Analyzing Obesity Among Native Americans: Social Factors

This essay provides an in-depth analysis of obesity among Native Americans, examining the prevalence of this health issue and the social complexities that contribute to it. The study explores various factors, including lack of physical fitness, nutritional aspects, and socioeconomic issues like poverty a...Read More

Obesity Among Native Americans 1
SOCIAL COMPLEXITIES AND HEALTH
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Obesity Among Native Americans 2
Social Complexities and Health
A more significant percentage of the current world population faces many
health complexities which are responsible for their poor or low standards of living.
The indigenous groups in every country, for example, are viewed to have a poor
connection to their respective governments. The impact of the poor relationship is
inclusive of discrimination based on resource allocations and service delivery (Dai &
Zheng, 2018) Examples of the social complexities and health problems that such
people face include a prevalence of obese conditions and chronic diseases,
maternal health problems, cases of suicide, teenage pregnancy, substance abuse
and cases of diabetes among other health issues. All the health problems
experienced by both the indigenous and non-indigenous populations have their
causes and the social aspects which determine their predominance.
With the choice of Native Americans as the indigenous population, this study
is set to analyze the status of obesity among such Americans and the social aspects
which contributes to the obese conditions among them.
The State of Obesity among Indigenous Americans
The indigenous Americans, who are also commonly known as the pre-
Columbians originally occupied both the North, Central and Southern areas of
America. However, because of procreation, their descendants are either based in the
same places or have migrated to other locations within the country. Obese
conditions amongst the indigenous Americans, just as for the entire American
population has been on the rise in the past few decades. Research studies by Kelley
and Lowe (2018) show that in the latest report by the Centres for Disease Control
and Prevention, North Carolina, Arizona, and New Mexico are leading in terms of

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worse obese conditions and victims of obesity with a tied percentage of 75%
(Yackobovitch‐Gavan et al. 2018). Native American adults in other locations also
face overweight situations in different proportions with the lowest rates found in
Texas which is reported to have 51%. The high percentages recorded are proof
enough to show that almost the entire American population is affected by obesity in
one way or the other.
Various factors cause obesity. The factors include but not limited to lack of
physical fitness (behavioral aspect), the types of diets taken by multiple individuals
(nutritional aspect) and even the slowing of the rate of metabolism due to inactivity of
many organs as a result of old age (age aspect) (Garg et al. 2015, p.e296). If a
particular population has a high prevalence of obesity, then the mentioned three
causative factors and many other factors may be linked to the situation. Therefore,
there is no doubt that a more significant percentage of the Native American
population is first-hand recipients of the causative aspects. A blatant reality revealed
by an individual report on obesity showed that most of the Native Americans have
the exertion to access healthy and affordable food (Medvedyuk, Ali & Raphael,
2018). For that reason, they resolve into consuming whatever they find, regardless of
their nutritional values and contents. Other sources also claimed that the vast cases
of unemployment had pushed most of the indigenous Americans into towns and
cities to search for healthy living conditions (Haring et al. 2016). While at the cities,
they are always subjected to long working hours. The long hours is a reason enough
to bar them from having time for physical fitness.
Apart from the three major causative factors of obesity (nutritional, behavioral
and age), the high percentages of obese conditions among natives Americans are
also contributed by what are regarded as minor factors (Sainsbury, Hendy,

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Magnusson & Colagiuri, 2018). The small factors include but not limited to
pregnancy, genetics, and lack of enough sleep. During pregnancy, many people gain
a lot of weight which is very difficult to reduce even after the baby has been
delivered. Other people are also subjected to some tasks which deprive them
enough sleep time. High percentages of those who lack enough sleep time tend to
feel hungry most the times. Therefore, they resolve into eating some foods which
have high-calorie contents. Genetics is responsible for the differences in the food
processing and storage of fat in the body. Some people’s genetics affect the speed
of metabolism and makes the body to retain a lot of fats (Sainsbury, Hendy,
Magnusson & Colagiuri, 2018). In such a case, there would be large percentages of
obese conditions in such people. The same issue is the case of a portion of the
Native American population which adds value to the percentage of obese victims.
Social Determinants of Obesity among Indigenous Americans
The surrounding conditions, where people partake their activities of birth,
games, living, learning, working and playing among others form the social
determinants of health if they affect the health of the residents. The primary
characteristics of social determinants are its ability to cause disparity amongst
people who live in a more or less similar environment (Niederdeppe, Roh & Shapiro,
2015) Discussed below are some of the social determinants of health amongst the
Native American population.
Education
The levels of education that an individual has pursued has a deep connection
with the vulnerability of such a person to obese conditions. Lower levels of education
are usually associated with low salaries and generally a living standard which is

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lower than moderate. Individuals with such levels of education fall into the category
of ‘hustlers’ who feel comfortable with the little food they get per day. The hustlers
never mind about the nutritional contents of the food they consume but instead eat to
get the energy of waking up the next day for their daily chores. The second issue
with people of low education is that they are not enlightened on the ways of
preventing obesity in their capacities. Unlike the educated social class, the little
education holders are ignorant of what is required of them. They do not involve
themselves in physical fitness, do not know what to do during pregnancy to prevent
weight gain and many other issues (Kelley & Lowe, 2018). Many indigenous
Americans and especially youths had low education, and that has contributed
significantly to the current high percentages of obese victims.
The other issue of falling under education is the type of food consumed by
students. Many students in colleges and universities and who live without their
parents tend to consumed light meals and subjects themselves to poor diets. Most of
the foods they eat include snacks, beverages, and other related foods (Sainsbury et
al. 2018). The consistency of the diet portrayed by such students is a reason enough
to expose them to obese conditions. They have no time to cook or consume a well-
balanced diet which can help improve their living standards.
Smoking
With low numbers of Native American population acquiring higher levels of
education, a broader community is left behind with a primitive form of education. For
this reason, the more substantial number has involved itself in various activities
which are deemed unhealthy for their lives (Medvedyuk et al. 2018). The businesses
also create susceptibility to obese conditions of the population. One activity which is

