Since there was no gain to be had by Whites, the quality of health care plummeted from its less than acceptable rating. There are many factors that influence a person's health. According to Walton Purdom, there are three factors that greatly influence health. They are heredity, environment, and behavior. These three factors can directly be related to issues faced by the African American community.
Heredity stems from characteristics that previous generations held.
For many African Americans, their predecessors were submitted to less than humane conditions that were filled with disease and sickness. These persons were either weakened or killed by this environment. By developing a predisposition to diseases, these persons pass this predisposition to their offspring. For example, if the parents of a child are not healthy and they give birth to an unhealthy baby, that baby has the traits that will contribute to a life filled with increased health risks. The environment can be the greatest cause of health issues.