The Relationship Between Self-Rated Health and Acculturation in Hispanic and Asian Adult Immigrants: A Systematic Review

We systematically reviewed studies to identify the association between acculturation and self-rated health (SRH) and the impact of nativity and language use in Asian and Hispanic adult immigrants. Six electronic databases were searched. Data on nativity and limited English proficiency (LEP) was extracted and analyzed. Nine studies met review criteria. A positive association between acculturation and fair/poor SRH among Asians and Hispanics was found. For both Asians and Hispanics, six out of eight studies showed nativity and all three studies reporting LEP were associated with worse SRH compared to whites. Nativity and LEP were found to be risk factors for reporting worse SRH in Hispanics compared to Asians. The degree of association between nativity and LEP and worse SRH was found to vary by Asian and Hispanic subgroup. Further studies are needed to accurately assess the health status of these populations, which will be essential to eliminating disparities.