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RESEARCH SHOWS NON-WHITES ARE MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP DIABETES
RESEARCH SHOWS NON-WHITES ARE MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP DIABETES -- Posted by Gumbo on 12-08-04 18:35
RESEARCH SHOWS NON-WHITES ARE MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP DIABETES
PUBLISH DATE: December 03, 2004
David Lewis knew he had diabetes. He just didn't do much about it. The
disease was pretty easy to ignore, says Lewis, 33, of Maysville Ohio - at
least until his blood sugar went out of control and he had to be
hospitalized. He lost about 50 pounds in a few weeks. "It's bad stuff," he
says. Lewis is one of nearly 3 million African-Americans - or about 11.4
percent of African-Americans 20 and older - with diabetes. The American
Diabetes Association says about a third of people with the disease don't
know they have it. African-Americans, Hispanics and other minorities are
more likely to develop diabetes and its complications - cardiovascular
disease, kidney failure, blindness and amputations - than whites. Around the
nation, health experts are working to change those numbers through
education, treatment and prevention efforts. Many factors put non-whites at
greater risk for diabetes, says Dr. Barbara Ramlo-Halsted, a diabetes
specialist and director of the University of Cincinnati's Diabetes Center at
Jewish Hospital Professional Building in Avondale. "There's a significant
genetic component, but environmental factors also play a huge role,"
Ramlo-Halsted says. Research shows that African-Americans, Hispanics,
American Indians and Pacific Islanders are more likely to develop Type 2
diabetes - the kind linked to obesity - when exposed to a typical high-fat
Western diet, she says. Trimming fats and sugars from the daily diet and
increasing physical activity can go a long way toward preventing or
controlling diabetes, Ramlo-Halsted says. For people with strong family
ties, making the necessary lifestyle changes can be difficult - it's hard to
explain why traditional family favorites are no longer being offered at
Sunday dinner, she says. "I had one patient who was the matriarch of her
family. Hers was the house where everybody went after church for dinner. And
of course, she cooked all these comfort foods for her family. When she tried
changing the recipes to make them healthier, they all left! They started
going to another house where they did the cooking the right way,"
Ramlo-Halsted says. Staff at the Diabetes Center are developing outreach
programs for churches, families and other groups in minority communities on
the risks and consequences of diabetes, she says. The Crossroads Health
Center in Over-the-Rhine Ohio, which serves mostly African-American and
Hispanic clients, has been designated by the U.S. Bureau of Public Health as
one of five community clinics nationally for a new diabetes collaborative.
JoAnn Reilly, Crossroads' development director, says the project focuses on
providing case management for patients who are diagnosed as diabetic. Staff
also will work with community councils, church groups and businesses to
raise awareness of diabetes, Reilly says. "The hope is there will be a
reduction in the onset of diabetes and any of its complications," she says.
The American Diabetes Association also targets information to
African-American and Hispanic communities. Lewis, a patient at UC's Diabetes
Center, takes care of himself now: He takes two medicines to control his
blood sugar. He watches what he eats to limit sugars and carbohydrates and
exercises. He checks his blood sugar four times a day. When he's tempted to
backslide, he remembers one uncle who had to have a leg amputated because of
diabetes and another who lost a few toes to the disease. "It's a lot of
work, but it's worth it," he says.
Diabetes By The Numbers: African-Americans are 1.6 times more likely to have
diabetes than non-Hispanic whites, and Hispanics are 1.5 times more likely
to suffer type 2 diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. African-Americans are
twice as likely to suffer from diabetes-related blindness among people with
diabetes, and more than a third of Mexican Americans with diabetes have
diabetic retinopathy, or abnormalities of small blood vessels in the eyes
leading to blindness or vision loss. Source: American Diabetes Association
<>Diabetes Study Recruiting Patients
The ACCORD study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, is looking at
whether tightly controlling blood sugar levels among adults with diabetes
reduces their risk of heart attack and stroke. Patients enrolled in the
study will receive medication and follow-up at no charge. The study is
enrolling people with Type 2 diabetes AND either high blood pressure or high
cholesterol who are older than 40 and have had either a heart attack, stroke
or blood vessel blockage or are between the age of 55 and 79. To learn more,
call (513) 487-6062 or visit www.accordtrial.org
The Warning Signs of Diabetes:
a.. Fatigue
b.. Frequent urination
c.. Rapid and unexplained weight loss
d.. Nausea and vomiting
e.. Irritability and mood swings
f.. Extreme hunger
g.. Drowsiness
h.. Blurred vision
i.. Frequent or recurring skin, urinary tract and gum infections
j.. Slow healing of cuts or bruises
k.. Itching in the skin or genitals
l.. Tingling or numbness in the feet, legs or fingers
Source: Defeat Diabetes Foundation (http://www.defeatdiabetes.org)
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