CBSE Class 11 Biology OTBA Guidance Document Set A

1. Theme – Life & Living

Abstract:

Globalization is an ultra modern term which is spreading its aura in every corner of the world, so it takes India also in consideration. For a country to become developed and achieve higher standards of success,  it  is of  great significance.  This widespread of  the  spirit  of  globalization  is  also  affecting the style  of  working,  which  ultimately  affects  the  health  of  the  country.  Since  most  of  the  working population of the country is youth, it is indirectly affecting the future of the country. Awareness about such consequences can lead to their prevention and it is a well known fact that “Prevention is always better than cure”.

India is sitting on the cradle of progress. With massive change in economic policy of Liberalisation, Privatization and Globalization in 1991, India has moved on the path towards modernisation and great  technical  and  professional advancements.  There  has  been  a  tremendous  growth  of  private sector enterprises in our country and a rise in number of school and college going educated youth who are employed in these sectors. 

A survey on willingness of the people to live a long life reveals following result: 

The  interpretation  which  can  easily  be  drawn  is,  more  than  50%  of  the  population  wants  to  live atleast for 80 years and not below. India’s  youth  force is  highest in  the  world,  which is extremely  determined,  ambitious, tech-savvy and  confident.  The  youth  vigour  is  seen  as  the  prime  agent  for  contributing  to  the  country’s economic  intensification  and  development.  Youngsters  are  employed  in  large  number  in  BPO (Business process Outsourcing), IT and KPO (Knowledge Process Outsourcing) industries, and are being provided handsome salaries. The most striking feature about India’s youth is its desire to stay ahead in the rat race of cut-throat competition, and to succeed as fast as possible. 

But this picture of ‘India shining’ comes at a cost and studies reveal that this cost has to be paid by none other than the very factor that is bringing the country to the brink of high growth, prosperity and development. Majority of college-going students and young working population is concentrated in metropolitan cities, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata and the urban cities like Pune, Ahmedabad,  Hyderabad,  Surat,  Kochi,  Kanpur,  Indore  etc.  Rapid  urbanisation,  growth  of professionalism and the desire to earn fast and more money, has proved extremely detrimental to the country’s youth. Despite the growth in industry and commerce, the foremost and important sector, neglected in the process, is health. It is observed that there has been a significant difference in life style of urban young population compared to the traditional, rather ‘disciplined’ style of living. It is seen that the life style adopted by majority of youth is extremely disorganised and unhealthy, and is further coupled with a defective diet. This can be owed to the idea that time is converted to money, and corporate and personal ambitions are being kept over and above health priorities. 

Employers have fixed  long hours of working for their people, in the way it suits them and young employees are constantly engaged in monotonous and immobile practice of spending hours in front of  computer  screen,  working. They  do  not  realise  that  even  though  they  may  be  progressing financially and seem to be securing their lives and their family’s future, they are moving towards an even more insecure future, as they are becoming more vulnerable to serious health risks. It is very unfortunate that they are not conscious about the facts that smoking, consuming calorie rich fast food, alcoholism and drug consumption and eventually becoming couch potatoes while not at work or  engaged  in  anything,  will,  at  the  end  of  the  day,  cut  their  life  span  and  hinder  the  country’s progress at large.

Today our eating habits are different from those of a generation ago in all ways. Fast food, takeaways and eating out are parts of life for modern teenagers. There are many changes during adolescence that can cause changes in eating behaviour. It can be very difficult for parents of teenagers to convince their children about the benefits of healthier eating when they are also competing with the powerful messages advertising the taste of unhealthy but enticing food.

Innumerable health issues, which are coming up among today’s youth, show a growing concern among the medicos and health experts. Usually, such issues are attributed to conflicts prevailing in the country over the last 24-25 years. Sedentary, deskbound life styles and less physical activity are other contributing factors to it. “Change in dietary habits, obesity (which is rapid nowadays due to sedentary life style), less outside activity and more time spend on social websites are the contributing factors responsible for health issues among youth” says Dr. Aadil Ashraf, senior post graduate, Deptt. of medicines, Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) hospital in Kashmir.

