Posted on 04/23/2020 10:41:14 AM PDT by Kaslin
The numbers are preliminary, but it seems that African Americans are dying from COVID-19 at alarming rates. In Louisiana, for instance, blacks represent 70 percent of the dead but only 33 percent of the population. In Michigan, blacks comprise 33 percent of the infected, but 40 percent of the fatalities. This has occasioned an outpouring of analysis suggesting that racism is to blame. Racism and discrimination have unarguably left grave traces in the lives of African Americans, but the rush to identify racism as the cause of this particular disparity may be too pat.
CNN, like many others, cited lower levels of health insurance among blacks as one reason for the higher death rate. "Compared to white people, blacks have lower levels of health insurance coverage and are less likely to have insurance coverage through an employer." According to The Kaiser Family Foundation, this is true, but the differences are quite small. Among whites in 2018, 7.5 percent lacked health insurance. Among blacks, the figure was 11.5 percent. The Hispanic rate was significantly higher at 19 percent.
A number of reports have also pointed to higher rates of asthma among African Americans as possibly predisposing them to complications from COVID-19, which seems plausible. But again, the numbers are surprisingly modest. The Office of Minority Health at the Health and Human Services department found in 2015 that the percentage of African American adults with diagnosed asthma was 9.1 percent. The percentage among whites was 7.9 percent. On the other hand, the death rate was three times as high for blacks as whites for reasons unknown. The newest evidence from COVID-19 fatalities, however, has downgraded asthma as a risk factor. Cardiovascular issues appear to be much more significant.
Many reports on racial disparities in deaths from the new virus have unfortunately traded in stereotypes. African Americans are portrayed as largely poor and urban. That's not the case. In 2018, the black poverty rate was 20.8 percent, which was, unfortunately, more than double the white rate of 10.1 percent, but still leaves nearly 80 percent of African Americans in the middle and upper classes. Like whites, blacks are also more likely these days to live in suburbs (39 percent) than in cities (36 percent). Another 15 percent live in small metropolitan areas and 10 percent in rural regions.
There is little dispute that African Americans have higher rates of obesity, diabetes and heart disease than whites, Hispanics or Asians, and those underlying health conditions leave them more vulnerable to various other diseases. But that doesn't answer the question about COVID, or the flu for that matter. The 2009 H1N1 epidemic, for example, affected all ethnic groups similarly. In 2010, the CDC reported, "There is no epidemiological or clinical evidence that suggests that African Americans are more susceptible to either 2009 H1N1 or seasonal influenza."
Some have suggested that because African-Americans are more likely to hold service jobs and interact with the public, they are more at risk. This is somewhat true. Only 20 percent of African Americans in a recent survey said they could work from home, compared with 30 percent of whites. But that's not a huge gap and doesn't explain the large discrepancies in deaths from COVID-19.
Here's another stereotype to retire: the one about blacks as mail carriers and train conductors. The Labor Force Statistics table from the BLS, (which is more interesting than it sounds), shows that blacks are distributed all over the employment map. African Americans represent about 12 percent of the U.S. population, and comprise 10.7 percent of those in "textiles, apparel, leather manufacturing." They are 12 percent of the "household appliance manufacturing" workforce, and 8.4 percent of employees in furniture stores. They are quite overrepresented among human resource administrators (21.8 percent), electronic equipment repair and maintenance (17 percent) and vocational rehabilitation services (26.6 percent). Yes, they represent 29.9 percent of those employed by taxi and limousine companies, as well as 30.5 percent of home health care workers, but the distribution of work is quite broad.
Something is causing large numbers of African Americans to succumb to this new disease. I am not a medical professional and wouldn't hazard a guess as to what's going on physiologically. There are some new reports that the disease causes strange blood clots. If we're lucky, this new insight will point to better treatments.
