Sunday, July 5, 2020

Negative Impact Of Violence In Games - Free Essay Example

Violence in games impact children and youths negatively Through advancements in technology in the 21st century, people of all walks of life can now access various forms of media. Different types of media shape the current society that we live in. One of them is gaming, a common activity for the youths of today. This activity is a source of joy for many, and it provides many benefits to players. Some include de-stressing and improvement in hand-eye coordination. However, with the evolution of gaming and the increase in the number of people playing violent video games over the years, it is starting to become crystal clear that game violence may prove to be a double-edged sword for youths and children. It has given rise to a colossal issue on how game violence negatively affects youths and children. According to a report by Susan Scutti from CNN news, President Donald Trump said, Im hearing more and more people saying the level of violence on video games is really shaping young peoples thoughts. A report by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) stated that 64% of US households own a device that they use to play video games. Gamers aged 18 or older represent more than 70 percent of the video-gaming playing population. Also, 60 percent of Americans play video games daily. Another report by the ESA stated that out of the nine best-selling video game genres of 2017, shooter games turned out to be the most successful. According to the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), an analysis conducted in 2017 showed that out of the 1,948 ratings assigned by ESRB in 2017, around half of the gamers are only suitable for teenagers or older. Therefore, these statistics highlight the prevalence of video gaming among youths currently as well as the rise of violent video games on the m arket. Currently, the younger generation also has convenient access to online games. Some online gaming sites have checks that are unlikely to protect youths from age-restricted content.Examples include relying on the user confirming they are over the minimum age or asking the user to simply give a date of birth. Gamers can easily create fake accounts that provide false information about themselves which enable them to bypass the checks. Such games include Call Of Duty: Black Ops, Medal Of Honour and Dead Rising 2. The National Institute of Media and the Family discovered that almost 90% of youths play games rated Mature. In 2003, the Federal Trade Commission discovered that 69% of teenagers were able to buy Mature-rated video games granting them convenient access to images adults would consider offensive. The Media Has Embedded Values And Points Of View. With regards to gaming, the potential message that it may spread is that violence is always a necessity to solve problems. One of many examples is the Resident Evil game franchise. Resident Evil is a survival horror video game where the players have to shoot, stab and kill their way through hordes of zombies to survive. These games are then later adapted for the big screen, and as of today, there is a total of six films in the Resident Evil film franchise. Such games will cause children and youths to believe that violence is a way to solve problems. Therefore, they will act out violently in times of crises when more peaceful methods can be employed. Thus, it is likely that they will hurt their loved ones. Another message that these violent games might convey is that there are little to no consequences to violent acts regardless of whether they are perpetrated by the hero or the villain in the story. This may result in children and you ths idolising these characters in such violent video games. Studies associate playing such violent games with a higher tolerance of violence, reduced empathy as well as increased aggression. Compared with males who have not played violent video games, males who do play them are 67 percent more likely to engage in violent deviant behaviour, 63 percent more likely to commit a violent crime or a crime with relations to violence. Therefore, gaming has inappropriate messages and values that are unhealthy to children and youths as it will negatively impact them. The Powerful Effects Theory states that media has an immediate and direct influence on its audience. It says that media can inject messages into you instructing you what to believe and what to do like a hypodermic needle. It has the power to influence our perceptions, telling us what to believe in and how to behave. In the year 2000, a research was conducted to examine the effects of violent video games on aggressive cognitions. Undergraduates were divided into two and these two groups of people played different games. The first group played an intense first-person shooter called Wolfenstein 3D while the other played Myst, a non-violent 3D walkthrough game. Next, the participants completed the reading reaction time task. A total of 192 words was presented on the screen one at a time. These words were divided into four categories: 24 aggression words, 24 anxiety words, 24 escape words, and 24 control words. Each word appeared twice. As soon as each word appeared, participants are requ ired to say it aloud as soon as possible. Quicker reaction times indicates that a word is more cognitively accessible. The reaction time of aggressive words, as compared to the others, served as the measure of aggressive cognition. It turned out that participants who had played the violent video game demonstrated greater accessibility to aggressive cognitions as compared to those who had played the other game, as proven by the reading reaction time. This is, therefore, an indication of the Powerful Effects Theory as the report shows that subconsciously, individuals react in a negative manner to violent games almost immediately after a short period of exposure In conclusion, as proven by the aforementioned studies and reports, they show that violent games impact children and youths mentally and negatively. Also, such impacts may occur without them knowing. It alters their perception of the world and the way they behave towards others. This proves that violent gaming impacts children and youths negatively and that violent media is a negative source of entertainment.

Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Asthma and Oral Health - Free Essay Example

Approximately five percent of adults and ten percent of children in the United States suffer from asthma.1 Asthma is a chronic lung inflammatory condition that causes constriction of the airway and excessive mucus, making it difficult to breath (Thomas, Parolia, Kundabala Vikram, 2010). Precautions should be taken when dealing with an asthma patient in your chair as a dental professional. Being aware of the precautions of an asthma patient will help to decrease and manage the risk of an asthma attack from happening in the first place. Throughout my Case Study, I will be discussing a specific patient who has personally dealt with asthma most of her life. Patient Brieana was diagnosed with asthma in the fourth grade after she experienced a very traumatizing asthma attack while playing in a softball tournament in Bloomington, Minnesota. Asthma does not run in her family so, when she had the attack, she and her family were unaware of what was happening. After some test had been run, she was officially diagnosed with asthma. Twelve years later, Brieana is now a 22-year-old college student and has well-controlled exercise induced and seasonal asthma. Throughout her teenage years, she stayed very active by participating in sports and programs throughout the student body. To this day, she still enjoys having an active lifestyle whether it is traveling or experiencing new things with friends or family. She has never let her asthma affect her day to day life or hold her back from doing the things she loves. Growing up, Brie ana was not exposed to being outdoors which is where most of her allergies are. Being allergic to pollen, a seasonal allergy, worked to her advantage to not enjoy the outdoors. Her lifestyle has been impacted by asthma starting at a young age, she has had to make numerous lifestyle changes. The lifestyle changes that Brieana has had to make include; taking medications daily, carrying around her inhalers at all times, being aware of her surroundings, and taking precautions when necessary. Now that Brieana is in college, she has realized that it is harder for her to manage her asthma away from her parents. She knows to take her medication religiously, or her asthma will get worse. With her being away at college, she doesnt have someone to remind her when to take her medications or when it is the appropriate time to get a refill. She has had to grow up and become more responsible and independent throughout the last few years while she has been in college. Asthma is a chronic lung disease of the airway that makes it harder to move air in and out of the lungs, making it difficult for someone with asthma to breathe. With asthma, there is swelling or inflammation in the air passage of your lungs and causes excess mucus.1 This results in a temporary narrowing of their airways that carry oxygen to the lungs.2 This results in asthma symptoms including, coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, and chest pain.3 Asthma affects people of all ages, but it most often starts during childhood. In the United States, more than 25 million people are known to have asthma (Thomas, Parolia, Kundabala, Vikram, 2010). Nearly seven million of these people are children (Thomas, Parolia, Kundabala, Vikram, 2010). Asthma has no cure. Even when you feel fine, you still have the disease, and it can flare up at any time. Ever since Brieana has been diagnosed in fourth grade, she has spent many years adjusting her lifestyle. Luckily, she can manage this disease wit h todays understanding and treatment for this disease. She experiences very few symptoms in her day to day life. She can live a normal, active life and sleep through the night without interruption from asthma. This is because Brieana has chosen to take an active role in managing her asthma. Brieana uses effective medications and two inhalers to manage her asthma. The medication she takes once a day; every day is Cetirizine. Cetirizine is an antihistamine used to temporarily relieve symptoms of upper respiratory allergies (Wynn, Meiller, Crossley, 2018). It also is used to relieve itching due to urticaria (hives). A key adverse event for Cetirizine related to dental treatment is Xerostomia, increased blood pressure, and decrease salivation (Wynn, Meiller, Crossley, 2018). The two inhalers that she uses are Breo Ellipta and Ventolin HFA. Breo Ellipta is a fluticasone furoate 200 mcg and vilanterol 25 mcg inhalation powder. Ventolin HFA is an albuterol sulfate inhalation aerosol, one puff is equal to 90 mcg per actuation. Brieana only uses her inhalers before she exercises or if needed, during. Since her asthma is seasonal, under certain circumstances she will need it throughout the night or when her allergies are bad. In addition, Brieana takes a Krill Oil and Ultimate CoQ10 Ubiquinol, ultimate absorption. Krill Oil is taken as a supplement to lower blood lipids and Ultimate CoQ10 Ubiquinol- ultimate absorption is a premier heart supplement, it promotes cardiovascular health, normal blood pressure and improved circulation. Brieana is