Major Public Health Issues Both in North and South Florida

Smoking in Florida

Smoking is one of the major public health issues both in North and South Florida today. Despite health education programs, the State of Florida has not been able to address the issue of chronic diseases fully. The media, in collaboration with programs such as Zika Free Florida and Tobacco Free Florida, plays a crucial role in educating the masses in this State. The media informs the masses about the health effects of smoking and creates awareness on the same. The media further researches the matter and disseminates the statistics that help the nation. It also directly engages health practitioners through talk shows, and this performs an educative function. Major Public Health Issues Both in North and South Florida

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

In Florida, the law prohibits smoking. According to Terry and Bhang, 16. 1% of adults in Florida smoke cigarette and 5.7 % of high school students also smoke a cigarette. The law banned smoking in enclosed places (Terry & Bhang, 2016). However, this law does not apply to bars, hotels, and tobacco shops. This gives leeway to more people engaging themselves in smoking which increases the risk of health problems. It does not only affect individual smokers but the entire society. When people smoke, they experience health problems which force the government to invest a lot of money on drugs, and this money would have been used in boosting the economy.

Social media plays a crucial role in addressing the issue of smoking in Florida. The internet is accessed by more than 90% of people today, and this makes social media one of the widely accessed form of media, hence a great platform of creating awareness and educating people about the impacts of smoking. It is easier to engage the targeted audience on social media than other forms of media. One thing that makes social media stand out is its ability to break the physical barrier and makes it possible to build relationships with target people (Welvch, et al., 2016). Major Public Health Issues Both in North and South Florida

References

Welch, V., Petkovic, J., Pardo, J. P., Rader, T., &Tugwell, P. (2016). Interactive social media interventions to promote health equity: an overview of reviews. Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada: research, policy, and practice, 36(4), 63.

Terry, A., & Zhang, N. J. (2016). The Impact of Tobacco‐Free School Policies on Youth Smoking Rates in Florida Public School Districts. Journal of School Health, 86(2), 129-134. Major Public Health Issues Both in North and South Florida