<< Previous 1 - 2 Next >> |
March is National Kidney Month, a time when communities across the country raise awareness about kidney disease. This year’s focus is on taking charge of your health and the many factors that go into managing your kidney disease.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious condition affecting 37 million people. Often overlooked until symptoms appear, CKD is progressive and can put you at risk for serious health complications including kidney failure. Adopting a healthy lifestyle can help you manage and slow progression of CKD and its complications.
Follow these healthy lifestyle tips to take charge of your kidney health.
It may seem difficult, but small changes can go a long way to keeping your kidneys and you healthier for longer.
This year alone, more than 280,000 Americans will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. During National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, we honor the lives ended too soon and all those we can still save by redoubling our efforts to end cancer as we know it.
When someone is diagnosed with prostate cancer, every second counts. But patients are too often left advocating for basic care while drowning in a flood of medical information. Even when treatment is available, some struggle to afford it or insurance may not cover it. And stark inequities exist: Black men are more than twice as likely to die from prostate cancer in this country than other men.
Our Nation must do more to change that. Last year, the First Lady and I reignited the Cancer Moonshot, setting an ambitious new goal to cut America’s cancer death rate by at least half over the next 25 years, turning more cancers from death sentences into treatable diseases and improving support for patients and families. I worked with the Congress to establish the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, securing $2.5 billion in bipartisan funding to develop breakthroughs in preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancer and other deadly diseases and pioneering partnerships to get those breakthroughs out to clinics and patients. We are making lifesaving cancer care more affordable for millions of Americans, expanding coverage through Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, and helping many who had received relief during the pandemic to keep saving $800 a year on insurance premiums. The Inflation Reduction Act will soon cap total out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare at $2,000 a year — including for expensive cancer medicines — which could save some prostate cancer patients up to $6,000 a year.
We are also working to make sure prevention, detection, and treatment procedures are available to patients of all communities and backgrounds. The National Institutes of Health is continuing expansive research into environmental and genetic factors to better understand why prostate cancer disproportionately affects Black men. In response to our Cancer Moonshot, the Department of Veterans Affairs expanded its National Precision Oncology Program to better tailor treatments to individual veterans. And we know that screening matters: Experts recommend that men with a higher risk of cancer — based on race or ethnicity, family history, or other factors — discuss it with their doctors.
Everyone’s journey with cancer is different, but the First Lady and I know how hard it can be on the whole family. To all those caring for loved ones with prostate cancer and all those facing it themselves, we stand with you. My Administration is working around the clock on breakthroughs that can bring hope and more choices to the fight against this disease.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2023 as National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. I encourage citizens, government agencies, private businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other interested groups to join in activities that will increase awareness of what Americans can do to prevent and cure prostate cancer.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-eighth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
1 Feb 2021 — 4 min read
Jul. 23, 2019 - July is National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, which was established in 2008 to bring awareness to the unique struggles that underrepresented groups in the United States face regarding mental illness. Clearly, mental health conditions do not discriminate based on race, color, or gender identity, yet we see stark differences in access to, and utilization of, treatment resources. Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. (46.6 million) experiences mental illness in a given year, regardless of their race.1 Fewer than half of adults in the U.S. with a mental health condition receive mental health services in a given year. African Americans however, utilize mental health services at about one-half the rate of Caucasian Americans.2 This begs the question: why?
We cannot rule out the impact of historical adversity, which has led to race-based exclusion from health, educational, social and economic resources. Many African Americans today still feel the socioeconomic impact of slavery, sharecropping, and Jim Crowism. Socioeconomic status is linked to mental health, in that people who are impoverished, homeless, or incarcerated are at higher risk for poor mental health. We also cannot rule out the impact of stigma associated with mental illness in the African American community. According to the Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, African-Americans are 20% more likely to experience serious mental health problems than the general population, yet African Americans are less likely to initiate treatment and more likely to end treatment prematurely.
Literature suggests that African Americans are much more likely to rely on their faith as a coping mechanism for dealing with depression and anxiety than they are to utilize a mental health professional. One study found that 90.4% of African Americans reported use of religious coping in dealing with mental health issues.3 In other words, many African Americans, rather than seeking support in the form of a mental health professional, go to the church.
This is not surprising when one understands the traditional role of the African American Church. There has always been a connection to faith and the emotional well-being of African Americans. I can remember personally, sitting on the front pew of the church, the son of a pastor, watching in awe as my father recited spirited sermons from the pulpit as the congregation hung on every word. After church it seemed that everyone wanted to get close to him. There was something about connection with the faith leader that brought a sense of comfort and familiarity. There has always been an intersection of faith & freedom. It was faith that sustained our African ancestors through slavery. Whether it’s in terms of freedom from physical bondage, spiritual bondage, or mental bondage, faith has been viewed as the key to unlock the shackles. Within the African American community, there was often a belief that no matter how great the burden, prayer was the answer.
