Module 4SLP-CLAS Standards


Running Head: OBESITY 1



Trident International University

Jadyin Davis


Obesity refers to a medical condition where body fat accumulates excessively to the point that it negatively affects personal health. Obesity paves the way for other lifestyle conditions such as high blood pressure and heart conditions. This condition has been linked with specific populations including the Hispanics who double as a minority group. this paper analyses a cultural awareness article by Lindberg et al. (2013) titled “Weight-loss interventions for Hispanic populations: The role of culture.”

Overview of the Health Concern and the Proposed Interventions

Obesity is a major health concern affecting millions of people annually among the diverse populations around the globe. However, in the recent past, it has been noted that minority groups are among the most affected by this condition. Hispanic populations fall under the minority groups residing within the United States of America. Hispanics are among the groups with the highest risks and incidence of obesity. Lindberg (2013) asserts the primary causes of obesity among the Hispanics is mainly poor health behaviors such as lack of insurance cover, culturally influenced and infsed diets, adopted and new dietary habits and other behaviors such as portion control among others. These behaviors are the primary culprits for obesity among this minority group. Lindberg et al. (2013) assert that among the new arrivals in the US immigrants, the Spanish speaking immigrants and populations are characteristically and physically healthier compared to the Hispanics who have been born and raised in the US.

Ogden et al. (2015) explain that the problem is US-based mainly because as the immigrants settle and find permanent residency the prevalence of poor health behaviors such as adoption of diets and culturally infused diets take over resulting in more cases of obesity. It has, therefore, become apparent that interventions are developed to help reduce the future health implications of obesity within this minority group. Lindberg et al. (2013) explain that obesity can result in other chronic and fatal illnesses such as heart conditions which are considered among the top causes of death in the US. In the same context, obesity comes with different difficulties such as depression, reduced mobility and overall access to care. This impacts the growing population of Hispanics in the US.

Cultural Identity and the PEN-3 Model

The PEN-3 Model was developed by Airhihenbuwa (1989) to help integrate the aspect of culture in trying to assess and evaluate health outcomes in the existing health behavior models, beliefs and theories. The PEN-3 cultural analysis model is mainly concerned with health beliefs, outcomes and associated behaviors of culture with regard to health. This model provides three core domains to help in the integration of culture in identifying and arriving at her; the outcomes. The domains include cultural identity, empowerment and relationships, and expectations. For purposes of satisfying the requirements of this assignment, the cultural identity domain will be analyzed to elaborate and illustrate Hispanic Obesity-related interventions.

Cultural Identity

The Hispanic community shares the Spanish language, but there are diverse cultures that can be found in this community. This means that there is no general term to refer to the cultures in general. The different cultures have developed diverse dialects and terms that are not shared by all Hispanics. A good example is an American child born of two Dominican descends parents. The culture of this child cannot be compared with the Mexicans or any Mexican child. In the context of cultural identity and obesity, it is reasonable to infer that they also have diverse diets as they do not share the same dishes (Adams et al., 2016). For example, the Mexicans are known to partake bread fried and high-fat foods. This means that in developing treatment interventions for the Hispanics requires a critical understanding and acknowledgment of the numerous cultural, linguistic, educational, economic and acculturative amongst the Hispanics. Lindberg et al. (2013) assert that focusing on only food to devise interventions s far from sufficient. Such interventions would be culturally inappropriate.

Under the cultural identity domain, there are three components for the Hispanic community namely; person, extended family, and neighborhood.

1. Person

For this purpose of achieving the requirement of this assignment, the chosen population and identity is the teenage to 25-year-old Hispanics. This is informed by a hypothetical health education program (Teixeira et al., 2015). The primary aim is to examine the roles and changes of foods and diets that happen within the states. Another objective is to understand the specific risks that affecting or facing this population and finally how cultural diets affect this population.

2. Extended Family

The Hispanics are known for their love for relatives and extended family. Their culture is based on a principle to care for each other. Communication can, therefore, be used to target the population through media channels. The people receiving this information would be forced to care and continue to push for better health outcomes for their relatives.

3. Neighborhood

Hispanics socialize and interact together. This is a key component to ensuring that there exist strong ties and unity among them. It is critical that their behavioral patterns are established as well as adaptability for the sole purpose of introducing new and healthier diets.


AS healthcare providers and looking back at Lindberg et al. (2013) assertions it is emphasized that providers must establish strong relationships with people and individuals who are likely to influence the target populations, for instance, using community to establish patterns of behavior and adaptability to manipulate Hispanic diets (Teixeira et al., 2015). Another thing learned is that patient education is critical. If providers continue with the training and education programs changes in healthcare outcomes such as obesity conditions are set to improve.


Adams, J., Mytton, O., White, M., & Monsivais, P. (2016). Why are some population interventions for diet and obesity more equitable and effective than others? The role of the individual agency. PLoS medicine13(4), e1001990.

Lindberg, N. M., Stevens, V. J., & Halperin, R. O. (2013).  Weight-loss interventions for Hispanic populations: The role of culture.  Journal of Obesity, 2013, 542736.

Ogden, C. L., Carroll, M. D., Fryar, C. D., & Flegal, K. M. (2015). Prevalence of obesity among adults and youth: the United States, 2011-2014 (pp. 1-8). Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics.

Teixeira, P. J., Carraça, E. V., Marques, M. M., Rutter, H., Oppert, J. M., De Bourdeaudhuij, I.,... & Brug, J. (2015). Successful behavior change in obesity interventions in adults: a systematic review of self-regulation mediators. BMC medicine13(1), 84.