Health Disparities
Similar to other communities of color, the Asian American community faces tremendous disparities in health outcomes and indicators. Some of the more prevalent health conditions among this community include cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hepatitis B, mental health, osteoporosis, and tobacco use.
Cancer continues to be the number one cause of death a mong Asian Americans.
(Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Vital Statistics Reports; Volume 67, Number 6, “Leading Causes of Death for 2016”: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_06.pdf)
Heart disease is the second leading cause of death among Asian Americans.
(Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Vital Statistics Reports; Volume 67, Number 6, “Leading Causes of Death for 2016”: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_06.pdf)
Diabetes affects approximately 20% of Asian Americans and an estimated 32% of Asian Americans have pre-diabetes.
(Source: Joslin Diabetes Center, Harvard Medical School Affiliate, “One in Two Asian Americans Develop Diabetes or Pre-diabetes in Their Lifetime”: https://aadi.joslin.org/en/diabetes-mellitus-in-asian-americans)
Asian Americans account for 5% of the total population in the United States, but account for over half of the chronic Hepatitis B cases in America. It is estimated that 1 in 12 Asian Americans are living with Hepatitis B.
(Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and Chronic Hepatitis B: https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/populations/api.htm; U.S. Food and Drug Administration, “Asian Americans and Hepatitis B: https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ByAudience/MinorityHealth/ucm501078.htm)
Among women ages 15-24, Asian Americans have the highest suicide mortality rates across all racial and ethnic groups.
(Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Vital Statistics Reports; Volume 67, Number 6, “Leading Causes of Death for 2016”: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_06.pdf)
Asian American woman have a high risk of developing osteoporosis due many risk factors including lower body weight, low calcium intake, and lactose intolerance, to name a few.
(Source: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, “Osteoporosis and Asian American Women”: https://www.bones.nih.gov/health-info/bone/osteoporosis/background/asian-american-women)
Approximately 1 in 11 Asian American adults smoke cigarettes. An estimated 1 in 7 Asian American men smoke cigarettes.
(Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Tips From Former Smokers: Asian Americans”: https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/groups/asian-american.html)
