Cardiovascular diseases and risk factors among Chinese immigrants

Abstract

The aim of this study is to identify the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and major CVD risk factors, including diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, obesity and smoking among Chinese immigrants by a systematic review of studies from various countries. PubMed and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases were searched for studies of the prevalence of major CVDs and risk factors, and of CVD mortality among Chinese immigrants. The search identified 386 papers, 16 of which met the inclusion criteria for this review. In mainland China, there is a pattern of high stroke prevalence but low coronary heart disease (CHD) prevalence. Among Chinese immigrants, there is a much lower prevalence and mortality of stroke, but a higher prevalence and mortality of CHD, even though these are lower than the rates in immigrants of other ethnicities in the host country. The prevalence of CVD risk factors is also markedly different in immigrants. Compared with mainland Chinese, Chinese immigrants have a higher prevalence of diabetes and hypertension, higher serum cholesterol, poorer dietary patterns, and higher prevalence of obesity and smoking. Thus, the epidemiological pattern of CVD among Chinese immigrants changes compared with resident mainland Chinese. The less healthy environmental factor after immigration may be a major trigger in the adverse CVD status of Chinese immigrants. It is important for policy-makers to pay more attention to specific minority immigrant groups, and to implement more effective preventive measures to improve the health of immigrant populations.

Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment, and Control of Hypertension among Chinese First-Generation Migrants and Italians in Prato, Italy: The CHIP Study

“…This issue is now relevant for most EU countries where immigration flows importantly grew in recent decades [2]. As recently stated by the European Society of Cardiology [5], information on health needs of minority groups living in Europe is now available for subjects originating from Sub-Saharan African countries and South Asia [6, 7], whereas data for Chinese are still limited [8]. In recent decades China experienced a rapid increase in stroke incidence [9] and the control of hypertension and other risk factors is now recognized as a public health priority [10–12].…”

New findings on type 2 diabetes in first‐generation Chinese migrants settled in Italy: Chinese in Prato (CHIP) cross‐sectional survey

“…The prevalence of diabetes in Chinese immigrants to the United States, where lifestyle and diet are very different, was found to be higher than that in mainland China [6][7][8]. This pattern indicates that a less healthy lifestyle related to environmental factor changes may be a major trigger for diabetes development in Chinese immigrants [6]. However, although this information is crucial to formulate effective preventive measures for health improvement, reliable data on Chinese population living in Europe are limited [6,38].…”

Exploring abnormal glucose metabolism in pregnancy among Australian Chinese migrants

“…This shift in dietary habits (ie, increased consumption of fats/sweets, dairy products, convenience food and a reduction in fruits and vegetables)15 is believed to lead to adverse health outcomes 9 15–19. Asian migrants living in Europe and North America have a greater body mass index (BMI)20 and higher rates of chronic disease including hypertension, T2D, metabolic syndrome, psychological condition or psychiatric disease, cardiovascular disease and even cancer 19 21–23. Females are also more likely to be negatively affected by adverse behavioral changes that stem from migration exposure (ie, increased intake of convenience food, less social support and increased stress and loneliness, unavailability of traditional foods and ingredients, substitution of comfort food in high fat/sugar) 18 24.…”