Race/Ethnicity/Ancestry (REA) and Disease: A Complex Interplay of Social and Biological Factors

The connection between human genetic and geographical diversity on one hand, and disease distribution on the other hand, has been a subject of ongoing research. A key challenge lies in defining the relevant units of analysis (RUAs) within human populations to accurately assess the impact of disease. While “race” is often considered a social construct, biomedical studies frequently utilize major geographical populations—European, Asian, and African groups—As RUAs. Other groups like “Hispanics” or Native Americans are also commonly used. This review examines the findings of this prevalent approach and argues that it offers significant advantages over the historically dominant model that focused solely on European populations.