Cardiovascular Disease in Hispanic Americans

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and major cause of disability across racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States. Close to a third of deaths are attributed to CVD. Data compiled by the National Center of Health Statistics revealed that in 2004, among adult Hispanic Americans (18 years of age or older), 9.2 percent have heart disease, 6 percent have coronary heart disease, 19.6 percent have hypertension, and 2.8 percent have stroke. Among Mexican Americans age 20 and older who make up the largest share of the U.S. Hispanic population, 32 percent of men and 34 percent of women have CVD.

There is evidence suggesting that Hispanics are less likely to die from CVD than non-Hispanic whites (Caucasians). According to the Office of Minority Health of the Department of Health and Human Services, in 2004, Hispanic men were 30 percent less likely to die from heart disease relative to Caucasian men, and in 2005, Hispanics were 10 percent less likely to have heart disease, compared to non-Hispanic Caucasians.

The attributed lower risk of CVD among Hispanics occurs in despite that they are more likely to have lower socioeconomic status than Caucasians. Socioeconomic indicators such as poverty and low educational attainment are risk factors that influence CVD patterns. However, there are some protective factors that may compensate for the socioeconomic disadvantage suffered by Hispanics. Those related to their culture and ethnicity, including their strong informal support networks and familism, are associated with better CVD outcomes among this ethnic group.

However these better CVD outcomes among Hispanics seems to be changing, getting closer to those observed among whites, partially explained by the demographic changes experienced by Hispanics, particularly their growing in numbers, their assimilation into the American culture and the fact that this group, as the rest of the population, is living longer than before.

Moreover, there are health-related risk factors associated with CVD that affect more Hispanics than Caucasians. Rates of overweight and obesity, two of the leading factors for CVD, are higher among Hispanics relative to Caucasians. Mexican-American women, for example, are 1.2 times more likely to be obese than Caucasian women. Leisure-time physical inactivity is also more prevalent among Hispanics than Caucasians. Among Hispanic adults age 18 and older, 32 percent of men and 27 percent of women report no leisure-time physical activity.

Hispanics are the largest single minority ethnic group in the United States, constituting 14 percent of the total population. According to 2005 estimates from the Census Bureau, there were 43 million Hispanics, excluding 4 million in Puerto Rico. And the increase of the Hispanic population will continue at a fast rate. By 2050, they will constitute 24 percent of the total population, with a projection set at about 103 million people. This is a population group with specific socioeconomic and cultural characteristics, which need to be taken into consideration when addressing their increasing risk for CVD. Health professionals [Page 115]need to understand and control the patterns associated with ethnic disparities observed in CVD among Hispanics when compared to the general U.S. population.

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