Multi-American ®

Photo by Seattle Municipal Archives/Flickr (Creative Commons)

Doctors with patient, Seattle, 1999

This Tuesday kicked off a monthlong effort by the American Diabetes Association to urge people to get tested in order to see if they are at risk for type 2 diabetes, which typically strikes during adulthood. This is serious business for minorities. According to the diabetes association, Latino, African American and some Asian and Pacific Islander groups are at disproportionate risk of developing the disease.

For Latinos in particular, though, the risk of diabetes and other diseases is balanced against what’s referred to as the “Latino health paradox.” Latinos have a longer life expectancy and, at least as newcomers, are widely believed to be generally healthier than the average population, in spite of lower income levels and insufficient access to health care.

Latinos live longer on average than other segments of the population, 7.7 years more than non-Latino black Americans, and 2.5 years more than whites, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Latinas especially have the highest life expectancy at birth, 83.1 years.

At the same time, according to the CDC, they are at disproportionately higher risk not only for diabetes, but for asthma, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and other afflictions. Heart disease tops the list of causes of death. The CDC also lists suicide as a risk factor; another report found a higher risk of death from homicide and car accidents, at least for men.

So which is it? In a population with these kinds of health risks, do the curses outweigh the blessings?

A 2007 study by the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute at USC assigned the blessings to first-generation immigrants, who generally enjoy better mental and physical health early on. Then, according to the report, things change:

The Latino health paradox exists only for mental health issues, asthma, and high blood pressure . . . immigrant Latinos are healthier in terms of these three outcomes when they first arrive in the United States; however, they become less healthy after acculturation.

The American diet plays a big part. Yesterday, Latina Lista cited a report from the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse that puts Latinos at a 66 percent greater risk of developing diabetes. Environmental issues are also a factor: A report released yesterday by the Center for American Progress found that two-thirds of Latinos in the United States lived in areas that don’t meet federal standards for air quality, making U.S. Latinos three times more likely to die from asthma.

Being a stranger in a strange land brings with it its own stresses that can affect health, physical and mental. From the American Psychiatric Association:

Many older Hispanic Americans find the strain of acculturation overwhelming. Their traditional values and beliefs are often at odds with the new culture, they may lack family support and may face language barriers. Hispanic/ Latino youth also have been found to be at risk for higher levels of emotional distress because of the pressures to rapidly adopt the values of their new culture as well as inequality, poverty, and discrimination.

At the same time, Latinos use mental health services “far less than other ethnic and racial groups,” according to the association’s website. Cultural reasons that include fear of being stigmatized play a part, as does a lack of access to appropriate care.