Psychology And Health Problems
Psychology and Health Problems Shawna Soutar Axia College of University of Phoenix PSY/210 –Introduction to Psychology: Why We Do What We Do Debby Rabino Sunday, November 30, 2008 Why does one become ill? Do viruses play a part? Germs? Poor lifestyle choices? Maybe, like the old wives tale, it is believed that being outside with a wet head caused that persistent cold? Most of the listed reasons do play a role in whether or not an individual will become ill, but there are others as well. The Multi-factorial Model explains this; there are many reasons that an individual’s health may suffer. One’s environment, biology, socioeconomic status, sources of stress, and even personality all help to determine if someone will fall ill. Physicians and mental health professionals, as well as their patients, can benefit from this information. When an individual knows what is causing his or her health problems, he or she is better prepared to take steps to cure or prevent these problems. A medical professional is also able to better treat the patients’ conditions if he or she is aware of all the illnesses causes. One of the causes of health problems in individuals is environmental factors. How does one’s environment make him or her sick? Consideration must be given to an individual’s environment. Is there clean drinking water available? Can an individual venture outside without fear of what toxic chemicals may be breathed in? Some people worry about illness with every sip of water and breath of air they take in. The World Health Organization (2008) stated that “Thirteen million deaths annually are due to preventable environmental causes. Preventing environmental risk could save as many as four million lives a year, in children alone” (par.2). This is a startling statistic that proves environmental issues affect our health. Gender can also affect an individual’s health. Men and women are susceptible to different diseases and illnesses. For example, most everyone knows that...
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