Long-standing systemic inequalities—fueling unequal access to critical resources such as healthcare, housing, education, and employment opportunities—are largely responsible for the significant race disparities in obesity and COVID-19. Because of this legacy, public health emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impact communities of color, exacerbated by high rates of pre-existing chronic diseases like obesity. Learning from this history is instructive for understanding our present situation and for crafting effective solutions that promote health equity. Critical action is needed now to meaningfully address the disproportionate impact of these major public health problems on Black and Brown populations.

长期存在的系统性不平等——加剧了对医疗、住房、教育和就业机会等关键资源的不平等获取——是造成肥胖和 COVID-19 方面显着种族差异的主要原因。由于这一遗产，像 COVID-19 大流行这样的突发公共卫生事件对有色人种社区造成了不成比例的影响，而肥胖等既往慢性病的高发病率加剧了这种情况。从这段历史中吸取教训对于了解我们的现状和制定促进健康公平的有效解决方案具有指导意义。现在需要采取关键行动来有意义地解决这些主要公共卫生问题对黑人和棕色人种的不成比例的影响。