Researchers from Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston and Imperial College London have found that white Americans who are eligible for bariatric surgery are twice as likely to undergo the procedure as black Americans, despite more blacks being eligible, according to an Imperial College London report.
The study looked at rates of bariatric surgery from 1999 to 2010 and found 22 percent of black woman and 11 percent of black men were eligible for the surgery, which has been recognized as a successful treatment for obesity and complications. Only 12 percent of white women and 8 percent of white men were eligible. However, whites were twice as likely to receive the procedure.
Insurance coverage plays a large role in receiving bariatric surgery. About 70 percent of whites had private health insurances compared to 50 percent of blacks. Other contributing factors could be cultural differences, lack of awareness of the risks of obesity or mistrust of physicians.
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