Intersectional Race-by-Gender Disparities in Preventive Health Practices among U.S. Adults

Sarah A. Burgard, University of Michigan
Katrina Haushildt, University of Michigan
Paul Christine, University of Michigan
Robert Melendez, University of Michigan
James S. House, University of Michigan

A growing body of research has called for consideration of intersectional identities when studying health disparities. We use recently collected data from the American’s Changing Lives study to explore race-by-gender differences in utilization of a wide array of preventive health practices and services. We also examine the extent to which measures of socioeconomic status, health insurance and health status explain differences between white and black men and women. Preliminary results suggest the presence of both “main effects” disparities, such as lower use of daily aspirin for heart health among women than men, but higher daily vitamin use among women, as well as “intersectional” disparities, such as the low dental care use of African American men compared to all other groups, the vulnerability of foregoing prescription medications for cost reasons among African American women, or the relative advantages for white women in terms of olive oil and fried food consumption.