Health status of Asian Americans
[4] The Asian Americans commonly studied have been limited primarily to individuals of Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Mien, or Vietnamese descent.
Filipinos are also an ethnic group that is a risk factor for premature births[7][8] and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or "Lou Gehrig's disease").
With the adaptation of American culture, immigrant populations can be seen to have increased risks of diseases as Western diets are being introduced into their daily food consumption.
[18][19] Due to various genetic and environmental factors, Asian Americans are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than other racial and ethnic groups, even though their body mass index (BMI) tends to be lower.
[19] Asian Americans have a higher percentage of body fat for their BMIs, which in turn elevates the risk of type 2 diabetes when BMIs are lowered;[20] they in fact may have a higher percentage of body fat which contributes to a greater risk of developing diabetes and other health concerns that are commonly overseen.
[19] A possible reason for why this may be the case is because Asian Americans are not aware of their elevated risk of developing type 2 diabetes and therefore refrain from screenings.
[23] Research on language barriers showed differences in diagnoses of diabetes for Asian Americans and Hispanics particularly compared to whites in America as clinicians are lacking physician-patient communication.
Asian American women who reside in the United States for more than 10 years have an 80% greater risk for breast cancer compared with more recent immigrants from Asia.
[31] Another contributor to the high rates of cancer in the Asian American community are disparities stemming from cultural differences and the health care system.
[52] An inability to express frustrations due to cultural expectations of family harmony leads to a buildup of emotions and the resulting psychosomatic symptoms.
Some of the key factors that affect mental health in Asian Americans include acculturation, language barriers among parents and children, and intergenerational conflict.
[49] Frequently diagnosed disorders in recent immigrants include depression, PTSD, anxiety, and schizophrenia, though the rate of incidence of mental health problems decreases with increased assimilation and time in a new country.
[56] Refugees from Southeast Asian countries like Cambodia and Laos also experience high rates of PTSD from war traumas and resettlement stressors.
One study shows that in immigrant Chinese families, the level of English proficiency in the parental generation correlates with indicators of child and adolescent psychological well-being.
This serves as a source of stress and psychological duress for American adolescents, as they are socialized into the host culture while still expected to maintain their parents' heritage.
The study recommends meeting older Asian Americans' needs of culturally and linguistically proper social services and mental health agencies.
Asian Americans generally have low rates of substance use, but contain disparities when disaggregated into ethnic groups, gender, and the type of drug used.
Self-esteem, consisting of self-evaluations and judgments of one's value or self-worth,[63] plays a significant part in Asian Americans' psychological well-being.
A number of studies have revealed that Asian Americans are suffering from lower self-esteem and higher levels of depression relative to other racial/ethnic groups.
[66] Asian Americans tend to build their self-esteem based on other people's evaluations and attitudes of themselves instead of their personal achievements and self-evaluations.
[64] Additionally, apart from the historical racial incidents including anti-Asian movements and anti-immigration legislation, Asian Americans are also victims of racism in the United States.
[78] The proportion of Asian Americans that obtain screening tests for cervical cancer remain the lowest out of all the racial/ethnic groups as well,[78] and again, language plays a role.
Although research on this topic is limited, a study was done at music festival scenes where Asian Americans reported using drugs as means to express their identities or lifestyle tastes.
Asian activists and organizations were influenced by the Black Panther Party's work, especially surrounding community healthcare services and advocacy for underserved populations in Oakland and within the area during times of civil unrest and movements such as Civil Rights, Yellow Power, United Farm Workers Movement, Third World Liberation Front, etc.
The "state concessions (funding) to minority demands offered eager second- and third-generation Asian American activists new opportunities to establish community-based organizations to serve the people", and inspired by the civil rights movements and resulting ethnic power movements, these activists "sought to channel these new state funds into social service programs for child care, youth, affordable senior citizen housing, and health care.
Asian Health Services focuses its work largely on serving those who are historically marginalized (communities of color, non-English speaking, immigrants/refugees, etc.).
Photographer Corky Lee created a healthcare fair in New York's Chinatown in 1971 that provided free services for conditions like tuberculosis testing, sexually transmitted infections, and lead poisoning.
Its most recent filing is a historic amicus brief in support of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in February 2012 to the Supreme Court for the case Florida v. United States Department of Health and Human Services.
[98] Both of these organizations were originally formed to address the lack of Asian American voices on issues that affect the health of their communities.
[103] Additionally, by using social media and technology to educate teens about reproductive and sexual health, Asian American youth have greater privacy to learn about and engage in these conversations, helping address disparities that arise due to cultural stigma.
