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Why are African Americans particularly susceptible to new coronavirus?

via:CnBeta     time:2020/4/12 14:30:38     readed:1276

According to the scientific news network, the new coronavirus showed significant "fairness ". No one can be completely immune, and no one is not afraid of it.But the spread of the virus in the United States still reveals racial differences, with early data showing that African Americans are more likely than white Americans to die from the disease.

At present, these data are still scattered, with only some states and counties in the United States dividing cases and outcomes by race. But even without national data, these figures are grim. Of the 130,000 known deaths, only 3300 were ethnically classified, indicating that African Americans accounted for 42% of the deaths. These data also indicate that the gap in the South is likely to be the largest. For example, in Louisiana and Mississippi, African Americans account for more than 65 per cent of known deaths.

There are also statistical differences in other regions. For example, as of April 9, in Illinois, where the majority of cases of infection were in the Chicago area, 28% of the 16422 confirmed cases were African Americans, but nearly 43% of the 528 deaths in the state were African Americans.

Other data have found similar trends. A study of new coronavirus cases hospitalized in 14 states between march 1 and march 30 was conducted by the us center for disease control and prevention online on april 8, the weekly morbidity and mortality report. According to data from 580 of the 1,482 patients, African Americans accounted for 33 per cent of the total number of hospitalized patients, but only 18 per cent of the total population surveyed.

Three novel coronavirus infections are particularly common among African Americans.

1. novel coronavirus is more likely to be exposed to African Americans.

In order to curb the spread of the virus and limit the spread of human to human, states have been issuing "home quarantine order". But many workers are seen by the Department of homeland security as part of a critical workforce and must continue to work. This includes carers, cashiers, sanitation workers, farm workers and public transport employees, who are usually African Americans.

Driving to work alone is unrealistic for many African Americans. According to a 2016 report by the Pew Research Center, a non-partisan research institute based in Washington, D.C., about 34 percent of urban residents use public transport frequently, compared with 14 percent of white people, while continuing to travel by public transport during the epidemic may lead African Americans to be more likely to reach infected people.

In addition, the living conditions of African Americans may increase their risk of infection, which is significantly different. According to the January 2020 census, only 44% of African Americans own their own homes, compared with nearly 74% of whites.

2. African Americans have bigger potential health problems

Among the novel coronavirus patients, the highest risk of disease is those with other serious health problems, such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. According to the American Heart Association, more than 40% of African Americans are suffering from hypertension, and one of the highest incidence rate of hypertension in the world. By contrast, about a third of white Americans have high blood pressure. Similarly, African Americans have a higher proportion of diabetes.

The increased risk is also linked to the excessive exposure of African Americans to air pollution. This pollution is associated with chronic health problems such as asthma, obesity and cardiovascular disease. In addition, the researchers believe that poor community environment is also a possible cause of poor health in African Americans. Research shows that people can improve their health by moving to better neighborhoods.

3. African Americans have less access to medical services and often lack trust in caregivers

Inequalities in access to health services, including inadequate health insurance, fear of discrimination and a sense of distance from clinics and hospitals, make it more difficult for many African Americans to access health services that can control chronic diseases.

According to a December 2019 report by the century foundation, an independent think-tank based in New York and Washington, D.C., African Americans have a higher proportion of no health insurance than whites. African Americans with insurance spend a larger proportion of their income on premiums and out of pocket expenses, about 20%, while Americans spend an average of about 11%.

In addition, African Americans see fewer doctors. Part of the reason may be because African Americans have long distrusted medical institutions, such as a study in Tuskegee, where hundreds of African Americans with syphilis have refused treatment for decades.

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