A tridimensional view of the Hispanic Health Paradox: Its relationship with faith, the enclave theory, and familism

This paper examines the "Hispanic (American) Health Paradox," the juxtaposition of Hispanics’ longer lifespan than the average American amid numerous inequities regarding social determinants of health. Hispanic Americans endure multiple health disparities with a higher incidence and prevalence of chronic conditions. They also experience multiple psychosocial and physical health challenges, including higher rates of food insecurity, poverty, segregation, discrimination, and limited or no access to medical care. Nevertheless, Hispanics enjoy better physical well-being and lower mortality rates when compared to non-Hispanics in the United States (Ruiz et al., 2021). This project aims to analyze the sources of this group’s biosocial advantages and resilience, allowing them to have a longer lifespan amidst their lower health status and increased risk for chronic conditions. It explores the political and social justice implications of these inequities. It also examines the strategies to close the gap on Latinos' current health care disparities via public policy aspects of federal and state legislature. A narrative review method was utilized to examine the existing literature on this paradoxical effect. Keywords based on Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) used to search resources for relevant studies included: Hispanic health paradox (health paradox, immigrant paradox), ethnic minorities (Latinos, LatinX), health disparities (disproportionate health, health inequities), social justice (healthcare stakeholders, health inequities solutions, inequities recommendations), mental health, physical health, and co-morbidities. A quality assessment of full-text peer-reviewed articles yielded 80 articles to compile this narrative review. The research revealed that, despite glaring disparities in social determinants of health, Hispanic Americans have overall experienced better health outcomes through a culture that emphasizes spirituality, community support, and strong family ties.

Disparities in Cognition Among U.S. and Foreign-Born Minority Populations With and Without Diabetes

Adults with cognitive limitations and diabetes may be less able to adhere to treatment recommendations. Our aims were to: 1) estimate and compare the prevalence of cognitive limitations and diabetes among foreign-born non-Hispanic whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and Arab Americans to US-born non-Hispanic whites; and 2) examine associations after controlling for covariates. We linked 2002-2016 National Health Interview Survey and 2003-2017 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data (ages >=45 years, n=122,898). The prevalence of cognitive limitations was highest among foreign-born non-Hispanic whites (9.71%) and Arab Americans (9.40%) and lowest among foreign-born blacks (5.19%). Foreign-born non-Hispanic whites had higher odds (OR=1.36; 95% CI=1.05-1.49) of cognitive limitations than their US-born counterparts. Foreign-born Hispanics with diabetes had greater odds of cognitive limitations (OR=1.91; 95% CI=1.63, 2.24) compared to US-born non-Hispanic whites. Additional findings will be discussed focused on stressors that may contribute to cognition disparities using the immigrant health paradox framework.

‘Health paradox’ and former Soviet Union immigrants: towards an integrated theoretical framework

This study examines the critical mechanisms explaining the health outcomes of such understudied social group as immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU), including Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, among other countries. Literature on the ‘health paradox’ suggests that immigrants from various countries enjoy better health than their native-born counterparts. Importantly, however, this trend does not seem to exist among FSU immigrants, especially those residing in the United States. In addition, while research studies find that socioeconomic status (SES) is the fundamental cause of health and illness among native-born individuals, higher SES does not appear to be the health-protective factor among the FSU group, likely due to their unique experiences and beliefs. Consequently, a new model is necessary to provide a more nuanced explanation of health outcomes of immigrants from FSU countries. Drawing on medical sociology and epidemiology literature, first, this paper outlines unique factors that explain health of FSU immigrants and argues that particular attention should be paid to acculturation, its sources, and the mechanisms through which it affects health. Specifically, differential levels of acculturation shape the degree to which FSU immigrants engage in risky behaviours, hold unique beliefs, access health care, and cope with stressors, which, in turn, influences their physical and mental health. Second, hypotheses are proposed based on the new model to be tested by future studies and third, unique interactive effects on health outcomes are discussed including such factors as SES, gender, country of origin, and other social structural factors. Overall, this paper contributes theoretically to medical sociology, epidemiology, social psychology, and global studies by outlining the novel model conceptualizing immigration and health relationships among one of the fastest-growing immigrant groups in contemporary society.

Does America Make You Sick? A Critical Perspective on the Black Immigrant Paradox

The health trajectory of Black immigrants receives little attention in minority health discourse despite Black immigrants representing a notable share of the Black population. One aspect of their health that requires increased attention is the immigrant health paradox. This draws attention to the deteriorating outcomes of immigrants as they assimilate into the host country. Although a few scholars have acknowledged the role of race in this trajectory, few have examined it from a critical perspective. This article embraces critical race theory to argue that racial processes intersect with other forms of structural oppression to produce the immigrant health paradox. An understanding of this health trajectory of Black immigrants is instructive in understanding the impact of race on minority health.