Health and Human Behavior 

Discussion – Health Focus for the Future

For our last discussion of semester, let us take a look at the areas of health that we, as a society, should continue to make a priority. Recent data tells us that although the United States spends more than 17% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on health care, Americans are less healthy and are dying younger than residents of other developed nations (Gunja, Gumas & Williams, 2023). If money is not necessarily the issue, then why are Americans lagging behind in health?

• Select a health issue that you are particularly concerned about (ex. diabetes, cancer).
• Explain why this issue is concerning and should be prioritized (In your response consider things like, how many people are affected by the issue, how damaging the condition is, what are the consequences of the health issue going untreated, etc. to justify your selection).
• To what degree is this health problem modifiable (people can change through specific behaviors)? Provide an example of a behavior that can be changed to help alleviate the issue.
• What do you see as the biggest obstacles in correcting the health issue? Identify at least two (2) factors.

Reference

Gunja, M.Z., Gumas, E.V., & Williams, R.D. (2023). U.S. healthcare from a global perspective, 2022: Accelerating spending, worsening outcomes. Commonwealth Fund. https://doi.org/10.26099/8ejy-yc74

APA Format, at least 350 words.

Required Texts: Sarafino, E.P. & Smith, T.W. (2017). Health Psychology: Biopsychosocial Interactions, 9th ed.Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons