Disaggregating Data to Document Unique Diabetes Disparities in Asian American Communities

Background and Problem

Diabetes is on the rise among Asians in their home countries. However, national surveillance data in the U.S. indicates that Asian Americans have lower diabetes prevalence compared to other racial and ethnic groups. A major limitation of existing national data on Asian American health disparities is the presentation of data in aggregate form, which does not allow for the examination of diabetes risk across various Asian American subgroups. The purpose of this study is to explore diabetes risk among Asian Americans living in New York City (NYC).

Methods

Data was analyzed from the NYC Community Health Survey (CHS), a telephone based RDD study. Data was pooled from 2002 to 2007, yielding a total population sample size of 3,349 Asian American respondents. Uni-, bi-, and multi-variate analyses were conducted to determine diabetes prevalence and risk among Asian American.

Results

As an aggregate, Asian Americans have a diabetes prevalence of 7.1%, compared to 10.8% of African Americans, 9.7% of Latinos, and 6.8% of Whites. However, diabetes rates vary considerably among Asian American subgroups, ranging from 1.4% among Japanese to 13% among Filipinos. Among Asian Americans, Chinese and South Asians were more likely to be diabetic compared to other ethnic sub-groups (p<.0001). Risk factors varied among Asian American subgroups, with common risk factors among all groups including older age, increased years living in the U.S., and higher BMI (P<0.0001). The presentation will discuss the implications of analyzing disaggregated data to inform intervention and policy efforts for the Asian American population.