Abstract
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death of all races in the United States. African-Americans are more likely to die from CVD than whites. One hundred and forty-six African-Americans college students were recruited from a historical black college (HBCU) in North Carolina. A fitness course (PEDU 1541) was required for all students at North Carolina Central University (NCCU). An eight-week program was designed by several certified fitness instructors who teach this course at NCCU. This study was to exam the effectiveness of an 8-week exercise program in reducing CVD risk factors, including cardiovascular fitness, waist circumferences, and body fat percentage (BF%). Students’ BMI, body composition, cardiovascular fitness, muscular endurance, and trunk flexibility were assessed before and after completion of this 8-week supervised program. All the pre- and post-measurements of the 146 students were compared with a paired-t test to see if there were any significant changes. After 8 weeks of participation in this program, all measurements except their body fat composition improved (p< 0.05). Students’ diet or calorie intake was not controlled during the program in this study. Therefore, no significant change was found in their answers to the modified questionnaire of health behaviors, including alcohol, tobacco, vegetable consumptions before and after they completed this 8-week fitness course. Therefore, increase physical activity level alone may not be sufficient to reduce all risks of CVD in African-American population.
Highlights
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for women and man of all races and ethnicities in the United States [1]
One hundred and fifty-six African American college students, age between 18-25, and did not have any chronic disease including type 2 diabetes, hypertension and CVD were recruited from North Carolina Central University, a historically black university
Obesity (BMI), Waist circumference, BF% were associated with increased risk of developing CVD, while fitness level was associated with reducing risks of CVD
Summary
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for women and man of all races and ethnicities in the United States [1]. In 2015, 46% of male and 48.3% of female among African Americans age 20 or older have CVD. CVD caused the deaths of 47,130 black females and 46,081 black males; 21% more than nonHispanic whites [1]. Some risk factors cannot be modified, such as family history, while some are modifiable, such as physical inactivity, tobacco, diet, blood lipids, hypertension, and obesity. Studies showed a higher prevalence of risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, cigarette smoking, and left ventricular hypertrophy might account for the disproportionate rate of coronary heart disease mortality in African Americans [3,4]. Traditional family food with high fat, sugar and sodium combine with a less active lifestyle may further pose the problem on their health for some African Americans [5]
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