The African American church has traditionally been the gateway into the African American community. It has been our access to social services, family counseling, and a sense of belonging. African American faith leaders also play a pivotal role in community messaging about what is important to black & brown people. We have historically looked to our faith leaders for political guidance, and to be the spokesperson when our communities have needed a champion. As stigma is a significant barrier to accessing the needed support and care for individuals facing mental health concerns, the ability for individuals in distress to have a conversation with a trusted faith leader with whom they have a shared history is often an essential component. It is imperative that our faith leaders are equipped to respond appropriately to the lack of mental health resources in our communities while removing barriers to care.
Our faith leaders can play a pivotal role, if we are to move the needle on improving mental wellness in the African American community. My use of the term “wellness” is intentional; a crucial first step in changing the narrative is to change the language. We should focus on wellness rather than “illness.” Illness implies that something is wrong. Wellness lends itself more easily to viewing treatment as preventive.
If we want to strengthen the role of the church in promoting metal wellness, we must:
The topic of mental health is still often associated with a sense of shame among African Americans, making it hard for those experiencing distress to reach out for help, and for those who care about them to help connect them to that help. By spreading awareness and understanding about suicide prevention and mental health, the church can become an important place of refuge for those struggling.
Overview
Heart attacks and strokes can be catastrophic, life-changing events that are all too common. Heart disease and strokes are preventable, yet they remain the leading causes of death, disability, and healthcare spending in the US. Alarmingly, many of these events happen to adults ages 35-64—over 800,000 in 2016. Million Hearts® is a national initiative with a network of partners focused on preventing one million heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular events by 2022. Coordinated actions by public health and healthcare professionals, communities, and healthcare systems can and will keep people healthy, optimize care, and improve outcomes within priority populations.
* Deaths, hospitalizations, and emergency room visits due to heart attack, stroke, and other cardiovascular conditions like heart failure that could be prevented if Million Hearts 2022 actions are taken.
People not taking aspirin as recommended.
People with uncontrolled blood pressure.
Adults not using statins (cholesterol-lowering medicines) when indicated.
Adult smokers.
Adults who are physically inactive.
Source: Million Hearts® At-A-Glance, 2017
In 2016, about 775,000 hospitalizations and 75,000 deaths occurred in younger Americans, who are America’s workforce, parents, partners, and caregivers.
Everyone can take small steps to improve their own health, the health of their families and loved ones, patients, communities, and the heart health of our nation. We have to act now.
View large image and text description
One million events could be prevented by 2022 if every state reduced these life-changing events by 6%.
While rates are higher in the Southeast and Midwest, small changes to improve heart health are needed in all states.
The solution to this crisis is already in front of us. Small changes sustained over time will result in big improvements to the heart health of our nation. Everyone can take action.
Million Hearts® is working with more than 120 partners, all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and 20 federal agencies to:
Keep people healthy by making changes to environments in which people live, learn, work, and play to make it easier to make healthy choices.
HOW: Achieve a 20% reduction in sodium intake, tobacco use, and physical inactivity.
Communities making physical activity easier by creating walking and biking trails.
People adding 10 minutes of physical activity a day—like walking or gardening.
Optimize care so that those at risk for cardiovascular disease get services and skills needed to reduce the risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
Improve outcomes for priority populations who suffer more from cardiovascular disease and where we know we can make an impact.
Keeping People Healthy.
Optimizing Care.
Improving Outcomes for Priority Populations—People who have had a heart attack or stroke.
More information about Million Hearts® and tools you can use are available at millionhearts.hhs.govExternal.
Stories from people who have taken control of their blood pressure are available at https://bit.ly/2N9ahqXExternal.
Heart disease doesn’t happen just to older adults. It is happening to younger adults more and more often. This is partly because the conditions that lead to heart disease are happening at younger ages.
February is American Heart Month, the perfect time to learn about your risk for heart disease and the steps you need to take now to help your heart.
Heart disease—and the conditions that lead to it—can happen at any age.
High rates of obesity and high blood pressure among younger people (ages 35–64) are putting them at risk for heart disease earlier in life.
Nearly half of all Americans have at least one of the top three risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking.1,2
Learn about your risk for heart disease and the steps you need to take now to help your heart.
Many of the conditions and behaviors that put people at risk for heart disease are appearing at younger ages:
On average, U.S. adults have hearts that are 7 years older than they should be. Watch this video to learn about “heart age.”
Other conditions and behaviors that affect your risk for heart disease include:
You’re in the driver’s seat when it comes to your heart. Learn how to be heart-healthy at any age.
Don’t smoke. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, learn how to quit.
Manage conditions. Work with your health care team to manage conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This includes taking any medicines you have been prescribed. Learn more about preventing and managing high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Make heart-healthy eating changes. Eat food low in trans fat, saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium. Try to fill at least half your plate with vegetables and fruits, and aim for low sodium options. Learn more about how to reduce sodium.
Stay active. Get moving for at least 150 minutes per week.11 You can even break up the exercise into 10-minute blocks for a total of 30 minutes in a day. Learn more about how to get enough physical activity.
CDC
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
American Heart Association
<< Previous 1 - 2 Next >> |