Hidden Diseases Like Cancer & Heart Disease Are Killing Alaskans At A Fast Rate

Unnoticed "Chronic Diseases" In Alaska Could Be Overcome With Attention To Diet, Exercise, & Medical Monitoring  FROM THE JOUR...

Unnoticed "Chronic Diseases" In Alaska Could Be Overcome With Attention To Diet, Exercise, & Medical Monitoring 

FROM THE JOURNAL

In the 1970s, when the Trans-Alaska Pipeline was installed across the many miles of the Copper River Valley, the accidental death rate in the valley was sky-high. This was hard, dangerous industrial-type work, involving heavy equipment, trucks, roads and steep slopes. The Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) put out a document at the time, showing what caused peoples' deaths in our region. Accidents.

In general, in America nowadays people tend to die from things like cancer or heart disease. But, during the construction of the Pipeline, the rate of accidental deaths in our region was so high that the chart showing death rates had a special empty space to allow for the height of the bar without ruining the rest of the chart.

The Copper Valley has always had a dangerous natural environment. Many people have died over the years by falling into water, freezing to death, falling off highways, getting lost, and in motor vehicle, plane, ATV, snowmachine or other accidents – as well as being killed by glaciers and snow and in other unexpected ways. This has gone on for years.

Despite our proximity to the great outdoors, this is a hard and forbidding place to live and to get outdoors, especially in winter. The sprightly "healthy" outdoor activities possible in other, warmer places, are in short supply and have to be actively and relentlessly pursued in order to happen.

Another problem to our health? Seasonal income, seasonal jobs, a high cost of living, and a 200-mile drive to a city that offers the possibility of round-the-clock medical care,

It's not surprising that Alaskans in general are unhealthy.

Here's a report from the Alaska Beacon. Apparently, accidents are not as common as they once were.
And we in Alaska have caught up with the rest of the country, and now suffer the hidden, deadly problems of industrialized nations -- "chronic diseases."


FROM THE ALASKA BEACON 

  • Chronic disease report reflects some unhealthy habits among Alaskans

Most Alaska adults are overweight or obese, and many are missing recommended screenings for cancer and other diseases, says the state’s annual report

BY:  - OCTOBER 29, 2024
REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM ALASKA BEACON 
The Providence Imaging Center's Mammography Mobile Unit is parked at Bartlett High School on May 18, 2024, at the start area for the Gold Nugget Triathlon held the next day. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

 The Providence Imaging Center's Mammography Mobile Unit is parked at Bartlett High School on May 18 at the start area for the all-female Gold Nugget Triathlon held the next day. The state Division of Public Health's annual chronic disease brief report says that, according to its most recent data, 40% of women 40 and older had failed to get mammograms within the recommended two-year interval. The report listed some other health shortcomings, including obesity and lack of regular exercise for a significant portion of the population. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Seven out of 10 Alaska adults are overweight or obese, and large percentages of adults in the state have chronic conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol that are linked to the leading causes of death, according to a new report released by the state Department of Health.

The 2024 Alaska Chronic Disease Facts summary, published by the department’s Division of Public Health, also showed that 33% of Alaska high school students were overweight or obese.

Large percentages of adults and teenagers are sedentary, according to the report. Among adults, 22% engaged in no regular, and among high school students, 82% failed to have the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity, the report said.

The report is based mostly on statistics from 2022, a year in which COVID-19 was the fourth-leading cause of death, after cancer, heart disease and unintentional injuries.

The annual chronic disease report does not show trends, though trends are monitored by the department in other reporting projects.

“It’s really meant as a snapshot,” said Andrea Fenaughty, a department public health scientist. Additionally, the report is meant to educate the public, she said. “Sometimes people don’t really know what chronic disease is, so it’s a way of getting that message out.”

Along with obesity, common chronic conditions in Alaska listed in the report include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, arthritis and asthma. Chronic diseases to which they are linked – diseases that last for long periods – include heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and liver disease.

In all, seven of the top 10 causes of death in Alaska are linked to chronic conditions, Fenaughty said.

While cancer is Alaska’s leading cause of death, large percentages of Alaskans have missed the recommended screenings to detect the disease and treat it early.

Among women aged 40 and older, 40% had failed to get a mammogram in the prior two years. Among adults aged 50 to 75, 44% had failed to get recommended colorectal cancer screenings.

Cancer causes about a fifth of Alaska’s deaths, the report said. The most common causes of cancer deaths in Alaska as of 2022 were lung cancer, colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer, the report said. The most commonly diagnosed cancers in Alaska, as of 2020, were breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer and colorectal cancer, the report said. Those four cancers represent about half of Alaska’s cancer cases, the report said.

Most of the statistics are similar to those in the chronic disease report issued by the division last year, which reflected data from 2021 and earlier.

However, there were a few signs of improvement.

Among high school students, the report said that 17% regularly use electronic cigarettes, also known as vapes, down from the 26% level in the previous report. Among adults without diabetes, 27% had not gotten the recommended blood-sugar tests within the prior three years, as recommended. That is significantly lower than the 54% who had missed those recommended tests in 2020, as reported in last year’s chronic disease brief.

The report concludes with some recommendations, including for individuals to make lifestyle changes to ward off the chronic conditions linked to poor health and fatal diseases. To help people do that, the Division of Public Health has a program, Fresh Start, that provides guidance and coaching.

Reflecting Alaska’s aging population, a new part of the Fresh Start program concerns dementia, Fenaughty said.

“Right now, it’s largely focused on awareness of dementia and the fact that there are really lots of things you could do to reduce your chances of getting dementia. People don’t often think of it as being preventable,” she said.

Additionally, the Division of Public Health has a Play Every Day program that encourages fitness and healthy habits among youth.

The report also recommends some community actions and policies to help people pursue healthier lifestyles and habits. In sum, said the report: “Make the healthy choice the easier choice.” Examples of helpful policies listed by the report are tobacco-free workplaces, easier access to safe places to walk and otherwise exercise, good physical education programs at schools and disease-prevention programs at workplaces.

Reducing chronic health problems through public policy is a long-term effort, Fenaughty said. She pointed to decades of tobacco-cessation policies that led to current smoking rates being much lower than they were in the past.

“It did take a couple of decades, and something like that involves all kinds of people at the community level, at the statewide level, all different partners,” she said.


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