It’s amazing how fast the Hispanic population is growing–right now 1 in 6 people living in the U.S. is Hispanic. By 2035, those numbers will be 1 in 4, but we suspect we might reach those numbers even faster. There are cultural differences that make us susceptible to different diseases, such as the way we live, our lifestyle, which is why it’s important to know the top 5 diseases that are killing Hispanics, most which are preventable.
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Number 5: Chronic Liver Disease & Cirrhosis
One thing is to be a social drinker and have 1 or 2 drinks at a social gathering, but another thing is to drink excessively. The liver breaks down alcohol so that it can be removed from your body and when it can’t handle the amount of alcohol you drink, the liver becomes injured. That’s when you develop alcoholic fatty liver disease, which is the deposit of fat in liver cells and after years of excessive drinking you can develop alcoholic cirrhosis, which is the scarring of the liver.
Number 4: Diabetes
For many years, Hispanics have been told that they are at a higher risk for diabetes. This is true, but it’s not the number one killer. Type 2 diabetes is a preventable disease, especially if it runs in your family. The fact is that many people develop diabetes due to poor eating habits and the lack of exercise and that has to change as early as possible.
Number 3: Stroke & Number 2: Heart Disease
Hispanics face a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases because of high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. Many times high blood pressure combined with obesity and diabetes can lead to heart disease, which is what makes this the second and third cause of death for Hispanics. The top cardiovascular diseases that they are at risk for are cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease and stroke. Some of the factors that lead to this include smoking, physical inactivity, obesity and high cholesterol.
Number 1: Cancer
Cancer is the leading cause of death among Hispanics, accounting for 22% of deaths. They have a higher risk for cancers associated with the most common cancers: liver, stomach and cervix. These types of cancers are associated with infectious agents. Liver cancer is caused by excessive alcohol consumption, stomach cancer comes from smoking and eating smoked processed foods, as well as drinking alcohol and obesity and cervical cancer is caused by persistent infection of certain types of the human papillomavirus (HPV).
