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Rev. Daniel McKizzy wanted to get healthy. McKizzy, the senior pastor at New Creation Baptist Church, a predominantly black church in south Minneapolis, was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes six years ago. A year ago, he began to notice an increase in the number of previously perfect blood pressure. The doctor suggested to improve diet and physical activity. He wasn’t sure where to start.
That is, until he learned about a new health initiative from an unusual source: his own church. A Mayo Clinic trial is asking black congregations to evaluate a new heart health app that targets specific needs.
“It was perfect for me — it gave me the motivation to be better,” McKeesie said. “And I was able to rally people in the congregation to follow through.”
Two recent studies, led by Dr. LaPrince Brewer, assistant professor in the Mayo Clinic’s Department of Cardiology, show that Makhizzi’s experience is unusual. Black people who are religious or spiritual have stronger heart health markers than non-religious people, according to a recent study. Her experience developing and evaluating the Heart Health app—a trial in which McKeesie participated—demonstrated that churchgoers were interested in using digital interventions.
Beer information from Jackson Heart StudySince 1998 in Jackson, Miss., more than 5,000 African Americans have been followed for environmental and genetic factors associated with coronary heart disease. Not surprisingly, beer found a strong link between church attendance and heart health. Churches provide a strong support network for many African Americans. But she didn’t expect to see health benefits from religious practices like private prayer outside of services.
Beer used parameters developed by the American Heart Association. The seven factors refer to three behavioral factors (diet, exercise, and nicotine exposure) and four physiological factors (weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood glucose) that contribute to heart health.
The study’s findings, published this August in the Journal of the American Heart Association, also confirm the tools Brewer’s Mayo Clinic is developing through the Mayo Clinic’s Advancing African-American Advancement in Total Health (faith!). The program is a participatory research effort aimed at preventing heart disease in underserved communities.
Community-based interventions need to be culturally tailored, Brewer says, because black adults suffer from poorer heart health and die from cardiovascular disease at higher rates than white people. It’s one reason why white people tend to live longer than black people, the American Heart Association said in 2017. Scientific description.
And Minnesota is not immune to that injustice. Another year A 2022 study by Brewer and colleagues found that black Minnesotans had cardiovascular disease risk factors equal to or worse than those in the Jackson study. In Minnesota, black adults between the ages of 35-63 are the most likely to die Cardiovascular disease Twice as much as their white counterparts.
When she moved to Rochester 10 years ago, Brewer began working with FAITH! Initiative, now affiliated with approximately 120 black Christian communities in Rochester and the Twin Cities.
The relationship with the churches paved the way for the introduction of new interventions. Beer’s team, for example, was able to tap participants in the process of developing a heart health app.
Carmen Robinson, 61, a member of Greater Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church in north Minneapolis, said she didn’t need much persuasion to join the app’s trial.
“I have a problem with weight and health — I want to be healthy,” said Robinson, who was diagnosed with pre-diabetes. It is what God wants, she said.
During the 10-week trial and six-month follow-up, Mayo Clinic researchers measured the participants’ blood pressure, glucose levels, cholesterol and body mass index (a measure of body fat). The researchers then rated how heart-healthy their diets were.
Robinson realized the app held her accountable. When she found out she had pre-diabetes, she encouraged her to eat whole fruit, which she eliminated from her diet.
By the end of the trial, her cholesterol, glucose and blood pressure had all improved.
Most participants improved their diet and exercise levels.
Getting health information from a trusted pastor offers another powerful benefit, Brewer said. Brewer and other researchers have already explained Lack of trust in medical research Due to historical disadvantages.
“People are willing to trust us, given the history of some of the abuses of people of color in science,” McKeesie said.
Brewer is eager to share the numbers from Jackson’s heart data with church leaders. She hopes it will encourage sermons that emphasize preventative strategies such as smoking cessation, exercise and a heart-healthy diet.
This story is brought to you. Sahan Journal, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to covering Minnesota’s immigrants and communities of color. Sign up for it Free newspaper To receive stories in your inbox.
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