Over the past decade, infant mortality rates are down 15% across all racial groups including Hispanics. Read more here: http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/21/health/us-infant-mortality-report/

Hispanic adults are far more likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanics. In fact, 12.8% of adult Hispanics have diabetes compared to 9.3% for non-Hispanics. However, a recent study shows that peer support and tight communities helps Hispanics fight diabetes.

Learn more here: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/peer-support-can-help-hispanic-adults-with-diabetes-study-finds

The Hispanic population suffers from worse oral health than other racial and ethnic segments of the US according to a recent study.

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For example, migrant families have the tendency to think of themselves as “one unit,” and sometimes they do not access available health care programs because they assume that if one member does not qualify to receive health care, neither does the rest of the family. Alternately, from the health care point of view, thinking of the Hispanic family as “one unit” doesn’t always apply to migrant families, as it is common for these families to be mixed and have members who are U.S. citizens, U.S. residents, or have pending legal status. Therefore, different health programs could be available to different family members and providers and outreach programs should take this into account in their approaches.

Read more here: http://hola-arkansas.com/eliminating-oral-health-disparities-in-the-hispanic-population/

Key findings from the study:

• Black and Latino children made, respectively, 37 percent and 49 percent fewer visits to psychiatrists, and 47 percent and 58 percent fewer visits to any mental health professional, than white children.
• Black children’s low use of services was not due to lesser need. Black and white children had similar rates of mental health problems, and similar rates of severe episodes that resulted in psychiatric hospitalization or emergency visits.
• Hispanic parents reported less mental health impairment among their children, but analyses that controlled for this lesser need for care continued to show underuse compared to non-Hispanic whites.
• Racial/ethnic disparities were even larger among young adults. Whites received about three times more outpatient mental health services than blacks and Hispanics in this age group. The substance abuse counseling rate for black young adults was strikingly low, about one-seventh that for whites.
• While poor children and young adults had lower rates of care, differences in income and insurance did not account for the racial/ethnic disparities in care.
• Among children, girls got less mental health care than boys. The gender difference was reversed among young adults, with women having more visits.
• Groups at highest risk for incarceration – black and Hispanic young men – had particularly low mental health visit rates. According to Department of Justice data, at least half of inmates suffer from mental illness, most of which had been untreated when they were arrested.

To read more, here is the abstract of the study: http://joh.sagepub.com/content/early/2016/08/11/0020731416662736.abstract

For the past decade or so, nutritional supplement companies have been selling in capsule form the active ingredient in wine that makes it so powerful and now, mainstream companies are jumping on the bandwagon. The ingredient is called resveratrol and it has been linked to numerous health benefits including heart disease and diabetes. For information on the current state of resveratrol research, here is an article from the WSJ:  http://www.wsj.com/articles/scientists-get-closer-to-harnessing-the-health-benefits-of-red-wine-1470065634

According to a recent study, 32% of Hispanics in Texas still do not have health insurance even after the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.

The new legislation has led to a drop in uninsured Hispanics from 46% to the current level.

More information can be found here: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20160714/Nearly-one-third-of-Hispanic-Texans-remain-uninsured-new-report-reveals.aspx

A recent study shows that Puerto Ricans have the highest chance of chronic illness among all Latino groups in the US, followed by Mexican Americans. In fact, 3 out of 10 Puerto Ricans have chronic illnesses such as diabetes or heart disease.

Overall, Hispanic adults in the US have poorer health than non-Hispanic adults. The study showed that 16.8 percent of Latino adults in the U.S. have fair or poor health ratings vs 11.9 percent of non-Hispanic adults.

Here is an article discussing this study in more depth: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/among-latino-groups-puerto-ricans-mexican-american-poorer-health-n594401

While all women are at risk of developing heart disease, Hispanic women have a slightly high risk than average. In fact, Hispanic women are more prone to develop heart disease ten years younger than their non-Hispanic peers.

Heart disease remains the number one killer among women in the US and 1 in 3 deaths can be attributed to it.

Experts suggest simple ways to decrease risks including learning about family history of health problems, eating better and staying active.

To learn more, visit this link: http://www.latinpost.com/articles/116867/20160229/hispanic-women-greater-heart-disease-risk.htm

According to a recent study, US Hispanics are more likely to have diabetes than other segments of the population. Here are some tips to help you prevent or delay diabetes:

1) Set small challenges for yourself that you can achieve. A series of small goals can lead to big improvements.

2) Team up with other people for support.

3) If you are overweight, just try to lose 5-7% of your current weight.

4) Make healthier food choices every day. Choose foods with fiber such as fruits and vegetables.

5) Make the time to prepare healthier foods.

6) Cut down on food portion sizes.

7) Choose water instead of soda or juice.

8) Increase your activity by walking more often.

9) Get active every day.

10) Educate yourself on diabetes prevention. Take ownership for your health.