Health Disparities And Chronic Diseases In Oxnard, CA
One of the main reasons I decided to apply to MPH programs and pursue an MPH degree was because I noticed all the health disparities that were going on in my city, and more specifically my zip code area — 93033.
Growing up in the south side of Oxnard, California, I realized that my community and I are faced with many disadvantages. One of those disadvantages include being one of the populations experiencing the greatest burden of health disparities in Ventura County. At a young age I could tell that my community lacked proper education and knowledge on healthy behaviors, disease prevention, and accessing health resources. In addition, I also noticed that there were not very many health resources available to us. I see that a lot of the people in my neighborhood cannot afford healthcare or do not have proper knowledge about how to utilize resources to achieve optimal health outcomes. In addition to these issues, I noticed a lack of leadership in regards to the public health of my community. A community is only as good as its resources, structures, and people it obtains. Without equity of these aspects among communities, we will experience health disparities.
Supermarkets
The only supermarkets in south Oxnard are Mexican grocery stores and carnicerias or “meat markets. ” Stores like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Sprouts, Vons etc. do not exist in the south side of Oxnard, one can only find those in the north side. The first photo is of a meat market called “Fierros. ” Carnicerias are where most members in my community buy their meat to cook. Stores like these sell meat like asada, al pastor, carnitas, chorizo, lengua, and many more. It’s safe to say that none of these meats are “organic, ” “all natural, ” “grass fed, ” etc. and they are probably filled with hormones and antibiotics. The remaining photos are of a Mexican supermarket called “Amar Ranch Food Warehouse, ” this is the grocery store that my mother would buy most of our groceries at while I was growing up. While visiting this market, the first thing I noticed as soon as I walked in was the unhealthy food options on display at the entrance of the store, these included options like cake and cookies, sweet bread, and potato chips. These factors — the unavailability of healthy stores and organic meats and produce, and the unhealthy food options that are on display and easily accessible in the Mexican markets — may contribute to a portion of our health disparities in 93033, and lead to chronic conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
On Every Corner
In my zip code alone there are at least 20 fast food chain restaurants and 30 liquor stores. In addition, taco trucks are extremely popular in my area, probably more popular and more abundant than fast food chain restaurants. You can find a taco truck on almost every corner in my community, it is part of the culture of the community. These taco trucks always have a line of people late at night, waiting to fulfill their hunger. This probably contributes to some adverse health outcomes in my community due to the fact that they are so readily available, convenient, cheap, and not to mention—really delicious. Personally, while I drive past a taco truck hungry, I almost always stop to get some tacos. This is coming from someone who knows what too many tacos can to do to a person, and knows how to live a healthy lifestyle and make healthy behaviors. But being Mexican, our food is part of who we are and what our taste buds acquire for ourselves. In addition, like mentioned earlier, we also have a lot of liquor stores in 93033. This too, as we have learned in class, can lead to adverse health outcomes. According to Gavin Pereira et al. , “greater alcohol outlet density has been linked to higher rates of violence, violent crime, assaults, child maltreatment and physical abuse, and homicides” (2013).
Pesticides Galore
Oxnard grows many crops such as beans, onions, leafy vegetables etc, but what Oxnard is known for growing the most is strawberries. Oxnard is one of the nation’s biggest strawberry producers, as it is the location for the annual Strawberry Festival that many tourists come from all over the state and country to attend. Being one of the the biggest strawberry producers means that there are high amounts of pesticide use in our community which can lead to adverse health effects. The Center for Health Journalism reported four zip codes with the highest pesticide use in the state clustered around Oxnard (2015), and mine — 93033 — is one of them. According to Michael Alavanja et al. , high levels of exposure to pesticides are associated with diseases such as certain types of cancer, Parkinson ’s disease, and more (2004). Knowledge of pesticide use being harmful to human health has caused many people in the community to take a stand and fight against the use of abundant amounts of pesticide use in our fields, but so far nothing has changed.
Taekwondo? Dance? or BEST CIGARETTES? I found this particular photo interesting and found that it really depicts the types of disparities in health that occur in Oxanrd. A taekwondo studio and dance studio — places meant mostly for children and young adults — is located right next door to a store called “Best Cigarettes. ” Taking this photo made me realize that the children in my community are truly faced with the worst of it. Adults have the freedom to make their own choices including where they choose to buy groceries from, which fitness studios they choose to attend, etc. Children however, have a lot less autonomy than adults. Children and young adults may be brought to fitness and health studios like the ones pictured, and have to face being in close proximity to stores like “Best Cigarettes. ” I see this as being an environmental stressor for children. Stressors and adversity in the environment can damage the developing brain in children. When this happens, children do not have the opportunity to grow and develop to their fullest potential. In addition, we have learned from the ACES study that disrupted brain development can lead to social, emotional, and cognitive impairment, the adoption of health-risk behaviors, disease/disability, and eventually early death.
Conclusion
To conclude, there are many differences in resources between the north and south sides of Oxnard. It is obvious that there are clear disparities within these two communities which can contribute to the health outcomes of the members in each community. The south side has Mexican markets, wide accessibility to unhealthy foods, fields with pesticide use, and also run-down urgent cares, etc. While the north side of Oxnard has less fields with pesticide use, more healthy food options in regards to both markets and restaurants, a hospital, better kept parks, nice and newer high schools, newer built roads and sidewalks, and the list goes on. All people are worth the same value, and therefore all people should have equitable access to health services and opportunities for a good quality of life, which I don’t believe is the case in the city I live in. I think this shows that there is persistent segregation with access to health resources among zip codes and communities. Health is a function of opportunity and opportunity is a function of communities; healthy communities have more opportunities for optimal health which I believe is truly unfair for the under-resourced communities.
