Diabetes Q&A

Identifying the Diabetes Burden in the South: Socioeconomic Stressors, Ethnicity, Age, and Race.

Monday, June 1, 2015 at 1:20 pm

NEW ORLEANS—Due to the varying cultural and socioeconomic factors, the southern United States is predisposed to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) manifestations.

In his presentation, “ Diabetes in the South: Addressing Race, Age, and Socioeconomic Status,” James R. Gavin III, MD, PhD, CEO and Chief Medical Officer of Healing Our Village, Inc., and a Clinical Professor of Medicine at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA, identifies the burden of diabetes as ethnic/racial disparities in the South and offers individuals and communities (eg, churches) new, participatory treatment interventions.

According to Gavin, not only is T2DM more common in minority groups, higher incidence of complications and higher mortality rates also occur in minority patients with T2DM.

However, the presenter notes that there is not 1 specific factor responsible for poor outcomes. Instead, the burden of many socioeconomic stressors are attributed to the South’s racial and ethnic disparities, including quality of healthcare, access to healthcare (preventive and curative services), limited primary care facilities in neighborhoods, and limited ethnic minorities in the health care profession.

Further, Gavin names other contributing factors to racial and ethnic specific issues in Diabetes prevalence:

  • Variations of acculturation—Views suggesting changes to sedentary lifestyle and an American diet have negative impacts.
  • Variations in perception of “normal” body size—The acceptance of obesity and overweight bodies in the African American communities: “Fat is Beautiful”.

Moving forward, Gavin encourages physicians to use outreach programs to prevent T2DM and decrease symptoms in high-risk patients.1

Finally, patients should engage social networks including community health workers, family members, peer-support groups, and churches as other means of successful intervention strategies.

“ The paradigms for changing the approach to healthcare for reducing disparities are emerging—we need more data-driven models that will represent local (eg, US Southern) solutions to this global program,” Gavin concludes.

—Michelle Canales Butcher

Reference:

  1. Diabetes Prevention Program Research Group. Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle intervention or metformin. N Engl J Med. 2002;346:393-403.