The Environmental And Genetic Factors Affecting Children With Type 2 Diabetes

The incidences of diabetes are growing annually, and predicted to increase within the coming decades. The number of cases yearly is not only increasing, but the age of onset for diabetes has decreased. This means more individuals are developing diabetes at an earlier age. Diabetes not only affects individuals and communities but countries as well. The prevalence of diabetes has gathered billions of dollars in healthcare costs. [1]Type 2 diabetes also leads to other serious medical conditions such as heart disease, renal failure, blindness, and tissue damage in extremities that will eventually lead to amputation. These illnesses, as a result, result in further costs in the form of disability and the loss of a portion of our workforce. However, incidences of type 2 diabetes are in higher occurrence amongst Hispanic groups. According to the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Mexican Americans have an unusually high prevalence of diabetes compared to that of the general population [2]. Hispanic females have the highest lifetime risk of becoming diabetic – 52% [3], compared to that of the average risk of

The rate of diabetes in the United States is one of the highest compared to other developed countries. An estimate of 9.3% of the population have diabetes, of those with diabetes 27.8% have yet to be diagnosed (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2014). This means that approximately 8.1 million people are currently living with diabetes, but are unaware of it. As of 2012, 12.3% of people with diabetes were 20 years old or older, the largest population diagnosed with diabetes were adults 65 years old or older. 25.9% of this population lives with diabetes (CDC, 2014). On a national level, the CDC have launched initiatives that focus on prevention and disease management. The National Diabetes Prevention Program is an example of one such initiative. This program focuses on lifestyle changes,

However, due to the United States’ aging population, along with an increasing prevalence of obesity, diabetes is on the increase. Of the approximately 313 million population count in the United States, 97 million adults are overweight or obese. “Both excess body fat and physical inactivity predispose to type 2 diabetes. Several ethnic groups are particularly susceptible to Type 2 diabetes” (Scott 1134). Hispanics, blacks,

There are nearly 30 million people living with diabetes in the U.S. African Americans are disproportionately affected by diabetes, with 13.2% having been diagnosed with diabetes, compared to 7.6% of non-Hispanic whites. They are also at an increased risk for serious complications of diabetes, which include blindness, kidney disease and amputations. Although the risk for complications can’t be eliminated, good control of diabetes has been shown to reduce those risks.

In order to combat the epidemic of type 2 diabetes in America, a series of subsidies and social programs promoting and mandating nutrition and exercise for weight loss should be created with the trillion dollar budget. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes in America is rising and has doubled over the last 30 years to 23 million (Campbell). Currently, it costs the nation about $90 billion a year to treat the complications of type 2 diabetes (Hoerger). Added with the co-morbidities of type 2 diabetes, namely cardiovascular disease, obesity, and kidney failure, it becomes apparent that drastic measures are needed. In order to combat this epidemic, the U.S. Congress is proposing to use a trillion dollars to do whatever it takes to reduce the

In the US type 2 diabetes is a major medical problem affecting all ethnic backgrounds and needs to be addressed. The pre-diabetic and diabetic population is steadily increasing every year despite medical advancements. Unfortunately, the African American population is at a disadvantage when it comes to diabetes. Preventing medical complications related to diabetes, initiating health promotion programs, increasing healthy lifestyle behaviors will essentially lead to a decrease risk of complications secondary to diabetes and overall improve patient

Diabetes (DM) is one the many initiatives that Healthy People 2020 have been focusing on to reduce this disease morbidity and mortality rates throughout the communities. In the United States alone, the number of individuals diagnosed with diabetes has increased from 1.5 million in 1958 to 25.8 million in 2011. The Center for Disease and prevention (CDC) also estimates in the year 2011, 79 million people age 20 and over were noted to have pre-diabetes, in which the blood sugar was higher than normal levels, however, have not reached the level for a diagnosis of DM. Eleven percent of those individuals with pre-diabetic readings of raised blood glucose will progress in full blown diabetes a matter of three years. Healthy People 2020 have used evidence –based practices to aid in the prevention and treatment of diabetes. Evidence have shown by simply modifying one’s lifestyle such regular exercising and healthy eating have been recognized to effectively prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes in high-risk persons. Case in point, the Diabetes Prevention Program research trial revealed that the utilization of lifestyle interferences had its utmost impact in elderly adults and was also effective in all racial groups.

According to Healthy People 2020 (2014), diabetes affects over 29 million people in the United States, with another estimated 28 percent of the population having undiagnosed cases. Of those at risk, African Americans are almost 2 times more likely to be diagnosed as opposed to their Caucasian counterparts. Many preventable associated factors include limited knowledge regarding disease processes, healthy diet, and limited knowledge of one’s own body. Our goal is to provide our African American community the opportunity to learn more about diabetes and how to reduce the risk of type II diabetes and signs and symptoms of diabetes during a community event.

Type II Diabetes in African Americans is a major health disparity that is growing every day and needs to be understood more. According to the American Diabetes Association, African Americans are 1.7 times more likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanic whites (American Diabetes Association). Why is that? Scientist have been extensively trying to answer this question with various studies and experiments. Though it is not yet fully understood, small achievements have been made and answers are constantly being searched for. Testing and early diagnosis, primary prevention, access to care for everyone and improving that quality of care will make a difference in the number of casualties and people being affected in the African American community.

