REDUCE BLACK OBESITY: May 2017

Sunday, May 21, 2017

Chronic Stress and Black Obesity

by Kenny Anderson

A recent study found Black teens who experience racial discrimination in adolescence are more likely to develop stress-related health issues that could put them at risk for chronic diseases later in life.

Specifically, researchers found that they were more likely to have higher levels of blood pressure, a higher body mass index, and higher levels of stress-related hormones once they turned 20; about twenty percent of Black children are obese - one of the highest child obesity rate in the US.

According to another study analyzing of data from the epidemiologic study Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS), conducted by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Institutes of Health found that the consequences of psychological stress, resulting from racial discrimination, may contribute to racial health disparities in conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other age-associated diseases.

For several decades various research has shown the connection between chronic stress and obesity. African Americans suffer more chronic stress which includes unending feelings of despair/hopelessness, poverty, family dysfunctional stress, early childhood traumatic experiences, experienced and perceived racial discrimination, neighborhood stress, daily stress, acculturative stress, and environmental stress.

To reduce the tremendous compounded daily stress that Blacks face we too often turn to high calorie junk food and comfort food to soothe and relax us. This constant stress reaction to emotionally eat fattening food for distress relief results in significant weight gain 'obesity' that is a main risk-factor in chronic diseases.

Currently African American adults are nearly 1.5 times as likely to be obese compared with White adults. Approximately 47.8 percent of African Americans are obese (including 37.1 percent of men and 56.6 percent of women) compared with 32.6 percent of Whites (including 32.4 percent of men and 32.8 percent of women.

Stopping Emotional Eating And Being More Physically Active to Reduce Black Obesity

Obesity is a growing epidemic in Black communities, nearly 40 percent of Blacks are obese, experts state that half of Black children growing up today will have diabetes when they become adults.

From my perspective there are 2 primary causes of obesity in Black communities - 'Emotional Eating' and 'Sittting Lifestyle'.

Emotional eating is when Black people eat to cope with life; eating to calm stress and avoid uncomfortable feelings. Emotional overeating is one of the major causes of why weight loss plans fail. As Black people addressing our emotional issues and learning to manage our stress will give us the self-control to reduce obesity.

Obesity related diseases like diabetes can also be reduced significantly by being physically active - exercising. Regular exercise can not only protect you from obesity and non-insulin dependent diabetes, it can prevent heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, back pain, osteoporosis, and can improve your mood and help you to reduce stress.

For the geatest overall health benefits, experts recommend that you do 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic activity three or more times a week and some type of muscle strengthening activity and stretching at least twice a week.

Increasing our physical activity will require how we as Black people socialize, we have become 'sitters' , we sit and talk whether on the phone or face-to-face, we sit and watch television, we sit using the computer, we sit too often just to 'chill'; we have developed a sit-down philosophy and this outlook is killing us prematurely. Instead of all this sitting and talking, let us start walking and talking.

Let us begin a movement to move to reduce Black obesity. - Kenny Anderson