Introduction
The health and well-being of an individual are usually affected by numerous factors, where those linked to ill health, disease, death, or disability are referred to as risk factors (Durstine, 2009, p.32). Risk factors can also be described as the general characteristics of a person, their lifestyle, genetic background as well as the environment that can most likely contribute to the likelihood of getting an illness (Atkinson, 2012, p.45). Some of the common examples of risk factors include unsafe sex, sanitation, and hygiene, consumption of alcohol and tobacco, overweight, obesity, among others. For one to be able to determine the risk factors, one needs to utilize two key approaches or types of studies. Firstly, one needs to study individuals who have the illness and compare them with those of a similar age and gender but are not affected by the disease (CDCP, 2012, p.1). This process is referred to as a case-control study and information regarding the individuals’ personal and family traits is collected, in addition to past exposures that may have taken place through work and lifestyle (Frieden & Berwick, 2011, p.60). It is said that risk factors tend to take place more often in people who have the disease rather than those who do not have it.
The second approach that can be used to determine the risk factors is through a cohort study, where individuals with particular characteristics or similar lifestyles are compared against those without the characteristics of lifestyles, to determine if there is a distinction regarding how often the 2 categories develop an illness (Hertz, Under, Cornell, & Saunders, 2005, p.43). According to recent literature, two distinct populations were analyzed in order to determine risk factors. The groups were African American men over the age of 50 years and African American women over the age of 50 years. These two populations were compared in 4 main categories namely cardiovascular, respiratory, metabolic, and muscoskeletal. In this particular research paper, I will discuss the averages for each group where I will then compare and contrast the two distinct populations.
Risk Factors
Cardiovascular Risk Factors
African American Men
Cardiovascular disease or heart disease is a set of conditions involving narrowed or blocked blood vessels capable of leading to high blood pressure, heart failure, chest pain, stroke, or a heart attack (Mensha, Mokdad, Ford, Greenlund, & Croft, 2005, p.71). Anyone can develop the cardiovascular disease but recent studies have revealed that African American men and African American women are more prone to this particular disease than their Caucasian counterparts. Studies have also indicated that in the case of African American men, their rate of heart failure before attaining the age of 50 years is 20 times higher than that of whites (Hansson & Hamsten, 2011, p.77). African American men are also unevenly affected by cardiovascular disease where one of the risk factors is uncontrolled high blood pressure.
African American Women
As indicated earlier on, African American individuals are more prone to cardiovascular diseases than their white counterparts. Recent statistics have revealed that nearly 40% of African American women are more likely to lose their lives to cardiovascular disease than their white counterparts, in addition to having multiple risk factors for heart disease such as obesity and high blood pressure (Lindsay, Laurin, Hill & McDowell, 2002, p.100). Nearly half of all victims of heart attacks are women whose risk tends to increase if they have had a hysterectomy, is on birth control pills while being regularly exposed to smoking, or are more than 7 years past their menopause (Treadwell, Xanthos, & Holden, 2012, p.112). African American women in particular have an estimated 28% higher rate of heart disease death as compared to their white counterparts.
It has also been established that 80% of heart attack deaths among African American women take place after the age of 65 years (Durstine, 2009, p.50). This means that the heart failure rate among African American women is more likely than that of white women in their 50s and 60s (Atkinson, 2012, p.96). Both African American men and African American women who develop cardiovascular disease earlier usually have at least one of 4 risk factors by the time they are over the age of 50 years, that is, being overweight or obese, high-density cholesterol chronic kidney disease, and high blood pressure (Waller, Kaprio, & Kujala, 2008, p.24).
Respiratory Risk Factors
African American Men
Risk factors for respiratory conditions refer to factors that do not necessarily and directly bring about the disease but are in one way or the other associated. As compared to other racial groups in America, African American men tend to suffer far worse health and this has been particularly attributed to factors such as lack of affordable healthcare services, poverty, and poor health education (Frieden & Berwick, 2011, p.33). According to a recent report, it was suggested that African American men tend to suffer greater risks from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease or COPD, as compared to their Caucasian counterparts (Hertz, et al., 2005, p.49).
Other common respiratory illnesses that tend to impact the health of the majority of African American men are asthma and lung cancer. African American men who have a history with COPD are 6 times more prone to increased risk of lung cancer (Mensha, et al., 2005, p.66). Asthma, on the other hand, is a serious inflammatory condition that affects the airways and leads to bouts of breathlessness, tightness in the chest, and wheezing. These two groups of respiratory disease are quite common among African American men over the age of 50 years.
African American Women
Despite the fact that African American women are less likely to smoke as compared to their white counterparts, it is rather surprising to learn that their lung cancer rates are higher than white women’s (Hansson & Hamsten, 2011, p.20). African American women are also diagnosed with respiratory conditions such as lung cancer quite early in life, and by the time they are over the age of 50 years, the majority of them are past recovery. The majority of African American individuals cannot really afford good healthcare services and instead opt to wait until it is too late to seek medical care. Another factor that can be attributed to the high rate of respiratory risk factors in African American women than their white counterparts is exposure to air pollution (Lindsay, et al., 2002, p.84). Industries that tend to produce heavier air pollution are usually located in African American communities and this makes African American women over 50 years, more prone to lung cancer (Treadwell, et al., 2012, p.85).
