Original sentence: While the intent was initially to reduce mental illness and disease as part of the early modern social engineering programs, and thus supported by the government, ethnic and racial elements were inevitably blended in, as these are believed by some to be connected to mental and physical health
Edited sentence: While the intent was initially to reduce mental illness and disease as part of the early modern social engineering programs, and thus supported by the government, ethnic and racial elements were inevitably blended in, as these were erroneously connected to mental and physical health by leading scientists of the time