Alaska Natives living in certain rural areas of the state have some of the highest rates of suicide and domestic violence deaths in the nation and some of the highest rates of accidental deaths, while Asians and Latinos in the state have It has one of the lowest death rates from various diseases in the nation.of symptoms such as heart disease and respiratory disease, according to new research.
The study was published Thursday. lancetprovides a thorough review of health disparities across the country, as shown in mortality rates for various ethnic groups at the county or regional level from 2000 to 2019.
Alaska Natives in the Kthylvak Census Area, which is largely the Yupik region of western Alaska, had the highest death rate in the country from intentional self-harm and interpersonal violence during the period, at 158.9 deaths per 100,000 population. Alaska Natives from the Denali Borough and Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area are also among the highest such mortality rates in the country, and are grouped together. Nome Census Area. Northwest Arctic Autonomous Region. In the Bethel census area, mortality rates range from 126 to 97.1 per 100,000 people.
Alaska Natives in the Kusilvak census area had the second-highest fatality rate in the nation, at 84 per 100,000 people, according to the study. Alaskan Natives in the Denali Borough and Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Northwest Arctic Autonomous Region, Nome Census Area, Sitka City and Sitka Borough are among the 10 groups with the highest accidental death rates, according to the study.
What’s more, the study found that Alaska Natives living in Sitka and Juneau had one of the highest death rates from musculoskeletal disease in the nation.
Health disparities between Alaska Natives and non-Indigenous peoples, including high suicide rates among Alaska Native youth, are well documented by the US government. Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the state Ministry of Public Health and other organizations.
In contrast, Asians and Latinos in coastal areas, particularly the Aleutian Islands East Autonomous Region and the Aleutian Islands West Census Area, are more likely to have cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, neurological, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and neurological disorders. had the lowest or near-low mortality rates in the country from a variety of health problems, including Musculoskeletal and chronic respiratory diseases.
Also, death rates from specific chronic diseases (chronic respiratory, gastrointestinal, neurological) were very low in Ketchikan Gateway District, Petersburg, Prince of Wales Hyder Census District and Wrangell The study found that they were Asians who lived in the southeastern Alaska region.
Some coastal areas of Alaska have relatively large Asian and Hispanic populations.in the Eastern Aleutian IslandsFor example, according to the US Census Bureau, 46.4% of the population is Asian and 17.4% is Hispanic.
Nationally, one of the most striking findings of the study is that black women and newborns have a significantly higher mortality rate during pregnancy or childbirth. The top 10 maternal and neonatal mortality rates were found among black women in Southern and Midwestern counties. Black women in Champaign County, Illinois, had the highest maternal mortality rate (14.8 per 100,000), while white women in Arlington County, Virginia had the lowest maternal and neonatal mortality rates, the study found. For women, it was 1.2 per 100,000. The national maternal and neonatal mortality rates for black women and their infants during the study period were 8.9 per 100,000.
Another national pattern was the high mortality from various causes among indigenous peoples.
The results are evidence of inequalities affecting people’s health, the authors said in a statement.
“The consistency of these patterns strongly suggests common root causes and highlights the pervasive and enduring adverse health effects of systemic racism,” said study author, University of Washington. Laura Dwyer Lindgren, PhD, Assistant Professor, Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, said. said in her statement.
Dwyer Lindgren said in an email that the lower mortality rates among Asians and Latinos across the country, including Alaska, are likely due to the characteristics of those who migrate to the United States. . “It’s average,” she said. “Part of this could also be the key risk differences specifically associated with many chronic diseases. , these people may be less likely to smoke themselves, reducing the risk of developing many chronic diseases and death.”
Originally issued by alaska beaconan independent, bipartisan news agency covering the Alaskan state government.
