Study: Hispanic/Latino Children Sicker in States With Harsh Immigration Laws, Prejudice

Latino/Hispanic children, who make up one-quarter of all children under the age of 18 in the US, suffer with higher rates of respiratory illnesses, obesity, sleep problems, and other health issues. A new study, “State-Level Anti-Immigrant Sentiment and Policies and Health Risks in US Latino Children,” in the September 2023 Pediatrics (available online August 15), found that harsh state immigrant laws and systemic prejudice against immigrants are linked to those illnesses. Prior studies have found systemic inequities, including harsh immigrant policies, are associated with poor mental health among Latino adults and adverse birth outcomes for Latino infants, but this new study found exclusionary state policies aimed at immigrants and prejudicial attitudes are associated with multiple physical and mental health conditions among Latino children. Researchers studied data of 17,855 Latino children, ages 3 to 17, from the National Survey of Children’s Health (2016-2020), which polled caregivers around their children’s illnesses, including stomach or intestinal problems, constipation or diarrhea, chronic pain, headaches, decayed teeth or cavities, allergies, asthma, blood disorders, diabetes, heart condition, arthritis, depression, anxiety, and ADHD among other health problems. This health information was compared against state immigration policies and local attitudes toward Latino communities. They found state policies and prejudices were associated with increased odds of one or more chronic physical health conditions, and two or more mental health conditions among Latino children. Study authors concluded more research is needed on the most at-risk immigrant children—those that lack a permanent address—but that this research reveals potentially harmful consequences of discriminatory policies and prejudice on children’s health.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.