Acculturation and Health among New Immigrants in the United States

Neveen Shafeek Amin, University of Texas at Austin

Previous studies on immigrant health demonstrate that health outcomes of immigrants are favorable to those of U.S.-born, non-Hispanic whites. Utilizing data from the 2002-2012 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), I investigate the associations between acculturation and health outcomes among three immigrant groups in the United States: Asian, Latino, and Middle Eastern (ME). I also compare health outcomes among immigrants to those among U.S.-born, non-Hispanic whites. Preliminary results show that Asian and ME immigrants are healthier than U.S.-born whites. Yet, Latino immigrants tend to report a worse health status compared to U.S.-born whites. While Asian immigrants are less likely to report having fair or poor health status, ME immigrants are less likely to report suffering from at least one chronic health condition compared to U.S.-born whites. Compared with U.S.-born white counterparts, Asian immigrants are more likely to have healthy weight while Latino immigrants are more likely to be overweight and obese.