🩺 Health Crisis Alert:
Chronic Disease is the #1 cause of death, impacting 60% of Americans. Communities of color are disproportionately affected by conditions like diabetes, hypertension, obesity, asthma, and heart disease.
Reflecting on my Intentional Conversations with Dr. Nika White, CDE®, IOM made me think about the WHY and HOW.
WHY is there such a staggering gap in healthcare?
1️⃣ ACCESS
From affordable healthy food options to the "luxury" of time, societal factors shape our health. Investing in a healthy lifestyle requires financial and physical means, including preparing healthy meals, exercise, and adequate rest 😴.
Data shows that African Americans have the highest rates of sleep disorders. Ethnic minorities & women are more likely to experience chronic fatigue syndrome and general fatigue.
Without energy to focus on diet and exercise - the key contributors to chronic disease - this creates a vicious cycle that gets harder to break in the quest for generational health.
2️⃣ RESEARCH
Despite making up 39% of the US population, minorities represent only 2% -16% of Clinical Trial participants. Black Americans account for less than 5% and Latinos only 1% of participants despite accounting for 14% and 18% of the population respectively.
For Black and Latina women, this disparity is exacerbated, leading to many unmet health needs and negative (sometimes fatal) outcomes.
3️⃣ REPRESENTATION
A lack of Inclusive Research plus implicit Racial Bias leads to gaps in medical training. This results in significant delays in diagnosis and/or misdiagnosis, with women and minorities 30% more likely to be misdiagnosed vs white men.
Black Americans and Latinos account for less than 12% of physicians in the US. Representation is critical for the advocacy and innovation of inclusive health solutions.
HOW can we drive change?
How we convey information—from word choice to what we disclose—shapes societal attitudes and healthcare outcomes. This influences innovation and how we empower and educate people.
✨HEALTH EQUITY🗝️
We need to go beyond "equality". HealthEquity requires providing everyone with the right resources needed to achieve the same health outcomes. This requires action from healthcare providers, policymakers, corporations, and educators to address both prevention and treatment.
👥 PEOPLE OVER PROFITS💰
90% of US consumers don't trust big pharma, most question the media and brands that "market" healthy solutions, and many are so overwhelmed with conflicting messaging they either take no action or fall victim to misinformation and false promises.
We need more accessible solutions that deliver real benefits with transparent data supporting diverse populations. We must uphold integrity in the quality of our solutions which requires diversity in our teams and scientific research.