Nursing Public Health: Hypertension and Diabetes Nutrition Education

This report addresses the critical role of public health nursing in providing nutrition education to low-income populations for managing hypertension and diabetes. It outlines the goals of education and health promotion, focusing on improving nutrition and reducing the risks associated with these conditions. The report identifies behavioral and environmental determinants, such as lifestyle choices, socioeconomic status, and lack of education, that contribute to hypertension and diabetes. It also explores predisposing factors affecting dietary habits, including income, cultural influences, and social support. Furthermore, the importance of policymakers and administrative agencies in implementing nutrition education programs and improving employment opportunities is emphasized. The report highlights the need for tailored approaches that consider affordability, health beliefs, and visual aids to promote healthy eating and manage chronic diseases effectively in vulnerable communities. Desklib offers a range of study tools and resources for students.

0Running head: NURSING PUBLIC HEALTH
Nursing public health
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Teaching nutrition to low income people with Hypertension:
Phase I: The goal of education and health promotion is to improve nutrition and reduce risk of
hypertension in low income adults. Nutrition education is important to manage uncontrolled
hypertension as relationship between concentration of fat and carbohydrates and hypertension
has been documented in research (Huckabay et al., 2016).
Phase II: Certain behavioral and environmental determinant increases the risk of hypertension
in adults. The example of modifiable behavioral risk factors of hypertension includes lifestyle
choices in low income group such as obesity, physical inactivity, consumption of unhealthy diet
and alcohol. Eating high amount of sodium and potassium increases risk of hypertension. The
environmental risk factors for hypertension include chronic stress, urbanization process and lack
of education (Hamano et al., 2012). Low socioeconomic status increases risk of hypertension as
poor education, physical inactivity, risky behavior and poor diet is high in low income group
people (Sarki et al., 2015). Hence, priority should be given to lifestyle choices such as improving
diet and reducing obesity to prevent hypertension.
Phase III: The predisposing factors that can affect changing food eating habit of low income
adults includes low education, poor income and influence of cultural factors on food habits.
People with poor income are more likely to be obese and undernourished because of limited
access to healthy foods. Lack of social support in the community and presence of depression and
stress can also influence behavioral hypertension control (Sarki et al., 2015).
Phase IV: The role of policy makers and administrative agency is also crucial to improve
behavioral risk of hypertension among low income adults. For example, the implementing
program for nutrition education and food assistance is necessary to increase awareness about

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good nutrition. Secondly, policies need to be implemented to provide better employment
opportunity and reduce environmental risk of hypertension among low income group.
Teaching nutrition to low income people with Diabetes:
Phase I: Healthy eating is one of the primary methods to treat and control diabetes. Health
eating should be targeted to control and manage diabetes in low income people because they are
more likely to have a diet high in fat and low in fibers, fruits and vegetables (Breland et al.,
2013). .
Phase II: The main behavioral risk factors that leads to poor diet and diabetes in low income
group includes poverty and lack of education. Poor and undereducated are more likely to
consumer unhealthy foods compared to affluent and educated counterparts. Cost of healthy
foods, transportation and communication barriers and frustration also prevents healthy eating in
low income families (Breland et al., 2013). Hence, health promotion programs should prioritize
developing health eating and nutrition education programs so that beliefs related to healthy
eating can be modified in low income group.
Phase III: Healthy eating and health education has been given a priority to promote health in
people with diabetes. However, the predisposing and enabling factors that may influence this
action includes affordability factor and health beliefs factors. Different cultural groups may have
different idea about healthy food and healthy behavior (Laraia et al., 2017). Hence, these factors
must be modified to promote health and manage diabetes in target population group.
Phase IV: As the socioeconomic and physical environment of low income groups are filled with
many barriers to behavioral change. It is necessary that policy makers implement actions to
support healthy growth of low income group. Clinical leaders should educate clinicians

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regarding collaborating with patient to share understand about glucose control and quality of life.
Visual information on healthy diet and nutrition should be provided to target group (Laraia et al.,
2017).

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References:
Breland, J. Y., McAndrew, L. M., Gross, R. L., Leventhal, H., & Horowitz, C. R. (2013).
Challenges to healthy eating for people with diabetes in a low-income, minority
neighborhood. Diabetes care, 36(10), 2895-2901, doi: 10.2337/dc12-1632.
Hamano, T., Kimura, Y., Takeda, M., Yamasaki, M., Isomura, M., Nabika, T., & Shiwaku, K.
(2012). Effect of environmental and lifestyle factors on hypertension: Shimane COHRE
study. PloS one, 7(11), e49122, Doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0049122
Huckabay, L., Reynolds, G. L., Fisher, D. G., Odell, A., & Dyo, M. (2016). Hypertension in a
low-income and homeless community sample. Journal of Community Medicine and
Health Education, 6(399), 1-8, doi:10.4172/2161-0711.1000399
Laraia, B. A., Leak, T. M., Tester, J. M., & Leung, C. W. (2017). Biobehavioral factors that
shape nutrition in low-income populations: a narrative review. American journal of
preventive medicine, 52(2), S118-S126,
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2016.08.003
Sarki, A. M., Nduka, C. U., Stranges, S., Kandala, N. B., & Uthman, O. A. (2015). Prevalence of
hypertension in low-and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-
analysis. Medicine, 94(50), doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001959