Over the past few decades, there has been an increased concern about diabetes and its effects on minority populations. Type II Diabetes is also referred to as “adult onset diabetes”, and is a condition where the body does not regulate blood glucose effectively and resists insulin. This does not allow for glucose to get into the cells of fat tissue, the liver, and muscle cells and therefore they cannot function optimally. The National Center for Health Statistics reported that in 2012, African Americans had the highest amount of new reported cases of Type II diabetes when compared to all other racial and ethnic populations, and the second highest amount of overall diabetes diagnosis at 13.2%.1,2 In 2012, type II diabetes was the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States, and African Americans are nearly two times more likely to develop diabetes. More than 50% of all new diabetes cases are developed in African American populations, with a 27% higher mortality rate than Caucasians.1

Diabetes is continuing to progress in minorities and published in 2011 indicate that about 26 million Americans have diabetes, or about 8.3% of the US population. An additional, 79 million Americans have pre-diabetes, placing them at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes. (Hill J, Galloway JM, Goley A, et al. 2013). The public health burden of diabetes is even more evident in most racial and ethnic minority groups. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes and other comorbidities, including mortality, are higher for African Americans and Hispanics, the largest racial/ethnic minority groups in the US. Despite the reported successes seen in several national diabetes prevention and control studies, there is still more to be done to understand the best mechanisms for translating the results to patient care ( Spruill, IJ, Magwood GS, Nemeth, L. S & Williams, TH

We can and must prevent the preventable. The human and financial cost of not intervening will be far greater than the cost of intervening” (International Diabetes Federation, 2016). Basically, diabetes is preventable, it is one’s own will to have courage to fight and with the help of supporters there is no excuse in overcoming this disease. Diabetics are not alone, the American Diabetes Association provides planning meals, awareness programs, food recipes, the understanding of carbohydrates and many more supportive plans. In order to obtain a healthy lifestyle with no complications of any type of disease, it is important to dedicate at least an hour a day to physical activity. The famous writer Lieberman once said, “There’s no medicine that’s more important than exercise. Analyzes have shown, exercising is one of the most important medicines for the diabetic soul, keeping sugar and blood levels at a normal rate. In addition, carefully selecting portions of food that are consume daily. The disease itself is killing many different individuals despite economic statuses. Those who have the education and means usually take it for granted, when people in lower income countries inquire the access to reliable resources. Type II Diabetes impacts negatively on many facets of global development and economic sustainability. So it is crucial that this disease is be put in the forefront so that the global burden of Type II Diabetes be

Of those with diabetes, the majority were older, African American women. For this Culminating Experience, the author reviewed the intervention with a focus on participants with type 2 diabetes. For participants with type 2 diabetes, the food provided during the intervention followed a Mediterranean diet, including fresh fruits and vegetables, equivalent to 1800 kcal a day. The meals and snacks were available to pick up twice a week. The results of this intervention showed that the Food=Medicine program produced statistically significant results across several health outcomes for those in the diabetes group. The results showed that Food=Medicine improved food insecurity (p<.00001); increased the frequency of consuming fruits and vegetables from 1.85 to 2.34 times per day (p= 0.011); decreased BMI from 36.1 at baseline to 34.8 at follow-up (p =0.035); reduced hospitalizations from 25.0percent to 6.90 percent (p = 0.09); reduced emergency department visits from 31.0percent to 13.8 percent (p = 0.09); decreased diabetes distress scores from 2.64 to 2.02 (p<0.001); increased perceived diabetes self-management scores from 24.8 to 27.3 (p = 0.007); and decreased the mean HbA1c from 9.23 percent at baseline to 8.75 percent at follow-up (p=0.41) (Palar et al., 2017).

My Health Promotion Project topic will address the strategic plan put forth by the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP). Since its inception in 1997, NDEP has been working hard to achieve its mission to "improve the treatment and outcomes for people with diabetes, promote early diagnosis, and prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes (NDEP Strategic Plan for 2017). The work being done through the NDEP and its partners align with Healthy People 2020 objectives. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 29.1 million American or just over 9% of the Unites States (US) population have diabetes. Hispanics, African American and Native Americans have the highest rates of diabetes (CDC, 2014). This data is significant

“African Americans are almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with diabetes as non-Hispanic whites and suffer from the complications of this chronic illness” (US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, 2015). Some of the complications includes vision loss, amputation of a limb, and end stage renal disease. The reason for choosing this illness is because a family member was recently diagnosed with diabetes mellitus type two at the age of thirty two. She is from the African American descent and has been living with this chronic illness since her teenager years. After the family member began to learn about diabetes and the symptoms associated with this disease, she realized some of the symptoms of diabetes was displayed during her teenager years. The family member is willing and eager to learn about diabetes mellitus. She is ready to regain control over her health and find the ways to effectively manage this chronic illness. As a health care professional empowering and bringing awareness to the African American culture, can help reduce some of the complications associated with this chronic illness. Diabetes is one of the Healthy People 2020 topic and their goal is to “Reduce the disease and economic burden of diabetes mellitus (DM) and improve the quality of life for all persons who have, or are at risk for, DM” (United States Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], Healthy People 2020, 2016). After reviewing this goal,