The truth is that we're dealing with multiple unknowns, and though we can never discount the long-lasting effects of racism, it's dubious to attribute this pathogen's lethality to cultural factors. Americans of all ethnicities are starting to be more alike than different, and looking for social explanations for our current health crisis may impede rather than enhance understanding.
Hypertension is listed as the #1 co-morbidity for those in NY who were hospitalized due to the virus. Blacks have hyptertension at an alarming rate, even those who are not overweight. This is also why they have a high rate of kidney disease. It could be genetic, diet, or a combination of factors that predispose blacks to hypertension.
You’d be surprised how many “older” people have Vitamin D Deficiency. I used to screen for it and find it regularly. I have it and take 1,000 Units or 2,000 Units a day and with that my annual levels are perfect. I do suspect the Indian Doctor was just bringing it up and there’s no real Molecular Mechanism behind it. Certainly not like the ACE2 thing.
Obesity rates and population density are racist.
“The article skips over the obesity factor, and it’s associated health risks (diabetes, bp, heart disease), pretty glibly.”
Good observation. And that’s probably connected to this admission:
“I am not a medical professional and wouldn’t hazard a guess as to what’s going on physiologically”
Which pretty much negates her entire article.
Very interesting, I will have to up my intake of Vitamin D.
I have also heard, anecdotal to be sure, that the black community has a higher mistrust of the medical profession, and so, do not go to see a doctor until is is absolutely necessary.
If this is “cultural” behavior is true, it would explain, in part, the high rate of infection and death from the virus.
I’m speaking only for what the Minnesota Department of Health is putting out regarding ethnicity. these numbers should not be taken to mean anything other than they’re from Minnesota - but they are showing something different from the article.
Here are the current numbers:
By ethnicity, whites comprise 59% of all cases and 74% of all deaths. Blacks comprise 13% of all cases and 5% of all deaths. Hispanics comprise 9% of all cases and 3% of all deaths. Asians comprise 5% of all cases and 1% of all deaths.
“Correlation does not imply causation” refers to the inability to legitimately deduce a cause-and-effect relationship between two variables solely on the basis of an observed association or correlation between them.
Yet the illusion persists, and often leads to some ill-conceived conclusions.
There may be other, as yet unseen correlations that do, in fact, produce the result observed.
The density of the population and the density of the population.
(Not the same.)
This link has been posted for 14 years now but is still pertinent
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1736605/posts
Not really puzzling at all. And if you were to include only middle-class, suburban blacks, the numbers would probably even out.
Obesity, hypertension and diabetes.
“ACE II related Covid-19 Susceptibility Hypothesis. Genetics is science, right?”
Some researchers were discussing the possibility that Asian males have more of the ACE2 receptors that the Covid spike attaches to. I saw that either in Nature or some NIH paper. It was based on only one small study but it’s the sort of genetic difference that could make Covid more lethal to some populations.
Interesting. I knew it was prevalent and so screened for it more because of bone density. I think most clinicians do this. Nice to know. I’m telling you, I am so looking forward to this being over and I can go back to forgetting I was ever a doctor and just be a grandpa.
Many of the younger dead are current or former drug users. If you used crack cocaine in the 1980s or 90s, the chickens are coming home to roost. Drugs damage your heart tissue, your lungs, and other organs. African-Americans have much higher rates of illegal drug use, especially hard drugs like heroin and crack cocaine. Also, blacks are more likely to smoke and to be obese.
I thought Obamaocare was supposed to solve that.
Diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension, heart disease, obesity. All diet related illnesses. African physiology evolved to retain sodium in a hot environment. Now feed them a high sodium western diet, hijinks ensue.
Sorry to be zero PC but “African-Americans” substantially pull down the health statistics of this nation. They predominately live in DNC Plantations commonly called the typical American city.
How could they not have health insurance medical is readily available for anyone who is at the poverty level!!
Those racist Chinese; deliberately making a virus that targeted people of color. They are horrible people!
(sarc tag optional)
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