Shuaibu Saidu Musa, Reuben Victor M Laguitan, Kehinde Precious Fadele, Reymark P Malinda, Abraham Fessehaye Sium, Don Eliseo Lucero-Prisno
{"title":"Artemisinin resistance and Nigeria's malaria burden: urgent policy imperatives from the WHO World Malaria Report 2025!","authors":"Shuaibu Saidu Musa, Reuben Victor M Laguitan, Kehinde Precious Fadele, Reymark P Malinda, Abraham Fessehaye Sium, Don Eliseo Lucero-Prisno","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02970-4","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02970-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The WHO World Malaria Report 2025 highlights growing artemisinin resistance, with Nigeria bearing the world's highest malaria burden at risk. Although no validated resistance markers were found, non-canonical mutations correlate with delayed parasite clearance. The report urges Nigeria to implement multiple first-line therapies, expand surveillance, and diversify policy urgently.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13445766/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148684379","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Carmen Koko, Zining Yang, Mari Nygård, Patrick Martens, Eliane Kellen, Christoph Kowalski
{"title":"Cancer screening in people with intellectual disability: a scoping review of participation, barriers, facilitators, and improvement strategies within the EUCanScreen initiative.","authors":"Carmen Koko, Zining Yang, Mari Nygård, Patrick Martens, Eliane Kellen, Christoph Kowalski","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02965-1","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02965-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>People with intellectual disability (ID) experience significant health inequities, yet evidence on their participation in cancer screening and access to preventive care remains fragmented. Conducted within the EUCanScreen Joint Action, this scoping review synthesised global evidence to characterise the current landscape of cancer screening for people with ID and identify approaches to support more inclusive screening practices.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, we systematically searched MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science (2013-2024) for qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies, supplemented by grey literature. Eligible studies examined participation, barriers, facilitators, or interventions related to six cancers prioritised in European screening policy: breast, cervical, colorectal, prostate, gastric, and lung. Perspectives of people with ID, caregivers, and health care professionals were included. Data were charted and synthesised descriptively, including pathway-based mapping of barriers and facilitators, narrative and visual summaries of screening uptake, and narrative synthesis of intervention studies.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 4,387 records screened, 78 met the inclusion criteria. Most studies addressed breast cancer screening (n = 53), cervical screening (n = 44), and colorectal cancer screening (n = 25), which benefit from long-standing organised screening programmes in many countries. In contrast, evidence on prostate cancer screening (n = 3) and gastric cancer screening (n = 1) was sparse, and no studies examined lung cancer screening, reflecting the far more limited implementation of organised screening for these cancers during the study period. Across contexts, people with ID consistently showed lower participation than the general population. Barriers included fear, inaccessible information, and insufficient provider training, while facilitators involved trusted accompaniment, accessible communication, and tailored examination settings. Intervention studies were scarce but suggested potential for educational, organisational, and tailored support strategies to improve accessibility, preparedness, and participation.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Persistent, multi-level barriers hinder equitable cancer screening for people with ID. Tailored, person-centred screening pathways, improved provider education, and enhanced data systems are needed. Coordinated national and EU-level initiatives, such as EUCanScreen, are vital for structural improvements. Future research should prioritise multicomponent intervention development, pathway-level accessibility, and the inclusion of underrepresented groups to strengthen equity in cancer prevention.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13445881/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148684414","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Progress in reaching zero-dose children: analysis of population-modifiable risk factors and inequity trends in low- and lower-middle-income countries.","authors":"Firew Tekle Bobo, Abdi Gari Negasa, Hawi Tekle Bobo, Kiddus Yitbarek, Girmaye Dinsa, Mirkuzie Woldie","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02955-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-026-02955-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Zero-dose (ZD) children remain concentrated in low- and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs) and are a major focus of the Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030), which aims to halve their number by 2030. Despite this commitment, progress has stalled in many high-burden settings. This study aimed to examine progress in reaching ZD children, trends in wealth-related inequity, and key population-modifiable risk factors across LLMICs over the past decade.