Disparities In Health

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There are still large ongoing racial and ethnic unfairness in health. Overall, African Americans and a few other minorities live shorter lives and go through poorer health outcomes such as worse life expectancy, infant mortality, heart disease, diabetes, stroke and HIV/AIDS than whites and Asian Americans. It shows from recent studies that racial disparities between blacks and whites have been continuously prevalent throughout the years (Williams & Mohammed, 2009). Disparities found within a specific racial group are more than just biological, for other reasons exist due to environmental elements influenced by the society they live in. Due to biological factors, inborn traits like age and gender may have a certain impact on a person’s health. …show more content…
Some genetic factors may affect specific populations more than others. Elements such as age, gender and genes that have been genetically passed on through family history can all have an impact on a person’s health. One example could be how elderly people are more prone to poor health due to conditions that come with the process of aging. As people get older, their immune systems become weakened causing them to become more susceptible to disease and health issues. Another example of a genetic determinant of health is the sickle cell disease. Sickle cell is a condition only inheritable when both parents carry the specific gene. This gene has been passed on from previous generations that originate from multiple populations found within West Africa, as well as South and Central America (Saiki et al., 1985). Populations that do not carry the allele may never be affected by the disease. For this reason, health issues due to genetics and biological factors may be more prevalent for those in specific populations more than …show more content…
Whether we know it or not, the influence of race determines how you are treated, what resources you have access to and the environments you live in. These challenges limit an individual’s opportunity to achieve greater things in life such as employment and access to better healthcare. Such limitations develop multiple stressors that link to bigger health problems. Those who have access to greater education, housing and more income opportunities have been influenced by the ongoing history of racism that grants economic advantage to some groups while depriving others. For example, studies have consistently found that employers prefer to hire white candidates over African Americans. Blacks are more likely to face unemployment which influences their inability to pay for better residency and use of essential utilities and resources (Williams & Mohammed, 2009). Limitation for better living situations, societal goods and resources exhibits uncontrollable stress that can influence the increase of poor physical and mental health. For example, families with lower income may be affected by poor eating habits due to not having enough money to buy better quality foods for a better diet. Meals that are more likely not good for you are found to be cheaper than nutritious ones. A poor diet may be the result of health problems
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