Obesity and Health Disparities Among African American Women

Introduction

Obesity is a health problem that disproportionately affects African Americans compared to the white population, particularly among women. As a result, African American women are at greater risk of developing diabetes, experiencing cardiac arrest, or suffering from heart disease (Banerjee et al., 2018). While obesity is not a problem that affects only people of color, it affects them more than others: 20.5% of African American girls versus only 15.6% of white girls have been identified as obese (State of Obesity, 2018). One of the Healthy People 2020 Leading Health Indicator topics requiring attention from the health care community is "Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity" (2020 LHI Topics, 2018). It is therefore important that this issue be addressed with particular attention given to African American women.

Health Problems and Factors That Influence Disparities

Culture, socioeconomics, and biology are all problems and factors that influence disparities (Bilger et al., 2017). For the African American female population, stressors — such as living in or growing up in low-income communities, high-crime areas, or communities that have experienced a lack of socioeconomic development — can drive individuals to consume less healthy foods and prevent them from having access to a nutritious diet (Siddharth & Sharma, 2018). Because these factors introduce an element of instability into communities, Black females have a more difficult time organizing or obtaining nutritious meals for their families or enjoying safe environments conducive to outdoor activity, such as sports or exercise.

There is also a lack of health literacy and preventive care that affects the situation (Hepburn, 2018; Michou et al., 2018). Preventive care is important in the delivery of care because otherwise vulnerable populations end up receiving treatment only after a health problem has developed — a problem that could have been prevented with greater emphasis on health literacy promotion (Knickman & Elbel, 2019; Schneider, 2020). Yet because many Black families live in communities where educational quality is low, there is a significant lack of health literacy among this population (Williams, 2017).

A lack of health equity is also a factor that negatively affects vulnerable populations and increases disparities, particularly among the Black female population (Chinn et al., 2021). Health inequities are reflected in communities where access to proper care is limited; in some urban communities, for instance, it is more difficult for residents to see a doctor or nurse than it is in wealthier communities where health care facilities are plentiful. For Black individuals of low socioeconomic status, limited access to care leads to greater health disparities compared to generally wealthier white populations.

Health problems arising from biology and genetics also drive disparities: some populations are more vulnerable to genetic diseases, as is the case with the Native American population, which is highly susceptible to diabetes and depression (Alva, 2020). For the Black female population, biological influences may also be shaped by environmental factors. For example, Black females who grow up in communities of low socioeconomic development are at greater risk of developing diabetes because environmental conditions impact the biological development of the group (Jensen et al., 2017).

Principles of the Black Perspective and Theoretical Framework

Safety, nutrition, biology, economics, and environment are thus all factors that influence disparities. Cultural issues also arise among health care workers: workers who lack cultural competencies fail to understand how to communicate effectively with different cultural groups, and as a result, health messaging is constricted. To empower various ethnic groups, health care workers must be culturally sensitive so that they can identify the best ways to communicate, promote the health interests of these populations, and provide preventive care while increasing health literacy in their communities.

The principle of Affirmation is the first and most important of the six principles of the Black Perspective: "it celebrates the richness, productivity and vigor of the lives of African Americans and Blacks in the U.S. and in other parts of the world" (University, 2021). This principle is positive and oriented toward self-efficacy and the important role that self-motivation plays in the lives of those who reach their full potential. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, people must have basic lower-level needs met first — such as shelter, food, love, and friendship — before they can become self-actualizing (Tripathi, 2018). Stability is therefore an important factor that could help support the principle of affirmation among the Black population, and achieving that stability in communities and Black families requires a degree of political advocacy and activity.

Social work theory connects with this principle of the Black Perspective. Krumer-Nevo (2017) argues that the political aspect of social work needs to be more properly reintegrated into advocacy work so that vulnerable populations are aided rather than further divided by partisan factions fighting among themselves. Politics is often divisive, but if used well it can become a tool that harnesses collective energy and promotes positive outcomes. Ways in which politics can be integrated into social work to facilitate the principle of affirmation among the Black population include the delivery of programs aimed at satisfying those basic human needs identified in self-actualization theory (Tripathi, 2018). The needs for friendship, esteem, and socioeconomic stability will play a significant role in facilitating health workers' efforts to combat obesity. The more stable Black communities become, the more likely they will be to embrace health literacy and respond positively to preventive care.

Conclusion

Siddharth, S., & Sharma, D. (2018). Racial disparity and triple-negative breast cancer in African-American women: A multifaceted affair between obesity, biology, and socioeconomic determinants. Cancers, 10(12), 514.

State of Obesity. (2018). Current status. Retrieved from

Tripathi, N. (2018). A valuation of Abraham Maslow's theory of self-actualization for the enhancement of quality of life. Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing, 9(3), 499–504.

Williams, A. (2017). Baltimore's failing schools are a tragedy of criminal proportions. Retrieved from