Health-Related Issues
African Americans are the chosen population for the analysis. There are many health-related issues that can be relevant to this group of people. Some of the issues are chronic health problems caused by poor living conditions, the lack of insurance coverage, and disabilities (Mandal, Scott, Islam, & Mandal, 2013). Low socio-economic environment and personal problems promote the development of such health-related issues like high blood pressure (hypertension), diabetes, and obesity that may cause asthma, apnea, or stroke.
Approximately 40.9% of African American men and 44.8% of African American women suffer from hypertension. Hypertension is a condition when a person observes persistent or progressive changes in blood pressure (Williams, Nicholas, Vaziri, & Norris, 2014). Diabetes is another health problem that is prevalent in African Americans more than in Europeans (Ng et al., 2014). This disease is also the cause of numerous complications including kidney or renal diseases. Diabetes is the fourth leading cause of death among African American adults older than 18 years (Mandal et al., 2013).
Finally, obesity is the problem that bothers more than 58% (men) and 69% (women) of the chosen population group. Obese people can suffer from high blood pressure and the appearance of unpredictable cardiovascular diseases that kill 36% of African Americans annually. From the interviews with African Americans, it is clear that the above-mentioned issues are the outcomes of such problems as instability, grief, job issues, or problematic spousal issues (Lopez et al., 2014).
Health Promotion Activities
Health promotion is a crucial process in the lives of the chosen population because it provides African American people with an opportunity to improve and control their health. Regarding the main health-related issues, the following activities have to be properly developed for the chosen group of people. Lifestyle approaches can be used to demonstrate the alternatives available to people through health education or social marketing.
It is possible to create short but informative slogans or video forums where people share their ideas and experiences on how to control weight or what results can be achieved following an active style of life. Socio-environmental approaches can help to improve health and the environment. For example, the idea to plant trees makes people move and participate in different physical activities and create new sheltered zones for rest. The social control approach includes ideas when something is restricted or has to be minimized. For example, the control of the use of drugs among students is the step that can decrease the number of heart attacks among young adults.
Community Services
Such community services as a blood donation center or charity race can be offered to the chosen population. Blood donation is a good chance for African Americans to earn money and check their blood for different infections or chronic illnesses. Charity races help to gather money and take physical activities at the same time to reduce personal weight.
Potential Environmental Hazards
Due to the existing problems of racism, African Americans can be exposed to such environmental hazards as exposure to toxic substances or allergens (Noonan, Velasco-Mondragon, & Wagner, 2016). Not all working conditions are perfect for people, and such problems can influence African American health. Poor quality of food and drinks at schools is another problem that should be mentioned. Finally, air quality is the challenge to deal with in case African American health has to be improved.
References
Lopez, I.A., Boston, P.Q., Dutton, M., Jones, C.G., Mitchell, M.M., & Vilme, H. (2014). Obesity literacy and culture among African American women in Florida. American Journal of Healthy Behavior, 38(4), 541-552.
Mandal, A., Scott, J., Islam, N.K., & Mandal, P.K. (2013). Factors affecting African-American health: Empowering the community with health literacy. Bioprocessing & Biotechniques, 3(1), 111-112.
Ng, M.C., Shriner, D., Chen, B.H., Li, J., Chen, W.M., Guo, X.,… Comeau, M.E. (2014). Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in African Americans provides insights into the genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes. PLoS Genet, 10(8). doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1004517
Noonan, A.S., Velasco-Mondragon, H.E., & Wagner, F.A. (2016). Improving the health of African Americans in the USA: An overdue opportunity for social justice. Public Health Reviews, 37(12). doi: 10.1186/s40985-016-0025-4
Williams, S.F., Nicholas, S.B., Vaziri, N.D., & Norris, K.C. (2014). African Americans, hypertension and the rennin angiotensin system. World Journal of Cardiology, 6(9), 878-889.