Race-based discrimination against blacks may explain the health
disparities they experience compared to other racial groups, a
recent UCLA report has found.
Authors of the study determined that the overall death rate of
blacks in the United States is equivalent to that of whites in the
nation 30 years ago.
The report, compiled by three UCLA researchers, also found that
maladies such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and
obesity disproportionately affect blacks, a fact they attribute to
the constant stress associated with racial discrimination.
Due to the concern of being discriminated against, some blacks
constantly have a greater sense of alertness because they feel they
might be placed in a harmful situation, said Vickie Mays, the
report’s lead author and a UCLA professor of psychology and
health services. She is also the director of the Center for
Research, Education, Training and Strategic Communication on
Minority Health Disparities.
Mays, along with co-authors Susan D. Cochran, UCLA professor of
epidemiology and statistics, and Namdi W. Barnes, a staff member at
the center, have compiled all their findings and research from
other sources into a report titled “Race, Race-Based
Discrimination, and Health Outcomes Among African
Americans.”
Their report will be published in volume 58 of the Annual Review
of Psychology.
The findings state that if people believe they could possibly be
discriminated against, their bodies go into a hypervigilant state
so if something negative does in fact happen, they can respond
physically, Mays said.
One example Mays gave is of treatment black people sometimes
receive in stores or markets. She said black people may see owners
keeping a close eye on them, which can heighten their sense of
alertness.
After a period of being in a constant state of alertness, the
body can get tired and a person may experience an elevation in
blood pressure and heart rate.
“Your body isn’t meant to be alert all the
time,” Mays said. “It isn’t made for your senses
to be aware all the time. It’s meant to have resting
periods.”
According to the report, many of the chemicals that react when a
person is in a state of apprehension and alertness can damage
systems in the body, which can in turn lead to disease and
obesity.
Stress from constant discrimination can also cause other severe
health problems, the report said. Prolonged stress can hurt the
immune system, cause blood pressure to increase, and over time can
lead to atherosclerosis and coronary vascular disease, according to
the report.
Todd Hawkins, a fourth-year theater student, said these findings
gave him insight into the reasons for the medical inconsistencies
between black communities and others.
“I never thought of it that way, but I think it is very
true because your environment does have an impact on your physical
and mental condition. I think this is very interesting,”
Hawkins said.
Mays said while other factors, such as poverty, contribute to
the health problems in certain blacks, that does not explain why
middle- and upper-class, educated blacks sometimes face problems
such as delivering premature or underweight babies.
For this reason, Mays said, learning how the brain recognizes
discrimination may help understand why blacks have higher rates of
certain illnesses.
Omunique Falls, a second-year English student, said she believes
blacks are discriminated against but has seen in her community that
the health discrepancies are more of an economic problem.
“It’s discrimination, but in a different way,”
Falls said. “It’s discrimination in health care. The
resources aren’t available in our community. It’s about
our neighborhood. It has nothing to do with ourselves.”