COVID-19 the cause of much more than death

THE ALBUQUERQUE Journal reports daily COVID-19 cases and deaths. It also reports the age of those who died, where they lived, and if they had underlying conditions.

The Journal’s focus on age and the very vague concept of “underlying conditions” is misleading in many respects. The goal seems to be to reinforce the belief that this disease only really impacts elderly people.

While elderly people are far more likely to die, many people in their 20s-50s become gravely ill, and evidence of long-term health effects, including enlarged hearts and chronic fatigue, is increasing.

Also, let’s not forget that these “elderly” people had lives to live, contributions to make, and friends and families who suffer from losing their loved ones prematurely. Their lives matter too.

Younger people should also be aware of the fact that the general term “underlying condition” can cover obesity (42% of all Americans are obese), diabetes (10% of Americans have diabetes) and asthma (affecting 7.7% of the U.S. adult population).

While all of these conditions can affect longevity, many people live long and full lives with these “underlying conditions.” If the goal is to suggest that most of us need not worry, these statistics suggest otherwise. Many, possibly even most, of us do have underlying conditions.

I would urge the Journal to expand its coverage of the impacts of this disease and recognize that the human cost underneath the statistics are very real. There are other issues that also deserve investigation. Why have Native American communities been hit so hard? Why did the cases among Hispanics increase so suddenly over the summer? What are the physical and emotional impacts on health care workers and first responders?

Living through a pandemic is hard, and what has surprised me the most is the number of people who consider only the risk to themselves. Those who are willing to dismiss the risk to old people, frontline workers, and other essential workers as irrelevant should be afraid for themselves as well. JOAN SANDVIG NELSON

Albuquerque