Published on
Updated
Reading 2 mins.
in collaboration with
Dr Gérald Kierzek (Medical Director of Doctissimo)
Medical validation:
December 12, 2022
According to The Lancet, racism, xenophobia and other forms of discrimination have a real impact on people’s health. The authors believe that they should therefore be recognized as a global threat to public health.
In four articles published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet, discrimination harms the health of minority people. It would thus have a direct impact on the body, stress, but also mortality and access to care.
The effects of discrimination have so far been ‘overlooked’
In this special issue entitled “Advancing racial and ethnic equity in science, medicine and global health“, the scientific experts wanted to highlight the concrete effects of racism, xenophobia and discrimination on health.
In England for example, higher death rates were seen in the second wave of Covid-19 among black African, black Caribbean, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian ethnic groups.
Another telling example: migrant groups, such as the “scheduled castes” in India, “are often particularly disadvantaged by government-imposed barriers to health care“, say the researchers.
Similarly, indigenous populations have shown poorer health outcomes. They seemed to live shorter, have a higher infant and maternal mortality rate and suffer more from malnutrition.
The researchers also point out that at the individual level, discrimination “can activate the body’s hormonal and stress responses, potentially causing short- and long-term biological changes“. These consequences can affect the next generations.
Disparities that do not surprise Dr. Kierzek but deserve to be tackled.
“Our health systems are more and more unequal and that is not acceptable. The fewer resources we have, the more the state of health is impacted. Migrants, for example, have a much lower general level of health than others. The risk factors are also multiplied and they encounter difficulties in accessing care and doctors. However, what should guide us, and it is important to remember it, is the Hippocratic oath. We must treat without discrimination“.
Racism and discrimination must be universally recognized
For the researchers, many improvements must be made in the field of health… urgently.
“Racism and xenophobia exist in all modern societies and have profound effects on the health of disadvantaged people. Until racism and xenophobia are universally recognized as important drivers of the determinants of health, the root causes of discrimination will remain in the shadows and will continue to cause and exacerbate health inequities.“says Professor Delan Devakumar, lead author of the study.