Health-related Risk Factors in a Sample of Hispanics and Whites Matched on Sociodemographic Characteristics

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Abstract
Although past studies have compared health-related risk factors in Hispanics and whites, few studies have controlled for potential confounding from sociodemographic variables. Using data on men and women aged 25–74 years who responded to biennial cross-sectional surveys conducted in four diverse California cities from 1979 to 1990, the authors employed a matched-pairs design in which 756 Hispanic respondents were matched to 756 white respondents according to age, sex, educational level, city of residence, and time of survey. No significant differences between Hispanics and whites were found for any of the blood pressure indicators (systolic and diastolic blood pressure, prevalence of hypertension, and use of antihypertensive medication), caloric intake, total cholesterol, alcohol intake, or physical activity. The only variables for which Hispanics had higher levels of risk factors than whites were body mass index (weight (kg)/height (m)2; 27.5 vs. 25.6,p<0.001) and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (48.6 mg/dl vs. 50.1 mg/dl, p<0.03). Whites, on the other hand, were significantly more likely to be current smokers than Hispanics (34.2% vs. 24.0%, p<0.001) and, among smokers, to smoke a greater number of cigarettes per day (19.7 vs. 11.4 cigarettes/ day, p<0.001). Whites were also significantly more likely to have higher-fat diets, as measured by percentages of calories derived from total fat (37.6% vs. 35.1%, p<0.04) and saturated fat (13.6% vs. 12.3%, p<0.03). Examination of interactions indicated further risk factor differences by ethnicity across several sex, age, and educational subgroups.

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