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ASTHMA AND MENTAL HEALTH SYMPTOMS AMONG ADULT ARAB AMERICANS IN THE DETROIT AREA
Citation:
NRIAGU, J. O., M. M. JOHNSON, A. HAMMAD, K. SAVOIE, AND H. JAMIL. ASTHMA AND MENTAL HEALTH SYMPTOMS AMONG ADULT ARAB AMERICANS IN THE DETROIT AREA. Presented at 4th National Conference on Health Issues in the Arab American Community, Dearborn, MI, May 11, 2005 - May 12, 2006.
Description:
The burden of managing chronic health problems such as asthma is often compounded by psychological distress and debilitating mental health problems associated with these conditions. In this study we assessed the relationship between asthma and self-reported mental health symptoms in a group of 600 adult Arab Americans in the Detroit area. Among immigrant communities, acculturation is also an important determinant of mental health. Given the high proportion of first generation immigrants in the study population, a secondary focus of this presentation will be the influence of acculturation on mental health status. The results show that asthmatics reported a slightly greater number of mental health symptoms compared with non-asthmatics. This association was significant after adjusting for age, SES (socio-economic status) surrogates such as unemployment and home ownership, and environmental risk factors (p value = 0.048). Our results are consistent with those of previous studies which show that asthma is positively associated with depression, anxiety, and panic disorder; explanations for this inference will be discussed. We found no statistically significant association between length of residence in the U.S. and total burden of mental health symptoms in the study; relationships between immigrant status and mental health reported by previous investigators have been inconsistent. In our analysis, being born in the U.S. was also used as a surrogate for acculturation among Arab Americans in metro Detroit with respect to the mental health and perception of overall health status. In crude models, Arab Americans born in the U.S. reported fewer mental health symptoms compared with first generation immigrants in the study population, better self-rated health, and less limitation of daily activities due to poor health. However these associations lost significance when socio-demographic confounders were considered. The number of respondents born in the U.S. was low in the population, making it difficult to discern any robust trends. Our results and the conflicting reports in the literature emphasize the fact that unpacking of personal factors (such as barriers to reconnecting with the native country, interaction with members of the host culture rather than with immigrants of shared ethnic background, ability to cope with perceived discrimination, and pre-emigration trauma), socio-demographic characteristics (including age, gender, ethnicity, and nationality) and physical health status (involving chronic illness, disability and health access) in any community may override the impact of acculturation on mental health status.