Urban violence and public health in Latin America: a sociological explanatory framework.
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Interpersonal violence has become one of the main public health issues in Latin American cities. This article presents a framework for sociological interpretation that operates on three levels, expressed in the factors that originate, foment, or facilitate violence. Macro-social factors include: social inequality due to the increase in wealth versus poverty; the paradox of more schooling with fewer employment opportunities; increasing expectations and the impossibility of meeting them; changes in family structure; and loss of importance of religion in daily life. At the meso-social level the analysis highlights: increased density in poor areas and urban segregation; masculinity cult; and changes in the local drug market. The micro-social level includes: an increase in the number of firearms; alcohol consumption; and difficulties in verbal expression of feelings. The article concludes with an analysis of how violence is leading to the breakdown not only of urban life but also of citizenship as a whole in Latin America. (+info)
Urbanization and traffic related exposures as risk factors for schizophrenia.
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BACKGROUND: Urban birth or upbringing increase schizophrenia risk. Though unknown, the causes of these urban-rural differences have been hypothesized to include, e.g., infections, diet, toxic exposures, social class, or an artefact due to selective migration. METHODS: We investigated the hypothesis that traffic related exposures affect schizophrenia risk and that this potential effect is responsible for the urban-rural differences. The geographical distance from place of residence to nearest major road was used as a proxy variable for traffic related exposures. We used a large population-based sample of the Danish population (1.89 million people) including information on all permanent addresses linked with geographical information on all roads and house numbers in Denmark. Schizophrenia in cohort members (10,755 people) was identified by linkage with the Danish Psychiatric Central Register. RESULTS: The geographical distance from place of residence to nearest major road had a significant effect. The highest risk was found in children living 500-1000 metres from nearest major road (RR = 1.30 (95% Confidence Interval: 1.17-1.44). However, when we accounted for the degree of urbanization, the geographical distance to nearest major road had no significant effect. CONCLUSION: The cause(s) or exposure(s) responsible for the urban-rural differences in schizophrenia risk were closer related to the degree of urbanization than to the geographical distance to nearest major road. Traffic related exposures might thus be less likely explanations for the urban-rural differences in schizophrenia risk. (+info)
Climate change and food security.
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Dynamic interactions between and within the biogeophysical and human environments lead to the production, processing, distribution, preparation and consumption of food, resulting in food systems that underpin food security. Food systems encompass food availability (production, distribution and exchange), food access (affordability, allocation and preference) and food utilization (nutritional and societal values and safety), so that food security is, therefore, diminished when food systems are stressed. Such stresses may be induced by a range of factors in addition to climate change and/or other agents of environmental change (e.g. conflict, HIV/AIDS) and may be particularly severe when these factors act in combination. Urbanization and globalization are causing rapid changes to food systems. Climate change may affect food systems in several ways ranging from direct effects on crop production (e.g. changes in rainfall leading to drought or flooding, or warmer or cooler temperatures leading to changes in the length of growing season), to changes in markets, food prices and supply chain infrastructure. The relative importance of climate change for food security differs between regions. For example, in southern Africa, climate is among the most frequently cited drivers of food insecurity because it acts both as an underlying, ongoing issue and as a short-lived shock. The low ability to cope with shocks and to mitigate long-term stresses means that coping strategies that might be available in other regions are unavailable or inappropriate. In other regions, though, such as parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain of India, other drivers, such as labour issues and the availability and quality of ground water for irrigation, rank higher than the direct effects of climate change as factors influencing food security. Because of the multiple socio-economic and bio-physical factors affecting food systems and hence food security, the capacity to adapt food systems to reduce their vulnerability to climate change is not uniform. Improved systems of food production, food distribution and economic access may all contribute to food systems adapted to cope with climate change, but in adopting such changes it will be important to ensure that they contribute to sustainability. Agriculture is a major contributor of the greenhouse gases methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), so that regionally derived policies promoting adapted food systems need to mitigate further climate change. (+info)
GIS applications in land management: the loss of high quality land to development in Central Mississippi from 1987-2002.
