Role Of Diabetes In The Latino Community

There are many health problems that we face globally and each of them are important for us to be aware of and to take precautions and measures to prevent and treat such diseases that affect our global population. HIV/AIDS is a disease that is spread through direct contact with body fluids from a person who is infected with the virus, these fluids include blood, semen, rectal fluid, vaginal fluids and breast milk. There are an approximate 35 million people living with the disease globally as of 2015 and about 1 million of those people are children under the age of 15 (Aids.gov, 2016). There are approximately 1.2 million people in the U.S. living with the disease and of those individuals many became infected with HIV by needle or syringe sharing,

According to the Bexar County Community Health Assessment Executive Summary, (2013), Bexar county is characterized by abundance of fast food establishments and an unhealthy food culture or lifestyle such as improper nutrition, high caloric intake and fat consumption and inadequate exercise. Their diets are high in carbohydrates and saturated fats. A survey in 2013 showed that one in five Bexar county adults ate more than three vegetables /day and one in ten ate more than three fruits per day. Studies have also identified social factors such as level of education, and socioeconomic status with the development of type 2 diabetes.

There is a lack of knowledge of maintaining a healthy diet. For example, African Americans were knowledgeable about the harmful effects of smoking and drinking but their knowledge on dieting fluctuates. Some of the barriers were knowing the recommendations and serving sizes of salt, fats, fruits and vegetables. And incorporating a diet that included a high cost of fruits and

Health promotion, and stress reduction must be promoted for all patients, especially for individuals of a minority. As care providers, it is our job to provide the resources necessary for our patients; strive for equality; and promote health throughout the lifespan. After watching the video Bad Sugar, social and economic conditions were associated with the high rate of diabetes among the Pima Indians of Southern Arizona.

In our book, it had mentioned that Mexican Americans are 1.7 times more likely to get type 2 diabetes than whites. Type 2 diabetes is a long-term metabolic disorder and caused by high blood sugar and insulin resistance. Dietary factors can have an effect on developing type 2 diabetes as well. Mexican Americans have a higher carbohydrate diet than African Americans and whites. Type 2 diabetes can cause problems with kidney failure and diabetic retinopathy. The death rates for type 2 diabetes for Mexican Americans are 50 percent higher than for whites, Also the death rates are higher for Mexican Americans than any other hispanic group.

The following is a case study of a 41 year-old Mexican American woman who was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Because of this, food deserts are often seen as manifestations of structural inequalities in the food sales environment, which is believed to contribute to inequalities in diet and diet-related health outcomes. These problems related to food retail also further disadvantages low-income and minority ethnic groups, who are already inadequate in their ability to buy healthy foods. The less access to supermarkets and grocery stores in disadvantaged and poor neighborhoods may also create barriers to accessing healthy, yet low-costing food. Recent studies have suggested that food deserts may be linked to overall diet quality and the consumption of healthy foods and numerous diet-related health outcomes; more specifically, cardiovascular disease and obesity. On the other hand, if those in food deserts had increased access to supermarkets, it is predicted that there would be a lower prevalence of obesity

Additional studies have provided evidence to support the notion that the built and social environment do have significant influence on the development of type 2 diabetes. For example, a population-based cohort study by Gebreab et al. (2017) examined the associations between neighborhood social and physical environments [(e.g., social cohesion, availability of favorable food stores (grocery stores, fruit and vegetable markets, and supermarket chains and non-chain stores), unfavorable food stores (convenience stores, liquor

Premature death due to poor eating habits in the United States is counted at 310,000 to 580,000 each year, higher than any other factor. Diabetes is the cause of death in 68,662 cases each year (“Why...”). As cultures begin to merge dietary problems begin to become present throughout generations. Traditional eating habits are altered and have been changed specifically by the ‘American’ diet found in the United States. These changes could have created previously unknown diseases and health conditions, such as diabetes, to become prevalent within a culture. This can be seen in the Marshallese communities which have a growing problem with diabetes and a significant population in the United States. The Marshallese communities have an increasing rate of type-two diabetes. Approximately 28% of the population over the age of 15 years old is diagnosed with diabetes. The study of the Marshallese communities is still young, and there is little information gathered about them. UAMS (University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences) has recently been approved for a 2.1 million dollar grant to help improve diabetes self-management in the local Marshallese communities located in Northwest Arkansas. This study will help to determine the cause of the large increase of type-two diabetes. With these results, UAMS and other research centers could better understand what to focus on when

