Mind, Behavior, Life,....

There's one sad truth in life I've found
While journeying east and west -
The only folks we really wound
Are those we love the best.
We flatter those we scarcely know,
We please the fleeting guest,
And deal full many a thoughtless blow
To those who love us best.

~Ella Wheeler Wilcox


During last week’s topic, Mind, Behaviour and Global Health, we covered many interesting aspects of this broad and important theme.
Last Thursday Dr. Shahi’s lecture refreshed my memory on psychology tactics. Of course, the readings and video clips were a great introduction toward the big picture and concept of the day.

Probably most of us have known people whom we thought were not normal, and often we have called them “ABNORMAL.”
I want to share something with you, which I found eye opening in regard to society that we in!
National Institute of Mental Health conducted a nationwide survey of over 20,000 individuals, in which over 20% of the adults interviewed had at least one psychiatric disorder during the past six months. The most common mental illnesses were found to be:

1. Anxiety disorders (10-12% of the population)
2. Alcohol and drug abuse (6-7%),
3. Affective disorders (5-6%)
4. Schizophrenia, (1%) and antisocial personality (1%)

In this study men and women were found to have an equal chance of developing a mental disorder while women suffered proportionately more from depression and men from antisocial personality.

Multiple studies have shown that all of us have a one in three chance of developing a mental illness in our lifetime. I can imagine that this number will be increasing in the next decades by growth of technology, industry, hectic life style, traffic, air pollution and etc. This issue will be one of the main challenges for society to deal with in the near future and depressive, antisocial people do not communicate well with others, which is of critical importance for a useful life.

I believe one way to help individuals in developing good mental health is to show them how wonderful life is, motivate them to get out and meet other people, have a hobby and/or a goal for the future, so they can approach life with a positive attitude! I want you to check out the website below and see what are the 10 keys to a happy life! http://iranscope.ghandchi.com/Fun/Secrets/index.htm

I am open to other thoughts you have on attaining and promoting good mental health and subsequent behavior!

Nutrition Talk

I must say the last week’s topic is one of my favorite subject matter in public health.
Growing up, while visiting my native country of Iran, there were times that my parents would take me to the villages around town and have me feed young children lived in rural area.
I saw them crying, smiling, thanking us and praying to God for the food that we had taken them. It was a really difficult and sad time as a child to experience.
As I grew older I could understand why back then, by the war that was going on between Iran and Iraq, people where facing poverty and shortage but as time went by I realized there are many other places in the world that are dealing with the issue of dearth and malnutrition.
I always thought that I have seen the worse in my life but I was wrong!
According to the case study the world has substantial amounts of food but why should 1.1 billion people are still living in entity poverty with less than a $1 a day? Why should 1 out of 8 child be severely malnourished in the world?
We are living in the 21st century with much improved technology, Internet, enhanced medications, prevention, and different communication techniques. Why should we still deal with the matter!
I strongly believe we should all come up with a revolutionary plan to over come this long lasting challenge that many countries are still struggling with! Our world should be filled with kids that are on my blog’s site not the ones that I presented you while my presentation.
So as a soon to be a Global & Leadership Public Health Professional what is/are the initial steps that you would recommend to take in order to better the life of our own kind?
I would appreciate if you share your thoughts!

Individual Oral Presentation

Hi Everyone:

I tried to post my Individual Oral Presentation power point slides on blackboard but I am getting Internal Server Error Message. I will try to post them later tonight. If you would like to take a look at them earlier please email me at lmoghada@usc.edu and I will gladly send you a copy.

Have a good day

See you Tomorrow ☺

Non-Communicable Disease

“Diabetes epidemic”
Research has shown that if individuals maintain healthy living by consuming high amount of vegetables, low carbohydrate diet and exercise regularly they can preserve healthy life style.
As we saw in assigned video clip a patient with type II diabetes, insulin dependent, for 20 years can alter his/her being by changing the routine of his life to non-insulin dependent. So it is possible and there are chances in every case for complete recovery from a non-this communicable disease. Motivating fact!

The video on “A program to raise awareness in preventing chronic disease among minorities in Oregon” demonstrated that there is a considerable amount of information that is being exchanged at beauty salons daily. This method can be a great way of broadening prevention lessons between people in the society. I think we should learn from this scheme and come up with plans to educate beauticians. Have them to talk to their costumers about fitness, latest beauty tips that involves health messages and encourage them to exercise routinely.

About 33,484 million people, which makes it (59.8%), in U.S suffer from non-communicable diseases. Heart disease, high blood pressure and obesity are the silent epidemic in America.

I believe we should work on numbers and try to set up a goal and do our best to decrease these statistics. To fight infectious disease and global concerns we should exercise leadership intensively and have “political will,” because political will provides us with renewable resources. Working together as a public health professional in an extensive network and using the right marketing mode will help us to achieve this goal.
As leaders we should move to the growing direction and create a lot of health and wealth for motherland. Hope for better, happy, and world of free from non-communicable disease!

