Hypertension Research Paper

According to the office of the minority health, approximately 48% of African American women and 44% of African American men suffer from some form of the cardiovascular disease which includes heart disease and stroke and adults are 40 percent more likely to have high blood pressure while the women are 1.6 times more likely to die from heart diseases and complications than other ethnic groups (The Office of Minority Health, 2016).

African Americans are the third largest racial or ethnic population, totaling 13.2% of the United States population (CDC, 2015). Giger (2013) states, some health disparities associated with African Americans is due to discriminatory practices and inequalities in social, economic, and educational opportunities, rather than biological factors. Statistics identifies higher health disparities for this population reflected in overall mortality rates compared to other populations. According to the Office of Minority Health (2014), the adult mortality rate is higher in African Americans for heart disease, stroke, cancer, asthma, influenza, pneumonia, and diabetes, as well as higher rates of infant mortality. For instance, the overall adult mortality rate for African Americans is 860.5 per 100,000 population compared to 731.0 per 100,000 population in Caucasian Americans according to 2012 data (KFF, 2015).

The American Medical Journal explains that the heart disease is one of the deadliest medical conditions. Medical experts reckon that heart disease is a lifestyle disease, which emanates from excessive consumption of the wrong dietary combination. Foods such as fats and carbohydrates often expose individuals to the threat of heart disease. Consuming fast foods from McDonalds also expose people to the threat of heart disease. The most plausible means of mitigating the risk of contacting heart disease is by observing dietary combination. Individuals must keep a balanced diet always in order to avoid dietary concerns later on in life. The most common symptoms include chest discomfort, nausea, trouble sleeping, breathing problems, and unusual tiredness.

Cardiovascular disease, mainly coronary heart disease and stroke, is the leading cause of death among all racial and ethnic groups in the United States. A disproportionate number of people in minority and low-income populations die or become disabled from cardiovascular disease. The death rate for coronary heart disease for the nation decreased by 20% from 1987 to 1995, but for blacks, the overall decrease was only 13 percent. The coronary heart disease mortality rate for Asian Americans was 40% lower than whites, but 40% higher for blacks in 1995. High blood pressure and hypertension can increase the risk for coronary heart disease, and it has been shown that racial minorities have higher rates of hypertension, tend to develop hypertension at an earlier age, and are less likely to receive treatment for high blood pressure. Also, only 50% of American Indians, 44% of Asian

African American women are dying at a much higher rate in preventable health issues like HIV/AIDS, diabetes and heart disease. In February 2005, the Black AIDS Institute found that black women accounted for 72 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases in women in Los Angeles alone. Black women are also 25 times higher to get HIV/AIDS which is mostly due to inadequate health screenings.

Keywords: socioeconomic status (SES), cardiovascular disease (CVD), African American, risk factors, social determinants, and health disparities, institutionalized racism.

African-American women have a higher rate of hypertension (high blood pressure) than white women and Hispanic women. “According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 34.2% of the Black, non-Hispanic female population between 1998 and 1994 had hypertension 22.0% of Hispanic women and 19.3% of White; non-Hispanic women had hypertension during this time.” (NWHIC, 2015) A few of the reasons African-American women have a higher rate of hypertension is because of genetic and environmental factors, also dietary factors such as their bad eating habits and huge salt

Hypertension is a major health condition which affects many Americans. This health condition may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke. A normal blood pressure consists of systolic blood pressure divided by diastolic blood pressure, 120/80mmHg (millimeters of mercury). High blood pressure is defined as systolic pressure which is greater than 140mm Hg, and diastolic pressure which is over 90mm Hg. Hypertension influences the health outcomes of black Americans more than other races in the United States. Racial discrimination and socioeconomic status are two major factors which influence the rate of high blood pressure in the black American population.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines High Blood Pressure as the force of blood pushing against the walls of your arteries, which carry blood from your heart to other parts of your body. Blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day. But if it stays high for a long time, it can damage your heart and lead to health problems. High blood pressure raises your risk for heart disease and stroke, which are leading causes of death in the United States. One out of every three adults over the age of twenty- that’s nearly eighty million Americans have high blood pressure. What’s more interesting is that nearly twenty percent don’t even know they don’t have it. Consequently, African American suffer more from this disease than any other race. According to the American Heart Association, forty percent of African American men and women have high blood pressure (AHA, 2016). Notably, adults twenty years and older consist of 42.6 percent are men and 47.0 percent are women that have this illness. For years’ researchers, have tried to understand why High Blood Pressure affect the African American at a higher rate than others. As a

African Americans are more likely to eat a lot of greasy, fat food, and hardly every think about working out. Most importantly African American men are less likely to go to the doctor and check on themselves. This causes more heart

Pre-hypertension is 120 to 139 systolic or top number blood pressure, 80 to 89 diastolic or bottom number of blood pressure            3. Hypertension is characterized as anything over 144 systolic and anything over 90 diastolic III. Blood pressure basics       A. The body             1. In order to survive and function properly, your tissues and organs need oxygenated blood that your cardiovascular system provides, when heart pumps it pushes blood though network of vessels            2.

Essential hypertension also referred to as primary hypertension is a disease that doesn't show any symptoms. When symptoms do show that is shows some long term effects that it has had on other organs. Essential hypertension is an idiopathic disease, meaning there isn't no identifiable cause, however it tends to be the consequence of an interaction between environment and genetic factors. That could be why it is called the silent killer, the only way to be diagnosed is by having your blood pressure checked three times at separate physician appointments. Hypertension can lead to many diseases such as, arteriosclerosis, cardiovascular disease,

Foods for high blood pressure reduction include unsalted foods, low fat foods and foods high in potassium and foods that are high in fiber. Sodium is an enemy to hypertension. By itself, a high sodium diet will usually elevate blood pressure readings. Foods that are high in potassium tend to neutralize or even lower levels of sodium. So, can we put this all together into a diet that will help lower blood pressure? Yes, we can, and in this article, we will do so.

Heart disease is the first leading causes of death among American women. In general, cardiovascular disease (CVD) claims the lives of more than 500 000 women every year in the United States; this compares to 41.3% of total female mortalities nationwide, and more than all types of cancers combined. African American women have the highest CVD mortality rate among ethnic minority groups. In spite of these statistics, a national survey conducted by the American Heart Association (AHA) in 1997 demonstrated that only 7% of women identified CVD to be their utmost health threat and less than one third knew it was the leading cause of death. A follow-up survey in 2000 after launching a campaign in order to spread awareness about CVD indicated only a small change in awareness.

Flack, J. M., Nasser, S. A., & Levy, P. D. (2011). Therapy of hypertension in African Americans. American Journal of Cardiovascular Drugs, 11(2), 83-92. doi:10.2165/11586930-000000000-00000