Urbanization and Public Health: Challenges and Solutions
Urbanization is the biggest phenomenon that is changing our social, environmental and economies as the global population continues to migrate to our cities.
On the one hand, urbanization has boosting the economy and technology growth, but it also holds lots of health problems.
In fact, this rapid growth of urban areas implies congestion, weak infrastructures, and adverse impact on the physical environment which has a proportional impact on the health of the people living in urban areas.
In this blog we will be looking at the relationship between urbanization and public health, and its impacts with the view at identifying steps that could be taken to prevent such effects.
1. The Impact of Urbanization on Public Health
a. Air Quality and Respiratory Diseases
Another main concern that is rather alarming in connection with fast-growing urbanization process is the acute problem of air pollution.
Contamination is a universal problem and is extremely common in cities due to industrialization, emission of vehicles, and construction.
Pollution has a negative impact on a person’s health since it causes diseases such as asthma, bronchitis and even lung cancer.
The World Health Organization has pointed out that outdoor air pollution is responsible for close to 4.2 million deaths annually.
Unknown to most people; as the number of people residing in cities increases so does the demand for energy as well as transportation thus creating a cocktail of airborne pollutants, thus having a strong negative relationship between urbanization and public health.
b. Mental Health and Stress
The nature of living in urban areas also has severe impact to mental health status.
Too much crowd, and scarcity of open spaces especially within the urban setup make people experience high levels of stress, anxiety and depression.
Different research has estimated that the rates of occurrence of mental health disorders are higher amongst people who reside in urban cities as compared to residents of rural regions.
Other factors to include are; hastened rate of living in cities, loneliness and the overall hardship in engaging with community in the cities also fuel mental health issues.
c. More vulnerability to Communicable Diseases
This resulted to congested living densities normally associated with urban areas, which increased the chances of disease Transmission.
High population density accelerates defecation with little or no easy access to clean water, thus exposing the population to diseases such as cholera and dysentery.
Further, high population densities promote contagious diseases such as tuberculosis and COVID-19 infection, and so on.
Large populated cities in developing countries are some of the most challenging places to control health and disease due to several factors.
2. Solutions to Mitigate Urban Health Challenges
a. Transformation of Sustainable Urban Investment
If the health of the populace is to be enhanced in the urban setting, then work should be stepped up towards the achievement of sustainable urban development.
This includes increased provision of parks, redevelopment of transport systems, and the construction of efficient energy frames among others.
The other benefit of green spaces like parks and urban forests is that they temper some of the air pollution in cities while also offering residents locations for physical exercise and mental health relief from the City’s constant clamor.
b. Advantageous Changes in Access to Healthcare and Services
It is most apparent is in healthcare given the fact that urbanization applies lots of pressure on health facilities thus calling for the governments to endeavor to provide quality and affordable healthcare services.
These are the following; increased construction of health facilities, enhancement of efforts in responding to emergencies and addressing the health needs of the vulnerable populace.
Furthermore, improved utilization of basic health care by immunization crusades, mental health outreach, and health promotion exercises will assist in controlling disease incidence in cities.
c. Pollution Control and Environmental Regulations
Reduction of urban air pollution in the cities of developed countries should be associated with higher environmental standards and legislation restricting emissions from industries, motor vehicles and construction sites.
As urbanization and public health are strongly related, policymakers can apply stricter measures like fuel quality standards, encourage the use of renewable energy and also support clean energy.
Government activities which can also be applied include; governments may regulate emission by setting tight fuel quality standards, embrace renewable energy sources and invest in clean energy.
3. The Role of Community Engagement and Education
a. Public Awareness Campaigns
The main preventive strategies as well as the ways of overcoming the issues connected with urbanization and public health is education.
State and non-state actors, and communities can work together and hasten efforts to ensure that people living in urban centres promotes healthy lifestyles.
This include enlightening the residents on the risks of air pollution, on the gains that are usually realized from taking exercises, and on the need for mental health.
Other common areas of health-conscious campaigns include sanitation and hygiene, vaccination, etc., and we are passing through a crucial period regarding this aspect.
b. Community-Driven Health Initiatives
Thus, the improvement of the urban health is directly related with communities themselves.
Community oriented activities such as; clean-up the neighborhood drives, support groups, and community gardening activities are some ways in which people are supported to be agents of health within their own communities.
That is why community-based interventions on the promotion of active transportation including walking and cycling impact the health of its citizens as well as the status of the carbon emissions in the city.
Engagement with Local authorities and urban planners can primarily make sure that such efforts are properly tied with the general health plans and environmental agendas.
c. Social Inclusion and Health Equity
One of the most important findings is that urban health issues are frequently associated with inequality.
Weak or limited socioeconomic status due to factors such as; low income, migrants, and/or minorities are likely to suffer from substandard quality living environment, and health and face high risks of getting affected by conveniences.
This is the case due to the following reasons, for all residents to have access to proper health services, clean water, hygiene, and shelter.
Focusing on the existence and requirements of specified vulnerable groups, cities have the potential to decrease inequities and boost population health.
Conclusion : Urbanization and Public Health
As the correlation between urbanization and public health is so strong, the public health problems become more pronounced while at the same time, there is a great potential for changes.
In other words, if cities begin incorporating social equity, and public health into their planning, environmental conservation, and improvement of health facility accessibility thereby reducing the ill effects of urbanization.
Further, population health literacy coupled with an emphasis on community-directed health promotion can create cities wherein the population thrives.
There is a need to work towards ensuring the effectiveness of public health as the population in urban areas increases in the future.
Also read: Urbanization and Economic Growth What’s the Connection