Chronic diseases are the prevalent health care problems in the U.S. with nearly 45 % of all Americans reporting at least one chronic disease. It's well documented that there are disparities in health outcomes for African-American and Hispanics when compared with whites because the prevalence of some diseases in this population is higher. According to the article "Healthcare Access & Disparities in Chronic Medical Condition in Urban Population," access disparities exist and appear to be linked to health literacy, education level race and use of resources in the community. (primary care

Located in South Texas, Webb County covers a land area of approximately 3,300 square miles and is home to over 250,000 residents. For the purpose of this paper, I have chosen Webb County due to the fact it has the highest prevalence of diabetes in my home state of Texas (Direct links to health-related data, 2015). The population of Webb County is over ninety five percent Hispanic (Webb County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, 2015) and this demographic consistently ranks the highest for the prevalence of diabetes at almost double the rate of their Caucasian counterparts (American Diabetes Association, 2013). Factors such as genetics, geographic location and socio-economics are also contributing to the prevalence of

In general, African Americans are deemed to have a poorer health status, in comparison to their white counterparts, which is primarily attributable to poverty and deprived communities. African Americans are more likely to consume unhealthy high-caloric foods, due to the fact that unhealthy foods are cheaper and easier to get than nutritious, low-calorie foods (Blake, J Mundoz,

It is almost as if we are predisposed to certain attributes to our life depending on our environment. If our surrounding is directly related to our health how can we decrease health disparity? “In 2014, the most recent year for which data are available, the poverty threshold for a family of four was $24,230 (“ How is poverty,” n.d.). We can already see the challenges of providing adequate nutritional value for four people can be, and perhaps the limitation on income is leading to purchasing unhealthier food. While “unhealthy food is about 1.5 dollars cheaper per day” there is still a significant impact if choosing to switch to healthy food, making an alternative food source 550 dollars more expensive throughout the year (“ Eating Heathy vs.

Department of Agriculture in 2005 showed that 5.1 percent of all U.S did not have the food they wanted or needed because of access related problems. Access to healthy foods includes not just proximity to retail locations that offers these types of foods but also the variety, cost, and the quality of foods (U.S Department of Agriculture). Accessing healthy food is a challenge for many Americans particularly those living in a low income neighborhood. In hundreds of neighborhoods across the country, nutritious, affordable, and high quality food is out of reach. Research shows that people in low income communities walk outside their door to find no grocery store, farmers’ markets or other source of fresh foods. Instead they are bombarded by fast foods and convenience stores selling high fat, high sugar, and process foods. (Helmers and Dave 45- 67). The U.S Department of Agriculture 2009 “food dessert” study examines access to supermarkets and determined that 23.5 million people cannot access a supermarket within a mild of their home (U.S Department of Agriculture).A key concern for people who live in areas with limited access is that they rely in small grocery or convenience stores that may not carry all the foods needed for a healthy

I believe that grocery stores are perhaps the most economically segregated areas of America. Much has been written about 'food deserts,' in which small 'bodega-type' stores without healthy food are the only purveyors available to residents. I have also noticed that very often grocery stores in 'bad' neighborhoods often do not even have the cheapest prices, compared with my regular supermarket. On the other hand, there has been a proliferation of lifestyle-related luxury grocery stores such as Whole Foods, which caters to mu generation's obsession with organic and specialty items. The contrast between bodegas and Whole Foods highlights the growing class divide in America. Just as Americans of different classes are divided by where they can afford to educate their children, live, and dress, economics has a profound effect on how Americans eat and the culture surrounding food.