Response to ‘Cumulative Lifespan Stress, Inflammation, and Racial Disparities in Mortality Between Black and White Adults’

Editor’s note: This comment, “Concerns about the Study’s Methodology, Interpretations, and Conclusions,” is in response to a study published in JAMA Network Open titled “Cumulative Lifespan Stress, Inflammation, and Racial Disparities in Mortality Between Black and White Adults.”

While the authors’ intent to investigate potential mechanisms underlying health inequities is commendable, I have concerns about the study’s methodology, interpretations, and conclusions that warrant discussion. Specifically, the evidence presented does not sufficiently support the claim that systemic discrimination, via stress pathways, directly shortens lives in Black communities. Instead, the findings appear to restate well-established correlations between socioeconomic disadvantage, health challenges, and poorer outcomes without adequately addressing confounding factors or establishing causality.

Read the full comment at JAMA Network Open.