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 Hypertensive church members who attended weekly sessions devoted to
lifestyle modification achieved an average drop of more than 16
points in systolic blood pressure levels, researchers reported in
Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.
The new study shows that "a program of lifestyle behavior
modification that is usually delivered by the health care system can
be delivered in the church setting," said coauthor Dr. Gbenga
Ogedegbe, a professor of population health and medicine at the NYU
School of Medicine in New York City.
Populations reached by this intervention often have less access to
medical care, Ogedegbe said.
The new study, dubbed FAITH (Faith-Based Approaches in the Treatment
of Hypertension), enrolled 373 black men and women with blood
pressure levels of at least 140/90 mmHg, or 130/80 mmHg among those
who also had diabetes or chronic kidney disease. Participants were
all attendees at 32 African-American churches.
In half of the churches, participants received the full
intervention, including 11 90-minute sessions that focused on
recommended health behavior changes, such as adoption of a diet low
in salt and fat and high in fruits and vegetables, increased
physical activity and weight loss, Ogedegbe said. The curriculum of
the sessions was tailored to the church members in that it included
prayer, scripture and faith-based discussion as it related to
health. Along with the 11 sessions, participants also received three
phone motivational phone calls.
In the other churches, participants got just one session on
lifestyle and hypertension management and then 10 additional
sessions on health education topics that were led by health experts.
At six months, both groups had significant drops in systolic blood
pressure (the top number, reflecting the pressure when the heart
pumps blood out to the body). The full intervention group saw their
systolic pressure go down by an average of 16.53 mmHg, while the
control group saw an average reduction of 10.74 mmHg.
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The difference between the groups is spurring Ogedegbe and his
colleagues to tweak their intervention to make it even more
effective.
The new results weren't surprising to Naa-Solo Tettey, coordinator
of cardiovascular health education and outreach coordinator at the
Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute and director of the HeartSmarts
program at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New
York City.
"Working with faith-based organizations creates a structure of
sorts," Tettey said. "The weekly sessions they were holding are
similar to those from other faith-based programs. You do see changes
in health outcomes with these."
Tettey believes the secret of success is long term interventions,
like the one used in the new study.
"More than just an initial intervention, there needs to be some kind
of health coaching," she said. "I have found that there is a major
disconnect when it comes to nutrition. People don't know what's in a
healthy diet. So it's important to have a nutritionist on board."
An even more effective approach might be to include some of the
health messages in the actual church service, Tettey suggests. "The
idea is to make a connection between the body temple and health
behaviors," she explained. "We do use biblical scriptures to help
them connect with the message. If your body is a temple, then it's
important how you treat it."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2NC3A0g Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality
and Outcomes, online October 9, 2018.
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