Journal of Sociology and Social Work

A Measure of Dallas Heart Walkers’ Cardiovascular Health
Tracey Barnett McElwee, PhD LMSW; Brittany N. Hearne, Ph.D; M. Sebrena Jackson, PhD; Javonda Williams-Moss, PhD

Abstract
This study assesses the cardiovascular health status of participants in the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Dallas Heart Walk 2012. Using an adapted version of the Life’s Simple 7® tool developed by the researchers to assess ideal cardiovascular health, we analyzed survey responses to questions measuring the overall cardiovascular health of walkers who completed the survey (N=515). A chi-square test indicated that among obese African Americans, significantly more fell into the sedentary group (75.9%) than the active group (24.1%), χ2 (1, n = 137) = 36.80, p< .001. Obese Hispanic/Latino Americans showed similar results, with 83.0% falling into the sedentary group and 17.0% falling into the active group, χ2 (1, n = 88) = 38.23, p< .001. Another significant finding revealed that more ethnic minorities (73.1%) than Whites (60.8%) reported that they did not know their cholesterol score, χ2 (1, n = 459) = .7.22, p =.01. Our findings from this majority-minority sample indicate that awareness of Life’s Simple 7® could be an important part of the education efforts for North Texans.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/jssw.v9n2a4