Unfortunately, not everyone does well in arithmetic or math in school, or may  be educated. This can prove to be a significant stumbling block for proper control of diabetes. Interestingly, much has been said lately about health literacy, being able to read the instructions from a doctor or how to take medications,. Not as much information has been placed on health numeracy, which is the ability to work with basic numbers.

Study Group

Researchers, who published their findings in the September 2009 issue of the journal Diabetes Care, were from Nashville, TN. They studied 398 adults adults who were receiving treatment for type 2 diabetes; 383 were analyzed for the study. To participate in the study, patients had to be African American or white. Sixty-two percent were taking insulin to help manage their diabetes.

The average age was 56 years; the group was split evening, 50/50 between men and women, and 35% of the group was African American. Fifty-six percent of all patients had higher than high school education, 31% less than grade 9 reading level, and 69% had less than a grade 9 numeracy level.

Tasks

The patients were asked to do the different tasks they needed to do to help regulate their blood glucose at home. This included knowing how to read food labels and interpreting them for calories and carbohydrates, as well a keeping of their blood glucose and the amount of insulin they would have to give themselves.

It’s already known that being older may contribute to lower education levels because of the way our society functioned a few generations ago. Lower income areas also have lower education rates and, as a result, this may happen within certain ethnic groups. This is what raised the interest among the researchers.

Special issues for African Americans

Doctors know that many African Americans have difficult-to-control diabetes. Because there are some illnesses that are worse in some races, such as hypertension in African Americans, the researchers wondered if this was the case with diabetes or if there could be other factors that played a role.

By investigating the race (African American and white), ages, education levels, reading levels and math levels, the researchers were able to find that there was a difference between ability to control the blood sugar and education. And, because the white group tended to be more educated, the African Americans, especially older ones, had poor blood sugar control. And, not surprisingly, they had the lowest literacy and numeracy scores.

Why are such studies important? Because if researchers can pinpoint these factors, programs can be developed to address the weaknesses in healthcare delivery. If what is needed is a push for education, then the researchers know where this education may be most important.

It’s no surprise that low literacy skills and low numeracy skills would make it more difficult to manage a chronic disease like diabetes. The trick is to now help work around that.

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Images: PhotoXpress.com, MorgueFile.com

Post from: Blisstree

Arithmetic Ability May Affect Diabetes

Here at b5media’s Health & Wellness Channel, we’re always doing something.

This week, we’re rounding up our “Top 5″ posts.

Some bloggers are focusing on their top five most popular posts, their favorite posts, and even posts that aren’t very well known to their readers.

Because Mental Health Notes is still celebrating its one-year anniversary, I thought I’d go retro with it and list the top five posts I had the most fun writing within the first five months Mental Health Notes was live. (Five just seems to be a common number here, so I’ll stick with it.)

So, without further ado…

May 2007 – Brush Up On Your Health Literacy – This post was actually part of a Mental Health Month series I ran in May 2007. For each day of the month, I offered a “tip” to help better manage mental health. The main reason I enjoyed writing this post is because health literacy was, at that time, completely new to me. So, I was learning while I was passing along information to you.

June 2007 – Is There a Line That Separates Politics and Human Compassion? – I had some trouble choosing a post from this month. Initially, I wanted to select DMB Takes a Stand Against Inadequate Mental Health Care because – hello – Dave Matthews Band is the best. band. ever. However, the related petition was expired, so I moved on to Is There a Line That Separates Politics and Human Compassion? While the information in that post isn’t exactly up to date, it’s still very relevant in today’s politics. And it was fun to write, because I just don’t like Ann Coulter.

July 2007 – Harry Potter: A Cure for Depression? – Choosing a post for this month presented a dilemma, too. I thought about highlighting Damage Control: How To Deal With Losing Mental Health Care Coverage (it is extremely beneficial information, after all), but I ultimately chose the Harry Potter post because it was the funnest to write.

August 2007 – Reduce Stress The Interactive Way – This was by far the funnest post to write during August 2007, because the research that went into writing this post was fun!

September 2007 – Long Abandoned Suitcases From A State Mental Institution – I didn’t have to think too long about this one. Writing about the Willard Suitcase Exhibit was not only fun; it was fascinating.

That’s all for the top five posts I had the most fun writing during the first five months of Mental Health Notes. Did I include any of your favorites?

Image: Newscom

Remember! You have until May 31, 2008 to enter the Mental Health Notes Birthday Giveaway, and forever to join the This Is Why I ROCK! series!

Post from: Blisstree

Top 5 Posts I Had The Most Fun Writing For Mental Health Notes

Let’s see how much you know about mental health and factors that can actually predict the status of a person’s mental health.

Choose which of the following factors you think is the most effective in predicting a person’s mental health status:

• Race/ethnicity
• Age
• Education
• Income
• Literacy skills
• Employment

If you chose literacy skills, you’re absolutely correct. And it’s deeper than just being able to read and write – it’s also being able to understand health-related information. In other words, it’s your health literacy.

According to The Partnership for Clear Health Communication, or PCHC, individuals are more likely to have trouble with their health if they aren’t able to read and understand things like prescription medication instructions and self-managed treatment materials. They’re also less likely to seek medical help when they suspect a problem, as well as less likely to ask the doctor questions if they don’t fully understand the steps they need to take to get well.

Having health literacy issues doesn’t mean you’re uneducated, too young or too old, or poor. You could be a 30-year-old millionaire attorney, and still have trouble understanding health material.

At the same time, issues such as shock, fear, and stress can impair your health literacy. It’s not shocking to imagine someone who has a stressful home life and has just been diagnosed with more than one health problem might have difficulty understanding what they must do to treat or manage the problems.

Today’s Mental Health Month tip? Brush up on your health literacy.

The PCHC has developed a program called Ask Me 3, in which patients are encouraged to ask their doctors three questions: What is my main problem?, What do I need to do?, and Why is it important for me to do this?

I have a few suggestions of my own to help boost your health literacy:

• Upon diagnosis of your mental health condition, ask your doctor for information about support groups in your area. Not only will support groups help you deal with your diagnosis, but they’ll also help you better understand it – as well as your treatment – since they’re full of “veterans,” so to speak.
• If you’re not comfortable joining a local support group, consider an online group. You can do this through email groups, message boards, and even chat rooms.
• Soak up as much information about the mental health condition as possible. Visit websites dedicated to providing easy-to-understand information, as well as tools designed to help you manage your condition.

Have you had issues with health literacy? How did you remedy the problem?

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Mental Health Month Day 24 – Brush Up On Your Health Literacy