April Is Minority Health Month - and Disparities Continue to Negatively Affect African Americans
Despite government efforts to address disparities in the past decade, beginning with President Clinton's 1998 Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities Initiative, there has been very little progress. African Americans have more disease, disability and early death than Caucasians. The statistics are alarming:
- African Americans are 1.6 times more likely to have diabetes than non-Latino Caucasians.
- African Americans have higher death rates for coronary heart disease (CHD), coronary artery disease (CAD) and stroke.
- The prevalence of high blood pressure among African Americans is among the highest in the world.
- There is an estimate that 80% of Black women and 60% of Black men are overweight or obese (which contributes to heart disease, certain cancers, high blood pressure and diabetes, among other chronic health conditions).
- African-American women are three times more likely to have lupus than Caucasian women.
- African Americans are 38% less likely to get joint replacement to alleviate chronic joint pain than Caucasians.
Keeping weight under control plays a critical role in managing these health issues. Verona Brewton, director of Minority Initiatives at Zimmer, a manufacturer of orthopedic prosthetics, says that although health disparities are worsening for African Americans, there is still time to take control of the downward trends by focusing on those individual behaviors that positively impact one's health. "Whether you suffer from heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure or another chronic health condition, there is a key factor that will make a difference in your quality of life -- exercise," explains Brewton. However, many African Americans face a major hurdle: they are living with chronic joint pain. "Every warning from governmental and nonprofit health organizations implores our community to 'get moving' because of the positive impact it has on combating these conditions," says Brewton. "But, we have failed to make the direct link between painful movement and poor health."
A February 2009 report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) revealed that health disparities for African Americans in getting joint replacement have worsened, from 37% to 39% between 2000 and 2006. Although doctors performed 58% more total knee replacement procedures between 2000 and 2006, African Americans were 39% less likely than Caucasians to get joint replacement. Regaining mobility and being active is critical in helping to manage and defeat chronic health conditions.
