Davina Merowit

March 1, 2018
HLTH 3215-001
Dr.Piper

Heart Disease and Stroke in the South

“Heart Disease is any affliction that impairs the structure or function of the heart…”

(SCDHEC,2010). CHD is the number one etiological causes of death, especially in the south. It

can be caused by high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and smoking. When measuring

the magnitude and looking at the disease outcome, African Americans are the ones who have the

highest rate of developing CHD. “Black men and women had nearly twice the rate of diabetes as

whites 15.4% versus 8.6%” (AMA, 2016). The coronary heart disease prevalence can be based

on race, sex, ethnicity and education. When race determines an individuals’ health outcome, it

can cause stress and depression as well as other health problems in the future.

Another population that is affect by CHD are children. Children in the south are starting

to develop heart disease and diabetes, which can start out as obesity. According to The Cleveland

Clinic, “Childhood obesity has doubled in the past 30 years” (Children’s Health Team,2015). In

2009 there was study done, 150,000 adults reported having CHD (SCDHEC, 2010). According

to NBC News, West Virginia and Kentucky are the two states that have the highest levels of

obesity, diabetes, smoking and heart disease. More than 10% in the state of WV had at least one

condition and 9% in Kentucky (NBCNEWS, 2013). Some of the causes is due to the lack of

healthcare access. Public health is the “science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and

organized community efforts to ensure everyone a standard of living…”. Yet, with the lack of

health care access, it can cause unmet health needs, financial burdens, and it can prevent the

ability to preventive services.

 The key determinants that are influencing the health status of the south are; health access,

socioeconomic status (Income or employment), living conditions (environmental status) and

family history (parents smoking in the past or unhealthy childhood diet). Tobacco is the number

one etiological cause of death. According to the American Heart Association; Alabama,

Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas got straight Fs in efforts to reduce smoking

(AMA, 2016). It is necessary that we develop intervention and prevention strategies for CHD. It

is important that we aim to reduce children CHD cases, so that it does not affect them in the

future. Promoting healthy eating habits and encouraging exercise plans can be prevention

measures for people that do not want to develop CHD. For those who have already developed

CHD some intervention strategies would be to; manage stress, quit smoking, or a physician may

prescribe medication.

Some policies that can be implemented would be to help individuals and parents become

educated in order to take precautions. It is important that the parents are educated well enough on

how CHD can affect themselves and their children’s life. Regulating the amount of salt that the

food industry uses can also help the reduction. “Salt is regulated by the FDA as a ‘generally

recognized as safe’ ingredient (FDA, 2010). Sodium is still necessary for our body, but no more

than 5%. Financial policies as in taxation of tobacco can another major policy. Since tobacco is

the number one cause of (etiological) death, this can affect many individuals in the south, who

smoke on a daily basis. Implementing tobacco restricted areas will also be a positive outcome for

the food industry and for their environment as well.

In order to implement and change the statistics, there needs to be a step by step plan.

How will one know that their plan has worked? One must have a team who will assure to achieve

the goals and who monitor the effectiveness of the plan. One must also overlook the budget
system in order to know if the plan can be implemented and be successful. When implementing a

program for the reduction of CHD, there are so many factors to look at; resources (do you have

enough?), population (where is this going to affect?), marketing system (how am I going to get

this exposed to the public?). It is important that these factors are taken into play because one

mistake can lead to other problems and then the program will not be as effective. Implementing a

plan for the reduction in CHD will change the life expectancy and will also increase health in the

south. Using the problem solving paradigm is beneficial in any healthcare situation because it

gives one an overview on how to address a situation and how to come up with solutions through

teamwork and through oneself.

Resources:

Association, A. H. (2016, November 08). Heart disease kills more Southerners than any other disease.
Retrieved February 26, 2018, from https://news.heart.org/heart-disease-kills-more-southerners-than-any-
other-disease/

Commissioner, O. O. (2010, May 18). Consumer Updates - Lowering Salt in Your Diet. Retrieved
February 26, 2018, from https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm181577.htm

Department of Health and Environmental Control, S. (2010, December). The Burden of Heart Disease
and Stroke in the South . Retrieved September 14, 2010, from http://www.scdhec.gov/library/CR-
004470.pdf

Disease Control, C. F. (n.d.). A Public Health Action Plan to Prevent Heart Disease and Stroke. Retrieved
from https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/action_plan/pdfs/action_plan_full.pdf

Southern states tops for heart disease. (2007, February 16). Retrieved February 26, 2018, from
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17170134/ns/health-heart_health/t/southern-states-tops-heart-
disease/#.Wn89C5M-do4

Team, C. H. (2016, August 26). Obese Children Have Greater Risk for Adult Heart Disease. Retrieved
February 26, 2018, from https://health.clevelandclinic.org/2015/03/obese-children-have-greater-risk-for-
adult-heart-disease/