Straight Talk with Clarence and Ed

Would it shock you to know African-Americans have the highest rate of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease? How about the fact that African-Americans die at highter rates from these diseases than other races? You probably aren't shocked by that information, but you may be shocked to hear what our expert has to say as to why this is the case. Hint: It has nothing to do with our diet. Don't miss this very insightlful interview w/ Dr. Shawna Nesbitt, MD who specializes in Hypertension for African-Americans. Shawna D. (Smith) Nesbitt, M.D., M.S., is an Associate Professor in Internal Medicine-Hypertension at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. She serves as the Medical Director of the Parkland Hypertension Clinic. Her research interests include clinical trials and epidemiology of hypertension and cardiovascular risk. Her area of research is hypertension in African Americans, insulin resistance, and hyperlipidemia. Dr. Nesbitt is the National Coordinator for the TROPHY Study (Trial of Prevention Hypertension). The study is a 4-year trial which includes over 71 sites and more than 800 patients. She is funded by the National Institutes of Health to study the relationship of oxidative stress and genetics in the development of hypertension. She is the secretary treasurer for the International Society of Hypertension in Blacks (ISHIB). She is also Chairperson of the ?Children Are Our Messengers? Initiative sponsored that organization. She is also Director of Cohort Follow-up for the Dallas Heart Study, funded by the Donald Reynolds Foundation. Dr. Nesbitt is a Fellow of the American Heart Association and the Council for High Blood Pressure Research. She also serves as an Advisory Panel member for the Red Dress Campaign sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.