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 Health & Beauty | September 2007 
Immigrants' Health at Risk in the United States
 Ali Velazquez - BYU NewsNet
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Many Mexican immigrants, who come to the U.S., face health problems associated with their new lifestyle.
Before coming to the United States, Mexican immigrants are usually healthier and less likely to have heart problems than Americans, said Dr. Patrick Steffen, an associate professor of clinical psychology at BYU.
Steffen has been conducting a research project for three years that studies the changes in the health of Mexican immigrants after coming to the United States.
Mexicans in Mexico typically have a larger extended family than Mexicans in the U.S., which allows them to receive more help from relatives in their dealings with everyday problems, Steffen said.
Mexican immigrants in the United States have fewer social relationships, which results in high levels of stress because they have to deal with their problems by themselves.
"The more family the better help," Steffen said.
Steffen also said high levels of stress lead to depression, resulting in a lack of physical activity and a higher consumption of fats and sugars.
These changes in diet have different consequences such as high blood pressure, and a higher risk of heart attack.
The language and culture barrier, in many cases, aggravate the health problems of many immigrants, Steffen said.
"If they don't have a translator, they don't go to the doctor," said Jen Gonzalez, operations manager of Mountainlands Community Health Center.
Many immigrants should overcome the language barrier to get the medical attention they need, said Daniel Moreno, an immigrant worker from Puebla, Mexico.
"You need to adapt to your new life, find new friends and learn English," Moreno said. "There are a lot of people who get stressed because they feel they can't go wherever they want."
Moreno has been trying to adapt to the American culture, which he thinks is more about individualism.
People isolate themselves from society because they do not understand it, Moreno said.
Steffen explained that it is necessary for immigrants to adapt to the American culture without leaving the good habits of their culture in order to keep themselves healthy and avoid stress and depression.
"The best way to go is to be bicultural," Steffen said, "[so] that you can navigate in both worlds just fine." |
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