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Revisiting the Hispanic mortality advantage in the United States: The role of smoking

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  • Fenelon, Andrew

Abstract

More than three decades of health disparities research in the United States has consistently found lower adult mortality risks among Hispanics than their non-Hispanic white counterparts, despite lower socioeconomic status among Hispanics. Explanations for the “Hispanic Paradox” include selective migration and cultural factors, though neither has received convincing support. This paper uses a large nationally representative survey of health and smoking behavior to examine whether smoking can explain life expectancy advantage of Hispanics over US-born non-Hispanics whites, with special attention to individuals of Mexican origin. It tests the selective migration hypothesis using data on smoking among Mexico-to-US migrants in Mexico and the United States. Both US-born and foreign-born Mexican-Americans exhibit a life expectancy advantage vis-à-vis whites. All other Hispanics only show a longevity advantage among the foreign-born, while those born in the United States are disadvantaged relative to whites. Smoking-attributable mortality explains the majority of the advantage for Mexican-Americans, with more than 60% of the gap deriving from lower rates of smoking among Mexican-Americans. There is no evidence of selective migration with respect to smoking; Mexicans who migrate to the US smoke at similar rates to Mexicans who remain in Mexico, with both groups smoking substantially less than non-Hispanic whites in the US. The results suggest that more research is needed to effectively explain the low burden of smoking among Mexican-Americans in the United States.

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  • Fenelon, Andrew, 2013. "Revisiting the Hispanic mortality advantage in the United States: The role of smoking," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 1-9.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:82:y:2013:i:c:p:1-9
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.12.028
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    8. Constant, Amelie F. & Milewski, Nadja, 2021. "Self-selection in physical and mental health among older intra-European migrants," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 19(C).
    9. Fernando Riosmena & Randall Kuhn & Warren C. Jochem, 2017. "Explaining the Immigrant Health Advantage: Self-selection and Protection in Health-Related Factors Among Five Major National-Origin Immigrant Groups in the United States," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(1), pages 175-200, February.
    10. Osea Giuntella, 2016. "Assimilation and Health: Evidence From Linked Birth Records of Second- and Third-Generation Hispanics," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(6), pages 1979-2004, December.
    11. Anneliese N. Luck & Irma T. Elo & Samuel H. Preston & Eugenio Paglino & Katherine Hempstead & Andrew C. Stokes, 2023. "COVID-19 and All-Cause Mortality by Race, Ethnicity, and Age Across Five Periods of the Pandemic in the United States," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(4), pages 1-29, August.
    12. Gabriella Berloffa & Francesca Paolini, 2022. "Going "beyond the mean" in analysing immigrant health disparities," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 47(7), pages 161-198.
    13. Nicole Filion & Andrew Fenelon & Michel Boudreaux, 2018. "Immigration, citizenship, and the mental health of adolescents," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(5), pages 1-12, May.
    14. Samuel H. Preston & Irma T. Elo, 2014. "Anatomy of a Municipal Triumph: New York City's Upsurge in Life Expectancy," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 40(1), pages 1-29, March.
    15. Frank Trovato, 2020. "The Immigrant Mortality Advantage in Canada, 2001 and 2011," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 351-379, June.
    16. Gabriella Berloffa & Francesca Paolini, 2019. "Decomposing Immigrant Differences in Physical and Mental Health: A 'Beyond the Mean' Analysis," DEM Working Papers 2019/4, Department of Economics and Management.
    17. Andrasfay, Theresa & Goldman, Noreen, 2020. "Physical functioning and survival: Is the link weaker among Latino and black older adults?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    18. Jessica Y. Ho, 2020. "Cycles of Gender Convergence and Divergence in Drug Overdose Mortality," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 46(3), pages 443-470, September.
    19. Andrew Fenelon, 2017. "Rethinking the Hispanic Paradox: The Mortality Experience of Mexican Immigrants in Traditional Gateways and New Destinations," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(3), pages 567-599, September.
    20. Neil K. Mehta & Irma T. Elo & Michal Engelman & Diane S. Lauderdale & Bert M. Kestenbaum, 2016. "Life Expectancy Among U.S.-born and Foreign-born Older Adults in the United States: Estimates From Linked Social Security and Medicare Data," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(4), pages 1109-1134, August.
    21. Samuel H. Fishman & S. Philip Morgan & Robert A. Hummer, 2018. "Smoking and Variation in the Hispanic Paradox: A Comparison of Low Birthweight Across 33 US States," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 37(5), pages 795-824, October.
    22. Timothy J. Grigsby & Krista Howard & Jeffrey T. Howard, 2022. "Comparison of Past Year Substance Use Estimates by Age, Sex, and Race/Ethnicity Between Two Representative Samples of the U.S. Adult Population," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 41(1), pages 401-416, February.
    23. Mathieu Ichou & Matthew Wallace, 2019. "The Healthy Immigrant Effect: The role of educational selectivity in the good health of migrants," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 40(4), pages 61-94.
    24. Giuntella, Osea, 2017. "Why does the health of Mexican immigrants deteriorate? New evidence from linked birth records," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 1-16.
    25. Mara Sheftel & Frank W. Heiland, 2018. "Disability crossover: Is there a Hispanic immigrant health advantage that reverses from working to old age?," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 39(7), pages 209-250.

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