Health Promotion Project on Weight Management

According to the body mass index (BMI) calculator, a normal weight range for my height would be in between 107 to 140 lbs. and my BMI should be 18.5-24.9. However, I am classed as overweight based on BMI of 29, and I have a strong family history of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, high cholesterol and sleep apnea. All this condition can be exacerbated by overweight. So, I am intending to target on weight reduction as an aspect of my health promotion project.

Theoretical Frame Work (Health Belief Model)

The theoretical framework I chose to guide my health promotion project is Health Belief Model (HBM). The Health Belief Model (HBM) is one of the first theories of health behavior developed in 1950s by a group of U.S. Public Health social scientists to explain why people were not participating in disease prevention. HBM is an intrapersonal behavioral model which address the relationship between a person’s beliefs and behaviors (McEwen & Willis, 2014, p.322). HBM postulates that health-seeking behavior is influenced by a person’s perception of a threat posed by a health problem. The major six concepts of health belief model are perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived barriers to action, cues to action, and self-efficacy (McEwen & Willis, 2014, p.322). An individual's perceived threat to sickness or disease by not undertaking certain health actions is known as perceived susceptibility. The belief of consequence is called Perceived severity. Perceived benefits are the potential positive benefits of action. If a person believes that an action will decrease the susceptibility to a health problem, then that person is most likely to involve in that action. Even if a person sees a health condition as threatening, perceived barriers may prevent the person to engage in the health-promoting behavior. The health belief model also posits the necessary of a cue to prompt people into health-promoting behaviors. The stimulus that prompt to action are called Cues to action. With more powerful cues, the person is more stimulated to act. Self-efficacy refers to a person's confidence and competence to successfully perform a behavior. According to health belief model the person with a greater level of self-efficacy will more likely engage in a specific behavior to improve health.

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I chose this theory because I believe that individuals hardly implement healthy behavior unless they perceive the severity of the problem and is ready to adopt positive changes. Currently I am overweight and I am at high risk for becoming obese and developing obesity associated co morbidities (perceived susceptibility). In my case, my family history of stroke, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer are my perceived threats. I am clear that obesity associated medical complications such as risk for chronic illnesses and social consequences such as family life, social relationships can be fatal and may change the quality of life (perceived severity). Inconvenience in scheduling daily workout due to full time job, school, responsibilities of my family and kids and lack of motivation are preventing me from losing weight and being unhealthy (perceived barriers). As a health care professional, I have seen a lot of patients suffering from complications of obesity and I know that it is crucial to start eating healthier and engage in physical activity (cues to action). Now, I am dedicated and motivated to reduce my weight through adopting a life style with healthy eating and routine exercise because I believe that controlling my weigh will reduce my risk of having health problems and will improve my physical appearance and self-confidence to live my life to the fullest (perceived benefit).

Article Summaries

In a study by Mcarthur, Riggs, Uribe, and Spaulding (2017), College students weight-related beliefs were measured using 6 scales focused on perceived severity of the consequences of overweight, susceptibility to becoming overweight, barriers to adopting healthy eating and physical activity habits to achieve a healthy weight, benefits to adopting such habits, and internal and external cues to action to adopt these habits. Preceding these scales, students were instructed to consider definitions for the terms healthy eating habits and healthy physical activity habits when completing the scales. Findings suggested that the anticipated favorable outcomes of making healthy food choices and engaging in regular physical activity outweighed potential obstacles such as food preferences, time availability, and expenses. Beliefs from the internal cues to action scale focusing on issues such as body image dissatisfaction and perceived unfair judgments by others based on weight were rated higher than were those from the external cues scale focusing on advice from diverse sources about achieving and maintaining a healthy weight, which indicated that internal cues were regarded as stronger motivators for behavior change. However, the inverse association between perceived severity and BMI suggested that students who regarded the potential consequence of becoming overweight as less personally threatening had higher BMIs.

Summary

I recognized the dangers of obesity and the need to change my unhealthy behaviors to correct my overweight for improving my quality of life. As a first step, I joined in a 6-week series of wellness classes focusing on nutrition and weight management at my Work. I started eating healthier meals and snacks by incorporating fresh fruits and vegetables in each meal and started walking 1 miles a day and started exercising on treadmill and exercise bike. Even though sometimes I get exhausted and frustrated with my new life style modification believing in the advantages of my new behavior is helping me to bypass the difficulty of changing my habits and sticking to my weight loss plan. Now I am becoming more accustomed to the new changes and I feels more confident that I will be able to maintain my new exercising routine and eating habits. I am finding that my assumption regarding immediate health beliefs regarding healthy eating and work out were accurate as my days are infused with greater energy.

References

1. McArthur, L. H., Riggs, A., Uribe, F., & Spaulding, T. J. (2017). Health Belief Model Offers Opportunities for Designing Weight Management Interventions for College Students. Journal of nutrition education and behavior, 50(5), 485-493. DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2017.09.010
2. McEwen, M. & Wills, E.M. (2014). Theoretical Basis for Nursing (4th Edition). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/ Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 978-1-4511-9031-1.