Each week HuffPost Queer Voices, in a partnership with blogger Scout, LGBT HealthLink and researcher Corey Prachniak, brings you a round up of some of the biggest LGBT wellness stories from the past seven days. For more LGBT Wellness, visit our page dedicated to the topic here.
2.2 Million LGBT Adults Went Hungry Last Year
The Williams Institute has a new report and great infographic on food insecurity in the LGBT community. They found 27 percent of LGBT adults (approximately 2.2 million people) didn’t have enough money for food at least once in the last year; that’s 1.6 times the rate of non-LGBT adults. Racial and ethnic minorities were particularly affected, for example 42 percent of LGBT African Americans experienced food insecurity in the past year.
Queer Use of Alternative Tobacco Products Doubles or Triples Average
Annual findings from the largest tobacco survey reporting new information on our use of alternative tobacco products: LGB adults use e-cigarettes at 2 times the rate, cigars and cigarillos at 2.75 times the rate, and hookah at 3.6 times the rate of heterosexuals. Young adults were at highest risk of using all alternative tobacco products.
Federal HIV Initiative Highlights Stories of Trans Women of Color
The CDC’s Act Against AIDS initiative launched a new effort to tell the stories of transgender women of color, a group that is disproportionately impacted by HIV. Stories from Whitney, Jamie, and Jada were accompanied by promotional materials with the goal of sharing positive messages of transgender women living with HIV.
Cervical Cancer Doesn’t Care if You Have a Beard
The first step in changing our health disparities is shining a spotlight on them, so it’s great to see Newsweek report on the challenges faced by trans people with cancer. As they say, there’s a dangerous lack of data on trans cancer issues. Community advocate Kellan Baker notes, the new HHS rule banning trans discrimination is a “game changer” but now the challenge is to get coverage without legal fights.
LGB Older Adults Self-Report Better Health but More Drinking
A new report analyzing two waves of federal LGB survey data shows three notable areas where LGB elders differ then the rest of the population: they are more likely to report being in “Excellent/Very Good Health”; more likely to get a flu shot; and more likely to drink. The researchers caution the small sample may have obscured other differences; the survey they used does have a history of undercounting bisexuals, who usually have more extreme health disparities than lesbians or gay men.
Walgreens and HRC Publish LGBT Guide for Pharmacists
Walgreens and Human Rights Campaign are shipping out 70,000 guides on how to make pharmacies LGBT inclusive and competent. The guide includes a primer on LGBT health disparities, including heightened use of alcohol and tobacco, and the healthcare needs of trans individuals.
Before You Go
