Examining the Healthy Immigrant Effect in Mid- To Later Life: Findings from the Canadian Community Health Survey

Gee, Ellen M.; Kobayashi, Karen; Prus, Steven G.

doi:10.1353/cja.2005.0032

Cited by 124 publications

(120 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Income, 6 gender, [7][8][9][10] employment status, 11 social support network, and a sense of community belonging 12,13 have all been shown to contribute to mental health status. Although there is evidence of an effect of age at migration on health, 14 there is a paucity of knowledge about mental health outcomes of migrant populations in Canada across the lifespan and across gender. 21 studies from across the globe found that migrants experience higher rates of mental health problems than non-migrants.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Migration and social determinants of mental health: Results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey

Salami

Yaskina

Hegadoren

et al. 2017

Can J Public Health

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OBJECTIVES: Studies worldwide point to increased risk of mental health problems among immigrants. However, the data on Canadian immigrants' mental health are ambiguous. To address this, we examined the relationship of both self-perceived mental health and reported diagnosis of mood disorders with age, gender, migration status, time since migration, and social determinants of health factors. METHODS:We analyzed three cycles of the Canadian Health Measures Survey. Our outcome variables were self-perceived mental health and reported diagnosis of mood disorders. We used weighted logistic regression to model time since migration conditional on age, gender, income, community belonging, education, and employment status for 12 160 participants aged 15-79 years.RESULTS: Recent (within 5 years) migrants reported better self-perceived mental health (odds ratio 3.98, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.06-7.70) but this effect disappeared with longer time since immigration. Other predictors were older age, higher income, better sense of community belonging, and being employed. Similarly, diagnosis of mood disorders was less likely to be reported in recent migrants (odds ratio 0.23, 95% CI: 0.10-0.53) with some weak evidence that this was also seen among longer-term migrant residents (>10 years). Diagnosis was also associated with older age, being a woman, lower income, weak sense of community belonging, and being unemployed. DISCUSSION:Our findings indicate that migrants to Canada do not have worse mental health in general, though health and social policies need to attend to the socio-economic determinants, such as low income, unemployment, and a poor sense of community belonging, which contribute to population health outcomes.KEY WORDS: Canada; immigrants; immigration; mental health; social determinants of health La traduction du résumé se trouve à la fin de l'article.

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confidence: 99%

Migration and social determinants of mental health: Results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey

Salami

Yaskina

Hegadoren

et al. 2017

Can J Public Health

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“…Recent immigrants in our study were found to have lower rates of obesity and hypertension (Table 1), a finding supported by results from other studies involving nonpregnant adults. [1][2][3]5,8 It is conceivable that this may "protect" them against maternal placental syndrome, since obesity, pre-existing hypertension and diabetes mellitus are independent risk factors for placental dysfunction. [23][24][25] However, as new immigrant women progressively adopt a Western-style diet and lifestyle, a process known as "convergence,"…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To avoid counting women who emigrated from and then returned to Ontario, we excluded those with more than one OHIP eligibility record, defined as the presence of multiple start dates in the Registered Persons Database eligibility file after Apr. 1,1990.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Results of the Recent Immigrant Pregnancy and Perinatal Long-term Evaluation Study (RIPPLES)

Ray¹,

Vermeulen²,

Schull³

et al. 2007

Canadian Medical Association Journal

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Background:People who immigrate to Western nations may experience fewer chronic health problems than original residents of those countries, which raises concerns about long-term environmental or lifestyle factors in those countries. We tested whether the "healthy immigrant effect" extends to the risk of placental dysfunction during the short interval of pregnancy. Methods:We conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of data for 796 105 women who had a first documented obstetric delivery in Ontario between 1995 and 2005. Recency of immigration was determined for each woman as the time from her enrolment in universal health insurance to her date of delivery, classified as less than 3 months, 3-5 months, 6-11 months, 12-23 months, 24-35 months, 36-47 months, 48-59 months and 5 years or more (the referent). The primary composite outcome was maternal placental syndrome (defined as a diagnosis of pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, placental abruption or placental infarction). Results:The mean age of the women was 28.8 years. Maternal placental syndrome occurred in 45 216 women (5.7%). The risk of this outcome was lowest among the women who had immigrated less than 3 months before delivery (3.8%) and highest among those living in Ontario at least 5 years (6.0%), for a crude odds ratio (OR) of 0.62 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.54-0.71). After adjustment for maternal age, income status, pre-existing hypertension, diabetes mellitus, multiple gestation and receipt of prenatal ultrasonography, the risk of maternal placental syndrome was correlated with the number of months since immigration in a gradient manner (OR, 95% CI): less than 3 months (0.53, 0.47-0.61), 3-5 months (0.68, 0.61-0.76), 6-11 months (0.67, 0.63-0.71), 12-23 months (0.69, 0.66-0.73), 24-35 months (0.75, 0.70-0.79), 36-47 months (0.75, 0.70-0.80) and 48-59 months (0.82, 0.77-0.87).Interpretation: There was a progressively lower risk of maternal placental syndromes associated with recency of immigration. The "healthy immigrant effect" may extend to common placental disorders, diminishes with the duration of residency and underscores the importance of nongenetic determinants of maternal health accrued over a brief period. CMAJ 2007;176(10) Abstract

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“…Although ethnic minority groups have universal access to health care services in Canada, researchers have reported health disparities. Older immigrants who have settled for a longer period of time tend to report less favorable health than Canadian-born individuals in the same age group (Gee, Kobayashi, & Prus, 2004). It has been argued that in addition to lifestyle changes that cause health deterioration, systemic challenges such as racism, discrimination, and social and political inequities are the possible reasons for the immigrant population being less healthy than their Canadian-born counterparts (Hyman, 1997).…”

Section: Although Ethnic Minority Groups Have Universal Access To Heamentioning

confidence: 99%

Predictors of Health Service Barriers for Older Chinese Immigrants in Canada

Lai

Chau²

2007

Health & Social Work

105

111

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Elderly people from ethnic minority groups often experience different barriers in accessing health services. Earlier studies on access usually focused on types and frequency but failed to address the predictors of service barriers. This study examined access barriers to health services faced by older Chinese immigrants in Canada. Factor analysis results indicated that service barriers were related to administrative problems in delivery, cultural incompatibility, personal attitudes, and circumstantial challenges. Stepwise multiple regression showed that predictors of barriers include female gender, being single, being an immigrant from Hong Kong, shorter length of residency in Canada, less adequate fmancial status, not having someone to trust and confide in, stronger identification With Chinese health beliefs, and not self-identified as Canadian. Social work interventions should strengthen support and resources for the vulnerable groups identified in the findings. Service providers should adjust service delivery to better serve elderly immigrants who still maintain strong Chinese cultural values and beliefs.

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Examining the Healthy Immigrant Effect in Mid- To Later Life: Findings from the Canadian Community Health Survey

Cited by 124 publications

References 9 publications

Migration and social determinants of mental health: Results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey

Migration and social determinants of mental health: Results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey

Results of the Recent Immigrant Pregnancy and Perinatal Long-term Evaluation Study (RIPPLES)

Predictors of Health Service Barriers for Older Chinese Immigrants in Canada

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