The prevalence of high blood pressure (hypertension) is 50% higher in African Americans than it is in whites (Peters, 2015). Mortality rates among African Americans are also significantly higher than whites. The direct cause for hypertension is unknown, but there are such risk factors that can lead to the disease. Factors such as obesity, alcohol use, lack of exercise, and sodium sensitivity contributes to higher rates of mortality, most commonly in African Americans. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) has been used in numerous studies to understand and explain certain behaviors. The purpose of this study is to use the TBH model to explore the risk factors and beliefs of African Americans to control and prevent hypertension. African Americans are consistently reporting a higher prevalence in hypertension than in whites (Fuchs, 2011). The authors find that there are eighteen genotypes and phenotypes that are involved in the increase of …show more content…
The individual must one, be aware of the disease. They must also know how to treat the disease with the prescribed medication. Lastly, the individual must be able to control it by maintaining a systolic blood pressure lower than 140 mm. One of the primary problem affecting racial disparities in hypertension control are differences between patient’s and provider’s attitudes about health (CDC, 2010) African American’s beliefs are based upon one’s socio-economical status, age, and their place of origin. Their beliefs about the disease affects how they are susceptible to the disease., severity, and how effective their treatment will be. According to the CDC, focus groups among African Americans have proven that it makes it is hard for one to believe they have the disease when there are no present symptoms of the disease. This can be problematic it can affect the patients trust in the physician and the ability to submit to the right treatment and recommendations (CDC,
These days technology is such a big party of daily life that people often take their devices with them as they go about their day. If you have to stay in touch with work, or family, it may become necessary to charge these devices while you in the car. A 3 amp 12 volt car USB port makes this possible. Amazon has a variety of charging ports for your car or truck. Choose one to help you stay connected no matter where you are.
provides a view of a field that embraces the paradigm shift that focuses on the health and health care away from the white majority and towards the diverse experiences of racial and ethnic minorities. Of particular the author talks about the complexities of health disparities from preventing chronic conditions in minority population including both domestic and international perspectives. The author further refers to social policy and the role of race and ethnicity in health research, social factors contributing to mortality, longevity and life expectancy, quantitative and demographic analysis and access and utilization of health services. LaVeist’s intended audience is undergraduate and graduate student but a wider audience exists such as community
BiDil is a heart failure drug for a specific racial-ethnic group. Controversy lies in that it was the first drug targeted towards African-American to be approved through the Food and Drug Administration. During research, specifically African-American patients were treated with BiDil; as a result, it is unknown how affective the drug is in other races not studied. There is a debate on whether it is ethical to personalize medicine to specific races since minority races have a history of being underserved regarding healthcare. There are concerns social and environmental factors to disease will be overlooked and instead be attributed to genetic differences, creating a disparity in drug
For example, according to the racial-genetic model health disparities are explained in terms of the individual’s genetics. Hence, African American women are at higher risk for breast cancer. However, even though through primary prevention efforts such as breast cancer awareness campaigns and other forms of education, women living below the poverty line are still at high risk. Primary prevention is the best approach in order to increase quality of life and prolong life.
(Staten et al. 2005) Creating culturally tailored chronic disease prevention programs is important to target this specific community that has distinct needs.
“African Americans and Alzheimer ’s disease: Role of Health Educators in Addressing this Silent Epidemic,” written by Deborah A. Fortune, PhD, MCHES Rosalyn Lang, PhD, Sharon Cook, PhD, Goldie S. Byrd, PhD, Is an article that focuses on the role of the health educator in relation to the awareness and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. The Alzheimer’s disease epidemic, health disparities amongst African Americans, and how health education are the main points that the article covers. I chose this article because it depicts exactly what I want to do when I graduate. The article also provides valuable information about an epidemic that plagues the African American Community. We have been talking about health disparities in class, which has influenced me to choose this article.
Peterson (2011) conducted a study to determine the perceptions of African American women regarding an active lifestyle, and to evaluate the HSAP as a potential strategy to promote physical activity. The HSPAP is a church-based physical activity intervention established to encourage confidence, gain social support, and provide a sense of belonging among African American women managing their chronic illnesses (Peterson, 2011). The researcher found that participants in the program believed that physical activity improve health and prevents chronic diseases. The researcher believed that the support from health professionals, peers, family and church members had an impact on whether the participants increase their amount of physical activity. By the program having the spiritual component the participants believed that spiritual messages and prayer would strengthen their commitment to continue an active
The cheapness and accessibility of fast food makes it a go-to in many African American households, they are unaware of what they are really consuming. If black people truly knew what’s in that dollar burger, would they be so quick to purchase it? Through factual evidence, case studies, and statistics I will address the issue of hypertension in the African American communities and find a way to combat
African Americans African Americans are decedents of Africa that now live in America. They do not all carry the same cultural and ethnic beliefs though, and are a very diverse group of people. This diverse group does in fact have some overall similarities in their practices and beliefs. Some of the health beliefs that are similar are having a strong social support, caring about their community, using home remedies and faith healers for their health, and having fears of dying from cancer. Many turn to God and pray first and this can lead to a delay in getting professional medical help and treatment.
Living in underprivileged neighborhoods creates a lot of stress on community members that predispose them to contracting diseases. Epidemiologist, Ana Diez-Roux, states that people living in disadvantaged neighborhoods have a 50% to 80% increased risk of developing heart disease. An improvement of health policies is required to for disadvantaged neighborhoods to
In recent times, the subject of health disparities has attracted a lot of attention through the media report in both local and national level.in this essay, the health condition of African American will be discussed in this in the following areas as their health status, barriers to health, diverse population and disparities, and health promotion approach to improving this situation. Health Status: According to the 2014 National Health Interview Survey, 13.5% of all African Americans have less than average health (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014a). Averagely, the African-American have higher prevalence of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension compared to the national ratio. Further study reveals that 48
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) “Heart disease is the leading cause of death for people of most ethnicities in the United States, including African Americans, Hispanics, and whites.(2)” Among these ethnicities, African Americans have the highest death rate. Why is it that African Americans are at the top of this list? Perhaps it is because of the social inequality experienced on the socioeconomic scale. Socioeconomic status can heavily influence the optimal health of the heart in an individual; resulting in cardiac injury.
What was indeed most striking in this interview was the many instances of black people being mistreated at the hands of medical professionals. For instance, the Tuskegee syphilis experiment in which the U.S. Public Health Service sponsored a study to observe the evolution of and consequences of
The impact that residential segregation and health disparities among African Americans have is minorities become sicker and die more often because they lack medical insurance or have unhealthy lifestyles. Minorities receive unequal treatment from the medical system, regardless of economic status and insurance coverage. These researchers say segregation’s negative impact on health is true particularly for African-Americans, who studies consistently show are most likely to live apart from other racial-ethnic groups. Blacks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have the highest overall death rate in the country. The rate of high blood pressure among African-Americans is highest not just in the nation, but also in the world, the American Heart Association reports, as is the percentage of black men who contract prostate
Obesity in THE BLACK COMMUNITY: A Serious Epidemic Obesity is a serious problem, affecting an estimated 300 million people worldwide. Its prevalence is increasing in developing countries throughout the world. More than one-third of adults were obese in 2011–2012.(1) Among non-hispanic black adults, however, 56.6% of women were obese compared with 37.1% of men. (1) The health risks associated with obesity make reducing the high prevalence of obesity a health priority.