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Read JG. Does an Immigrant Health Advantage Exist Among US Whites? Evidence from a Nationally-Representative Examination of Mental and Physical Well-Being. J Immigr Minor Health 2024:10.1007/s10903-024-01607-4. [PMID: 38825664 DOI: 10.1007/s10903-024-01607-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
This study examines whether an immigrant health advantage exists among US Whites, a group often used as a reference category in research on racial and ethnic health disparities. Using recent data from the National Health Interview Survey (2019-2022), I disaggregate non-Hispanic White adults (n = 41,752) by nativity status and use logistic regression models to assess differences in six measures of mental and physical health. The analysis includes self-reported conditions (depression, anxiety, fair/poor self-rated health) and diagnosed conditions that require interaction with the healthcare system (hypertension, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD). Foreign-born Whites have a significantly lower prevalence of each health outcome relative to US-born Whites. The immigrant health advantage remains significant for depression, anxiety, fair/poor health (i.e., self-reported conditions) and diagnosed hypertension, after adjusting for sociodemographic and healthcare characteristics. In contrast, the inclusion of these explanatory factors reduces the nativity gap in diagnosed diabetes and COPD to non-significance. Overall, the results indicate important variation in health among Whites that is missed in studies that focus on US-born Whites, alone. Scholars must continue to monitor the health of White immigrants, who are projected to grow to 20% of the US immigrant population in the years to come.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen'nan G Read
- Department of Sociology, Duke University, 417 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC, 27708, USA.
- Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27708, USA.
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Moustafa L, McGaughey P, Hamilton TG. Disparities in birth outcomes within the U.S. White population: Prevalence of low birth weight among immigrant mothers from the Middle East and North Africa. SSM Popul Health 2024; 26:101625. [PMID: 38524892 PMCID: PMC10958105 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2024.101625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Immigration from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has diversified the U.S. non-Hispanic White population. Analyzing health disparities within this group is a complex task due to data limitations across most federal and state data collection systems. This study investigates disparities in the risk of giving birth to a low-birth-weight infant among foreign-born non-Hispanic White MENA and non-MENA mothers and by MENA mothers' nationality. This population-based study uses Restricted-Use Detail Natality Data from 2016 to 2019 accessed through the National Center for Health Statistics and provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study examines the risk of giving birth to a low-birth-weight infant (<2500g) among foreign-born non-Hispanic White mothers by MENA/non-MENA status as the primary independent variable of interest. Logistic regression models are used to control for social and demographic characteristics, medical risk factors, and measures of prenatal care adequacy. Results are presented as odds ratios. Among foreign-born non-Hispanic White mothers, 139,708 (32%) are classified as MENA and 296,093 (68%) as non-MENA. Results show that after controlling for social and demographic characteristics, medical factors, and measures of prenatal care adequacy, foreign-born non-Hispanic White MENA mothers have greater odds of giving birth to a low-birth-weight infant than their non-MENA counterparts (OR: 1.443, p-value <0.001). Increased immigration from the MENA region has contributed to changes in health profiles among foreign-born non-Hispanic White mothers. As this group grows, understanding the impact of immigration on the composition of the non-Hispanic White population, and consequently, racial disparities in the U.S., is crucial for researchers and policymakers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leila Moustafa
- Predoctoral Fellow, Princeton University, Office of Population Research, 224 Wallace Hall, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA
| | - Patricia McGaughey
- Assistant Professor, Montclair State University, School of Nursing, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07043, USA
| | - Tod G. Hamilton
- Professor of Sociology, Princeton University, Department of Sociology and Office of Population Research. 116 Wallace Hall, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA
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Hagos RM, Hamilton TG. Beyond Acculturation: Health and Immigrants' Social Integration in the United States. JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR 2024:221465241231829. [PMID: 38504618 DOI: 10.1177/00221465241231829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
Immigrants typically have more favorable health outcomes than their U.S.-born counterparts of the same race-ethnicity. However, little is known about how race-ethnicity and region of birth moderate the health outcomes of different immigrant groups as their tenure of U.S. residence increases. We study the association between time spent in the United States and health outcomes among non-Hispanic Black, non-Hispanic White, Asian, and Hispanic immigrants using National Health Interview Survey data. Although all immigrant groups initially report better health outcomes than their U.S.-born counterparts, the association between U.S. tenure and reported health outcomes varies among immigrants by race-ethnicity and region of birth. Black immigrants have the worst hypertension profiles, and Black and Hispanic immigrants have the worst obesity profiles. The results suggest that acculturation cannot fully explain racial-ethnic differences in the association between U.S. tenure and health outcomes. We advance a more complete sociological theory of immigrant integration to better explain disparate immigrant health profiles.
