Does an Immigrant Health Advantage Exist Among US Whites? Evidence from a Nationally-Representative Examination of Mental and Physical Well-Being

The use of the “white” racial category as a benchmark when comparing racial and ethnic health disparities is too broad and includes subgroups who don’t feel represented, according to new Duke research.

The categorization is problematic because it can lead to the disregarding of a great many people in health reporting, says Jen’nan Read, chair of Duke’s Department of Sociology.

Read’s study, published in the Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, examines the data integrity of using the “white” racial category as a traditional benchmark. (Read the study here.)

“When lumped together in this broad white category, health disparities within a subgroup population can be easily overlooked,” says Read, an social determinants of health disparities among Arab and Muslim populations.

The study notes: “Overall, the results indicate important variation in health among whites that is missed in studies that focus on U.S.-born whites, alone. Scholars must continue to monitor the health of white immigrants, who are projected to grow to 20% of the U.S. immigrant population in the years to come.”

KJ