There is a provocative article in the American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience today which asks: "Why should we pay special attention to the neuroscience of sex differences? " Authors lay out a plethora of directions in which such research could go, posing such as questions as "How ought we disseminate this information into a sensitive social environment that has a history of bias and discrimination against women? What are the implications of this work for our understandings of what makes us women and men? How should this research be applied in educational, medical, and legal contexts, if at all?... In considering the neuroscience of sex differences, we confront a fundamental issue: how do science and society understand female-male differences, or rather, women and men?"
A little different approach than the previous post we had on Gender: Love it or Kill it?.
The full article can be accessed here, subscription required.
Showing posts with label diabetes women heart disease gender research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label diabetes women heart disease gender research. Show all posts
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Monday, November 26, 2007
So "what is" Tiger Woods anyway? (and should we care?)
Gene Expression discusses race and appearance, pointing to people disagreeing about whether Tiger Woods looks "Black" or "Asian." Not only is there a good discussion of the involved genetic dynamics, but the larger question of "why do we still focus on race?" is touched on.
Being of mixed descent myself, my appearance and behavior has confounded many people who have tried to "pin me down" as a certain race or ethnicity, much to my amusement (some have been wildly off) - I grew up always being asked the question, "So what are you?" And I wonder now, does it serve any purpose beyond satisfying curiosity to try to ascertain a person's race when so many other factors, like culture and nationality, contribute to a person's identity and perspective when interacting in the world? Many have speculated on the future of race, that we will lose the need for such distinctions because more people will claim mixed heritage (as shown by the 2000 U.S. Census) and will grow up with a cosmopolitan appreciation of all cultures, making attempts to reify race and ethnicity superfluous and inaccurate.
Speaking as someone who eats everything from sushi, kimchee and curry to gyros, crawdad boil, and stroganoff, I have to agree.
Addendum: Beyond aesthetic considerations, attempts to classify race and ethnicity can have very real economic impacts.
Being of mixed descent myself, my appearance and behavior has confounded many people who have tried to "pin me down" as a certain race or ethnicity, much to my amusement (some have been wildly off) - I grew up always being asked the question, "So what are you?" And I wonder now, does it serve any purpose beyond satisfying curiosity to try to ascertain a person's race when so many other factors, like culture and nationality, contribute to a person's identity and perspective when interacting in the world? Many have speculated on the future of race, that we will lose the need for such distinctions because more people will claim mixed heritage (as shown by the 2000 U.S. Census) and will grow up with a cosmopolitan appreciation of all cultures, making attempts to reify race and ethnicity superfluous and inaccurate.
Speaking as someone who eats everything from sushi, kimchee and curry to gyros, crawdad boil, and stroganoff, I have to agree.
Addendum: Beyond aesthetic considerations, attempts to classify race and ethnicity can have very real economic impacts.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Advances in cardiovascular care not reaching diabetic women?
A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine revealed some alarming statistics regarding mortality rates for diabetic women vs other segments of the population. A report of these results in the Chicago Tribune zeroes in on the statistics for death rates due to heart disease.
While overall mortality rates and death rates due to heart disease declined over the past three decades for men, women, and diabetic men, the percentages for diabetic women seem to have jumped pretty dramatically.
A quote from the Tribune article: "This study adds to the evidence that there is a gender gap in health care ... and it has a bottom-line impact on mortality," said Sherry Marts of the Society for Women's Health Research.
Here's a link via The Seattle Times website:
http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=women19&date=20070619
Are women with diabetes less likely to get appropriate treatments for heart disease, as an accompanying editorial suggests? What factors are at work here? Is this a legacy of the absence of female subjects in research of decades past, leaving physicians lacking in appropriate dosing and other treatments for female patients? Are there socio-economic elements to this negative trend?
While overall mortality rates and death rates due to heart disease declined over the past three decades for men, women, and diabetic men, the percentages for diabetic women seem to have jumped pretty dramatically.
A quote from the Tribune article: "This study adds to the evidence that there is a gender gap in health care ... and it has a bottom-line impact on mortality," said Sherry Marts of the Society for Women's Health Research.
Here's a link via The Seattle Times website:
http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=women19&date=20070619
Are women with diabetes less likely to get appropriate treatments for heart disease, as an accompanying editorial suggests? What factors are at work here? Is this a legacy of the absence of female subjects in research of decades past, leaving physicians lacking in appropriate dosing and other treatments for female patients? Are there socio-economic elements to this negative trend?
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