Heart disease remains to be the leading cause of death in Harris County.
That’s one of the findings in the Harris County Health Department’s most recent report on chronic diseases, released this week.
The agency will be hosting two online webinars this month to discuss the report’s findings with community members:
- Thursday, Nov. 7, 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.
- Tuesday, Nov. 12, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The public can register to join either meeting by registering through this link.
The report, which looked at data from the last eight years, found that after heart diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and cancer were the next leading causes of death among Houstonians.
A common trend when it comes to chronic diseases in the area is that white Houstonians tend to be diagnosed at higher rates, while Black Houstonians hold the highest death rates — such is the case for chronic lower respiratory disease, diabetes and chronic kidney disease.
“The data clearly shows these chronic diseases disproportionately impact certain racial and ethnic groups, particularly Black and Hispanic communities,” said Dr. Ericka Brown, the agency’s community health and wellness director.
She added that deaths related to diabetes have surged, especially among Black Houstonians.
The report found that while white residents had the highest percentage of diabetes, 35%, Black residents had the highest death rate, 30%.
Brown said that “perhaps (indicates) that there is an issue with access to healthcare as well as access to additional preventive measures.”
The report also found that chronic lower respiratory disease, diabetes and chronic kidney disease are prevalent among Houstonians.
One silver lining, Brown said, is that cases of lung cancer have “significantly declined” in the community.
“I think that one of the contributing factors to the decrease in lung cancer are the long standing campaigns around tobacco consumption in particular, and the harmful effects of tobacco,” she said.
But as alternatives to tobacco products become more popular, Brown said there’s concerns about the health impacts on vapes.
“I think it remains to be seen what we may see around now that this new vaping fad has affected our county as well,” she said. “And so that’s why we are actively participating in education around the effects of vaping as well.”
