Adult Mortality Differentials among Hispanic Subgroups and Non-Hispanic Whites

Citation

Hummer, Robert A.; Rogers, Richard G.; Amir, Sarit H.; Forbes, Douglas; & Frisbie, W. Parker (2000). Adult Mortality Differentials among Hispanic Subgroups and Non-Hispanic Whites. Social Science Quarterly, 81(1), 459-476.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this paper is to explore the adult mortality experience of Hispanic subgroups in a comparative context with non-Hispanic whites (Anglos) in the most comprehensive manner to date.
Methods: Using the National Health Interview Survey-Multiple Cause of Death linked data set for 1986 through 1995, we compare the mortality risks of Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cuban Americans, Central/South Americans, and Other Hispanics with those of Anglos. Cox proportional hazards models are used to estimate the gross and net associations of ethnicity with overall, sex-specific, age-specific, and cause-specific mortality.
Results: We find moderate overall differences across the Hispanic subgroups, with Puerto Ricans demonstrating the highest overall mortality compared with that of Anglos and Central/South Americans showing the lowest. There are age, sex, and cause-of-death mortality differences between the Hispanic groups and non-Hispanic whites. Most noteworthy are the elevated risks of young-adult mortality among most Hispanic subgroups vis-a-vis Anglos, and the lower risks of circulatory disease and cancer mortality exhibited by most Hispanic subgroups compared to Anglos.
Conclusions: With a few notable exceptions, controlling for the complete set of mortality risk factors yields lower overall, sex-specific, age-specific, and cause-specific mortality for the Hispanic subgroups compared with that of non-Hispanic whites. Thus, the epidemiologic paradox - the combination of a high-risk sociodemographic profile and favorable mortality outcomes - applies to all Hispanic adult subgroups, although it is most striking among Mexican Americans.

URL

https://www.jstor.org/stable/42864393

Reference Type

Journal Article

Year Published

2000

Journal Title

Social Science Quarterly

Author(s)

Hummer, Robert A.
Rogers, Richard G.
Amir, Sarit H.
Forbes, Douglas
Frisbie, W. Parker

ORCiD

Hummer - 0000-0003-3058-6383