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analysed two rounds of the most recent Demographic and health survey (DHS) datasets from ten LLMICs to assess progress in reducing the number of ZD children. Countries were included based on the availability of post-2020 survey rounds. ZD children were defined as children aged 12-23 months who had not received any dose of BCG, DTP-containing, polio, or measles-containing vaccines. The concentration index was used to assess wealth-related inequities. Multilevel logistic regression models were used to identify modifiable risk factors associated with ZD status. The population attributable fraction (PAF) was calculated using odds ratios and prevalence estimates to quantify the contribution of modifiable risk factors.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>ZD prevalence increased significantly in five of ten countries - Mozambique (4.8% to 14.2%), Côte d'Ivoire (4.9% to 8.7%), Nepal (0.8% to 4.5%), Tanzania (2.3% to 4.4%), and Madagascar (13.3% to 18.1%) - while no statistically significant change was observed in the remaining five. Wealth-related inequities were significant in most countries, with ZD children disproportionately concentrated in the poorest households. Home delivery had the highest PAF for ZD (17.1%; 95% CI: 14.1-19.6), followed by fewer than four ANC contacts (8.6%; 95% CI: 7.2-10.0) and non-use of contraceptives (6.9%; 95% CI: 5.3-8.5). The combined contribution of reproductive and maternal health services was (PAF = 29.4%; 95% CI: 24.5-33.7). Socioeconomic factors included lack of maternal education (4.4%; 95% CI: 2.6-6.1) and not listening to the radio (2.7%; 95% CI: 0.4-4.6).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Progress in reaching ZD children in low- and lower-middle-income countries has declined. A renewed commitment and continued effort are needed to reach ZD children in these regions by improving access to health services and addressing the socioeconomic challenges of families.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13625364/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149109141","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Generational variation and life‑course accumulation of social inequalities in all-cause mortality in Germany: a cohort-sequential study.","authors":"Daniel Tarekegn Worede, Alfons Hollederer","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02973-1","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02973-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Social inequalities in mortality persist as a public health challenge across Europe, including Germany, despite significant health gains. Research shows a lasting social gradient in survival. However, comprehensive longitudinal evidence on cohort and life-course dynamics is limited. We examine trends in social inequalities in all-cause mortality, cohort differences, and whether cumulative low-SES exposure raises mortality risk over the life course.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>We used longitudinal data from the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP, 1996-2023). A cohort-sequential survival analysis included 112,037 individuals, totalling 660,480 observations and 4,974 deaths. Five birth cohorts (1925-1975) were defined. Socio-economic status (SES) was measured using education, income, and occupation, combined and modelled as both time-varying and constant exposures. Mortality was ascertained via year of death. We estimated adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using Cox proportional hazards models with attained age as the time scale. Analyses were adjusted for sex, migration background, and marital status. Model diagnostics and sensitivity analyses were performed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Mortality declined over time. However, relative social inequalities persisted. Individuals with low SES had over twice the mortality risk of those with high SES. In our life-course analysis, we found that repeated or cumulative social disadvantage across adulthood mattered more than single episodes. Each additional year spent in low SES increased mortality risk by 16% at age 50 (HR = 1.16; 95% CI: 1.11-1.22), though this effect decreased with age. We also observed generational variations: for example, low-SES individuals born in the 1956-1965 cohort (HR = 2.03, 95% CI 1.15-3.57) and 1966-1975 cohort (HR = 2.32, 95% CI 1.03-5.30) had higher mortality hazards than the 1925-1934 reference cohort. Finally, men had a higher mortality risk than women (HR 1.84, 95% CI 1.65-2.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>While mortality has declined, social inequality in survival persists. It accumulates over the life-course and varies by generation. These findings underscore the need for sustained, life-course policies: reducing early-life disadvantage, strengthening stable working-age, and addressing structural drivers of survival inequalities.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13445823/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148684369","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Correction: Socioeconomic and geographic inequalities in unmet healthcare needs in Cambodia: evidence from a national cross-sectional study.","authors":"Khin Thiri Maung, Monica Hunsberger, Heng Sopheab, Nawi Ng, Ailiana Santosa","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02961-5","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02961-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13417838/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148619838","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Advancing maternal health equity: the need for cultural awareness and inclusivity in maternity service delivery in the UK: anchored in the MBRRACE-UK 2025 findings.","authors":"Obasanjo Bolarinwa","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02956-2","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02956-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite ongoing national efforts to improve health