Epidemiology of Diabetes in Mexican Immigrants

In Mexico and the U.S.A., common health issues such as heart disease and diabetes are shared. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both the U.S.A. and Mexico. However, diabetes is

The Health status of an individual could be defined as someone watching another and collecting data about a person and based on the information that were collected. Health status of an entire population would be to consider the health of a population, their life span, the extensiveness of preventable diseases or deaths and the availability of their health status (National Center for Health Statistics). The prevalent health situation of Hispanics are Diabetes, Heart diseases, stroke, liver diseases, cancer asthma, obesity and tobacco use. Heart disease is the main cause of death among all ethnic groups in the United States. Obesity and smoking being are of the risk factors for developing hypertension. Hispanic whites have higher rates of diabetes and obesity, whereas non-Hispanic whites have a

Based on the United States census, it is estimated that by the year 2050 one in three people living in the United Sates will be of Hispanic/Latino origin which include sub groups like Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban, Central Americans, and South Americans (Heart Association, 2014). Within those subgroups, the prevalence varied for people of Mexican descent from as high of 18.3 percent to as low as 10.3 percent for people of South American descent, Dominicans and Puerto Rican descent 18.1 percent, Central American descent and Cubans descent 13.4 percent all living in the United States with diabetes type 2. On another commentary being published in the same issue of Diabetes Care, the author wrote, “the differences in diabetes and obesity prevalence among Latinos subgroups are marked when all individuals are combined into a single group” (Heart Association, 2014). Diabetes in Latino Americans has become more prevalence with aging, by the time they reach the age of 70 years, 44.3 percent of Latino men age 70 years old to 74 years old will have develop diabetes. The same study also indicated that the longer Latino Americans live in the United States the more likely they will develop diabetes, that is according to the education and income level of the person. The study also shows

outcome of obesity in this community, there needs to be a sufficient understand of Hispanic

Diabetes is a prevalent health disparity among the Latino population. Diabetes is listed as the fifth leading cause of death among the Latino population in the website for Center for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, in 2009. According to McBean, “the 2001 prevalence among Hispanics was significantly higher than among blacks.” (2317) In other words among the Hispanic or Latino community, there is a higher occurrence of diabetes as compared to other racial/ethnic groups such as Blacks and Native Americans. The prevalence of diabetes among Latinos is attributed to the social determinants of health such as low socioeconomic status and level of education. Further, this becomes an important public health issue when it costs the

Approximately 1 in 6 individuals are Hispanic in the United States, and the population is expected to grow to 1 in 4 by 2035 (CDC, 2015). Given that, Hispanics are the biggest minority group in the US (CDC, 2015). The leading cause of death among the Hispanic population is heart disease and cancer responsible for around 2 out of 5 deaths (CDC, 2015). Hispanics have a 50% greater chance of death resulting from diabetes or liver disease than whites (CDC, 2015). Additionally, there are 3 times as more uninsured Hispanics than whites (CDC, 2015). According to the US average, whites are 15 years older than the Latino population, so prevention will greatly benefit the health of the Latino population (CDC, 2015).

The Hispanic community in the largest minority in the USA and the fastest growing, it is also one with a high incidence of preventable diseases such as Diabetes, periodontitis, colorectal cancer and HIV. Obesity and teen age pregnancy are significantly more prevalent in Hispanic/Latino population as well. Rate of vaccination is also below that of the majority of the population. Addressing their health care makes good public health and economic sense.

Hispanic Americans are considered the leading ethnic minority in the United States of America composing 17.4% or 55.4 million of the national population with calculations proposing an increase to 28.6% or 119 million by 2060 (Velasco-Mondragon, Jimenez, Palladino-Davis, Davis, & Escamilla-Cejudo, 2016). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2015), Hispanic Americans primarily suffer from chronic diseases processes that primarily stem from obesity and uncontrolled high blood pressure that can lead to heart disease and cancer that as a result affect other organs. A study by Kim-Godwin & McMurry

Native Americans are mainly affected with type 2 diabetes. This is are mainly due education barriers. Not fully understanding the diagnosis usually leads to further problems, like not being able to treat the diagnosis

70% of Mexicans are overweight while 32.8% of them are obese. 1 out of every 6 Mexicans adults suffer from weight related chronic diseases such as diabetis, heart disease and certain cancers.

There are many health disparities that exist among the Hispanic population. Many of these are chronic conditions that affect the population. Obesity is one of the many examples of conditions that have increased for the Hispanic population. The CDC (2014) states, “The prevalence of obesity among female Mexican American adults during 2007–2010 was larger than the prevalence among female white, non-Hispanic adults during the same years” (p. 1). This is one of the many statistics that show an example of a health disparity in the Hispanic population. Another example of a problem that is prevalent in the Hispanic community is the health promotion and screening rates. The CDC (2014) states, “A smaller percentage of Hispanic adults aged 50-75 years reported being up-to-date with colorectal cancer screening in 2010 than their non-Hispanic adult counterparts”

In our book, it had mentioned that Mexican Americans are 1.7 times more likely to get type 2 diabetes than whites. Type 2 diabetes is a long-term metabolic disorder and caused by high blood sugar and insulin resistance. Dietary factors can have an effect on developing type 2 diabetes as well. Mexican Americans have a higher carbohydrate diet than African Americans and whites. Type 2 diabetes can cause problems with kidney failure and diabetic retinopathy. The death rates for type 2 diabetes for Mexican Americans are 50 percent higher than for whites, Also the death rates are higher for Mexican Americans than any other hispanic group.

Descriptive epidemiology focus on how a disease is spread within a population. This can be done in three different approaches such as counts, case series, and cross-sectional studies. The observation of the Amish population in Lancaster, PA favors the application of the cross sectional method of descriptive epidemiology.

The knowledge gap that will be the focus of my practicum project is the relationship between health access and inequity and diabetes in Oaxaca, Mexico. This site will allow me to develop a meaningful, feasible and valuable practicum project due to its unique culture, but also to the many challenges in literacy, sanitation, unemployment, and access to healthcare services that the city of Oaxaca has. Over 50% of the indigenous Mexican population live in the state of Oaxaca while this is the third most economically marginalized state in Mexico mainly due to the lack of infrastructure and education. As described by CFHI, diabetes and other chronic conditions in Oaxaca are “increasingly common as

The following is a case study of a 41 year-old Mexican American woman who was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.