Research on Aging

Wong, Rebeca; Angel, Jacqueline L.; Riosmena, Fernando

doi: 10.1177/0164027516636426pmid: 26966250

Goldman, Noreen

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620242pmid: 26966251

Persons of Mexican origin and some other Latino groups in the United States have experienced a survival advantage compared with their non-Latino White counterparts, a pattern known as the Latino, Hispanic, or epidemiological paradox. However, high rates of obesity and diabetes among Latinos relative to Whites and continued increases in the prevalence of these conditions suggest that this advantage may soon disappear. Other phenomena, including high rates of disability in the older Latino population compared with Whites, new evidence of health declines shortly after migration to the United States, increasing environmental stressors for immigrants, and high-risk values of inflammatory markers among Latinos compared with Whites support this prediction. One powerful counterargument, however, is substantially lower smoking-attributable mortality among Latinos. Still, it is questionable as to whether smoking behavior can counteract the many forces at play that may impede Latinos from experiencing future improvements in longevity on a par with Whites.

Turra, Cassio M.; Renteria, Elisenda; Guimarães, Raquel

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620245pmid: 26966252

The last century in Brazil was witness to profound changes. Female life expectancy at birth increased from 34.6 years in 1910 to 77.26 years in 2010. At the same time, the educational composition of the population has changed dramatically. In the 1940s, only 25% of the children aged 5–14 years old were enrolled in school. Currently, nearly all children attend school. We examine the extent to which changes in the age-specific distribution of education have contributed to the decline in adult mortality among women in Brazil. Our analysis follows other applications in the literature to measure the mortality reduction that would occur if exposure to specific risk factors was changed at the counterfactual level. The effects are not trivial: Between 1960 and 2010, about 38% of the increase in life expectancy at age 30 can be attributed to changes in the educational composition of women. An additional 22% increase is expected until 2040.

Saenz, Joseph L.; Wong, Rebeca

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620243pmid: 26966253

Introduction:Educational disparities research is less common in developing countries. We evaluate whether educational gradients of disability onset exist in Mexico across groups (birth cohort and sex) and whether the association is unexplained or indirect via health (health behaviors, chronic conditions, and self-rated health) or economic (income, wealth, and health insurance) pathways.Method:Data come from the Mexican Health & Aging study. Activities of daily living are reported in 2001, 2003, and 2012 by respondents and spouses aged 50+ (N = 9,560). Groups are analyzed using logistic regression to test education–disability onset associations.Results:Significant education–ADL onset associations were observed across groups, and much of these associations were direct (unexplained by pathways). Indirect effects operated primarily through the health pathway.Discussion:Those with less education were disadvantaged in terms of disability across birth cohorts and sex. Unexplained effects of education may suggest unobserved mediators or differential returns to resources by educational level.

Yahirun, Jenjira J.; Sheehan, Connor M.; Hayward, Mark D.

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620240pmid: 26966254

This article asks how adult children’s education influences older parents’ physical health in Mexico, a context where older adults often lack access to institutional resources and rely on kin, primarily children, as a main source of support. Using logistic and negative binomial regression models and data from the first wave of the Mexican Health and Aging Study (N = 9,661), we find that parents whose children all completed high school are less likely to report any functional limitations as well as fewer limitations compared to parents with no children who completed high school. This association remains significant even after accounting for parent and offspring-level characteristics, including parents’ income that accounts for children’s financial transfers to parents. Future research should aim to understand the mechanisms that explain the association between adult children’s education and changes to parents’ health over time.

Mudrazija, Stipica; López-Ortega, Mariana; Vega, William A.; Gutiérrez Robledo, Luis Miguel; Sribney, William

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620241pmid: 26966255

Mexican return migrant population is increasing, yet our knowledge about their lives after resettlement in Mexico remains fragmentary. Using 2001–2012 longitudinal data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study, we investigate difference in household composition for older migrants who returned from the United States compared to nonmigrants. Furthermore, we fit a Cox proportional hazards model to assess the relationship between household composition and health and functional trajectories of return migrants and nonmigrants. The results indicate that return migrants with long duration of U.S. stay have different household composition than nonmigrants or short-term migrants: On average, they have smaller household size, including fewer females who may be available to offer assistance to older adults. Presence of middle-age females in the household has positive effects on health and functional trajectories. We highlight implications of this research for policy makers in Mexico and the United States.

Hill, Terrence D.; Uchino, Bert N.; Eckhardt, Jessica L.; Angel, Jacqueline L.

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620239pmid: 26966256

Although numerous studies of non-Hispanic Whites and Blacks show that social integration and social support tend to favor longevity, it is unclear whether this general pattern extends to the Mexican American population. Building on previous research, we employed seven waves of data from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly to examine the association between perceived social support trajectories and the all-cause mortality risk of older Mexican Americans. Growth mixture estimates revealed three latent classes of support trajectories: high, moderate, and low. Cox regression estimates indicated that older Mexican American men in the low support trajectory tend to exhibit a higher mortality risk than their counterparts in the high support trajectory. Social support trajectories were unrelated to the mortality risk of older Mexican American women. A statistically significant interaction term confirmed that social support was more strongly associated with the mortality risk of men.

Chinn, Juanita J.; Hummer, Robert A.

doi: 10.1177/0164027515620244pmid: 26966257

This article assesses whether there are race differences in functional health among Hispanic women in the United States; ascertains whether the race differences in functional health vary by age; and examines the extent to which race differences in functional health are attributable to key dimensions of demographic, geographic, and socioeconomic heterogeneity. The analysis is based on 15 years of aggregated data from the National Health Interview Survey. Both U.S.- and foreign-born Black and other race Hispanic women display a higher level of functional limitations than their White Hispanic counterparts. There is little evidence that such health differences widen with age. U.S.-born Black Hispanic women, however, suffer from a high burden of functional limitations across the adult age range. This research speaks to the need for greater attention to racial differences in health among Hispanics and particularly so within the U.S.-born segment of this rapidly aging population.