Ethnic Inequalities in Mortality: the Case of Arab-Americans

Overview

Journal PLoS One

Specialties General Medicine
Science

Date 2012 Jan 5

PMID 22216204

Citations 14

Authors

Abdulrahman M El-Sayed

Melissa Tracy

Peter Scarborough

Sandro Galea

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Although nearly 112 million residents of the United States belong to a non-white ethnic group, the literature about differences in health indicators across ethnic groups is limited almost exclusively to Hispanics. Features of the social experience of many ethnic groups including immigration, discrimination, and acculturation may plausibly influence mortality risk. We explored life expectancy and age-adjusted mortality risk of Arab-Americans (AAs), relative to non-Arab and non-Hispanic Whites in Michigan, the state with the largest per capita population of AAs in the US.

Methodology/principal Findings: Data were collected about all deaths to AAs and non-Arab and non-Hispanic Whites in Michigan between 1990 and 2007, and year 2000 census data were collected for population denominators. We calculated life expectancy, age-adjusted all-cause, cause-specific, and age-specific mortality rates stratified by ethnicity and gender among AAs and non-Arab and non-Hispanic Whites. Among AAs, life expectancies among men and women were 2.0 and 1.4 years lower than among non-Arab and non-Hispanic White men and women, respectively. AA men had higher mortality than non-Arab and non-Hispanic White men due to infectious diseases, chronic diseases, and homicide. AA women had higher mortality than non-Arab and non-Hispanic White women due to chronic diseases.

Conclusions/significance: Despite better education and higher income, AAs have higher age-adjusted mortality risk than non-Arab and non-Hispanic Whites, particularly due to chronic diseases. Features specific to AA culture may explain some of these findings.

Citing Articles

The Immigrant Mortality Advantage Among Over-65 Middle Eastern and North African Immigrants to the United States.

Bakhtiari E, Das J J Immigr Minor Health. 2024; 26(6):977-983.

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Cardiovascular disease in Arab Americans: A literature review of prevalence, risk factors, and directions for future research.

Lababidi H, Lababidi G, Al Rifai M, Nasir K, Al-Kindi S Am J Prev Cardiol. 2024; 18:100665.

PMID: 38634110 PMC: 11021916. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpc.2024.100665.

Massive underrepresentation of Arabs in genomic studies of common disease.

Bhattacharya R, Chen N, Shim I, Kuwahara H, Gao X, Alkuraya F Genome Med. 2023; 15(1):99.

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Physical Activity Behavior and Measurement in Arab American Women: An Integrative Review.

Mansuri S, Daniel M, Westrick J, Buchholz S J Prev (2022). 2023; 44(6):749-776.

PMID: 37728719 DOI: 10.1007/s10935-023-00746-y.

A Scoping Review of Cancer Interventions with Arab Americans.

Chebli P, Strayhorn S, Hanneke R, Muramatsu N, Watson K, Fitzgibbon M J Immigr Minor Health. 2023; 26(1):200-226.

PMID: 37266829 DOI: 10.1007/s10903-023-01497-y.

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