outcomes, the UK continues to experience entrenched inequalities in maternal mortality, disproportionately affecting Black, Asian, and migrant women. The MBRRACE-UK 2025 report reaffirms that these disparities are not random but rooted in structural deficiencies within the maternity service delivery system. This commentary argues that achieving maternal health equity requires a fundamental shift in how maternity care is commissioned, delivered, and evaluated. Cultural awareness and inclusivity should be recognised as an important integral to the provision of safe and effective maternity care, rather than treated as supplementary considerations. Embedding these principles into national clinical guidelines, service contracts, commissioning frameworks, and mandatory workforce training will reduce barriers to access, promote equity, improve the quality of maternity care, and rebuild trust among underserved populations. The paper calls for bold and decisive leadership, targeted policy reforms, and genuine co-production with affected women and communities to ensure that maternity services reflect diverse needs. Without such decisive actions, inequalities will persist, undermining the credibility and safety of the UK's maternity care system. The paper also offers actionable policy and system-level recommendations to guide measurable transition towards equitable, culturally responsive maternity services in the UK.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13403387/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148601998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Out of time, out of place: temporal desynchronization and gendered ageism in premature ovarian insufficiency.","authors":"Johanna Budke","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02954-4","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02954-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) confronts cisgender women with menopause before the age of 40, placing them outside normative temporal expectations of the female life course. While its biomedical and psychosocial dimensions are well documented, less attention has been paid to how POI is shaped by age- and gender-based assumptions embedded in healthcare systems.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This qualitative study employed a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz), based on narrative interviews with eight women who entered menopause between the ages of 23 and 38, to examine how embodied experiences, social norms, and healthcare encounters -informed by feminist phenomenology-intersect in shaping interpretations of POI.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>POI emerges as a profound temporal dislocation, with participants describing their bodies as ageing \"out of sync\" with their chronological age and social environment. This desynchronization disrupts biographical expectations and, in some accounts, crystallize into internalized ageism. Biomedical frameworks offer limited interpretive resources beyond deficit-oriented understandings, while healthcare encounters are frequently marked by misrecognition and epistemic injustice, as POI falls outside age-normative clinical expectations.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The article suggests that POI can be read as a site of age- and gender-based misrecognition, in which ageism manifests less through overt discrimination than through internalization and structural invisibility. Addressing these inequalities requires more inclusive clinical frameworks, improved psychosocial support, and greater recognition of diverse temporalities of ageing across the life course.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13397765/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148584361","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Basile Njei, Ulrick Sidney Kanmounye, Luchuo Engelbert Bain, Yazan A Al-Ajlouni, Olugbenga Ogedegbe, M Elizabeth Sobhia, Rena C Patel, Sonia S Anand, Alan Tita
{"title":"A conceptual framework for measuring AI health equity.","authors":"Basile Njei, Ulrick Sidney Kanmounye, Luchuo Engelbert Bain, Yazan A Al-Ajlouni, Olugbenga Ogedegbe, M Elizabeth Sobhia, Rena C Patel, Sonia S Anand, Alan Tita","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02950-8","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02950-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly embedded in health systems globally and has the potential to improve efficiency, diagnostic accuracy, and decision support. However, its benefits remain unevenly distributed, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Models developed using datasets from specific populations may perform poorly in other settings, reinforcing structural inequities rather than correcting them.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>This viewpoint proposes a composite framework, the AI in Healthcare Equity Index (AIHEI), to support measurable assessment of equity in health AI systems.</p><p><strong>Framework: </strong>The AIHEI is designed to assess equity across five domains: data representation, algorithmic fairness, transparency and explainability, governance and oversight, and community impact and benefit sharing. By generating a standardised score, the index could enable comparisons across technologies, incentivise improvement, and support regulation, procurement, publication, and funding decisions.</p><p><strong>Implications: </strong>Pilots across diverse health domains and geographic settings are needed to assess feasibility, refine domain weighting, and evaluate reliability, reproducibility, and validity. Important challenges include contextual definitions of fairness, data sovereignty, post-deployment monitoring, and the risk of metric gaming.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Quantifying equity in health AI is essential to ensure that AI does not create, widen, or exacerbate existing disparities by neglecting underserved populations. A common, objective measure of AI-related health equity can help move the field from ethical aspiration toward measurable accountability, monitoring, and enforcement.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13397789/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148578580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Luciana Alves de Medeiros, Letícia Martins Okada, Luciana Saraiva da Silva, Renata Bertazzi Levy, Catarina Machado Azeredo
