Why Diabetes Is More Prevalent Among African Americans: Exploring Genetics and Lifestyle Factors

The statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that more than 34 million American children, teens and adults are affected by diabetes ⁽¹⁾.

Diabetes can affect people of all ethnicities and races; however, it is found to affect more certain ethnic and racial groups. The fact of the matter is non-Hispanic African Americans are about 60% more susceptible to be diagnosed with diabetes than others ⁽²⁾.

In this article, we will talk about why Black Americans are more affected with diabetes and how to reduce the risk of developing diabetes and more.

The Connection between Diabetes and Race

As mentioned before, diabetes can affect anyone, but it seen to disproportionately affect individuals of certain ethnic or racial backgrounds.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) shows that rampancy of diabetes in non-Hispanic Blacks is around 11.7 % when compared to only 7.5 % in non-Hispanic whites ⁽³⁾.

American Indians/Alaskan Natives and Hispanics have highest rates of being affected with diabetes, at 14.7 % and 12.5 % respectively.

Diabetes affects Asian Americans slightly more than white Americans with a prevalence of 9.2%.

Other than having increased risk for diabetes, Black Americans are also at increased risk to suffer from complications of diabetes ⁽²⁾. Case in the point is the rate of diabetic retinopathy is about 46% more than African Americans than non-Hispanic white Americans ⁽⁴⁾. End stage renal disease occurring as a complication of diabetes is also about 2.6 times higher in Black Americans than non-Hispanic whites ⁽⁴⁾.

Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes is a broad term for multiple conditions, which causes dysfunction in the ability of the body to secrete insulin, metabolize glucose or both.

When sugar (glucose) is consumed from the foods, then insulin, which is a hormone, secreted by the beta cells of pancreas is needed to manage the levels of glucose. When insulin reaches the body’s cells, it then attaches to receptors which help the cells in indentifying and taking the glucose from the blood circulation.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder, which commonly develops during childhood. When one suffers from type 1 diabetes, the human body attacks the beta cells present in the pancreas, which restricts its ability to secrete insulin. With insufficient insulin, the cells cannot utilize the glucose leading to increased levels of blood sugar in the body.

Type 2 diabetes is a form of chronic condition, which usually starts in adulthood. With type 2 diabetes, the body finds it difficult to recognize insulin and this condition is known as insulin resistance. In the absence of sufficient insulin response, the cells find it difficult to use the glucose leading to elevated blood sugar levels.

The cause of type 1 diabetes is lack of insulin; whereas the cause of type 2 diabetes can be lack of insulin as well as sensitivity to insulin.

However, type 2 diabetes caused by insulin deficiency is not autoimmune and rather it occurs because the pancreas cannot fulfill the increased demand for insulin caused by insulin resistance.

Why are Black Americans more affected with Type 2 Diabetes?

An older research from the year 2005 has shown that the increased incidence of type 2 diabetes in African Americans can be due to environmental as well as genetic factors ⁽⁵⁾. Let’s look at these causes more closely. 

Health Factors Contributing to the Increased Diabetes risk in African Americans

Obesity or being overweight is one of the most prominent risk factor for type 2 diabetes in African Americans, more so in Black women, who have been statistically shown to have increased rates of obesity than white Americans ⁽⁶⁾. According to studies Black Americans face a lot of inequalities like limited access to nutritious food, lower socioeconomic status and all these can contribute to the increased risk of obesity ⁽⁷⁾. This in conjunction with reduced physical activity levels, especially in Black women and teenage girls, the risk of diabetes is increases greatly.

According to research, insulin resistance is also more prevalent in African Americans and especially in Black adolescents because the insulin resistance is connected to the development of type 2 diabetes and this is why the risk of diabetes is more in black Americans.

Genetic Factors Causing Increased Risk of Diabetes in Black Americans

In the past, experts had put forward the idea of “thrifty gene,” as a theory for the high rates of diabetes in Black Americans ⁽⁸⁾. This theory suggested that previous populations had exposure to famine and were thought to store fat more efficiently. Whereas in modern America, this theory would equate to an increase in general body weight and thus the increase in diabetes. As the African Americans were diverse population, especially when it comes to the genes, then this theory does not hold up.

According to another theory, the increased incidence of G6PD deficiency, which is an inherited disorder,  in Black males along with the typical “Western diet“ can contribute to the increased risk of diabetes ⁽⁹⁾.

Social Factors as a Causative Factor for Diabetes in African Americans

Socioeconomic factors have a huge affect on the outcomes of any health problems including the risk of developing certain health issues. A study from 2014 explored the link between diabetes prevalence and poverty ⁽¹⁰⁾. This study showed that Black Americans and poor white Americans were at increased risk for diabetes than the non-poor white Americans. Moreover, under-resourced socioeconomic groups who were suffering from high levels of stress are thought to be at increased risk for diabetes risk, especially individuals who were predisposed to this condition. Various studies have also shown a link between both long-term stress and acute stress in the occurrence of diabetes. However, there is more research needed on this.

How Do You Know If You Have Diabetes?

Getting checkups on a regular basis is one of the best ways to prevent the occurrence of type 2 diabetes. In these checkups, there are many tests done to know the blood sugar levels and understand the risk of developing diabetes.

How Can One Reduce The Risk Of Diabetes?

Even if someone had all the risk factors of type 2 diabetes, there is no need to be disheartened, as one can take certain measures to cut down the risk of diabetes ⁽¹¹⁾. According to the Diabetes Prevention Program study, individuals who followed and maintained certain lifestyle changes benefited by reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes by about 58% over a period of three years; and this was applicable to all ethnic and racial groups (12).

The lifestyle changes which help in reducing the risk of diabetes are:

Keeping Your Weight Under Control: Obesity is one of the major risk factors for diabetes and even though weight is not the only indication of getting diabetes, but being overweight increases the risk of getting affected with type 2 diabetes. Losing even 5 to 10 percent of your body weight helps in cutting down the risk of diabetes.

Healthy Eating Choices: Consuming a balanced and healthy diet consisting of fresh leafy greens, fruits and lean proteins helps in reducing the risk of getting diabetes. Avoid eating too much of foods high in calories, sugar and fat is recommended for good health.

Working Out: Regular exercise helps in cutting the risk of many chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes. It is advised to get a minimum of 150 minutes of light exercise in a week for optimum health and to prevent chronic diseases like diabetes.

Managing Stress: According to studies, chronic stress causes a lot of negative impact on health and increases the risk of many health conditions including diabetes. Doing activities, such as journaling, meditation, yoga helps in managing stress and greatly improves mental as well as physical health.

Regular Checkups: If you are predisposed to getting diabetes, then never skip your scheduled checkups with your doctor.

Conclusion

Diabetes is found to affect more certain ethnic and racial groups, including Hispanic, Indigenous and Black Americans. There are different causes for this, such as health, genetic and social factors, which contribute to increased risk of diabetes in African Americans. Research also shows that the biggest impact or the reason for increased risk for diabetes is because of increased rate of obesity among the Black population.

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Also Read:

• Exercise and Workout Tips For Diabetes
• Diabetic Coma: Causes, What Happens When You go Into a Diabetic Coma?
• Disability Benefits for Diabetes
• Pancreas and Diabetes: Why does Pancreas Stop Producing Insulin?
• What is Insipidus Diabetes: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Risk Factors
• What are the 3 P’s of Diabetes & their Characteristics?
• What Happens if Type 2 Diabetes is Untreated?