Common problems which arise due to today’s life style are:

Obesity, a very common problem, arising due to change in life-style In modern living, there is very limited physical activity, which does not require a dense, calorie rich food but this is the kind of diet which teenagers are normally taking that leads to increase in their weight.

Obesity leads to other problems, like young people start to fight to control the weight, which further leads to diet related disorders like Anorexia, which is more than just a problem because of or with the food. It is a way of using food or starving oneself to feel more in control of life and to effortlessly ease tension, stress, anger and anxiety.

Bulimia nervosa is a disorder in the eating disorder range or spectrum. It is a characteristic disorder of binge eating and characterized by episodes of overeating and then hiding this habit from others and feeling ashamed of. Bulimia is characterized by episodes of secretive, undue excessive eating followed by inappropriate methods of weight control, such as self induced vomiting, abuse or misuse of laxatives and diuretics or excessive, self planned, self directed exercise. It is a psychological disorder. This is another condition that goes beyond control dieting.

The cycle of overeating and purging becomes an obsession similar to an addiction to drugs or other substances. This disorder generally occurs after a number of unsuccessful attempts of dieting. Binge

eating is not triggered by extremely intense hunger. It is a response to depression, tension, stress or other feelings related to body weight, shape or feeding habits.
Dr. Ashraf says, “There is a rapid increase in mental illness”, by adding that the mental illness has become common here. For him, conflicts and increase in competition level are some of its contributing factors.

Various life style diseases including diabetes, drug abuse, depression, obesity, cardio- vascular diseases and various forms of cancer are taking a heavy toll on the health of people. This was stated by the Deptt. of community medicine, Sher-e-kashmir Institute of medical Sciences(SKIMS).

Kulsoom Bhat, SKIM’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), while quoting various health experts in a seminar on ‘life style diseases and the role of community medicine’, organized by the hospital in January, says, over use of internet causes internet addiction disorder, which is seen as the most modern life style disease. She adds, the speakers viewed physical inactivity, improper diet, tobacco, alcohol and stress as the main contributing factors that cause increased risk to human health, taking the form of very specific life style diseases.

Referring to a study conducted by hospital’s Deptt. of General Surgery, Clinical Biochemistry and Endocrinology, Bhat says, obesity has been found to be an important factor associated with the risk of having gall bladder stone diseases followed by raised cholesterol. She, while quoting experts, says, metabolic syndrome is a growing health problem and is closely associated with cardiovascular diseases and non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases.

Study revealed that people with high blood pressure, diabetes and hyperglyceridemia are at high risk of having metabolic syndrome. It further brought to the light the fact that these problems can be curtailed through multidisciplinary treatment, including life style modifications, combined with therapeutic pharmacotherapy.

The stress of modern day living is causing an enormous burden on healthcare globally. Poor eating timings and habits, sleep deprivation and sedentary lifestyles have contributed to the growth of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and hypertension, leading to a literal explosion of cases with cardiovascular complications.

The situation is worse in a country like India where historically the ratio of a physician to population is 1,00,000 to 1. Lack of expertise in complete disease management from the provider’s side and lack of understanding of life style diseases among people, has created a complicated situation. Experts forecast that by 2020 nearly half the deaths will occur from complications of

RJ, 33 years old, was highly dedicated to his job and lived a very hectic lifestyle. He was considered as the hardest working employee in his organisation. He never liked to waste time during lunch hours and worked continuously during office time. He either frequently ate from outside, grabbing quick meals from hawkers or stalls, cafes and fast food restaurants, or he just skipped food. He never had time for exercise and was very overweight. He was also a heavy smoker, and frequently used the excuse that cigarettes helped him deal with stress.
Research on the most fascinating components of so called harmful substances uncovers the components, intake of which is being enjoyed by smokers:

Please refer to attached file for CBSE Class 11 Biology OTBA Guidance Document Set A.