Now that you have learned about the leading causes of death and the social-ecological model of health, we can explore the role societal systems (e.g., political/government, food/industrial agriculture, media, corporate/industry, health care) play in influencing policy and choices regarding health.

In the United States, obesity and diet-related diseases are escalating. From your background reading, you read about several disorders that are directly or indirectly related to diet including heart disease, diabetes, stroke and some cancers. The health of our nation is being threatened by rising antibiotic resistance, chemicals and pathogens contaminating our food, air, soil and water, leading to a depletion of natural resources. These issues are all related to food-what we eat and how it is produced. In the following case assignment, you will learn about some of the leading causes of death in the U.S. and how what we eat is related to the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico.

Case Assignment

What do the primary causes of death in the U.S. have to do with the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico?

Hypoxic zones are areas in the ocean of such low oxygen concentration that animal life suffocates and dies, which results in areas called "dead zones." One of the largest dead zones forms in the Gulf of Mexico every spring. Each spring as farmers fertilize their lands preparing for crop season, rain washes fertilizer off the land and into streams and rivers. The dead zone within the Gulf of Mexico is occurring because excessive nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus from these fertilizers enter the rivers, lakes, and estuaries that feed into or make up this body of water. It is the largest hypoxic (oxygen depleted) zone currently affecting the United States, and the second largest hypoxic zone worldwide. Nitrogen and phosphorus are essential nutrients for plant growth, but too much of them can stimulate algal growth. As the algae die, they sink to the bottom of the water and decompose, robbing the aquatic life of needed oxygen. Dead zones have increased because of the rapid rise in intensive agricultural practices, industrial activities, and population growth.

Watch the following video on the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico to learn more: Happening Now: Dead Zone in the Gulf.

Read the following article on how farming practices impact our health:

Reading: How Industrial Food Impacts Your Health. Grace Communications Foundation.

Optional Reading:  Walling, D. (2009). Today's Food System: How Healthy Is It? Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition. 4: 251-281.

Please write a 2- to 3-page essay addressing the following questions below:

1. What is a dead zone? What causes dead zones? What are the effects?

2. What are the leading causes of death for people in the U.S. today?

3. In what ways do the leading causes of death for people in the U.S. relate to the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico?

4. What are some health problems that are largely caused by diet?

5. How are political/government, food/industrial agriculture and health care related to each other and connected to dead zones? (Hint: consider the growing of monocrops, concentrated animal feeding operations or CAFOs and the effects of processed foods as part of an unhealthy diet).

6. Chose one of the following strategies below designed to promote a sustainable food system and conduct your own independent research:

• Local farmers' markets
• Urban gardening
• Farm-to-school programs
• Organic agriculture
• Pasture-raised animals

How can the strategy you chose help achieve a sustainable food system and improve our health?

What are some of the challenges to the strategy you chose?

Assignment Expectations -

Organize this assignment using subtitles that summarize each question above. For example, to answer Question 1, use a descriptive subtitle like the following: Dead Zones and Their Effects. Answer each question under the subtitle using complete sentences that relate back to the question. Use APA formatting to cite any sources used within the text of your essay. Also, be sure to include a reference section at the end of your assignment that lists the sources that you were required to read and any additional resources you used to research your answers. Direct quotes should be limited and must be designated by quotation marks. Paraphrased ideas must give credit to the original author, for example (Murray, 2014). Direct copying from "homework help" websites will not receive credit.