Response
Social media is a great tool for reaching the target audience for public health programs. In today's society, social media is used very often and is used for personal uses or public uses. For targeting an audience for a diabetes prevention program, social media is a great tool. The CDC, 2016, says that Mobile Apps are an excellent way to deliver public health information. When delivering information about type 2 diabetes, mobile apps are great tools to use.
The diabetes prevention program focuses on weight loss for each participant. The goal for each participant is weight loss and preventing pre-diabetes. With the help of mobile apps, this goal would be easier to reach. For example, the program could implement the app "My Fitness Pal". The app allows you to track the number of calories eaten per day. You can personalize the app to specific goals. If the goal is to lose 20 pounds, the app will calculate how many calories should be consumed on a daily basis and how long it would actually take for the weight to come off. The app also shows the nutrition facts of all the food that is being tracked.
The app has been successfully used by many people. Seeing how much and what calories are being consumed, allows people to change their bad eating habits. I personally used the Fitness app and saw great results. I lost 35 pounds by tracking my meals and snacks. The app also calculates the amount of exercise a person has participated in for that day. Another app that could be used by the program is "Fitbit".
A Fitbit is a fitness band that tracks steps taken per day, heartrate, calories burned, flights of stairs taken etc.
Depending on the participants, social media may not be the best format to take. The majority of people affected by type 2 diabetes are older adults, therefore social media may not be the best tool to use. However, more and more adults are using social media and have smart phones and gadgets.
I would offer my participants the chance to use social media for the program. If tracking becomes too difficult for participants or they do not own a smart phone, I would give them the option of using a journal. Journals can also help weight loss and becoming more physically active.
Also, Facebook has been a major part of social media and today's society. Older adults are using Facebook to make connections with people and to get news. Facebook can be a useful tool in a diabetes prevention program. Participants of the program can use Facebook for support and questions. A private group page for the participants could be useful for the program. I believe that social media is a great way to get people motivated for weight loss and changing their lifestyle.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2016. CDC Mobile Activities.
Response two-pbh-07
I thin k that social media is an essential part of the public health conversation. Social platforms enable us to reach more people who can benefit from science-based information about preventing and managing diabetes. A variety of social media tools like Facebook, Instagram, twitter, among others, are used to reinforce and personalize messages, reach new audiences, and build a communication infrastructure based on open information exchange. However, social media it is not for everyone.
For my older diabetes participants, I would continue to offer infographics. Infographics (Information Graphics) are visual representations of data, information or knowledge that tell a story through visual communication. Sometimes people do better or understand better when the information is presented vividly (flyers, magazines, pamphlets) they would follow recommendations better and over all, they will manage their disease better. For those younger adults, the use of social media apps like the ones mentioned above seems to be the better option.
Younger adults are more curious and sometimes so eager to learn, that navigating around the apps is an easy task. Smarts phones are also a great way to facilitate health communication and management. Smarts phones have different apps that can health manage individual's disease, and promote healthy behaviors. For example, an iPhone, has a health app where individuals can track their health progress, their sleep activity, calories intake, physical activity, steps taken per day, and many more.
In general, social media, is one of the greatest inventions out there with many benefits to the public, but I recommend continuing to have primary care physicians and specialist as a top priority. I say this because it is easy to get lost in the technological world and forget that technology it is a tool to add to what we already have (like our doctors, nurses, etc), so it is important to remember that a balanced combination of all the components is healthy.