The "Big Three" Cardiovascular Risk Factors among American Blacks and Hispanics

Abstract

Today's chronic diseases require "treatment" by shifting control of the outcome from the provider back to the individual and the environment in which one functions. There is a strong need to consider the individual in the context of ethnicity and culture, which express themselves in the prevalence and magnitude of risk factors, the biological impact of risk factors and expression of disease, and the potential for control of unhealthy behaviors. Educational and screening programs related to the risk factors of cigarette smoking, hypertension, and cholesterol must be structured so that recommended life-style changes are compatible with the individual's cultural values and beliefs.