Melissa Acuna

October 24, 2016

Health Outcomes

Overview of San Bernardino County

San Bernardino is the largest county is the United States. While geographically the

largest, its population is less than other surrounding counties, such as Los Angeles and San

Diego. San Bernardino county also has a large Hispanic/Latino Population, followed by Whites,

African American/Black, Asian, and other smaller racial groups. Unfortunately, the county as a

whole is falling short of the states average, in crucial areas such as health, education, income,

and poverty. The socio-economic status of the county residents is consistently lower, which

directly correlates to poor health outcomes. The largest amount of people in poverty are

Latino/Hispanics mostly due to their large presence. However, the ethnic group with the largest

percentage in poverty are Black/African American. Also, poverty is also very prevalent for

children under 18 years old, with 26.4% of the youth population being affected. Lastly, while

poverty strikes both genders almost evenly, more females are currently in poverty. These main

demographics play a large role into health and wellness. For San Bernardino County, three large

health concerns are mental health, communicable diseases, and Chronic diseases, which affect a

large portion of residents.

Chronic Diseases: Asthma

San Bernardino has a high percentage of residents who have asthma, and/or who are

overweight/obese. San Bernardino currently has the second highest child diagnosed asthma rates
amongst neighboring counties, 14.7%, similar to the state average of 14.2%. As for adults 18 and

over, the average is surprisingly lower than the other surrounding counties, at 11.6%, compared

to the state average 13.5%. Racially, African Americans have the highest diagnosis rates of

asthma, at 22.2%, followed by Whites (13.5), and then Latinos at 9.7%. This information lines

up with the poverty statics mentioned previously. Those most likely to be in poverty, a young

African American, also faces a greater risk in obtaining asthma. This could be due to poor living

environments, such as smog, high car emission exposure, poor living conditions, or second hand

smoke, all of which are characteristics of poverty housing.

Chronic Diseases: Diabetes

Obesity is also a growing issue. In 2009, 36% of adults were overweight, and 32 were considered

obese. Overall, San Bernardino County had the highest rates of overweight or obese adults (68%)

compared with neighboring counties and the state (59%).

Since

overweight and obese adults are so prevalent, it is only expected to see a high

number of diagnosed diabetes in residents. San Bernardino County has the second

highest diabetes rate (10.6% of adults) within neighboring counties. This is higher

than the state average of 8.5%. Diabetes is correlated with poor diet, and lack of

physical education. Both of which could be a result of a lack of health literacy. If

those with higher education have better health, the reverse is also true. San

Bernardino County residents have a lower education level compared to neighboring

counties, and as a result, could lack the knowledge and resource to prevent or

maintain diabetes. It could also be related to a lack of resources to obtain healthy

foods. If a typical poverty stricken family has a low income, more than likely they
cannot afford to buy a constant supply of nutritious food, or have the resources to

obtain it, such as reliable transportation. Perhaps the built environment is not safe

to perform physical activity outside, for example, fear of crime, or lack or

recreational areas. Many of these factors go hand in hand with poverty. Overall,

African Americans and Hispanics face a greater risk in obtaining diabetes.

Mortality

San Bernardino County has one of the highest mortality rates of heart disease in the state, nearly 1,810

deaths were recorded between 2012-2014. This was followed chronic lower respiratory disease, and

stroke. However, if you were to include all cancer types, it would be the highest, around 2,869 deaths in

total for 2012-2014. For the most part, these chronic diseases related deaths are based on previous health

history, and can possibly be prevented. For cities that have a strong health care presence, along with

community engagement, there exists lower amounts of mortality from chronic diseases. Unfortunately, in

counties such as San Bernardino the amount of those afflicted have high rate or mortality. This is also true

for those who live in poverty, who may lack adequate resources or knowledge on healthy lifestyle choices

or resources focused on prevention.

Works Cited

http://www.sbcounty.gov/uploads/dph/publichealth/documents/2011-Community-

Indicators-Report.pdf

http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/cdcb/Documents/FINAL%20Rpt%20(1877)%20DM

%20burden%202014_9-04-14MNR3.pdf

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/06071,06