to promote healthy eating and to inform the community of the importance of eating right and staying active. • If you are suffering from an eating disorder its quite common to believe that there is nothing wrong with what you are doing. So firstly, knowing and understanding you have a problem can be a big help in your recovery/prevention. • Surrounding yourself with people who have positive attitudes, eat right and take part in physical activity can also be a great influence on your attitude as well. • Join a sport or dance team etc.

8. Rights & responsibilities: • We all have a right to seek medical assistance when we think it is necessary. • It is our doctors responsibility by law, to refrain from sharing information from a consultation with your parents unless they are concerned of their safety or have permission to do so. • It is also our responsibility to co-operate with our doctors or whoever is providing us with assistance on our road to recovery. • We also have the right to respect our doctors and to have respect given back to us.

9. Bibliography: • Cambridge VCE health & Human Development Units 1 & 2. • Wikipedia > Anorexia > first preference. • Wikipedia > Obesity > first preference.