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considered very dangerous is smoking. Unemployment due to lack of relevant skills
drives people into criminal activities. Those involved indulge in severe cases of
smoking for various reasons. The issue does not lie on the smoking activity itself but
is evident when the victims quit smoking. Reports show that those who secede
smoking are vulnerable to a weight gain of up to 4.4kg (9.7ib) in men while women
gain weight of 5.0kg (11ib) (Cervantes, Waymouth & Petrov, 2019). The pound (ib) is
a unit of weight as used in different systems. Peer pressure and unemployment are
contributory factors to smoking, and therefore, the increased percentage may mean
that many people are quitting smoking. The effect is that those who are stopping are
becoming more vulnerable to obesity as they gain more weight but take no
measures to control it.
Availability and Accessibility of Healthcare Services
Many people issues with their health conditions but can manage them if they
access healthcare services. Obese conditions require the attention of the physicians
to give the best services to the victims. If the physicians and the facilities are a
limiting factor, then there would be high chances of people becoming more
vulnerable to the conditions (Ingaramo, 2016). Those who are already victims will
also find it challenging to manage their conditions. Another essential role of the
health facilities is the advocacy and check-up services done to the victims. Victims
often visit hospitals and get treatments in terms of both medication and pieces of
advice on ways to cope with their situations. In the absence of the health facilities,
both of the services are lacked by the patients. The patients have to use a lot of
funds to access the preferred healthcare services, and when the funds become a
limiting factor, they resolve into negligence of their situations as a way of life. In that
case, their conditions will continue deteriorating.

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Socioeconomic Issues, e.g., Poverty
Socioeconomic problem is a significant social aspect that affects the
prevalence of many ill-health conditions in society. The link that exists between
poverty and obesity can be regarded as cyclical as it appears to be endless and
causing other problems. For example, the whole issue starts with a lack of proper
education which deprives a person of well-paying jobs (Klein & Corneille, 2016). An
individual who lacks a good source of income would be depicted as infested with
poverty thus becoming unable to provide for him/herself and the family in general.
Due to scarcity, the choice of meals becomes very challenging, and victims always
resolve into eating whatever they find to ensure that their hungry needs are satisfied
(Lakerveld & Mackenbach, 2017). Poverty also lands many people into criminal
activities which are characterized by unhealthy foods and feeding conditions. The
conditions have a high chance of promoting obesity.
Interventions to Prevent Obesity
Obesity has been pronounced rampant in America in the past few decades.
Many citizens have been victimized, and their living standards have generally been
deteriorating. There is, therefore, a need for a robust solution which will see the
conditions of the people improved in terms of the fight against obesity. Various
preventive measures have been put in place. However, to successfully execute the
steps, there is a need for interventions through which address and advocacy can be
done to the people; whether victims or non-victims (Kobes, Kretschmer, Timmerman
& Schreuder, 2018). Some of the interventions which have been put in place in the
Native American world to help co troll the cases of obesity are discussed below.

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Excise Tax imposed on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages; - sugar and sugary
conditions is a great contributor to obesity-related implications. The government has
taken a step to impose heavy taxes on the production and sales of sentimental
products. The move will ensure that the number of sugary products especially the
sugar-sweetened beverages is significantly reduced (Haring et al. 2016). In that way,
a good portion of the population will be saved from obesity as they will not access
the products.
Abolition of taxes on food which are unhealthy to children; - obesity is mostly
experienced in children, and they have difficulty in managing their conditions.
Therefore, an intervention like the abolition of taxes on advertisements of products
which are unhealthy for children is deemed relevant and helpful (Bleich et al. 2018).
The initiative aims at ensuring that a maximum number of people are reached with
the information at the lowest possible costs to save lives.
Setting of nutrition standards for food and drinks; - the fast foods sold around
colleges and universities have less nutritional contents. The government has,
therefore, played a smart role in ensuring that dietary standards are maintained in
such foods (Jernigan, D’Amico, Duran & Buchwald, 2018). The initiative will help
students to eat nutritionally rich food thus preventing the risks of obesity.
In conclusion, the Native Americans and the entire American population have
high risks of obesity and have thus suffered from it. America is one of the world
countries with the most senior population suffering or exposed to obese conditions.
The indigenous population has suffered and increases the overall percentage of
victims due to the inability to access affordable healthcare facilities. Poverty is
another major factor which deprives people to ability to choose what to eat. Instead,

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poor citizens rely on whatever type of food they can get per day to satisfy their
hungry needs and not minding the nutritional values. Many people are also not
educated on the methods of preventing obesity; hence they continue to suffer at the
expense of ignorance. Every government should do everything in their power to
ensure that a more significant number of the school-going population is registered in
schools. This will help them to understand the most basic ways of dealing with
obesity. The long-term advantage of the move will see a more significant number of
the population get lucrative jobs which will be vital for the improvement of their living
standards.

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