Covid-19 and Disparities in Nutrition and Obesity

Abstract

Black, Latinx, and Native Americans are experiencing disproportionate burdens of infections, hospitalizations, and deaths from SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19).¹ Similar disparities are observed in other countries where minority groups face hurdles in accessing health, education, and social services as well as affordable, healthy food. These stark manifestations of health inequities have emerged in the wake of a body of evidence linking obesity and obesity-related chronic diseases, such as hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease — conditions that disproportionately affect disadvantaged populations — with severe outcomes from Covid-19. Though the factors underlying racial and ethnic disparities in Covid-19 in the United States are multifaceted and complex, long-standing disparities in nutrition and obesity play a crucial role in the health inequities unfolding during the pandemic.