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Utah American Indians Battle High Rates Of Chronic Illness  

A new Utah Department of Health (UDOH) report uncovers health issues among the state's American Indian population, whose members are disproportionately affected by chronic health problems:

- More than 11% of Utah's American Indian population has diabetes, compared with 6% of all Utahns. . . .

- The adult Utah American Indian asthma rate of 11.5% exceeds the state rate of 7.9%.

- 20.5% of Utah American Indians report poor physical health, compared to 13.9% of all Utahns, . . .

The Utah American Indian smoking rate of 21.2% is nearly double the state rate of 11.1%. Addictive commercial tobacco products are linked to many chronic health problems. Smoking commercial cigarettes constricts blood vessels and impairs circulation, increasing the risk of amputations in diabetics. Exposure to cigarette smoke can trigger asthma attacks and can lead to the development of asthma in children. UDOH is working to combat these problems. The Tobacco Prevention and Control Program has been funding the American Indian community coalition, Networking to Keep Tobacco Sacred in Utah, which works to distinguish between traditional and commercial forms of tobacco and to reduce the use of commercial tobacco among

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