Advancing racial equity in oral health (research): more of the same is not enough. 2020

João L Bastos, and Helena M Constante, and Roger K Celeste, and Dandara G Haag, and Lisa M Jamieson
Department of Public Health, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil.

By critically appraising the literature on the oral health effects of race-based oppression, this focus article makes four recommendations that may both facilitate more nuanced research on the topic and mitigate racial/ethnic inequities in (oral) health. The first is recognizing that science itself may perpetuate racial/ethnic injustice, such that adopting a 'neutral' position must be replaced with actively fostering anti-racist narratives. The second is to not imply that racial oppression is bad because it harms oral health. Rather, studies should help build a fairer world, wherein oral health inequities would not abound. The third recommendation is encouraging initiatives that understand systems of oppression as conjointly operating to shape oral health. The fourth and final recommendation is taking race-based oppression as a multi-level system that operates on three inter-related conceptual levels - intra-personal, inter-personal, and structural. The extent to which scholars, practitioners, and policymakers are willing to follow these recommendations may determine how successful attempts to eradicate (oral) health inequities might be. Learning from, and avoiding mistakes made in, previous publications is one ethical pathway towards this end.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D009909 Oral Health The optimal state of the mouth and normal functioning of the organs of the mouth without evidence of disease. Health, Oral
D063505 Racism Differential treatment or unequal access to opportunities, based on group membership such as origin or ethnicity. Everyday Racism,Covert Racism,Racial Bias,Racial Discrimination,Racial Prejudice,Bias, Racial,Discrimination, Racial,Discriminations, Racial,Prejudice, Racial,Prejudices, Racial,Racial Discriminations,Racial Prejudices,Racism, Covert,Racism, Everyday

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