The risk of disease lurking in the urban population

It can be said that urban people have a better life than rural people, such as being more affluent, more promising in work, rich food and drink, health care systems and hygiene conditions. better. But urban life also increases the risk of many chronic diseases, including mental illness, immunity, arthritis, cardiovascular disease, cancer and infertility.

The United Nations said three years ago, 50% of the world's population was concentrated in urban areas and it is expected that by 2050, this rate will increase to 70%. As cities become more crowded, risks threatening population health also increase.

Influence on adults

Research by Dr. Glyn Lewis of the Institute of Psychiatry in London (UK) shows that men who grow in urban areas have twice the rate of schizophrenia than rural men. City people are also at risk of depression and bipolar disorder or 39% higher and 21% higher anxiety disorder than the rest. Meanwhile, young women who grow up in the city are 5 times more likely to suffer from an insecure diet than their rural friends. Eating well but being sedentary easily leads to overweight and obesity - the leading cause of diseases: hypertension, cardiovascular, diabetes, bone and cancer.

Earlier this year, German scientists said the brain of urban births actually works differently from that of rural people. Brain scans show that the two brain regions that control the emotions and worries of urban people are overactive when dealing with stressors such as traffic jams, life pressure, and work. ., while reacting in the brain of the more moderate rural people.

Children face many health risks

There is growing scientific evidence that children born and raised in urban areas face many health and physical problems.

The latest research shows that daily exposure to urban pollution can affect us from birth, making it easier for us to become ill later. According to experts from the University of Granada (Spain), although urban mothers are older and underweight than rural mothers, they give birth to more "big" babies . When comparing the placenta of pregnant women, the research team found that pregnant women and urban babies had higher levels of xenoestrogen pollutants than pregnant women and rural babies.

Xenoestrogen is an industrial chemical that affects our bodies like estrogen female sex hormones. They have a lot in car smoke and habitats around industrial parks. Not only do they cause abnormal growth of the fetus, they can also cause diseases such as obesity, hyperactivity, premature puberty, reproductive problems, and lung, breast and prostate cancers. . Lead researcher Dr. Maria Marcos said that xenoestrogen significantly affected fetal development. This is the latest evidence that urban air can seriously affect normal baby development.

Not only that, last year's Ohio State University (USA) experiments showed that pollutants can alter metabolism in young children , increase blood sugar and insulin resistance, substances that help the body convert sugar and starch into energy. Dr. Qinghua Sun said direct pollutants cause inflammation and change of fat cells, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Urban life also forces young children to stay indoors and because yet harmful to health, first of all eyes. According to Australian scientists, children who stay at home are at high risk of nearsightedness and half of them are easily blinded in middle age. In contrast, children who often play outdoors can reduce the risk of nearsightedness. Experts believe that exposure to sunlight helps the retina release dopamine, an overgrowth of the eyeball's growth - the main cause of myopia.

Not only that, urban children are also more prone to asthma and allergies than children in the countryside. According to the hygienic hypothesis, urban children are often not allowed to play with mud, soil or roll on grass so they are not exposed to relatively harmless bacteria in the soil, causing their immature immune system to lose their chances. develop resistance to bacteria. In addition, young citizens also tend to develop behavioral problems, especially hyperactivity - lack of concentration (ADHD) - according to research by experts at the University of Illinois (USA). The hypothesis is that in thousands of years of evolution, people have become accustomed to nature, so we become insecure when separated from them. According to Frances Kuo, an environmental psychologist, walking in the park for 20 minutes a day can significantly improve a child's condition because it works like Ritalin, a common behavioral disorder medicine. designated for children with ADHD.