The causes of hypertension among African Americans

The condition is associated with increased morbidity and mortality consistent with patients of this setting. The long list of the suggested possible causes for the high prevalence point out the fact that the real reasons remain unknown. But biological differences in blood pressure control mechanisms, environment and lifestyle differences between the white population and blacks are among the most likely potential causes (Lettre et al. Discussion Hypertension related complications and comorbidities are more likely to affect African Americans. They two times more likely to suffer from strokes, and five times more likely to acquire end-stage renal disease as compared to their Caucasian counterparts. Other researchers have previously associated the two genes with blood pressure regulation. One of these genes names CACNA1H is a target of Calcium Channel Blockers which is used as a common antihypertensive (Lettre et al.

Environmental predisposition The durance in environmental exposure between most African Americans and whites is also likeable to the high prevalence of hypertension experienced by them. There is a lot of variability with reference to health seeking behaviors, dietary habits, and socioeconomic status between African Americans, Caucasians and other major racial divisions. Blacks tend to suffer more from excess adiposity and obesity, which is a major risk factor for hypertension. 2% in Mexican Americans. Nutrition A study conducted by NHANES on the nutritional behaviors among people of African American descent revealed that they had a low adherence to a dietary approach to managing hypertension (Ogedegbe, 2014). The use of a lot of table salt in food has been proved to increase the blood pressure.

Blacks also show a lower tendency of adhering to dietary measure of controlling hypertension (Ogedegbe, 2014). Lifestyle modification including dietary habits has been shown to be very efficient in managing hypertension (Diaz et al. The long term effect of this cash constraint is very late detection of hypertensive cases hence poorer prognosis. Chronic illnesses such as Hypertension and related comorbidities require a lot of money to manage because the treatment proceeds to the entire lifetime. Conclusion As pointed out, there are many possible predisposing factors that make black population more susceptible to chronic hypertension. Many of such factors have been explored in the discussion that ensued. The major factors implicated include genetic predisposition owing to difference in blood pressure control mechanism, another factor is difference in lifestyle and nutritional factors.

, Kao, W. L. , & Freedman, R. G. Apolipoprotein L1 gene variants associate with hypertension- attributed nephropathy and the rate of kidney function decline in African Americans. , Jobe, J. B. , & Charlson, M. E. A randomized controlled trial of positive-affect intervention and medication adherence in hypertensive African Americans. , Deloach, S. , Fortina, P. , Scott, K. , Burns, T. L. , Benjamin, E. J. & Farlow, D. N. Genome-wide association study of coronary heart disease and its risk factors in 8,090 African Americans: the NHLBI CARe Project. , & Kit, B. K. Characteristics of US Adults with Hypertension who are Unaware of Their Hypertension, 2011-2014. US Department of Health & Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Diaz, K. Prevalence, determinants, and clinical significance of masked hypertension in a population-based sample of African Americans: the Jackson Heart Study.

American journal of hypertension, 28(7), 900-908. Ogedegbe, G. , Tobin, J. N. 8,090 African Americans with very high genotype quality (average genotype success rate of 99. High (Lewis et al, 2010) Type of Study: Correlational Study Design Type: Cross-sectional Framework/Theory: Medication adherence beliefs of community-dwelling hypertensive African Americans USA Concepts: BP measurement Independent Variable: BP readings in known hypertensives Dependent Variable: Population number Controlled Variable: BP readings from other areas Behavioral beliefs associated with medication adherence identified both positive and negative outcomes. Family, friends, neighbors, and God were associated with normative beliefs. Limited financial resources, neighborhood violence, and distrust of healthcare professionals were key control beliefs. Low Citation Study Design Type Framework/Theory Setting Key Concepts/Variables Findings Hierarchy of Evidence Level (Paulose et al.