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WEDNESDAY, April 3, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Unfavorable social determinants of health (SDOH) are associated with higher odds of cardiovascular risk factors among Asian Americans, according to a study published online April 3 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Alicia L. Zhu, from the Stanford University Center for Asian Healthcare Research and Education in California, and colleagues used the National Health Interview Survey for 2013 to 2018 to examine SDOH associations with cardiovascular risk factors among Asian American subgroups. By categorizing 27 SDOH variables as 0 (favorable) or 1 (unfavorable), an SDOH score was created.
Data were included for 6,395 Asian adults aged 18 years and older (22.1, 21.6, 21.0, and 35.3 percent self-identified as Filipino, Asian Indian, Chinese, and other Asian, respectively). The researchers found that each standard deviation increment of SDOH score was associated with increased odds of diabetes among Chinese and Filipino adults (odds ratios, 1.45 and 1.24, respectively); high blood pressure among Filipino adults (odds ratio, 1.28); insufficient physical activity among Asian Indian, Chinese, and Filipino adults (odds ratios, 1.42, 1.58, and 1.24, respectively); suboptimal sleep among Asian Indian adults (odds ratio, 1.20); and nicotine exposure among Chinese and Filipino adults (odds ratios, 1.56 and 1.50, respectively).
“Despite the perception that Asian Americans may have lower SDOH scores or be less impacted by SDOH compared with other racial/ethnic groups, our findings indicate that unfavorable SDOH profiles are associated with higher prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among Asian Americans,” the authors write.
Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical and medical technology industries.