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Is obesity a manifestation of systemic racism? A ten‐point strategy for study and intervention
Author(s) -
Aaron D.G.,
Stanford F.C.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of internal medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.625
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1365-2796
pISSN - 0954-6820
DOI - 10.1111/joim.13270
Subject(s) - racism , medicine , obesity , indigenous , intervention (counseling) , race (biology) , ethnic group , pandemic , public health , gender studies , covid-19 , sociology , political science , pathology , psychiatry , law , ecology , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , biology
Abstract In the recent past, there has been rising attention to systemic racism. The ensuing discussions have largely focused on COVID‐19 and policing. Despite long‐standing disparities in obesity across racial and ethnic groups and obesity’s important role in COVID‐19 disparities, there has been minimal attention to whether obesity itself could be a manifestation of systemic racism. Nor has there been serious policy attention dedicated to alleviating obesity and its disproportionate burden on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color). We discuss whether obesity’s disproportionate harms to BIPOC may be attributed to systemic racism, and we provide a ten‐point strategy for studying and solving the core public health issues at the intersection of obesity and systemic racism.