The Health of Arab Americans in the United States: An Updated Comprehensive Literature Review

Abstract

Background: Arab Americans are a historically understudied minority group in the United States and their health needs and risks have been poorly documented. We aim to provide an updated comprehensive review of the literature on Arab American physical and mental health and provide suggestions for future work in this field.Methods: A comprehensive review of the English language medical and public health literature published prior to 2017 identified through multiple database searches was conducted with search terms describing Arab Americans and health outcomes and behaviors. The literature was qualitatively summarized by health behavior (vaccination, tobacco use, drug and alcohol use, and physical activity), health outcome (diabetes, mental health, cardiovascular disease, cancer, women's, and child health), and populations at increased risk of poor health outcomes (adolescents and the elderly).Results: The majority of studies identified exploring Arab American health have been published since 2009 with an increase in the number of longitudinal and intervention studies done with this population. The majority of research is being undertaken among individuals living in ethnic enclaves due to the lack of an ethnic or racial identifier that may help identify Arab Americans from population-based studies. Studies highlight the conflicting evidence in the prevalence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease based on study sample, an increased understanding of cancer incidence and barriers to identification, and an increased level of knowledge regarding mental health and sexual health needs in the population. Information on health behaviors has also increased, with a better understanding of physical activity, alcohol and drug use, and vaccination.Conclusion: More research on Arab American health is needed to identify risks and needs of this marginalized population given the current social and political climate in the United States, especially with regard to acculturation status and immigrant generation status. We provide recommendations on approaches that may help improve our understanding of Arab American health.

Exploring the Health Care Challenges and Health Care Needs of Arabic-Speaking Immigrants with Cardiovascular Disease in Australia

“…For example, it has been reported that they are usually not provided with sufficient information regarding appropriate medication use [28]. Furthermore, few disease self-management interventions have been tailored to enable their application to be adapted to ethnic minority patients [31,32].…”

Self‐reported physical and psychological symptoms among victims and perpetrators of bullying in Arab American Adolescents

“…Arab immigrants arrived in several waves from 22 Arabic‐speaking countries in southwestern Asia and North Africa (Samhan, 2001). For a variety of reasons (e.g., religious minority, media stigmatization, lack of clear racial identifier), Arab American adolescents are often victims of discrimination, stereotyping, and prejudice (Abuelezam, El‐Sayed, & Galea, 2018; Ahmed, Kia‐Keating, & Tsai, 2011; Goforth, Oka, Leong, & Denis, 2014). Yet, recent literature reviews revealed that Arab Americans are understudied in health research (Abuelezam et al, 2018; El‐Sayed & Galea, 2009; Rousseau, Jamil, Bhui, & Boudjarane, 2015).…”

“…For a variety of reasons (e.g., religious minority, media stigmatization, lack of clear racial identifier), Arab American adolescents are often victims of discrimination, stereotyping, and prejudice (Abuelezam, El‐Sayed, & Galea, 2018; Ahmed, Kia‐Keating, & Tsai, 2011; Goforth, Oka, Leong, & Denis, 2014). Yet, recent literature reviews revealed that Arab Americans are understudied in health research (Abuelezam et al, 2018; El‐Sayed & Galea, 2009; Rousseau, Jamil, Bhui, & Boudjarane, 2015). Only a small number of studies have been conducted on the effects of bullying victimization among Arab American adolescents (Albdour et al, 2017; Tabbah, Miranda, & Wheaton, 2016), and no studies have been conducted on the health outcomes of these adolescents who are perpetrators of bullying.…”

Physical Activity Programming Advertised on Websites of U.S. Islamic Centers: A Content Analysis

“…National organizations such the U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations, American Muslim Health Professionals, and Islamic Medical Association of North America, as well as relevant regional and community organizations should consider developing targeted messaging, and workshops and trainings that assist Islamic centers in PA program development and promotion in general, which in turn could be advertised on websites. Doing so is particularly important in light of our findings and the prevalence of morbidity associated with insufficient PA found among Muslims in the U.S. [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]. As well, imams, who play a major role in matters related to Muslim community health, should also receive training for how to incorporate PA promotion into day-to-day ministry and chaplaincy activities [ 26 , 27 , 47 ] and ensure that PA programming is sufficiently advertised.…”

“…Physical inactivity disparity based on religion also exists: 38 Muslim countries were 1.2 times more likely to be physically inactive than 94 non-Muslim countries, and within the Muslim countries, women’s physical inactivity prevalence (35.5%) was 1.4 times greater than men’s [ 5 ]. Insufficient PA is a risk factor for overweight, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, and (perhaps) consequently their prevalence is alarmingly and disproportionately high among various ethnic groups of Muslims and Muslim women living in the United States (U.S.) [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ].…”