{"title":"When skin color/race and education matter: disparities in obesity among Brazilians (2013-2019).","authors":"Luciana Alves de Medeiros, Letícia Martins Okada, Luciana Saraiva da Silva, Renata Bertazzi Levy, Catarina Machado Azeredo","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02930-y","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02930-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Despite the growing burden of obesity in middle-income settings, evidence integrating socioeconomic and racial dimensions remains insufficient. This study examined educational inequalities in obesity prevalence among Brazilian adults in 2013 and 2019, assessing intersections with race/skin color and sex.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Cross-sectional study with a representative sample of Brazilian adults aged ≥ 23 years, using data from the National Health Survey (PNS), 2013 and 2019 editions. Obesity was assessed using BMI, calculated from self-identified weight and height. Descriptive data and complex measures of inequality (Slope Index of Inequality - SII and Relative Index of Inequality - RII) were used. Analyses were stratified by sex, race/skin color, and educational level, with an intersectional approach when analytically possible.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A difference in the magnitude of relative educational inequality was observed only for Brown women (RII = 0.5 in 2013 and 0.7 in 2019), largely reflecting greater increases in obesity prevalence among women with secondary and tertiary education. Among Black men, both absolute and relative inequality were higher in 2019 survey than in 2013, with a shift in higher obesity prevalence from the less educated to the more educated. In 2019, White and Brown women showed negative SII values (-15.0 and - 9.7, respectively) and RII values less than one (0.5 and 0.7, respectively), indicating a lower obesity prevalence among those with higher educational attainment, which was not significant for Black women. Among men, educational inequality was greater for Black and Brown individuals, with higher obesity prevalence among the more educated (SII = 9.9 and 8.5, respectively); among White men, there was no significant inequality.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Educational inequality in obesity prevalence in Brazil shows patterns consistent with the nutritional transition observed in high-income countries with higher obesity prevalences among less educated subgroups. However, racial intersections revealed significant differences, placing Black and Brown individuals at a disadvantage in both sexes. Among women, education appears to have a less protective effect against obesity among Black women, whereas among men-where a positive educational gradient in obesity is commonly observed-this pattern is more pronounced among Black and Brown men.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148548828","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Corinne Lovett, Alex Filamor, Negin Fouladi, James Barry, Joshua Bernstein, Basil H Aboul-Enein
{"title":"Can physical education be used to promote social justice? Conceptualizing a framework and thematic domains.","authors":"Corinne Lovett, Alex Filamor, Negin Fouladi, James Barry, Joshua Bernstein, Basil H Aboul-Enein","doi":"10.1186/s12939-026-02951-7","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12939-026-02951-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Social justice is a concept that is well-recognized yet difficult to define within the context of school curricula. As societies evolve and adapt, physical education (PE) curricula must reflect these changes. Student populations are becoming increasingly diverse, social justice issues and racism remain a public health issue, and the need to review existing school curriculum systems is warranted. This thematic narrative essay examined contemporary literature to see how PE curriculum may be used to promote social justice. After screening for relevance and applying inclusion criteria, 92 articles were included in the thematic analysis. Contemporary peer-reviewed literature on racism, social justice, and physical education produced five qualitative themes: social justice ambiguity in PE, educator bias, dehumanization and marginalization,, neoliberalism in PE, and body image. The review found that colonialism, dominant White cultural norms, educator bias, and narrow body ideals continue to influence modern PE curricula. These findings do not reflect substantial changes in culture and society where social justice is prevalent or needed. Current and new curricula should expand current practice to address the needs of a growing ethnic population, include social justice as a foundational principle, engage in a holistic approach to health that moves beyond body size, and work to humanize our approach to PE. New research into current PE teaching and curricula is warranted.</p>","PeriodicalId":13745,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for Equity in Health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13663198/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148497549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}