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Dallo FJ, Brown KK, Obembe A, Kindratt T. Disparities in Health Insurance Among Middle Eastern and North African American Children in the US. J Prim Care Community Health 2024; 15:21501319241255542. [PMID: 38769775 PMCID: PMC11110508 DOI: 10.1177/21501319241255542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2024] [Revised: 04/24/2024] [Accepted: 04/27/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To estimate and compare the proportion of foreign-born Middle Eastern/North African (MENA) children without health insurance, public, or private insurance to foreign- and US-born White and US-born MENA children. METHODS Using 2000 to 2018 National Health Interview Survey data (N = 311 961 children) and 2015 to 2019 American Community Survey data (n = 1 892 255 children), we ran multivariable logistic regression to test the association between region of birth among non-Hispanic White children (independent variable) and health insurance coverage types (dependent variables). RESULTS In the NHIS and ACS, foreign-born MENA children had higher odds of being uninsured (NHIS OR = 1.50, 95%CI = 1.10-2.05; ACS OR = 2.11, 95%CI = 1.88-2.37) compared to US-born White children. In the ACS, foreign-born MENA children had 2.11 times higher odds (95%CI = 1.83-2.45) of being uninsured compared to US-born MENA children. CONCLUSION Our findings have implications for the health status of foreign-born MENA children, who are currently more likely to be uninsured. Strategies such as interventions to increase health insurance enrollment, updating enrollment forms to capture race, ethnicity, and nativity can aid in identifying and monitoring key disparities among MENA children.
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Miller GH, Marquez-Velarde G, Emoruwa OT, Jones NE, Ma G, Keith VM, Elufisan GI, Hernandez SM. Racial Context and Health Behaviors Among Black Immigrants. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2023; 10:2218-2230. [PMID: 36100809 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-022-01401-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/19/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Testing the Racial Context Hypothesis (Read and Emerson 2005), we examine the relationship between racial context of origin and three health behaviors (smoking, drinking, and physical activity) among Black immigrants in the USA. We conduct multinomial logistic regression analyses using data from the 2000-2018 National Health Interview Survey (N = 248,401) to determine if racial context of origin is a mechanism of health differential between Black immigrants and US-born Black Americans. Supporting the Racial Context Hypothesis, we find that Black immigrants from racially mixed (Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, South America) and majority-Black contexts (Africa) are significantly less likely to be current or former smokers and drinkers than US-born Black Americans. Black immigrants from majority-white (Europe) contexts, on the other hand, look more similar to US-born Black Americans - again supporting the premise that racial context of origin is consequential for health. After controlling for a host of covariates, Black immigrants do not significantly differ from US-born Black Americans in exercise status. Together, these findings suggest that the impacts of racism and white supremacy have lasting effects on people of color, where Black immigrants from majority-white contexts exhibit worse health behaviors than their counterparts from majority-Black and racially mixed regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabe H Miller
- Department of Sociology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1401 University Blvd, Birmingham, AL, 35233, USA.
| | | | - Oluwaseun T Emoruwa
- Department of Sociology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1401 University Blvd, Birmingham, AL, 35233, USA
| | - Nicole E Jones
- Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Guizhen Ma
- Division of Social Sciences and History, Delta State University, Cleveland, MS, USA
| | - Verna M Keith
- Department of Sociology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1401 University Blvd, Birmingham, AL, 35233, USA
| | - Gbenga I Elufisan
- Department of Sociology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, USA
| | - Stephanie M Hernandez
- Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Touma F, Hummer RA. Race/ethnicity, immigrant generation, and physiological dysregulation among U.S. adults entering midlife. Soc Sci Med 2022; 314:115423. [PMID: 36283331 PMCID: PMC10112471 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
This study aimed to better understand racial/ethnic and immigrant generation disparities in physiological dysregulation in the early portion of the adult life course. Using biomarker-measured allostatic load, we focused on the health of child/adolescent immigrant, second-, and third-plus-generation Asian, Black, Hispanic, and White Americans in their late 30s and early 40s. We drew on restricted-access data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), Waves I and V. The results indicate lower levels of physiological dysregulation for most racial/ethnic groups of child/adolescent immigrants relative to both third-plus-generation Whites and third-plus-generation same race/ethnic peers. Socioeconomic, social, and behavioral control variables measured in different parts of the life course had little impact on these patterns. Thus, evidence of an immigrant health advantage is found for this cohort using allostatic load as a measure of physiological dysregulation, even though immigrants in Add Health arrived at the United States during childhood and adolescence. Implications of these findings in the context of immigrant health advantages and trajectories are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatima Touma
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 155 Pauli Murray Hall, CB #3210, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3210, USA; Carolina Population Center, 123 W. Franklin Street, CB #8120, Chapel Hill, NC, 27516-2524, USA.
