Language
Country/Area
No result found
hy are there such huge disparities in health between people of different races
In today's society, the relationship between race and health is receiving increasing attention. There are significant disparities between different racial groups in health status, disease prevalence, and access to health care. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these disparities are rooted in social disadvantage, which is strongly linked to race.
Health disparities are defined as "preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health experienced by more disadvantaged groups in society."
Measurements of general health rely on various variables, such as life expectancy and disease incidence. In the United States, health disparities are particularly pronounced for racial and ethnic minorities, as evidenced by higher rates of chronic disease and premature death than whites. For example, African Americans are two to three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than whites.
While some minority groups, such as Hispanic immigrants, may have better health than whites when they first arrive in the United States, this advantage diminishes over time. Sometimes this narrowing of the gap is not due to improved health among minority groups, but rather to worsening health among white groups. Data shows that more than 133 million people in the United States (45% of the population) have one or more chronic diseases. According to research, racial/ethnic minorities between the ages of 60 and 70 are more likely than white people to develop major chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease.
In a Michigan study, African Americans were 3.6 times more likely to die from the coronavirus than white people.
Not only that, racial and medical disparities also affect mental health. For example, systemic racial discrimination negatively affects the mental health of African Americans and increases their risk of death from substance abuse. This suggests that structural racism is one of the major drivers of health disparities, which includes interconnected systems such as housing, health care, education, employment, and criminal justice that continue to promote racial discrimination and the unequal distribution of resources.
For example, in Black communities, housing discrimination and limited access to quality health care facilities can hinder effective medical care. These inequities, combined with racial bias in medical practice, result in higher rates of chronic disease and higher mortality among African Americans. Addressing these structural issues is critical to improving health equity.
The proportion of children with chronic illness in the United States quadrupled between 1960 and 2005, and minority children are disproportionately affected by these illnesses. The most common chronic diseases include asthma, diabetes, obesity, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, etc. Therefore, the health issues faced by African American and Latino adult patients cannot be ignored, especially as treatment and management guidelines have not been developed based on their needs.
Health inequalities are often considered to be preventable health outcomes caused by factors such as income, education, race, and gender.
There has been uncertainty about the definition of race, which complicates the classification of populations in health research. The concept of race is not only rooted in biology, but is also influenced by social factors. The modern understanding of race is a complex and fluid concept that defies simple one definition.
Further observations revealed that the disease affects different ethnic groups differently due to socioeconomic factors. When receiving medical care, the distribution of social resources, environmental factors, and cultural background will lead to differences in health outcomes. Therefore, explaining health disparities solely through genes seems to oversimplify the issue.
Using race as an assessment tool for medical services can easily lead to missed diagnoses of suspected low-risk groups.
The treatment and prevention of chronic diseases requires consideration of many factors, including genetics, environment, social structure and culture. This means it is particularly important to help health professionals understand the interaction between race and health during diagnosis and treatment, increase awareness of systemic health disparities, and improve health care services that are tailored to community needs.
As research on racial and health disparities deepens, we should ask ourselves: How can we more effectively address these deep-seated health inequalities to promote health equity for all populations?