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The socio-economic trends and history of Central Mississippi reveal a major rural influence based upon a dependence on agricultural activities as part of the economic engine driving the state's economy. Yet, in the last several years, the amount of agricultural land in the counties continues to decline. Similar changes in other variables associated with agricultural land use and the continuity of farming in the state have also been changing. Indeed, under the pressure of urban growth, some farmers are forced to use less productive soils or have abandoned the agricultural business. Considering the gravity of the problem and the implications for sustainable development, public concern has increased in the state of Mississippi that urbanization and other factors may be eroding potential farmland. Given the effects of the current trends on the future capacity to produce food items, there are concerns that the growing incidence of farmland loss may also erode the basis for sustainable use of agricultural land, biodiversity and protection of the state's ecological treasures. Notwithstanding the gravity of these trends, no major effort in the literature has aimed at documenting the incidence of agricultural land loss and the linkages to urbanization in the region of Central Mississippi. What changes have taken place in the size of agricultural land within the counties and what factors are responsible for it? This paper examines the issue of farmland loss in Central Mississippi with a focus at the county level between 1987 and 2002 from a temporal-spatial perspective. In terms of methodology, the paper uses a mixed scale approach based upon the existing literature. Data were drawn from the United States Census databases of Population and Agriculture. This information is analyzed with basic descriptive statistics and GIS with particular attention to the spatial trends at the county level. Results indicate that the counties under consideration have experienced considerable change in the amount of agricultural land and other variables associated with the use of farmland, due to urbanization. With the types of changes occurring, instituting effective policies anchored in sustainability, community participation, and growth management will go a long way in addressing the situation. Other strategies for farmland protection based upon land information inventory and mapping in the region, are also recommended. The paper stands as an update of the existing literature and offers a valuable tool for decision makers within the domain of natural resources management. (+info)
Community-based surveillance of malaria vector larval habitats: a baseline study in urban Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
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BACKGROUND: As the population of Africa rapidly urbanizes it may be possible to protect large populations from malaria by controlling aquatic stages of mosquitoes. Here we present a baseline evaluation of the ability of community members to detect mosquito larval habitats with minimal training and supervision in the first weeks of an operational urban malaria control program. METHODS: The Urban Malaria Control Programme of Dar es Salaam recruited and provided preliminary training to teams of Community-Owned Resource Persons (CORPs) who performed weekly surveys of mosquito breeding sites. Two trained mosquito biologists accompanied each of these teams for one week and evaluated the sensitivity of this system for detecting potential Anopheles habitats. RESULTS: Overall, 42.4% of 986 habitats surveyed by an inspection team had previously been identified by CORPs. Agricultural habitats were detected less often than other habitats (30.8% detected, Odds Ratio [95%CI] = 0.46 [0.29-0.73], P = 0.001). Non-agricultural artificial habitats were less suitable than other habitats (29.3% occupancy, OR = 0.69 [0.46-1.03], P = 0.066) but still constituted 45% (169/289) of occupied habitats because of their abundance (51 % of all habitats). CONCLUSION: The levels of coverage achieved by modestly trained and supported CORPs at the start of the Dar es Salaam UMCP were insufficient to enable effective suppression of malaria transmission through larval control. Further operational research is required to develop surveillance systems that are practical, affordable, effective and acceptable so that community-based integrated vector management can be implemented in cities across Africa. (+info)
Type 2 diabetes and impaired fasting blood glucose in rural Bangladesh: a population-based study.
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BACKGROUND: Diabetes is a fast expanding global health problem but more so in the developing countries. Therefore, it is of particular interest to study the epidemiological transition of the state and to identify the risk factors in order to recognize the extent of the problem. METHODS: A random sample of 5000 rural individuals (age >/=20 years) were included in a cross-sectional study. Fasting capillary blood glucose levels were measured from 4757 individuals. Height, weight, waist, hips including blood pressure and demographic information was collected. RESULTS: The study population was lean [mean body mass index (BMI) 19.4] with a low prevalence of type 2 diabetes but relatively high impaired fasting glucose. No relationship between type 2 diabetes and BMI in men, but an overall relationship was observed for women (P = 0.04) (data not shown). Age, sex, and waist/hip ratio appeared to be important risk factors for the occurrence of type 2 diabetes in this population. CONCLUSIONS: Low prevalence of type 2 diabetes and relative high impaired fasting blood glucose was observed. The factors associated with the occurrence of diabetes in this population appeared to differ than its known relations with BMI. This may indicate that the risk factors for type 2 diabetes are likely to differ in different population. Our results are likely to be in line with the Indian data suggesting that a revised guideline for anthropometric measures in the South Asian population is called for, in order to classify people at risk. (+info)
Is urbanization scrambling the genetic structure of human populations? A case study.
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Recent population expansion and increased migration linked to urbanization are assumed to be eroding the genetic structure of human populations. We investigated change in population structure over three generations by analysing both demographic and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) data from a random sample of 2351 men from 22 Iranian populations. Potential changes in genetic diversity (theta) and genetic distance (F(ST)) over the last three generations were analysed by assigning mtDNA sequences to populations based on the individual's place of birth or that of their mother or grandmother. Despite the fact that several areas included cities of over one million inhabitants, we detected no change in genetic diversity, and only a small decrease in population structure, except in the capital city (Tehran), which was characterized by massive immigration, increased theta and a large decrease in F(ST) over time. Our results suggest that recent erosion of human population structure might not be as important as previously thought, except in some large conurbations, and this clearly has important implications for future sampling strategies. (+info)
China's transition: the effect of rapid urbanization on adult occupational physical activity.
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China has recently undergone rapid social and economic change. Increases in urbanization have led to equally rapid shifts toward more sedentary occupations through the acquisition of new technology and transitions away from a mostly agricultural economy. Our purpose was to utilize a detailed measure of urbanicity comprising 10 dimensions of urban services and infrastructure to examine its effects on the occupational physical activity patterns of Chinese adults. Longitudinal data were from individuals aged 18-55 from the years 1991-1997 of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (N=4376 men and 4384 women). Logistic multilevel regression analyses indicated that men had 68% greater odds, and women had 51% greater odds, of light versus heavy occupational activity given the mean change in urbanization over the 6-year period. Further, simulations showed that light occupational activity increased linearly with increasing urbanization. After controlling for individual-level predictors, community-level urbanization explained 54% and 40% of the variance in occupational activity for men and women, respectively. This study provides empirical evidence of the reduction in intensity of occupational activity with modernization. It is likely that urbanization will continue unabated in China and this is liable to lead to further transitions in the labor market resulting in additional reductions in work-related activity. Because occupational activity remains the major source of energy expenditure for adults, unless alternative forms are widely adopted, the Chinese population is at risk of dramatic increases in the numbers of overweight and obese individuals. (+info)