Health Issues in Latino Males
A Social and Structural Approach
Publication Year: 2010
Published by: Rutgers University Press
Contents
List of Figures
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pp. vii-
List of Tables
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pp. ix-x
Foreword
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pp. xi-xii
One of the largest but most neglected disparities in health is the poorer health of men compared to that of women. In the United States, for example, the gap in life expectancy between men and women is larger than the life expectancy differences between blacks and whites and between persons high in income and education compared to those of low socioeconomic status ...
Acknowledgments
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pp. xiii-xiv
I would especially like to thank the W. K. Kellogg Foundation for the support provided to convene a panel of experts on the health of Latino males. The meeting provided a great deal of insight that informed the preparation of this book. As such, I would like to thank colleagues, researchers, practitioners, and policy experts who took time from their busy schedules to contribute to the ...
Introduction: A Social and Structural Framework for the Analysis of Latino Males' Health
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pp. 1-13
Over the next fifty years, the racial and ethnic composition of the United States is projected to dramatically change. Currently, the Latino population makes up approximately 14 percent (41.3 million) of the total U.S. population, excluding the residents of Puerto Rico and many undocumented Latinos. It is estimated that 75 percent of all Latinos residing in the United States are immigrants or...
Part I: Key Issues Affecting the Health of Latino Men
1: Demographic Transformations, Structural Contexts, and Transitions to Adulthood
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pp. 17-31
A new era of mass immigration, accelerating since the 1970s and largely coming from developing countries of Latin America and Asia, has transformed the ethnic composition of the U.S. population. Today about 70 million people are of foreign birth or parentage—23 percent of all Americans, including 90 percent of all Asians and 76 percent of all Hispanics (Portes and Rumbaut 2006). They...
2: The Implications and Impact of Race on the Health of Hispanic/Latino Males
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pp. 32-52
Given the history of slavery and racism in the United States, it is no surprise that race has played an important role in the lives of individuals living there, for Latinos as well as Africans and African Americans. Early ethnographic and descriptive studies of Puerto Ricans consistently noted the role that “race”or “color” played in their experiences and socioeconomic outcomes (Rodríguez...
3: Improvements in Latino Health Data
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pp. 53-64
Assessing the influence of structural factors on health in Latino males has been constrained in the past by poor data quality in national health surveys. This shortfall of information has severely impaired health-demographic analysis, thus posing a major barrier to needs assessments and public health interventions. Although Congress requested that federal agencies collect data on per-...
Part II: The Life Cycle and Latino Males’ Health
4: Latino Boys: The Early Years
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pp. 67-82
In general, male children, regardless of race/ethnicity, face poorer health outcomes—especially those that are socioeconomically disadvantaged and uninsured (Courtenay 2003; Krieger 2003a). In particular, Latino boys disproportionately face negative physical and mental health outcomes—including diabetes, obesity, asthma, and depression—when compared with other chil-...
5: The Sexual and Reproductive Health of Young Latino Males Living in the United States
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pp. 83-98
Latinos are the largest, fastest growing, and youngest ethnic group in the United States, and the primary factor responsible for this growth is high fertility. It is estimated that by 2025, 24 percent of U.S. youth will be Latino, up from 15 percent in 2000 (U.S. Census Bureau 2000). Reproductive health concerns include high rates of teen pregnancy, teen births, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and ...
6: Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs
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pp. 99-122
Few areas of Latino health are as profoundly affected by changes in human behavior as drug abuse (Volkow 2006). Drug use is socially acquired behavior. Societies and the subcultures that compose them vary widely in their degree of toleration or outright condemnation of those who consume or become addicted to illicit drugs (Vega et al. 2002). Examining the differences between subgroups...
7: The Causes and Consequences of Poor Health among Latino Vietnam Veterans: Parallels for Latino Veterans of the War in Iraq
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pp. 123-138
Latinos have a long-standing tradition of military service in the United States. Nearly half a million Latinos served in World War II (Leal 1999). During the Vietnam War, a disproportionate number of Latinos were among the ranks of those that enlisted and/or were drafted (Mariscal 1999). In Iraq, Latinos represent 9 percent of those serving (over 130,000 individuals), and 12 percent of...
8: Health of Incarcerated Latino Men
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pp. 139-157
Disparities in health status and health care between Latinos and other race/ethnic groups in the United States have been broadly documented in the scientific literature (IOM 2003). However, national data sources and reports on health disparities have excluded institutionalized populations such as those who are incarcerated (CDC 2004; APHA 2004; AHRQ 2005). It is axiomatic in...
9: Emergent Chronic Conditions
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pp. 158-182
In the United States, heart disease, cancers, stroke, chronic lower respiratory disease, and diabetes account for more than two-thirds of all deaths in the nation and approximately 75 percent of the nation’s total health care expenditure (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2004). While chronic health conditions tend to affect all racial/ethnic groups, little work has been done to...
10: Psychiatric Disorders and Mental Health Service Use among Latino Men in the United States
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pp. 183-211
There is limited research about the effects of demographic, especially structural factors, on the physical and mental health of the 41 million Latinos in the United States (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2001). Generally mental health problems in the United States are less frequent in higher socioeconomic status subgroups. Because Latinos are disproportionately low...
11: Social Determinants of HIV/AIDS: A Focus on Discrimination and Latino Men Who Have Sex with Men
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pp. 212-228
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is not evenly distributed in the general population. In fact, the AIDS epidemic in the United States has had a disproportionate impact on Latinos, particularly Latino men, and more specifically Latino men who have sex with men. For example, Latinos are four times more likely than non-Latino whites to receive an AIDS diagnosis (CDC 2005a)...
12: Health Coverage, Utilization, and Expenditures among Latino Men
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pp. 229-248
The Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) publishes the annual National Health Disparities Report (NHDR), which provides a comprehensive review of data obtained from many distinct sources regarding healthcare disparities among members of racial and ethnic minorities versus non-Hispanic whites (NHWs). The 2006 NHDR found that Hispanics had worse ...
13: Mental Health of Elderly Latino Males
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pp. 249-260
The aging population of Latinos is increasing rapidly with accompanying implications for health and well-being. Structural factors may have more impact in the final stage of life than at any other due to the cumulative effects of substandard health care, occupational hazards, and life stress. One of two mental health concerns will likely impair the quality of life experienced by...
Conclusion: New Directions for Research, Policy, and Programs Addressing the Health of Latino Males
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pp. 261-267
The chapters in this volume comprise a unique collection of studies about issues affecting the health of Latino males. To our knowledge, this is the first time this information has been presented in one volume. It should be borne in mind that interpreting the effects of structural factors on health is a synthetic process. Disease is usually produced by multiple personal and nonpersonal...
Appendix: An Overview of Latino Males' Health Status
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pp. 268-305
Contributors
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pp. 307-310
Index
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pp. 311-317
E-ISBN-13: 9780813549767
E-ISBN-10: 0813549760
Print-ISBN-13: 9780813546032
Print-ISBN-10: 0813546036
Page Count: 336
Illustrations: 19 figures, 41 tables
Publication Year: 2010
Series Title: Critical Issues in Health and Medicine
Series Editor Byline: Rima D. Apple, Janet Golden
