Diabetes and Women, Essay Example

Introduction

More than 20 million people will be diagnosed with diabetes during their lifetime. Of these 20 million people, 90 percent of them will have type II diabetes. (Ham, Kruger, & Locke, 2009). Complications from diabetes can lead to heart disease, obesity, and high blood pressure. Type II diabetes is six time more likely to affect minority groups, such as African American, as compared to non-minority groups. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, African Americans are twice as likely to be diagnosed with any form of diabetes than Caucasians. Race is a major risk factor of diabetes. Diabetes is also common among groups that live in poverty, but proper intervention and lifestyles changes can decrease the rate at which it affects member of the African American population. Over the years, diabetes has been treated as a medical condition; however, genetics and individual choices play a large role in the prevalence of the disease. This notion of the disease has caused the increase and continued prevalence of the disease. Type II diabetes is the most common type of the disease, but it is usually not diagnosed until severe complications arise. About one third of people with diabetes went undiagnosed for an extended period of time.  Intervention for the disease must incorporate cultural features, address specific social and physical aspects of the African American community, and provide early intervention through education, lifestyle intervention, and food environment.

Research Purpose

 The purpose of my study is to examine the health challenges faced in African American women living with type 2 diabetes.  There are many complications associated with diabetes in general, however, in African American women; the challenges are increased a little more when it comes to kidney failures and amputations. The greatest concern is cardiovascular disease.  Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of cardiovascular disease three to four times more likely in women in comparison to men (two to three times as likely).  For this study, it is most likely I will use interview questions for my selected participants.

Theoretical Framework

The study will use a qualitative approach in collecting and analyzing information. To answer questions about the study, the researcher will use NVivo to help gather and organize information. Participants in the study will be informed of safety measures facilitated by NVivo. The program will be beneficial because information is safeguarded by password lock. It also reminds the researcher to save at given intervals to ensure that data is not lost. This is also great for research teams who are working together. Each member can enter data under their passwords from various locations.

Theory

Health behaviors tend to be influenced by one’s income and educational background. Many studies have looked at how poverty affects diabetes. The relative deprivation theory is fitting of many cases where African Americans are affected by diabetes. Relative deprivation occurs when person objectivity towards health is impaired as a direct result of their financial situation. Statistically, African American head of house hold typically earn about 20,000 dollars less than Caucasian households (Adler & Newman, 2002). The poverty rates of African American are about 24.5 percent. According to the deprivation theory, African American have unequal access to the following: healthcare practitioners, awareness of diseases, risk factors, increases exposure to psychological stressors, low economic status, structural limitations, limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables, lack of ability to afford healthy foods, lack of health promoting behaviors, cultural perceptions of excess weight, and family history (Ham, Kruger, & Locke, 2009).

Research

Many risk factors must be considered when examining diabetes. Obesity is one of the greatest indicator if diabetes. Type II is the most prevalent type of diabetes in the United States. Many factors can lead to developing diabetes- age, obesity, and lack of physical activity, race, and eating habits. According to statistics groups of minorities (African Americans, Hispanics, Indians, some Asians, and native Hawaiians) have a very high risk of developing type II diabetes.  Many of these risk factors are associated with culture and heath behaviors. Healthy diets and exercise, cultural beliefs about weight and weight management, cooking methods, access to health care facilities, and their perception of the health care provider plays an important role in the control and prevention of diabetes in minorities (Boardman, Onge, Rogers, Richard & Justin, 2005). The greatest prevalence of overweight is seen in minority groups. Members of minority groups are 10 percentage points more likely to overweight than non-Hispanic whites (Ham, Kruger, & Locke, 2009). There is even a higher prevalence for African American women. For example, in 2001-2008, “20- to -39 year old Non- Hispanic Blacks women were seen to have a 70.3% prevalence rate of obesity and overweight, while Non-Hispanic whites were seen to have a prevalence of 49%. More than 50% of African American women over the age of 40 are obese and over 80% overweight. The prevalence of extreme obesity in African American women was more than twice than that of White and Mexican” (Ham, Kruger, & Locke, 2009).

Data Collection

There are a few different methods that can be used to review the data that is collected during the research process. The first method is the interview. The interview is a type of data collection technique in which an examiner puts together a list of questions for the interviewee. This technique is used often, but there are disadvantages. The disadvantages of this method is that it can be awkward. This method can also feel intrusive. The next type of data collection is a focus group. A focus group is a small group of people that the researcher gathers information about. The advantage of this type of data collection is that the researcher can gather information on multiple people at one time. One of the disadvantages of the focus group is that taking notes can be difficult—only a skilled interviewer should attempt to interview an entire focus group. The last data collection method that will be discussed is the observation. In an observation, a researcher observes the subject in his or her natural surroundings for a prolonged period of time. This method provides more unbiased information and is possibly the most accurate, but it is also the most intrusive method of data collection.

Data Analysis

Once the data has been collected, it must be analyzed. There are many different ways to analyze data, but one of the most efficient techniques is the use of computer software. NVivo is a qualitative data analysis program. This program was designed to help users analyze unstructured data, and can be used to analyze many different types of research methods. NVivo also supports a wide variety of formats, such as pictures, audio files, video files, PDF files, text files, and even social media files.

Analysis

In the United States about 30 percent of the population is considered to be obese (Ham, Kruger, & Locke, 2009). The obesity rates among African Americans are exceptionally high. About 66 percent of African American women are overweight and 79 percent of African American men are overweight. African American men over the age of 20 are four times more likely to be obese than Caucasian men of the same age. These statistics are due partly to the way African Americans prepare their foods and the types of food they consume. Another study found that African Americans said that the way prepared their foods the same way they grew up eating them. (Two Feathers, 2005). This suggests that being overweight can be linked to cultural eating habits.

References

Alder, Nancy; Newman, Katherine. (2002) Socioeconomic disparities in health: Pathways and Policies. Health Affairs. 21. (2). Pp.60.

Boardman, Jason; Saint Onge, Jarron M.; Rogers, Richard G.; Denney, Justin T. (2005) Race Differentials in Obesity: The Impact of Place. Journal of Health and Social Behavior. 46. pp. 229-243.

Ham, Sandra A.; Kruger, Judy; Tudor-Locke, Catrine; (2009) Participation by US Adults in Sports, Exercise, and Recreational Physical Activities. Journal of Physical Activity and Health. (6). pp. 6-14.

Two Feathers, Jacqueline; Kieffer, Edith C.; Palminsano, Gloria; Anderson, Mike; Sinco,