While there is a vaccine and the disease was declared eliminated in 2000, the measles there are still over a hundred thousand cases a year worldwide to this disease mainly young children under the age of five. According to http://www.cdc.gov/measles/outbreaks.html the average amount of people in the US that have measles is 60 but in 2011 the number of cases was 222 people. According to this study 40% of those who contracted the disease did so in other countries and brought it back to the US causing breakouts in 17 communities throughout the US.
Measles was first discovered around the 7th century AD and was considered much more deadly and feared than smallpox. It was a disease that most people contracted once in their lifetime, approximately four million cases a year. There were epidemic cycles every few years and most of the country (90%) had the disease before they were fifteen. When the vaccine became available in 1963 the cases dropped almost completely.
On the history of vaccine's website it shows the incredible drop in cases of this disease in the United States after the vacine was discover in 1963. This shows the dramatic change that can occur if vaccines are distributed to those who are able to recieve them. However while the number of cases have been steadily decreasing over the past few decades there was a small resurgency of the disease in 2008.
This video from CBS news talks about the importance of getting a vaccine for any disease that can be deadly, especially for such illnesses as measles. By not vaccinating children they are put at risk for deadly consequences, many do not vaccinate due to the possibility of autism which there has been no known link between the two. CNN also did a story on the increase in measles outbreaks as well. They mention that there is concern for those who have infants can not have the vaccine until they reach the age of one which could possibly kill the child.
Melanoma is one of the most deadly forms of skin cancer causing about 75% of the deaths that occur from skin cancer. In their lifetime 1 in every 55 people will develop melonoma. The occurance of the disease is rapidly rising while other common forms of cancer have been typically declining over the twelve years spanning from 1992-2004. While it is important to keep in mind that it is not just tanning booths that cause this deadly form of cancer it is also the sun itself.
Many people chose not to put on sunscreen for what ever reason but it does increase the possibility of causing the cells to become abnormal. As the Skin Cancer Foundationstates, Sunburns are an obvious sign of UVR damage, which causes "weakens immune surveillance mechanisms, allowing tumor cells to proliferate more freely." Yet even with sunscreen there is still the possibility of causing serious damage as shown in this video from the http://darksideoftanning.com.au/. It is important not to just tan for vanity's sake but if you do chose to get a tan make sure that sunscreen is part of the regimen.
It is important to know what skin cancer looks like as well. Everyone has health scares but if you do not know what you are looking at you might believe that something is not hazardous when it truly is. This slide show from WebMD shows the various forms that skin cancer can take along with pictures. These are a few more pictures found from another skin cancer site. This chart goes over the four things that one should look for when looking at possible skin lesions that could possibly be melanoma.
If you are concerned about your skin health it is best to talk with your dermatologist.
The United States is nothing more than a culmination of 312 million people from varying backgrounds but all of whom have the same general issue, their health. Health has become more of an issue in the United States than ever before, just last night alone on the national news there was two different health stories one about treating prostate cancer the other about diabetes in the United States among adolescents and children. According to research it was shown that approximately 23% of children in the United States have diabetes or are at risk for diabetes, which is up from the 9% in 2003.
In the video above it shows the drastic change in obesity that has occurred over the past 23 years in the United States. As the colors go from light blue, medium blue, dark blue, yellow, orange and eventually red it shows the percentage of people that are obese. Many professionals throughout the country believe that weight loss could drastically decrease the likelihood of a person getting Type 2 diabetes as said in this interview. Having diabetes as a child could have complications later in life, such as stroke, heart attack, even blindness and kidney failure.
As seen through these two charts as the rate of obesity in the United States increases as does the percentage of people with diabetes. Perhaps by improving and promoting a healthier life style one might be able to prevent the progression of diabetes as well as the percentage of people with diabetes.
