Health Watch
Health Watch
With the holiday season behind us and spring time approaching many people, much to their chagrin, drag themselves to their local gym to shave off those extra pounds. Everyone wants to look their best, and in this day in age vanity seems to be the number one driving force behind fitness, and although it is a good motivating factor we should all try to remember that fitness should start from the inside out. What we ingest is equally as important as what we do to stay active. Unfortunately the message of harmony between diet and exercise has been lost. Obesity, which is one of the leading causes for heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes, has become an epidemic in America’s society. More alarming are the rates in which obesity and the diseases that follow are occurring within minority populations.
African Americans as well as Hispanic Americans are showing significantly higher rates in obesity. For women, African American women have the highest prevalence of being overweight with a staggering 78%, with an obesity level at 50.8%. For men, Mexican American men lead the pack with 74.4% of them overweight, with an obesity level at 29.4%. Unfortunately the problem has yet to cease and is spreading to children and adolescents, in fact 30.3% of children of ages between 6 and 11 are overweight, and 15.3% are obese. With genetic predispositions coupled with poor diet and little to no physical activity, these numbers will only increase. There are many frightening statistics out there indicating poor health within the minority and ethnic population, and surely this is no coincidence.
For many years there has been major debate over the issue of minorities, in particular African Americans, receiving unequal treatment from physicians. In March 2002, the Institute of Medicine found that racial and ethnic minorities have in fact received lower quality of health care than Whites. Many believe these disparities exist because of the lack of cultural and racial backgrounds from practicing physicians. As a result many minorities have little trust in the medical field and therefore are more likely not to seek medical attention.
We also cannot ignore the socio-economic factors involved. Undeniably the unequal distribution of wealth and income has a direct involvement in personal health. Some studies have shown that women with family incomes less than $10,000 annually are three times as likely to die of diabetes, compared to those with an income of over $25,000. African Americans are more likely than Whites to die of heart disease, stroke; lung, prostate, and breast cancer. The facts indicate the lower one is on the social hierarchy the more likely their health will be at risk.
We are waging a war against our health and the only way to fight this epidemic is to spread awareness and push our elected officials to correct the shortcomings of our current health policies. First and foremost there should better training for existing physicians on how to better diagnose and care for ethnic minorities, it is also imperative to train more minority physicians. While more Hispanics and African Americans are applying and being accepted into medical schools the numbers are still low and not representative of the population at large. Studies have shown there are a few benefits of having same race doctors, there tends to be more trust within patients and they are more likely to schedule follow up appointments and comply with prescribed medical regiments.
Another step in the right direction is to pass better legislation that addresses these major health issues. In 2001 California legislators sponsored and passed a bill that bans all junk food sales in both elementary and middle schools. Children have shown higher levels of concentration and productivity without junk food in their systems, however with the lack of physical education programs, and little to no current preventive health curriculum being offered we still have a long road ahead of us. With out a better plan of attack health problems amongst the population, more specifically within minorities, will only be exasperated. There also needs to be a level of personal accountability, whether we like it or not we are the keepers of our own bodies, moreover without the initiative to partake in regular physical activity and the will power to establish healthier eating habits no one stands a chance of beating the statistics. We all should do ourselves a favor by taking the stairs instead of the elevator, we need to exchange our candy bars and french-fries for fruits and vegetables, one step at a time we can revolutionize the way we think and treat our bodies.
With the holiday season behind us and spring time approaching many people, much to their chagrin, drag themselves to their local gym to shave off those extra pounds. Everyone wants to look their best, and in this day in age vanity seems to be the number one driving force behind fitness, and although it is a good motivating factor we should all try to remember that fitness should start from the inside out. What we ingest is equally as important as what we do to stay active. Unfortunately the message of harmony between diet and exercise has been lost. Obesity, which is one of the leading causes for heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes, has become an epidemic in America’s society. More alarming are the rates in which obesity and the diseases that follow are occurring within minority populations.
African Americans as well as Hispanic Americans are showing significantly higher rates in obesity. For women, African American women have the highest prevalence of being overweight with a staggering 78%, with an obesity level at 50.8%. For men, Mexican American men lead the pack with 74.4% of them overweight, with an obesity level at 29.4%. Unfortunately the problem has yet to cease and is spreading to children and adolescents, in fact 30.3% of children of ages between 6 and 11 are overweight, and 15.3% are obese. With genetic predispositions coupled with poor diet and little to no physical activity, these numbers will only increase. There are many frightening statistics out there indicating poor health within the minority and ethnic population, and surely this is no coincidence.
For many years there has been major debate over the issue of minorities, in particular African Americans, receiving unequal treatment from physicians. In March 2002, the Institute of Medicine found that racial and ethnic minorities have in fact received lower quality of health care than Whites. Many believe these disparities exist because of the lack of cultural and racial backgrounds from practicing physicians. As a result many minorities have little trust in the medical field and therefore are more likely not to seek medical attention.
We also cannot ignore the socio-economic factors involved. Undeniably the unequal distribution of wealth and income has a direct involvement in personal health. Some studies have shown that women with family incomes less than $10,000 annually are three times as likely to die of diabetes, compared to those with an income of over $25,000. African Americans are more likely than Whites to die of heart disease, stroke; lung, prostate, and breast cancer. The facts indicate the lower one is on the social hierarchy the more likely their health will be at risk.
We are waging a war against our health and the only way to fight this epidemic is to spread awareness and push our elected officials to correct the shortcomings of our current health policies. First and foremost there should better training for existing physicians on how to better diagnose and care for ethnic minorities, it is also imperative to train more minority physicians. While more Hispanics and African Americans are applying and being accepted into medical schools the numbers are still low and not representative of the population at large. Studies have shown there are a few benefits of having same race doctors, there tends to be more trust within patients and they are more likely to schedule follow up appointments and comply with prescribed medical regiments.
Another step in the right direction is to pass better legislation that addresses these major health issues. In 2001 California legislators sponsored and passed a bill that bans all junk food sales in both elementary and middle schools. Children have shown higher levels of concentration and productivity without junk food in their systems, however with the lack of physical education programs, and little to no current preventive health curriculum being offered we still have a long road ahead of us. With out a better plan of attack health problems amongst the population, more specifically within minorities, will only be exasperated. There also needs to be a level of personal accountability, whether we like it or not we are the keepers of our own bodies, moreover without the initiative to partake in regular physical activity and the will power to establish healthier eating habits no one stands a chance of beating the statistics. We all should do ourselves a favor by taking the stairs instead of the elevator, we need to exchange our candy bars and french-fries for fruits and vegetables, one step at a time we can revolutionize the way we think and treat our bodies.
posted by San Jose Silicon Valley NAACP @ 10:58 AM
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