July 19, 2006
Lack of Stores Linked to Early Deaths
From UPI.com:
A Chicago study says city residents living near fast-food restaurants and few grocery stores are more likely to die prematurely.
and later in the report.
"I think the good news of this study is that it brings a new call to action for what can be done in these communities," Gallagher said. "We know that across the country, the black population generally has higher diet-related deaths and health disparities."
Full story at the Chicago Sun Times.
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Posted by: David Porter on July 19, 2006
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Category: Health Disparities; Nutrition; fast food; mortality
July 17, 2006
Occupational Health Disparities in China
While we mostly blog about health disparties here in the U.S. it might be worthwhile to occasionally look at health disparities abroad.
In China, where over 90% of the population is of the same ethnicity, occupational health disparities exist.
From the People's Daily Online.
The incidence of occupational diseases had become a serious public health issue affecting social stability, said the Workers' Daily on Sunday, which reported Li's call for stricter health and safety measures.
and later.
Employees in low-profit and township enterprises had no access to occupational healthcare, and rural workers in urban cities faced high risks of occupational illness due to their high mobility, Li said.
and the numbers.
By the end of 2005, China recorded 665,043 cases of occupational illness, including 606,891 cases of pneumoconiosis, a chronic disease of the lungs resulting from long-term inhalation of dust and primarily affecting miners, sandblasters and metal grinders.
Nearly 10,000 new cases of pneumoconiosis emerged each year. On average, each pneumoconiosis patient suffered an annual financial loss of 34,100 yuan (4,300 U.S. dollars), said Li.
and looking forward.
The Ministry of Health is conducting a nationwide survey of the 200 million rural and migrant workers, and has vowed to provide basic occupational health services for them.
It would also set up a pilot network to improve reporting and monitoring of illnesses as the existing system was incomplete, said Su Zhi, deputy head of the ministry's supervision division.
He also suggested health files to be set up at migrant workers' hometowns, to which they usually returned during the traditional new year period, so that their state of health could be monitored.
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Posted by: David Porter on July 17, 2006
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Category: China; Health Inequities; occupational health
July 12, 2006
Who's Not Sleeping Enough
From CNN.com:
In a study of sleep characteristics in 669 adults in Chicago who were compared by sex and race, investigators found that blacks got less sleep than whites, while men got less sleep than women.
Furthermore, the wealthier you are, the more sleep you're likely to get, Dr. Diane S. Lauderdale of the University of Chicago and her colleagues found.
And later in the article.
The findings could help explain why blacks suffer from more health problems than whites, she added.
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Posted by: David Porter on July 12, 2006
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Category: Health Disparities; Health Inequities; economic differences; racial differences
July 03, 2006
Health Disparities in the Mississippi Delta
Earlier we posted a story about health disparities in Milwaukee. This story focuses on health disparities in the Mississippi Delta region.
Here is an excerpt of that report.
The Mississippi Delta, the poorest region of the poorest state, has extremely high measures of health disparities, obesity, diabetes and the complications from diabetes," Bouldin said.
Bouldin, a Clarksdale native and one of four sons of acclaimed artist Marshall Bouldin Sr., said the obesity and diabetes have a direct correlation.
"A third of our school children in Mississippi are obese," Bouldin said. "We're talking about being 30-40 percent overweight."
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Posted by: David Porter on July 03, 2006
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Category: Health; Health Disparities; Health Inequities