Similar to the case of African American men, asthma is also quite prevalent in African American women especially those who are over the age of 50 years. The majority of African American communities are quite poor and this means that the individuals within the societies lack a few necessities such as food and shelter. Exposure to cold can bring about respiratory conditions such as asthma and pneumonia for the seniors along with children (Durstine, 2009, p.90).
Metabolic Risk Factors
African American Men
In simple fact, metabolic syndrome is a risk factor that is experienced by individuals over the age of 50 years and it refers to a combination of factors that tend to add to one’s risk for diabetes, stroke, and heart disease (Atkinson, 2012, p.93). This particular syndrome is considered to be quite dangerous because once risk factors can be observed together in a given individual there is an increased likelihood for cardiovascular issues as well as diabetes (Waller, et al., 2008, p.97). The metabolic syndrome has in the recent past become more common especially in adults who are over 50 years because of the increased rate of obesity.
In recent studies, it was revealed that African American men who are over 50 years of age tend to have a significant connection with metabolic syndrome (CDCP, 2012, p.10). This means that African American men at this age no longer have the numerous stress related to work or family and are quite comfortable at this point in their lives (Frieden & Berwick, 2011, p.104). However, African American men are more prone to the metabolic syndrome as compared to their Caucasian counterparts because they do not usually engage in routine exercise such as walking; these are activities that are carried out by whites who are over 50 years (Hertz, et al., 2005, p.99). In addition, the majority of Caucasians who have reached seniority tend to eat healthily and watch their diet even more than when they were young individuals.
African American Women
As compared to their African American male counterparts, African American women are said to suffer from metabolic syndrome more often. Recent studies have also revealed that African American women, particularly those over the age of 50 years tend to suffer from abdominal obesity (Mensha, et al., 2005, p.117). It was also observed that African American women who were still married by the time they reached 50 years were more likely to have the metabolic syndrome than their single counterparts (Hansson & Hamsten, 2011, p.45). As it has been indicated earlier, physical inactivity is one of the main contributors to metabolic syndrome in both African American men and African American women. Physical inactivity can therefore be considered as being a predictive factor for this particular syndrome in African American women, even though not as much as in men (Lindsay, et al., 2002, p.61).
It is important to note that metabolic syndrome is not an illness but a set of factors such as abdominal fat, high blood sure and high blood pressure (Treadwell, et al., 2012, p.68). The reason why African American women are more likely to suffer from metabolic syndrome as compared to their white counterparts is that once they reach old age, they tend to relax and neglect their health, thus such women seem to forget the fact that a healthy lifestyle usually means a life long commitment (Durstine, 2009, p.43).
Muscoskeletal Risk Factors
African American Men
Muscoskeletal risk factors refer to injuries as well as disorders that tend to affect one’s body movement of the muscular skeletal system, that is, the blood vessels, nerves, muscles, tendons, and ligaments (Atkinson, 2012, p.39). African American men are more prone to musculoskeletal disorders as compared to other races in America. Due to poverty, African American men are forced to work hard in order to provide for their families. As a result, they can still be found working or performing manual jobs even after reaching the age of retirement. Muscoskeletal disorders develop due to the use of a group of muscles over a long period of time without necessarily taking enough time to allow the body to recover from the stress (CDCP, 2012, p.4).
Key factors that are commonly associated with the risk of developing muscoskeletal disorders especially in African American men include repetition, posture, vibration, and force (Frieden & Berwick, 2011, p.67). In a recent experiment that had been carried out to compare measurements of energy metabolism between African American men and their white counterparts, it was observed that African American men had lower sleep metabolic rates (Hertz, et al., 2005, p.55). This meant that African American men sleep or were restless as compared to their white counterparts.
African American Women
The rate of African American women who suffer from muscoskeletal disorder is quite less as compared to that of African American men; as it has been indicated above, muscoskeletal disorder is a result of overworking a particular muscle or group of muscles for a long period of time without allowing for the body to rest from the stress (Mensha, et al., 2005, p.103). When compared to their white counterparts and especially those over the age of 50 years, African American women are more prone to muscoskeletal disorders. The majority of white women are well off and can afford the simple luxuries that life has to offer, even in old age. However, the case is not the same for African American women who have to continuously work as hard as their African American male counterparts in order to earn a living (Hansson & Hamsten, 2011, p.95).
In addition, African American women are more prone to hip fractures as compared to their Caucasian counterparts; it is estimated that 75% of all African Americans happen to be lactose intolerant and this can greatly obstruct the optimal calcium intake which is necessary for the strengthening of bones. African American women especially those over the age of 50 years do not usually engage in routine exercises such as walking or jogging and this also contributes to muscoskeletal disorder in one way or the other due to the sitting posture (Lindsay, et al., 2002, p.116).
Conclusion
The research paper above has eloquently elaborated on the various risk factors that face individuals, particularly African American men and women, who are over the age of 50 years. Some similarities, as well as differences, can also be observed between these two groups especially with regards to the risk factors discussed; for instance, the fact that African Americans generally tend to possess a higher rate of risk factors as compared to their white counterparts. A difference that can also be observed is that African American men are more prone to the risk factors indicated above as opposed to African American women.
References
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