a patient with moderate to severe systemic disease that limi ts activity but is not incapacitating. Since Brieana has exercise-induced asthma, she is classified as an ASA 3. With an ASA 3, there are some dental considerations relating to her asthma. Some impacts on her dental appointments include, considering shorter appointments, stress reduction therapy, and monitoring the patient closely (Gurenlian Pickett, 2015). Oral manifestations can be induced by some systemic diseases and can show up in the dental setting. Several medications that are used to treat asthma have been linked to some oral disorders including, Xerostomia, oral candidiasis, acid reflex, and an increasing rate of caries and gingivitis. With all of these oral manifestation Brieana does not experience any difficulty while she brushes her teeth. Since it is recommended that Brieana has shorter or reduced appointment times, she normally needs more frequent recalls. However, frequent recalls are more likely to happen when her seasonal allergies are at their worse. When the patients seasonal allergies are at their worst, patient positioning is a major concern. When the patient is in a normal supine position for too long, a coughing reflex is triggered. When a coughing reflex is triggered, it makes the dental appointment more complex for both the patient and for the dental health providers. Positioning the patient in a semi-supine position will help the patient with any excessive mucus that they may experience. Also, considering when is an appropriate time for the patient to come in for an appointment is important. Dental professionals need to consider appropriate appointment time to help minimize the risk of a medical emergency from occurring (Gurenlian Pickett, 2015). To minimize the risk of an asthma attack happening to your patient while at their appointment, consider scheduling late mornings or late afternoon appointments. In the early morning or late at night is when people who suffer from asthma experience their worst symptoms. Wheezing and excessive mucus is more likely to happen during these times. Also, when patients with asthma are scheduled in the late morning or late afternoon, it allows more time for their medications to start working the way they are supposed to. Asthma attacks in the dental office are emergency situations that are more apt to occur during an appointment with an asthma patient. Some signs and symptoms to identify are if your patient is experiencing an asthma attack include; inability to finish their sentence with one breath, patient becoming agitated and anxious, coughing, chest tightness, and wheezing. When an asthma attack occurs, there are steps that need to be taken to manage an acute asthmatic episode. Step one is to discontinue treatment as soon as the dental professional identifies that their patient is having an asthma attack.1 Step two is to sit the patient upright or in a comfortable position that the patient prefers.2 Step three is to administer the patients inhaler three times t hat they have brought to their appointment or one from the emergency drug kit.3 Step four is if after three doses of the inhaler and there is no improvement, additional measures need to be taken. These additional measures include; administer oxygen to the patient, call 911 and EMS, and administer epinephrine intramuscularly.4 It is important to stay with that patient at all times during their attack. If the attack is resolved quickly, the patient can be discharged on their own. If medical assistance or the administration of epinephrine is necessary, the patient should be discharged to EMS and taken to the hospital (Schwartz, S., 2018). After one dose of epinephrine, the patient should be monitored for a biphasic anaphylaxis reaction, which is a reaction that happens hours later after an initial reaction. An asthma attack can be prevented before it leads to an emergency situation by taking action before it begins to occur. Some approaches that should be taken to prevent an asthma attack include making sure the patient brings their inhaler to every appointment, making sure the patient uses their inhaler before each appointment or when needed throughout the appointment, taking m edication when scheduled, making sure the patient is in an appropriate and comfortable position for them, shortening appointment times, monitoring the patient closely during appointments, and trying to reduce as much stress as possible on the patient. In conclusion, asthma impacts five percent of adults and ten percent of children in the United States. Asthma shows a correlation between oral and systemic health. As a dental professional, it is important to be aware of any conditions that a patient may have and how to properly handle any situation that could affect their treatment. Precautions should be taken when dealing with an asthma patient in your chair as a dental professional. By completing health histories prior to an appointment, you are aware and have the ability to manage any medical emergency that can and may occur. Dental professionals have the ability to not only impact oral health but to also impact systemic health.