PLoS Medicine: Eight Americas: Investigating Mortality Disparities across Races, Counties, and Race-Counties in the United States

PLoS Medicine: Eight Americas: Investigating Mortality Disparities across Races, Counties, and Race-Counties in the United States:

"Disparities in mortality across the eight Americas, each consisting of millions or tens of millions of Americans, are enormous by all international standards. The observed disparities in life expectancy cannot be explained by race, income, or basic health-care access and utilization alone. Because policies aimed at reducing fundamental socioeconomic inequalities are currently practically absent in the US, health disparities will have to be at least partly addressed through public health strategies that reduce risk factors for chronic diseases and injuries."

The report shows how important it is to know not only what happens on the average, but how experience differs in different groups. Fortunately, for some groups in the United States is very good indeed, and compares favorably with the best health statistics in the world. Unfortunately, for others such as black and native-American men, mortality is very high.

It is especially striking that there is a 20 year difference in life expectancy between black men and Asian-American women, but that mortality rates in the under five age bracket are reported almost identical. So the usual suspect in developing countries -- high infant and child mortality is not the culprit in the black community. Rather it seems to be smoking, alcohol, obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol among the middle aged.