Mexican-Americans have highest diabetes risk among Hispanics

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute has been working diligently on the HCHS/SOL, or Study of Latinos, compiling data on how health issues impact Hispanic subgroups in the United States. In the latest information release, experts take a closer look at how diabetes risk fluctuates base on a Hispanic individual’s country of origin.

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“The picture that emerges from HCHS/SOL is one in which Hispanics/Latinos with diabetes have a high potential future risk of developing complications due to relatively poor glycemic control and diabetes management,” said one of the study’s lead authors, Neil Schneiderman, Ph.D, in a press release.

The medical and scientific communities have long known Hispanics suffer a health disparity when it comes to diabetes; the Office of Minority Health indicates Hispanics are almost twice as likely as non-Hispanic whites to be diagnosed with diabetes by a physician.

They also have higher rates of end-stage renal disease as a result of diabetes, and they are 50 percent more likely to die from diabetes compared to non-Hispanic whites. While a number of factors influence this issue–such as poor socioeconomic status and cultural beliefs–it cannot be said that all Hispanics bear diabetes risk in the same way.

According to the diabetes portion of the Study of Latinos, the prevalence of total diabetes (both diagnosed and undiagnosed) among all Hispanic groups was roughly 16.9 percent for both men and women, compared with 10.2 percent for non-Hispanic whites. When risk was broken down by Hispanic subgroup, however, the numbers changed significantly; Mexicans had the highest diabetes prevalence at 18.3 percent, while individuals of South American heritage had the lowest rate–identical to non-Hispanic whites–at 10.2 percent.

Dominicans and Puerto Ricans also had higher prevalence levels at 18.1 percent, followed by Central Americans at 17.1 percent. For Cubans, the prevalence of diabetes was in the middle at 13.4 percent.

The numbers were also impacted by education, income and age; diabetes prevalence overall was highest for those with low education or household income and increased dramatically with age, reaching more than 50 percent for women by age 70, and 44.3 percent for men aged 70-74. While Hispanics 65 and older were more likely to have health insurance and had better control over their glucose levels, as a general rule, all subgroups saw low rates of awareness of their condition (41.3 percent), poor control of their glucose level (52 percent) and lacked health insurance (47.9 percent).

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“Although there is a steep gradient relating high diabetes prevalence to low household income and education in Hispanics/Latinos, the finding of improved diabetes awareness among those who have insurance suggests that increasing the number of those insured may help flatten the gradient,” explained Schneiderman. “If there are any bright highlights in the picture, they are that Hispanics/Latinos older than 65 years, who have better access to healthcare, are more likely to be aware of their diabetes, more likely to be receiving treatment, and have better glycemic control than those people under the age of 65 years.”

Diabetes affects more than 26 million children and adults in the United States, according to the American Diabetes Association. In addition to that number, 79 million Americans have pre-diabetes ad are unaware of their health risk. Studies like the HCHS/SOL can further help reduce this number by bringing awareness of diabetes to high-risk communities and those medical professionals serving high-risk communities.