Tag Archives: african-american

Heavy Black Women Have Higher Self Esteem Than Thinner White Women

A nationwide survey reveals the truth about women’s self-esteem in relation to their body size.

Heavier set African American women are found to be happier with their bodies than thinner and average sized Caucasian women. The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation conducted the survey. They interviewed 800 women from all across the country in order to get a well rounded survey group. The results showed that 66% of overweight or even obese black women had high self-esteem. In contrast, only 41% of thin or skinny white women were found to have high self esteem.

Some of the other details of the survey included the fact that 90% of African American women think living a healthy lifestyle is more important than religion, career, or marriage. However, two-thirds of these same women reported eating fast food at least once a week and only half reported eating dinner at home on a regular basis.
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Posted on March 2, 2024 by Lacy

As Charles Barkley Represents Weight Watchers He’s Poised to Become a Role Model

“Lose weight like a man,” says Charles Barkley, the newest spokesperson for Weight Watchers. The former NBA superstar, who has been nicknamed “Round Mound of Rebound,” has gotten tired of his weight and pledged to drop it, once and for all. At his highest weight, the 48-year-old retired basketball star weighed more than 350 pounds.

Famous for a 1993 Nike ad in which he says “I am not a role model. I’m not paid to be a role model. I am paid to wreak havoc on the basketball court. Parents should be role models,” Barkley has changed his tune.

In the Weight Watchers ads, slated to run most often during sporting events, Barkley says “I am still not a role model. But maybe I can change that. Maybe if I tell you I’m losing weight and getting healthy, you’d see that you can too.” Nowhere in the advertisements does he mention black men specifically, but the message of “health first” is one that is very often overlooked by men, especially men of color. They are often underrepresented in the weight loss field, often to the gross extremes of encouraging heaviness with the popularity of such men as “The Notorious B.I.G.”, and the recent passing of comedian Patrice O’Neal. (more…)

Posted on January 2, 2024 by Carmen

Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin Warns Black Women not to Sacrifice Their Health for Their Hair

Growing up as a little girl, I can remember my mom spending a lot of time straightening my hair. She would go through the process of washing and pressing it, then she would section it out into some nice, pretty ponytails and I would head outside to play. On my way out the door she would yell, “Don’t sweat your hair out!,” a phrase most black women heard growing up.

What my mom meant was I shouldn’t go outside and get all sweaty, because that would reverse all the work she had just done. Any moisture on my hair would result in it becoming puffy and curly again. Many women grow up with the mentality of avoiding any type of sweat for fear of messing up their hair. Some even go as far as avoiding exercise in the name of beauty.

Black women have the type of hair that requires a lot of maintenance, and if time and money are spent in the beauty salon getting it styled and straightened, most aren’t likely to hit the gym and allow sweat to ruin it. Unfortunately, when this happens, health suffers. Some may think avoiding workouts to keep their hair intact isn’t a big deal, but the issue is serious.

In fact, Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin made an appearance at the recent Bonner Brothers International Hair Show in Atlanta, an annual show that features around 60,000 hair stylists. Dr. Benjamin, who is an African-American woman, wants to make sure black women know that a hairstyle shouldn’t keep you out of the gym.

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Posted on September 6, 2024 by Descygna

Exercise Offers Breast Cancer Hope for African-American Women

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so what better time than now to become more aware of how you can give yourself the best chance of not coming down the deadly disease.

While genetics may come into play, there are certain lifestyle changes that can be made to minimize your breast cancer risk. One such lifestyle choice is exercise.

According to new research, postmenopausal African-American women who exercise vigorously for more than two hours a week can reduce their breast cancer risk by 64 percent as compared to sedentary women. (more…)

Posted on October 6, 2024 by Health Buzz

Obese Students Must Take Health Class to Graduate

In today’s supersized culture, it is important that all of us take responsiblity to advocate for improved health but administrators at Lincoln University in Oxford, Pennsylvania are taking their role as health advocates very seriously. In fact, some critics argue that the predominately African-American college may be taking their concern for the health of their students a bit too far.