Assessing the Problem: Obesity Among African Americans

Obesity is a complex disorder that involves excessive body fat. Obesity is a serious health concern that increases the risk of other diseases and health problems. It increases the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, and some cancers. The increasing prevalence of obesity poses a significant population health burden globally. Currently, in the US alone, the adult obesity rate stands at 42.4%, the highest ever recorded.

The rate of childhood obesity has also increased, with the current rate being 19.3% among children and young people aged 2-19 years. Obesity prevalence in the US varies in different health populations, socioeconomic factors, races, and ethnic backgrounds. Obesity is often ignored and may compromise healthcare service delivery and population health.

Nursing interventions can, therefore, be used to address the situation at individual and population levels. This paper aims to assess the obesity health concern among African Americans from the nursing perspective and propose strategies to address the problem through leadership, collaboration, communication, change management, and policy considerations.

Population Health Problem

Obesity is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases and a leading cause of morbidity (Byrd et al., 2018). African Americans are one of the minority groups in the US. They are one of the populations that record high obesity rates. Different socioeconomic factors such as poverty and discrimination may impact people’s ability to maintain a healthy weight, thus the high prevalence of obesity in minority populations. A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that African Americans have the highest obesity rates among US adults, with 49.9% age-adjusted prevalence (CDC.gov, n.d.).

Studies show that the disparities in the prevalence of obesity in racial/ethnic minorities are also associated with other factors such as diet, genetics, physical activity, psychological factors, income, stress, and discrimination, among others. Obesity is a condition that requires the input of a multidisciplinary team to address the concern. It requires lifestyle and behavioral interventions, pharmacologic therapies, and access to bariatric surgeries. Due to their high costs, health inequalities, and other societal roadblocks, it is difficult for racial and ethnic minority populations to access some of these services, such as pharmacologic therapies and bariatric surgeries.

Therefore, obesity among the African American population needs particular focus, and evidence-based interventions must be applied to combat the crisis. The relevance of the problem of obesity to nursing practice is that it is an alarming global health issue that requires evidence-based interventions and research. Nurses are among the healthcare providers participating in research and development of interventions to ensure efficiency and quality of care in addressing health issues across different populations.

Obesity Among African Americans Literature Evaluation

Current practices to manage obesity majorly include obesity screening, diagnosis, and obesity counseling (Kahan, 2018). Screening and diagnosis is the first step in addressing a medical condition. Healthcare providers should screen adults for obesity at least every year and refer obese patients for multicomponent behavioral interventions to attain a healthy weight.

Obesity and weight loss counseling substantially affect weight loss behaviors. These are the effective practices of obesity management. However, other practices, such as pharmacologic therapies and bariatric surgeries, are currently used to manage obesity. As mentioned earlier, the access to obesity healthcare services by minority populations such as African Americans may be compromised by health inequality and high costs (Byrd et al., 2018).   

Nursing practice standards reflect nursing values that improve the quality of care delivery and patient outcomes. Literature shows that nursing practice standards and policies have significantly contributed to managing obesity across different health populations. Nurses are responsible for developing care plans and obesity management interventions for patients based on their needs. According to