Describing Health, and the Main Types of Infection and Disease
Health is not inherently good or bad, it is simply a state of the body and mind’s wellbeing and freedom from
diseases/disorders.
There are varying different types of diseases, such as mental (neurotic illnesses or psychotic) and physical
(infectious or developmental).
A disease is not caused by physical injury, but rather other effects which can occur as a result, such as catching a
bacterial infection from an open wound.
Infectious diseases are spread through pathogens; which are disease-causing organisms, such as from
person to person or through animals and so on. There are huge numbers of different ways the diseases are
spread and how or what they attack.
Infectious diseases affect the body’s normal process of homeostasis; as the body’s immune response makes
it so that the core body temperature is raised in order to weaken and help kill off the foreign infection.
There are five phases of infectious diseases; which are:
- Incubation period- the time in which the disease is activating, and when a person is most contagious
- Prodromal phase- mild, generic symptoms which signal the onset
- Clinical phase- symptoms begin to be experienced
- Decline phase- subsidence of symptoms
- Recovery phase- body has defeated the infection and has now healed and recovered.
Non-infectious diseases cannot be passed between animals nor caught off one another through hosts,
pathogens or so on.These are either genetic, degenerative (worsen over time) chronic or developed over
time as a deformation. They can be from an injury sustained which led to other health issues/disabilities,
faulty gene deformities either developed or inherited from parents as a dominant or two recessive alleles.
Others can be congenital in which one is affected with a disease since birth, others develop in later life,
sometimes due to age and the breakdown of the body (dementia).
Some are not caused as a result of injury, and are instead mental illnesses, which can be caused from
hormonal imbalances, situational effects, emotional trauma, and do not show any physical signs, nor can be
caught or passed on; only developed. Sometimes, genetics can play a part in increasing the chances of
having a mental disability should a long line of family members also be diagnosed with the condition which
can carry high-risk genes. Mental illnesses often evoke harmful or unhealthy behaviour to victims if therapy
or medication is not taken to prevent self inflicted damage or neglect. This is different to taking medication
to help with physical illness’ pain which is caused as a result of strain/infection etc.
Task 3- Assessing the Strengths and Weaknesses of Classifications- Are they Accurate?
The weaknesses of disease classification include things such as how overlapping errors and confusion can
occur when a disease shares different factors into what defines it with other categories. So, this
classification method is usually very accurate and easy to diagnose what kind of condition a patient has
should they not have a mixture of symptoms, which can make their time in getting recognised take longer,
and often confusing. In severe cases, misdiagnosis can occur due to a mix up of classifications and so the
wrong medication or treatment is prescribed, which can lead to worsening of a condition.
Sometimes, it also does not take into account the cause for different diseases which arise from other things,
such as how certain parasites can cause mood swings, which may be diagnosed as a mental disorder which
has been developed, not an indicator of something else.
Health is not inherently good or bad, it is simply a state of the body and mind’s wellbeing and freedom from
diseases/disorders.
There are varying different types of diseases, such as mental (neurotic illnesses or psychotic) and physical
(infectious or developmental).
A disease is not caused by physical injury, but rather other effects which can occur as a result, such as catching a
bacterial infection from an open wound.
Infectious diseases are spread through pathogens; which are disease-causing organisms, such as from
person to person or through animals and so on. There are huge numbers of different ways the diseases are
spread and how or what they attack.
Infectious diseases affect the body’s normal process of homeostasis; as the body’s immune response makes
it so that the core body temperature is raised in order to weaken and help kill off the foreign infection.
There are five phases of infectious diseases; which are:
- Incubation period- the time in which the disease is activating, and when a person is most contagious
- Prodromal phase- mild, generic symptoms which signal the onset
- Clinical phase- symptoms begin to be experienced
- Decline phase- subsidence of symptoms
- Recovery phase- body has defeated the infection and has now healed and recovered.
Non-infectious diseases cannot be passed between animals nor caught off one another through hosts,
pathogens or so on.These are either genetic, degenerative (worsen over time) chronic or developed over
time as a deformation. They can be from an injury sustained which led to other health issues/disabilities,
faulty gene deformities either developed or inherited from parents as a dominant or two recessive alleles.
Others can be congenital in which one is affected with a disease since birth, others develop in later life,
sometimes due to age and the breakdown of the body (dementia).
Some are not caused as a result of injury, and are instead mental illnesses, which can be caused from
hormonal imbalances, situational effects, emotional trauma, and do not show any physical signs, nor can be
caught or passed on; only developed. Sometimes, genetics can play a part in increasing the chances of
having a mental disability should a long line of family members also be diagnosed with the condition which
can carry high-risk genes. Mental illnesses often evoke harmful or unhealthy behaviour to victims if therapy
or medication is not taken to prevent self inflicted damage or neglect. This is different to taking medication
to help with physical illness’ pain which is caused as a result of strain/infection etc.
Task 3- Assessing the Strengths and Weaknesses of Classifications- Are they Accurate?
The weaknesses of disease classification include things such as how overlapping errors and confusion can
occur when a disease shares different factors into what defines it with other categories. So, this
classification method is usually very accurate and easy to diagnose what kind of condition a patient has
should they not have a mixture of symptoms, which can make their time in getting recognised take longer,
and often confusing. In severe cases, misdiagnosis can occur due to a mix up of classifications and so the
wrong medication or treatment is prescribed, which can lead to worsening of a condition.
Sometimes, it also does not take into account the cause for different diseases which arise from other things,
such as how certain parasites can cause mood swings, which may be diagnosed as a mental disorder which
has been developed, not an indicator of something else.
