Voting Republican is bad for your health

 Literally. A study byWarraich HJ, Kumar P, Nasir K, Joynt Maddox KE, and Wadhera RK in BMJfinds this:  There has actually been lots of previous research on this general question. As the authors note, " Previous studies have shown that counties that elect Republican candidates tend to experience worse health outcomes, such as fewer gains in life expectancy and increased rates of opioid prescription.56789, " so this is just further confirmation. As they summarize their fndings, " the mortality gap between white residents in Democratic versus Republican counties increased fourfold. Rural  Republican counties experienced the highest mortality rates and the least improvement. "The southern and Appalachian states, with Republican-dominated governments, have the lowest life expectancy among U.S. states, whereas Democratic-dominated states have had increasing life expectancies. These red state voters are literally voting to kill themselves. The biggest contributors to the gap are heart disease, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, injuries, and suicide, in that order. Smoking, alcohol and other drug misuse, and firearms probably have a lot to do with this. But as the authors go on to describe:" Political influence on US mortality rates became overt during the covid-19 pandemic, when public health policies, controlled by states, were heavily influenced by party affiliation. Republican politicians, often seeking to appeal to President Trump and his supporters, cha...
Source: Stayin' Alive - Category: American Health Source Type: blogs