ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the goal of public health and what it involves; and how it differs from traditional medicine. It describes the eradication of smallpox. The chapter explains the elderly support ratio. It also explains the global health problem of obesity. Global health involves many different disciplines of the health sciences and beyond. It utilizes clinical care on the individual level to prevent health issues in the worldwide population. Today's global health issues include antimicrobial resistance, the emergence or re-emergence of infectious diseases, HIV and AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, the eradication of polio, and the increasing prevalence of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Risk factors for various diseases may include personal behaviors, lifestyles, environmental exposures, or inherited characteristics. In high-income countries, risk factors are also mostly related to diet, exercise, smoking, and pollution. The health and education of families are interconnected, in that they lead to multigenerational changes in behaviors related to good health.
