Comparing apples and oranges and getting racism

In 2018, African American women were 50 percent more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white women. 80% of Covid victims have been overweight or obese. They also have higher rates of hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease. But the higher rate of Covid among the black community is called--you got it, RACISM. 

Should the government step into the homes of black families and supervise what they eat? In 2018, African Americans were 20 percent less likely to engage in active physical activity as compared to non-Hispanic whites. Should the government step in and put blacks on treadmills and force them into jogging and running? Black female American children are 24.1% obese compared to 10.4% of white female children. Should the government step in. 10% isn't a good rate either--do we just want "equity" for this health problem?

My BMI is too high, also. I've been battling the bathroom scale since I was 21. I've probably lost over 100 lbs the last 60 years, and if you think losing weight at 25 is hard, just try it at 80! But I'm not asking the government to take over my life, and I certainly don't blame my ethnicity and ancestors (Irish-German American, whose ancestors arrived before the Revolution).

Here's how I would set up a health research project. If 50% of black women and 38% of white women had the same problem, I wouldn't rant about DISPARITY and RACISM to make the evening news. I'd look at what the 50% of the black women were doing who didn't have the problem and compare to the 50% who did. Income, education, marital status, personal life style, smoking, alcohol, drugs, number of children, religion, exercise, and so forth. That's how to do research. That's how to change lives. Adding an MSW to your research team and getting published in JAMA isn't worth it if you can't make some progress with the target group.