2015 APHA Annual Meeting & Expo

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Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations (RAMP) are now available for purchase.
Only $90 for presenters, $140 for registered attendees and $200 for non-attendees.

Online Program

330318
Stress reduction with Tai Chi for Elderly Latino Immigrants with Diabetes


Wednesday, November 4, 2015 : 11:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Shikhi Bhansari, University of Illinois at Chicago, Institute for Health Research and Policy, Chicago, IL
Amparo Castillo, MD, PhD, Midwest Latino Health Research, Training and Policy Center, University of Illinois at Chicago - Midwest Latino Health Research Training and Policy Center, Chicago, IL
Audio (mp3) recording Recorded Presentation (mp4)
Latino immigrants in the US face stressors related to socioeconomic status, language barriers, isolation, and discrimination. Compounding the burden of acculturation related stressors, Latino immigrants with diabetes have limited access to healthcare and exhibit poor glycemic control. It is well documented that psychosocial stress negatively affect levels of glucose in patients with diabetes. Tai Chi is a meditative, low impact physical activity that has shown potential benefit in reducing stress and lowering A1C levels in patients with diabetes. A community intervention in South Chicago tested the feasibility of Tai Chi as a physical activity program for elderly Latinos with diabetes, and its effects on markers of diabetes and psychosocial stress.

From a group of 41 elderly Latinos with diabetes who underwent a 3 month Tai Chi intervention, data was analyzed for those who had immigrated to the US (n=30). This subgroup had low income and low education, had an average age of 60 (SD+7.6) years, 22 (73.3%) of them were women, and 11 of them (36.7%) did not have health coverage. The outcome measures among these participants included: A1C, perceived stress, diabetes-related distress, immigration-related stress, social support and medication adherence. Although analysis is still underway, a preliminary analysis of this group has shown a significant reduction in A1C (p=0.04), extra-familial stress (p=0.04) and diabetes-related distress (p=0.05) at post-test. These findings will be discussed in the context of the unique stressors Latino immigrants face within and outside of their family life while living in the US.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Chronic disease management and prevention
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Diversity and culture
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the role of stress reduction in diabetes management among elderly Latino immigrants. Discuss the potential role of social support in improving quality of life for elderly Latinos. Identify extra-familial and intra-familial stressors faced by Latino immigrants.

Keyword(s): Stress, Latinos

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: For the past 3 years, I have been a research assistant for 3 separate diabetes management interventions for minority populations (Latinos and African Americans) at the UIC Institute for Health Research and Policy. Further, I was primarily responsible for data management and preliminary analysis for this particular project. While working closely with the principal investigator for over 6 months, I received a very detailed understanding of Tai Chi and the experiences of our study's participants.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 5109.0: Promoting Healthy Minds and Bodies through Traditional, Integrative and Complementary Health Practices