Increased risk of obesity with increased time in the US in Filipino immigrants in New York

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-02/sdmc-iro022916.php

Public Release: 29-Feb-2016
Increased risk of obesity with increased time in the US in Filipino immigrants in New York
Data suggest that immigrants lose the health advantage they carry to the US
SUNY Downstate Medical Center

A study led by SUNY Downstate Medical Center has found increased risk of obesity among Filipino immigrants living in the New York City metropolitan area. The findings were published in the January/March issue of the journal, Family & Community Health.

Aimee Afable, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences in the School of Public Health at SUNY Downstate, said, "Our latest study is the first to examine association between time in the U.S. - a marker of assimilation - in Filipino immigrants, the second largest Asian immigrant group in the U.S., and overweight/obesity risk." An earlier study found a similar pattern among New York City immigrants from China.

Dr. Afable continues, "The study of how assimilation to U.S. society influences health of immigrants is of particular interest to public health researchers because we know that immigrants arrive in the U.S. with a health advantage. However, evidence suggests that this advantage erodes over time, a process sometimes referred to as 'unhealthy assimilation.' It is not clear whether this pattern varies by country of origin of the immigrant group."

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"In an urban context such as New York City, these stressors may include work stress that accompanies more sedentary occupations; discrimination; limited time for rest and recreation; less healthy diets; and an overburdened healthcare system - all factors that create a situation dramatically different from what they left behind in their countries of origin."

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