Health fair takes aim at local medical problems
Jan. 27, 2003

By LEHA BYRD
Observer-Dispatch

It was only because Jeannette Fardan was about to give birth to her son that she found out she was facing potentially grave health problems.

Her blood pressure was so high, she was, at age 17, on the brink of having a stroke.

"I had no symptoms, and I didn't feel a thing. I don't think I would have ever found out," said Fardan, of Utica. "I'm not saying I should have had my son at that age, but if I hadn't had him then, I might not be here."

For many blacks, high blood pressure is something of a plague, and too often isn't detected until it's too late.

About 4-in-10 non-Hispanic black adults have cardiovascular disease, according to the American Heart Association. This statistic includes diseases of the heart, stroke, high blood pressure and congestive heart failure.

That's why the Oneida County Branch of the NAACP's free health fair Wednesday at the Loretto Utica Center is so important, branch President Fran Williams said.

Free blood pressure, cholesterol and $10 prostate cancer screenings will be available for anyone in the community.

"This is open to the public and very important," Williams said. "This way people get free health care service that they'd usually have to pay for. This is preventive health care that can stop people from getting other ailments."

Early detection

Doctors say preventive measures taken through a person's diet and exercise are key for long-lasting, good health.

A four-year-old poll conducted by Newsday, a Long Island newspaper, of 2,000 people in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens found blacks significantly less likely to have had their cholesterol checked -- a measure that can identify increased risk of heart disease.

"It's very important to go to checkups on an annual basis," said Dr. Diane Cavarallo, a primary care physician at Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare on Burrstone Road.

"If you're overweight, its important to (control) cholesterol and glucose, do fasting on an annual basis to detect the onset of diabetes. There are new drugs on the market now that lower your cholesterol, and help prevent blood clots within the arterial circulation that cause strokes and heart attacks."

According to a recent study in the American Journal of Hypertension, 50 million Americans suffer the disease, and 12 million of them are black. In addition, blacks suffer disproportionately high rates of other cardiovascular diseases as well as diabetes, in large part because of a diet high in fat and cholesterol.

Again, those factors have cultural and economic implications, Cavarallo said.

"Culturally (blacks) eat more high saturated, fat foods," Cavarallo said. "It could be because of culture or economics. Many high fat foods are less expensive, and minority patients may have less access to health care."

Fardan, one of 14 children, admits that growing up she and her family ate pork weekly. She would later learn that factor had contributed to her sky rocketing blood pressure, and cut it from her diet completely.

"As I got older I realized (my diet) was something I had to change," Fardan, 47, said. "I wanted to see my son live, go to college."

The health fair is a prime opportunity for those who are uninsured or underinsured to come out and receive free health care, said Kathy Russo, a registered nurse at Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare, who's helping to coordinate the health fair with Williams.

Russo serves as a NAACP board member, secretary and chairperson of the organization's wellness committee.

"There's an under served population we'd like to reach, the 50-to-64 age group" Russo said. "After that age, healthcare is covered through (medicare)."

A healthy life-style

In keeping with her healthy life style, Fardan now takes vitamins every day, makes a conscious effort to use the steps for exercise when walking around at work and uses light seasonings to add flavor to her food.

Fardan remembers, however, when her habits weren't so diligent.

"I was eating pork and taking the medications for my blood pressure," she said. "Then, the doctor said either stop eating it and live, or die. I'm healthier now than I was at 17."

The consequences for any person that doesn't take care of their health can be grave, Cavarallo said.

"High blood pressure can result in thickening of the heart muscle, sudden death, heart attacks and congestive heart failure," Cavarallo said. "Diabetes can lead to blindness, amputation of limbs, and kidney failure resulting in dialysis."

Curtailing those effects or the onset of such diseases takes the same effort from anyone of any ethnicity, Cavarallo said.

"Exercising more, making a conscious effort to loose weight," Cavarallo said, "are the same (precautions) needed for non black people."