- Suicide was the 8th leading cause of death for Asian Americans, and was the 9th leading cause of death for White Americans, in 2005.1
- Older Asian American women have the highest suicide rate of all women over age 65 in the United States.2 In 2005, the suicide rate for that group was 1.6 times greater than it was in the White population.
- Southeast Asian refugees are at risk for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) associated with trauma experienced before and after immigration to the U.S. One study found that 70% of Southeast Asian refugees receiving mental health care were diagnosed with PTSD.1
- For Asian Americans, the rate of serious psychological distress increases with lower levels of income, as it does in most other ethnic populations.
- The overall suicide rate for Asian Americans in half that of the White population.
MENTAL HEALTH STATUS:
Asian American |
Non-Hispanic White |
Asian American/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
---|---|---|
2.3 |
2.8 |
0.8 |
Source: CDC, 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 61.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf[PDF, 475KB]
|
Asian American |
Non-Hispanic White |
Asian American/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
---|---|---|---|
Below 100% |
4.9 |
10.2 |
0.5 |
100%-less than 200% |
3.6 |
5.6 |
0.6 |
200% or more |
1.4 |
1.7 |
0.8 |
Source: CDC. Health Data for All Ages.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/health_data_for_all_ages.htm. [Accessed 07/25/2008].
|
Asian American |
Non-Hispanic White |
Asian American/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
---|---|---|---|
Sadness |
2.5 |
2.8 |
0.9 |
Hopelessness |
1.5 |
1.9 |
0.8 |
Worthlessness |
1.9 |
1.7 |
1.1 |
Everything is an effort |
4.1 |
4.8 |
0.9 |
Source: CDC 2007. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2006. Table 14.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_235.pdf[PDF, 3.7MB]
|
Asian American |
Non-Hispanic White |
Asian American/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
---|---|---|---|
Nervousness, all or most of time |
2.8 |
4.0 |
0.7 |
Nervousness, some of time |
9.0 |
11.6 |
0.8 |
Restlessness, all or most of time |
3.4 |
6.0 |
0.6 |
Restlessness, some of time |
8.2 |
12.0 |
0.7 |
Restlessness, some of time, NHOPI only* |
15.1 |
12.0 |
1.3 |
Source: CDC 2007. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2006. Table 16.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_235.pdf[PDF, 3.7MB]
Population |
Serious distress |
Ratio / All Asian Population |
Ratio / Whites |
---|---|---|---|
All Whites |
2.9 |
- |
- |
All Asians |
1.9 |
- |
1.7 |
Chinese |
1.6 |
0.8 |
0.6 |
Filipino |
2.5 |
1.3 |
0.9 |
Asian Indian |
1.4 |
0.7 |
0.5 |
Japanese |
1.1 |
0.6 |
0.4 |
Vietnamese |
2.5 |
1.3 |
0.9 |
Korean |
1.3 |
0.7 |
0.4 |
Other Asian & NHOPI* |
2.6 |
1.4 |
0.9 |
Source: CDC, 2008. Health Characteristics of the Asian Adult Population: United States, 2004-2006. Table 7.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad394.pdf[PDF, 476KB]
DEATH RATES:
Asian American |
White |
Asian American/ White Ratio |
---|---|---|
5.2 |
12.0 |
0.5 |
Source: CDC, 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 29.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf[PDF, 475KB]
|
Asian American Men/Alaska Native Men |
Non-Hispanic White Men |
Asian American Men/ Non-Hispanic White Men Ratio |
---|---|---|---|
15-24 years |
7.2 |
18.4 |
0.4 |
25-44 years |
9.5 |
26.6 |
0.4 |
45-64 years |
8.9 |
28.2 |
0.3 |
65 years and over |
11.0 |
33.2 |
0.3 |
All ages |
7.3 |
21.2 |
0.3 |
Source: CDC, 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 46.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf[PDF, 475KB]
|
Asian American Women |
Non-Hispanic White Women |
Asian American Women/ Non-Hispanic White Women Ratio |
---|---|---|---|
15-24 years |
3.7 |
3.9 |
0.9 |
25-44 years |
3.4 |
7.4 |
0.5 |
45-64 years |
3.8 |
8.7 |
0.4 |
65 years and over |
6.8 |
4.3 |
1.6 |
All ages |
3.3 |
5.3 |
0.6 |
Source: CDC, 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 46.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf[PDF, 475KB]
ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE:
Asian American |
White |
Asian American/ White Ratio |
---|---|---|
4.0 |
14.0 |
0.3 |
Source: 2007 National Healthcare Disparities Report. Table 243a.
http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nhqr07/index.html
Asian American |
White |
Asian American/ White Ratio |
---|---|---|
2.9 |
11.8 |
0.2 |
Source: 2007 National Healthcare Disparities Report. Table 245a.
http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nhqr07/index.html
NOTE: *NHOPI = Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.
1CDC, 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 31 http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf[PDF, 475KB]
2 U.S. Surgeon General. Fact Sheets: Asian Americans http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cre/fact2.asp
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