Black Children Are Almost 50% More Likely to Have Asthma

According to the CDC, as of 2020, approximately 7.8% of the general population in the United States has asthma. It was previously understood that Black and Hispanic pediatric patients had higher asthma rates than white patients. However, this study displayed the severity of the disparity by showing that nearly 50% more Black children have asthma than white children.

Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition that “causes repeated episodes of wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness, and nighttime or early morning coughing,” states the CDC website.

This cohort study examined how asthma and wheezing prevalence in pediatric patients varied by race, income, and population density.

The study found that there were 1.47 Black and 1.29 Hispanic children for every white child with asthma. Furthermore, patients living in higher-density and lower-income communities had a higher incidence rate.

While Black and Hispanic children living in more affluent communities saw a lower asthma prevalence than those living in lower-income areas, they still had increased rates compared to their white counterparts.

 “Despite decades of research, the structural, social, behavioral, and biological determinants that drive these inequitable outcomes remain ill-defined, due in part to the highly correlated nature of race and ethnicity, poverty, adverse physical environments, unequal access to healthcare, and a multitude of structural, systemic, and institutional determinants that are deeply ingrained in US policies and culture,” stated researchers in the publication.

Social determinants of health and environmental factors are presumed to be significant contributors to asthma prevalence and its disparities by race.

In addition to the medical implications, asthma also poses an economic burden. According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, the cost of asthma treatment in the US amounts to approximately $56 billion annually. The average price per person is $3,259 annually, with asthma inhaler costs increasing an estimated 50% since 2009.

While this study provided insight into the discrepancies, further research is required to analyze the relationship between race and asthma prevalence.

“Future studies should consider neighborhood- and individual-level characteristics that individually or in combination explain elevated rates of asthma incidence. Observational studies identifying multilevel risk factors responsible for inequities in respiratory health can be used to guide interventions and policies enacted at local levels to improve health among those disproportionately exposed to and affected by the environments in which they live,” recommended the investigators in the article.

To effectively reduce the rates of asthma, the discrepancies in its prevalence, and its economic burden, a multi-pronged approach needs to be taken. While some asthma cases are genetic and inevitable, efforts to address systemic, institutional, and environmental factors could minimize preventable iterations of the disease.