The degradation of diet quality that occurs as His-
panic Americans become acculturated into the main-
stream U.S. population occurs in the context of
improvements in, rather than degradation of, economic
status. For example, first-generation Mexican-American
women, despite being of lower socioeconomic status
than second-generation Mexican American or non-
Hispanic white women, tend to have higher intakes
of protein,vitamins A and C, folic acid, and calcium
than these other groups. The diets of second-generation
Mexican American women more closely resemble those
of non-Hispanic white women of similar socioeco-
nomic status.
Risks
The process of acculturation and the changing
nature of the Hispanic diet has serious implications for
the state of Hispanic health. The prevalence of type 2
diabetes mellitusis two to three times higher in His-
panic Americans than in non-Hispanic whites, with an
estimated 10% of adultsoverthe age of twenty and25to
30% of those over the age of fifty affected. The preva-
lence of the disease is especially high among Mexican
Americans. Diabetes, a disease characterized by high
levels of glucose in the blood, is a major cause of death
and disability in the United States. Compared to non-
diabetic individuals, those with the disease are also at
two to four times higher risk of developing cardiovas-
cular disease, the leading cause of death in the country.
Accompanying this increased risk of diabetes among
Hispanics is a marked increase in the risk ofobesity.
Much of the increased risk of diabetes experienced
by Hispanic Americans is believed to be attributable to
the changing lifestyle that accompanies the accultur-
ation process, including the changing quality of the
Hispanic diet and the adoption of a more sedentary
lifestyle. These trends are occurring across all seg-
ments of the Hispanic population, although the extent
of the changes are more pronounced in some sub-
groups (e.g., Mexican Americans in large urban
areas) than in others. Although Hispanic Americans
generally smoke less than their non-Hispanic white
counterparts, the direction of Hispanic health is also
threatened by an increasing frequency of cigarette
smoking, particularly among younger segments of
the population.
Approaches for improving the health of Hispanics
need to be broad-based and to consider the complex-
ities of a variety of lifestyle factors. Nutrition educa-
tion programs aimed at improving the quality of the
Hispanic diet are currently based on a combination of
preserving some elements of the traditional Hispanic
diet—including a reliance on beans, rice, and tortil-
las—and a change in others—such as reduced con-
sumption of high-fat dairy products and less use of
fat in cooking.Resources
BOOKS
Aldrich L, and Variyam, J. N. (2000). ‘‘Acculturation
Erodes the Diet Quality of U.S. Hispanics.’’Food
Review23:51–55.
Flegal, K. M.; Ezzati, T. M.; Harris, M., et al. (1991).
‘‘Prevalence of Diabetes in Mexican Americans,
Cubans, and Puerto Ricans from the Hispanic Health
and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1982–1984.’’Dia-
betes Care14(Suppl 3):628–638.
Guendelman, S., Abrams, B. (1995). ‘‘Dietary Intake among
Mexican-American Women: Generational Differences
and a Comparison with White Non-Hispanic Women.’’
American Journal of Public Health85:20–25.
Harris, M. I.; Flegal, K. M.; Cowie, C. C., et al. (1998).
‘‘Prevalence of Diabetes, Impaired Fasting Glucose,
and Impaired Glucose Tolerance in U.S. Adults: The
Third National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey (NHANES), 1988–94.’’Diabetes Care
21:518–524.
Hobbs, F., and Stoops, N. (2000).Demographic Trends in the
20th Century. U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Special
Reports, Series CENSR-4. Washington, DC: U.S.
Government Printing Office.
Romero-Gwynn, E.; Gwynn, D. L.; Grivetti, R., et al.
(1993). ‘‘Dietary Acculturation among Latinos of
Mexican Descent.’’Nutrition Today(July/
Aug.):6–11.
U.S. Census Bureau (1999).The Hispanic Population in the
United States: Population Characteristics. Washington,
DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
OTHER
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research
Service (1999). ‘‘Data Tables: Food and Nutrient Intake
by Hispanic Origins and Race, 1994-1996.’’ Available
from<http://www.barc.usda.gov/bhnrc>Braxton D. MitchellHIV dietseeAIDS/HIV infection
Hollywood diet
Definition
The Hollywood diet products are intended to pro-
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