| | - Robert A Hummer
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 155 Pauli Murray Hall, CB #3210, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3210, USA; Carolina Population Center, 123 W. Franklin Street, CB #8120, Chapel Hill, NC, 27516-2524, USA
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Kindratt TB, Dallo FJ, Zahodne LB. Cognitive Disability Among Arab Americans by Nativity Status and Arrival Year: Lack of Evidence for the Healthy Migrant Effect. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2022; 9:2056-2062. [PMID: 34505264 PMCID: PMC8904646 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-021-01144-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Limited research exists on cognitive disabilities among Arab Americans, especially as it relates to arrival year among the foreign-born. The objectives of this study were to estimate the age- and sex-adjusted prevalence and associations of cognitive disability by (1) nativity status and (2) arrival year (pre-1991, 1991-2000, 2001-2013, and 2014-2018). We analyzed 11 years (2008-2018) of data from the American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Samples (weighted n = 264,086; ages ≥ 45 years). Weighted means, percentages, age- and sex-adjusted prevalence estimates, and logistic regression results (crude and adjusted) were calculated. Among all Arab Americans, the age- and sex-adjusted prevalence of cognitive disability was 6.5%. The prevalence was lower for US-born (4.0%) compared to foreign-born (6.0%) (p-value < 0.0001). In logistic regression results, foreign-born Arab Americans were more likely to have a cognitive disability compared to US-born Arab Americans after adjusting for age and sex (OR = 1.41; 95% CI = 1.24, 1.61). Among foreign-born, Arab Americans arriving in 2014 or later had a lower prevalence of cognitive disability (3.4%) compared to all other arrival years at approximately 4.7%. With those arriving prior to 1991 as the reference category, those arriving between 1991 and 2000 were more likely to report a cognitive disability (OR = 1.05; 95% CI = 1.00, 1.08). However, those arriving between 2014 and 2018 were less likely to report a cognitive disability (OR = 0.81; 95% CI = 0.73, 0.88). These findings challenge the universality of the "healthy migrant effect" and highlight the relevance of socioeconomic disparities for Arab American cognitive health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiffany B Kindratt
- Public Health Program, Department of Kinesiology, College of Nursing and Health Innovation, University of Texas At Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76013, USA
| | - Florence J Dallo
- Department of Public and Environmental Wellness, School of Health Sciences, Oakland University, Rochester, MI, 48309-4452, USA.
| | - Laura B Zahodne
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
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Tankwanchi ABS, Jaca A, Ndlambe AM, Zantsi ZP, Bowman B, Garrison MM, Larson HJ, Vermund SH, Wiysonge CS. Non-COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among migrant populations worldwide: a scoping review of the literature, 2000-2020. Expert Rev Vaccines 2022; 21:1269-1287. [DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2022.2084075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Anelisa Jaca
- Cochrane South Africa, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, SA
| | - Asiphe M Ndlambe
- Cochrane South Africa, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, SA
| | - Zukiswa P Zantsi
- Cochrane South Africa, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, SA
| | - Brett Bowman
- Department of Psychology, School of Human and Community Development, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, SA
| | - Michelle M Garrison
- Department of Health Systems and Population Health, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Heidi J Larson
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
- Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Sten H Vermund
- Yale School of Public Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Charles S Wiysonge
- Cochrane South Africa, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, SA
- Department of Global Health, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, SA
- School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, SA
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Read JG, Lynch SM, West JS. Disaggregating Heterogeneity among Non-Hispanic Whites: Evidence and Implications for U.S. Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2021; 40:9-31. [PMID: 34898768 DOI: 10.1007/s11113-020-09632-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Research has made strides in disaggregating health data among racial/ethnic minorities, but less is known about the extent of diversity among Whites. Using logistic regression modeling applied to data on respondents aged 40+ from the 2008 to 2016 American Community Survey, we disaggregated the non-Hispanic White population by ancestry and other racial/ethnic groups (non-Hispanic Black, non-Hispanic Asian, and Hispanic) by common subgroupings and examined heterogeneity in disability. Using logistic regression models predicting six health outcome measures, we compared the spread of coefficients for each of the large racial/ethnic groups and all subgroupings within these large categories. The results revealed that health disparities within the White population are almost as large as disparities within other racial groups. In fact, when Whites were disaggregated by ancestry, mean health appeared to be more varied among Whites than between Whites and members of other racial/ethnic groups in many cases. Compositional changes in the ancestry of Whites, particularly declines in Whites of western European ancestry and increases in Whites of eastern European and Middle Eastern ancestry, contribute to this diversity. Together, these findings challenge the oft-assumed notion that Whites are a homogeneous group and indicate that the aggregate White category obscures substantial intra-ethnic heterogeneity in health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen'nan Ghazal Read
- Department of Sociology, Global Health Institute, Duke University, 417 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Scott M Lynch
- Department of Sociology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jessica S West
- Department of Sociology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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