Communicable Diseases & Global Health

“An infectious disease is a clinically evident disease of humans or animals that damages or injures the host so as to impair host function, and results from the presence and activity of one or more pathogenic microbial agents, including viruses, bacteria, fungi. Transmission of an infectious disease may occur through several pathways; including through contact with infected individuals, by water, food, airborne inhalation, or through vector-borne spread.” Wikipedia

Out of the readings, and videos, the AIDS orphan video touched my heart thoroughly. Wow every 14 seconds a child orphans in the world!
What does this mean? HOW FAR BEHIND ARE WE? WITH SO MANY EDUATED PEOPLE IN THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM and SO MANY NATURAL RESOURCES AND IMPROVED TECHNOLOGY…. THE STATISTICS AND NEWS REPORTS ARE VERY DISAPPOINTING. As I view this inhumane display of disparity due to color, I am shocked and very saddened.

I have been in search of a useful/short video in regard to infectious disease. I think this topic can best be understood visually rather than verbally or anything else. I really liked the TED video that explained different stages of small pox with dazzling pictures. It is amazing what a tiny bacteria can do to the whole body, not to mention leaving abominable marks.
So now as a “soon to be a Global Public Health Professional” I need your feed back and innovating ideas!!!
What methods would you recommend in order to prevent a pandemic infectious disease from spreading from one person to another or from this side of the world to the other?




Below I am including an idea that I got by watching the TED video:
In that video clip, Larry Brilliant mentioned that taking a program which has shown success within a community and scaling it up to the country’s unique situation is good progress.
I think this is an excellent primary strategy for implementing a program within a large population, and some past experiences have shown that this method has worked well.
Targeting, cultivating religious leaders and the elderly to disseminate information are also effective in the long run, especially in rural areas where public health needs are common.
As I have mentioned before, we all MUST work together as a team and be in touch with each other, no matter where we are located. We should motivate and empower each other by remembering and reminding ourselves that we do have the knowledge and skills we need to make a difference in the world. Hope to have a disease Free World one day.
Please let me know your thoughts!

Data/ Statistics/ Globalization

As every lecture goes by I get to think about the concept of “ emerging trends in global health” more deeply. Various points that are being brought up seems very interesting and motivating. One appealing method that is being used are the statistics and graphs that I am faced with in this class, which I have never heard or seen before. These numbers make me think deeply about who we are, how blessed we are, where we are coming from and probably why America/ Americans are hated in 3rd world countries. The fact that the whole global economic picture in 2002 consisted of about 33 trillion $ and more than 10 trillion located in US for less than 5% of world population; America’s business involves a staggering figure when compared to the rest of the world. I sometimes wish that I had more time to go over more data /statistics of underprivileged countries and be able to do research on the big issue of health/economic disparities.
I believe the world’s economic/health situation is so immersed in inequities that it will take accountants, economists, educators, public health professionals, policy makers, etc., many years to come up with a decent peaceful world with less inequalities.
As public health professionals, we should work together to eradicate inequities in health services. Globalization has worked in many instances to create greater inequalities between the rich and poor in many developing nations. Since globalization is inevitable, we need to change this effect by being better stewards of the earth and working toward a more equal distribution of the earth’s resources.

As I work on my paper topic, I am shocked to learn of the urgent need to mitigate the effects of global warming and the lack of initiative that the Bush administration has shown to do anything about it. Maybe with the changes in Congress, we will be able to join the rest of the world in stopping this horrendous threat. If nothing is done to alleviate it, the literature claims that it will be worse than a nuclear attack or even a terrorist attack. Because the U.S. is the biggest contributor to greenhouse gases that drive global warming, we have an ethical and moral duty to be the leader in working toward solutions for alternative fuels and for investing in clean technology that will clean up the planet.

Awarness for everybody is needed

MDG’s primary goal indicates that we should first “eradicate the extreme hunger and poverty in the world.” I believe the expansion of infectious diseases and slow economic growth in some developing countries, such as South African nations, rises from severe poverty. I was amazed with MDG data and information in regard to the number of famished children. We are living in 21 century and there should not be 1.2 billion kids that are living on a budget of $1.00 or less everyday. These statistics inform us with a vast existence disparity between individuals.
I have lived in a 3rd world country and I always thought that I have seen the worse of life, but after starting my MPH program at USC I have learned that I absolutely knew nothing in regard to poverty, hunger, health and gender inequality. I noticed this matter in video “TEDSTALK” that Swedish students also did not have any idea about the international health.
I think so many people have a lack of good knowledge about the heath, gender, educational and financial disparity in developing and 3rd world countries.
I believe we should involve our, families, friends, classmates and work together as a global community. The key to success is to provide proper education to people in higher level of the society, let them know what are the health, life issues that are going on in different part of the world, therefore, develop an international partnership from west to east, north to south. I am sure if we all put our efforts, the world will definitely be a better place for everyone to live.