The statistics are alarming: • African Americans are 1.6 times
more likely to have diabetes than non-Latino Caucasians.(2) •
African Americans have higher death rates for coronary heart
disease (CHD), coronary artery disease (CAD), and stroke.(3) •
The prevalence of high blood pressure among African Americans is
among the highest in the world.(4) • There is an estimate that
80% of black women and 60% of black men are overweight or obese
(which contributes to heart disease, certain cancers, high blood
pressure, diabetes among other chronic health conditions). (5).
• African American women are 3 times more likely to have lupus
than Caucasian women. (6) • African Americans are 38% less
likely to get joint replacement to alleviate chronic joint pain
than Caucasians.(7) While health disparities worsen for African
Americans, according to Verona Brewton, Zimmer's Director of
Minority Initiatives, African Americans can take control by
focusing on those individual behaviors that positively impact
one's health. "Whethe