Latino kids have higher rates of asthma than other groups. In Rhode Island, the asthma rate among students is 50% in some inner-city schools with large Latino populations, putting kids in danger of missing school and trekking to the emergency room. What's a solution? A new study, called ASMAS (asthma management in schools) and led by Brown University, is using peer mentors to test the idea that "high schoolers might be able to help younger kids—like middle schoolers—manage their asthma better in school...especially if they come from the same ethnic group, and even from the same neighborhood," Rhode Island Public Radio reports. The study has recruited several peer mentors, like Andy Darius, a senior at Shea High School in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, who plays football, has ...
Studies show a 20% increase in skin cancer rates in Hispanics, many of who are misinformed about their risk and believe they are immune to the damaging effects of sun rays, the Latin Times reports. The Skin Cancer Foundation has launched a new public education campaign to inform Hispanics about sun protection. The campaign includes a Spanish-language website with various resources, information, and potentially life-saving tips to prevent skin cancer (melanoma), advise on warning signs, and promote early detection. The campaign also is bringing Spanish-language printed and other materials to Hispanic-serving clinics, community groups, and media. "There is a misconception in the Hispanic population that they are immune to skin cancer because of their skin, and thus, they are not ...
U.S. immigration may result in increased smoking in Latinos and Asians, according to a new study reported by Science World Report. The study, led by Rice University, found that Latino immigrant men’s smoking prevalence was more than twice that of women’s (29.5 percent and 12.6 percent, respectively). Smoking prevalence among Asian immigrant men was more than four times that of Asian immigrant women (30.4 percent and 7.1 percent, respectively). For smoking frequency, Asian men on average smoked 2.5 more cigarettes per day than Asian women, compared with 1.5 more cigarettes per day that Latino men smoked than Latino women. The study also found that smoking increases with duration of U.S. residence among Asian immigrants (both prevalence and frequency) and among Latino immigrants ...
What issues affect the nation's 54 million Latinos? Several leading Latino-oriented organizations described the importance of various issues, including education, health care and immigration in a new report, Voxxi News reports. The report, called the American Latino Agenda Report and developed by the New American Alliance Institute (NAA Institute), was released this week. The report introduces several topics and offers recommendations for improvements. For example, in health, the National Hispanic Medical Association suggested focusing on these areas of needs: Educating Hispanics about the need to change lifestyles in order to increase healthy nutrition and physical activity through a variety of programs.
Increasing Hispanics representation in the federal ...
For the first time ever, U.S. public schools are projected this fall to have more minority students than white students enrolled, a shift largely fueled by growth in the number of Hispanic children, the Associated Press reports. White students are still most populous, but their numbers dipped just below 50% for the first time. Here is the racial/ethnic breakdown of students, according to National Center for Education Statistics: 49.8% White
25% Hispanic
15% Black
5% Asian
5% Other "The shift creates new academic realities, such as the need for more English language instruction, and cultural ones, meaning changes in school lunch menus in the Southwest and elsewhere to include tortillas and other offerings to reflect students’ tastes," according to the Associated ...
The graduation rate at Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) is 11% behind that of traditional institutions, and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) lag 7% behind. These stats don't look good, but they're not the whole story. Researchers found that HBCUs and HSIs often deal with the significant challenge of limited institutional resources and having a student body that is less academically prepared than traditional schools and tend to receive less financial aid, according to a study in Research in Higher Education, which examined data from minority-serving institutions (MSIs) in Texas, Futurity reports:
These and other differences in student population skew the statistics and unfairly put MSIs in a bad light...
...At the same time, MSIs often function with limited ...
Did you know Latinos suffer more from certain diseases? For example, Latinos are 45% more likely to be diagnosed with cervical cancer, 65% more likely to be diabetic, and six times as likely to have tuberculosis than Whites. These health disparities are captured in a new infographic. The infographic, from Families USA, which works to heighten health care for all Americans, urges people to "work together to improve our health care system to make it high-quality, comprehensive, affordable, and accessible for ...
Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, has received the first-ever “Making a Different World” award from Latinas Contra Cancer for her dedication to improving health outcomes around Latino cancer. Ramirez, an internationally recognized expert in health disparities research, has spent 30 years developing unique health communication models and interventions that have helped reduce cancer rates and increase cancer screening among Latinos. She also directs the National Cancer Institute-funded Redes En Acción program, a national research network that has made big strides in research, training, and education to reduce Latino cancer. Redes is a partner of Latinas Contra Cancer, ...
Dr. Cynthia Mojica, a researcher at the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, is among five new appointees to the Advisory Committee on Minority Health for the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The 10-member committee advises the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health on improving the health of racial and ethnic minority populations. Members are appointed by the secretary for their minority health expertise. Mojica, who will serve on the committee through 2018, has extensive experience conducting research in cancer prevention and control. She has made strides to increase cancer screening and diagnostic follow-up, as well as obesity prevention, with an emphasis on ...
