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People who live in communities with high levels of racial prejudice have a higher rate of heart disease and mental health problems, as well as deaths in general, according to research by the U.S. Psychological Association (APA).

The studies, published Monday in Health Psychology, were led by Eli Michaels of the University of California, Berkeley, “to measure the racial climate in which people live, work, play and pray.”

“These investigations revealed that living in an area with high levels of racial prejudice can be detrimental to health and widen health inequalities,” Michaels said.

The researchers used a variety of sources to measure racial bias at the community level, including tens of millions of data points from large-scale surveys, Internet searches, and social media.

For example, analysis in Google Trends focused on the number of times user searches used racial slurs. Four studies looked at data from Twitter messages that included negative expressions of “people of color.”

These and other studies examined how different indicators of the level of racial bias in an area correlate with the health data of individuals who live there, including mortality rates, birth-related problems, cardiovascular disease, mental health, and general health.

All studies have found a link between levels of racial bias in societies and negative health outcomes for people of color who live in those areas.

Read more at AmicoHoops.net.

The difficulties rural-dwelling Native Hawaiian kūpuna (elders) face when seeking healthcare is the focus of a new study conducted by the Thompson School of Social Work & Public Health at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

“Our research underlined the appreciation kūpuna felt for providers who took the time to get to know them and respected Hawaiian cultural practices, including traditional healing practices, like lāʻau lapaʻau (Hawaiian herbal medicine) and lomilomi (massage),” said public health PhD student Keilyn Leinaʻala Kawakami, who spearheaded the study.

Kawakami worked in collaboration with Hā Kūpuna, the National Resource Center for Native Hawaiian Elders, funded by the U.S. Administration on Aging, Department of Health and Human Services, and non-profit ALU LIKE, Inc. to conduct this five-year study.

“The older adults that have been interviewed for this project appreciated being asked to tell their stories,” said Leslie Tanoue, director of Kumu Kahi: Elder Services Department at ALU LIKE, Inc. “They also pointed out needs for additional medical, health and eldercare services in Hawaiian communities on the neighbor islands.”

There were several other key findings from the study. First, most participants had experienced serious chronic diseases that required them to interact with specialists whom they generally had limited access to. Second, the kūpuna exemplified resilience despite limited access to specialty and mental health services in rural communities. Third, the kūpuna would like to see more integration of traditional Hawaiian health care practices and Western practices.

Read more at Hawaii.edu.

The availability of Spanish-language mental health services is shrinking even as the U.S. Latino population continues to grow, according to a recent study.

Why it matters: Spanish is the second-most spoken language in the U.S., and the number of Latinos who speak Spanish at home has grown from 24.6 million in 2000 to 39.1 million in 2019, according to the Pew Research Center.

By the numbers: Between 2014 and 2019, the proportion of facilities offering mental health treatment in Spanish declined by nearly 18%, according to a study published last week in the journal Psychiatric Services.

• That was a loss of 1,163 Spanish-speaking mental health facilities.
• Overall, 44 states saw a decline in the availability of services in Spanish, despite growth in Hispanic populations across all states.
• The national Hispanic population increased by 4.5%, or 5.2 million people, during the same period.
• The study examined data from the National Mental Health Services Survey conducted in 2014 and 2019.

The big picture: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports over 40% of Latino adults reported symptoms of depression during the pandemic, compared to 25% of white non-Hispanics.

• But only about 33% of Hispanics with a mental health disorder generally get treatment, compared to 45% of non-Hispanics, according to a 2018 Department of Health and Human Services report.
• And just 7% of licensed psychologists in the U.S. identify as Latino, according to the American Psychological Association, while even fewer, 5.5% of therapists, can provide services in Spanish.

What they’re saying: “Disparities in behavioral health risk factors in the past decade have also grown and closely parallel the overall growth in the Hispanic population,” the authors wrote.

Read more at Axios.com.

Mental health does not discriminate. It impacts one in five individuals at any given time. But people of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) descent rank last among all ethnic groups in seeking care, a fact that is particularly disconcerting in this time of racism, hate crimes, and bias incidents against AAPI Americans and communities.

“Even before the pandemic Asian American and Pacific Islanders were the lowest help-seeking group. There was already under treatment of mental health conditions,” says Columbia psychiatrist Warren Ng, MD. To illustrate the scope of the challenge, he notes that AAPI as a group is not a monolith and represents over 30 ethnicities and 50 languages.

The pandemic highlighted what many already knew: There are gaps in how we provide care in the United States. Like other groups, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have traditionally been overlooked. Ng attributes this in part to systemic racism including the “model minority” myth. The term refers to a group perceived as successful, hardworking, and resourceful, in spite of obstacles other groups do not face. As a result, they receive fewer resources and services.

The phenomena of Asian hate, anti-Asian sentiment, hate rhetoric, and blaming Asians for COVID-19 have made AAPI people scapegoats, leading to more feelings of anxiety, depression, and emotional and psychological suffering. “Pandemic isolation provided relative security and safety. Now, as people are in more social, public spaces, they are being targeted. It’s very traumatic,” says Ng. These attacks create mental health crises for family members and witnesses too.

Unfortunately, in addition to other impediments to getting mental health care, going outside of the community for help can be a challenge. “Culturally, this is true of many ethnic groups,” says Ng. “Keeping issues with the family, not bringing in strangers to avoid shame and stigma is common.”

Read more at CUIMC.Columbia.edu.

Over the years, mental health issues have become more prevalent due to social media, the stress/pressure of school, and extreme standards set for both men and women. Unfortunately, depression and anxiety among boys and men tend to get widely ignored.

There are multiple factors that contribute to this significant problem. The main part of the issue is society’s fault, as we put an absurd amount of pressure on boys to hide their emotions and feelings. Some common ideals that have been continuously reiterated over the years are, “Boys don’t cry”; “Don’t be a girl”; and “Don’t be such a baby!”.

The pressure that society puts on men to bottle up their emotions and feelings puts them in a tough situation as a result; they can’t even feel comfortable opening up to their own family. Not only that, but this idea can cause larger problems that lead to greater mental health struggles.

As a boy grows up hearing those phrases over and over, they can often tend to raise their own boys in the same way. This leads to a continuous cycle of toxic masculinity, which leads to a whole other world of problems.

The pressure to not express certain emotions, in fear of being called a girl or “too feminine,” leads to mental health problems including depression, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, men are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide in the United States.

Read more at BurlingtonCountyTimes.com.

AlohaCare announced Ke Aloha Mau, their newly launched culturally responsive services to target mental, physical, and spiritual health. Beginning with Lomilomi and Hula, AlohaCare’s covered healthcare benefits will also include Ho‘oponopono and ‘Ai Pono.

Ke Aloha Mau strives to provide unique and beneficial services in collaboration with community health centers, the Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems, and cultural practitioners. All programs and sites should be available to members by this fall.

Based on research and founded on Native Hawaiian health and wellness principles, Ke Aloha Mau services will integrate traditional practices to address disease management and health promotion. AlohaCare uses program evaluation strategies to monitor, track and analyze these services from the time of interest and referral, through completion.

The use of Native Hawaiian services allows members to continue the tradition of their kupuna and the practices that have been passed down for generations. Through Ke Aloha Mau, members can be inspired to have the best health possible and to perpetuate healing practices that align the body, mind, and spirit.

Read more at StateofReform.com.