Abstract
BackgroundSouth Asian populations are the largest visible minority group in Canada; however, there is very little information on the mental health of these populations. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence rates and characteristics of mental health outcomes for South Asian first-generation immigrant and second-generation Canadian-born populations.MethodsThe Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) 2011 was used to calculate the estimated prevalence rates of the following mental health outcomes: mood disorders, anxiety disorders, fair-poor self-perceived mental health status, and extremely stressful life stress. The characteristics associated with these four mental health outcomes were determined through multivariate logistic regression analysis of merged CCHS 2007–2011 data.ResultsSouth Asian Canadian-born (3.5%, 95% CI 3.4-3.6%) and South Asian immigrant populations (3.5%, 95% CI 3.5-3.5%) did not vary significantly in estimated prevalence rates of mood disorders. However, South Asian immigrants experienced higher estimated prevalence rates of diagnosed anxiety disorders (3.4%, 95% CI 3.4-3.5 vs. 1.1%, 95% CI 1.1-1.1%) and self-reported extremely stressful life stress (2.6%, 95% CI 2.6-2.7% vs. 2.4%, 95% CI 2.3-2.4%) compared to their Canadian-born counterparts. Lastly, South Asian Canadian-born populations had a higher estimated prevalence rate of poor-fair self-perceived mental health status (4.4%, 95% CI 4.3-4.5%) compared to their immigrant counterparts (3.4%, 95% CI 3.3-3.4%). Different profiles of mental health determinants emerged for South Asian Canadian-born and immigrant populations. Female gender, having no children under the age of 12 in the household, food insecurity, poor-fair self-rated health status, being a current smoker, immigrating to Canada before adulthood, and taking the CCHS survey in either English or French was associated with greater risk of negative mental health outcomes for South Asian immigrant populations, while not being currently employed, having a regular medical doctor, and inactive physical activity level were associated with greater risk for South Asian Canadian-born populations.ConclusionsMental health outreach programs need to be cognizant of the differences in prevalence rates and characteristics of mental health outcomes for South Asian immigrant and Canadian-born populations to better tailor mental health services to be responsive to the unique mental health needs of South Asian populations in Canada.
Highlights
South Asian populations are the largest visible minority group in Canada; there is very little information on the mental health of these populations
Significant differences in estimated prevalence rates and characteristics of mental health outcomes were found for first-generation immigrants and second-generation/Canadian-born South Asian populations
Socioeconomic and health and behavioral factors were most commonly associated with negative mental health outcomes for South Asian Canadian-born populations, whereas, acculturative, socioeconomic, and health and behavioral factors were important characteristics associated with mental health of South Asian immigrant populations
Summary
South Asian populations are the largest visible minority group in Canada; there is very little information on the mental health of these populations. Statistics Canada’s Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) defines South Asian as those who self-identify having ancestors who are “South Asian (e.g. East Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan)” [1]. According to the 2006 Census [2], over 1.26 million people from South Asian populations called Canada home (4.0% of the total population), making up the largest visible minority group in Canada [3]. The majority of those reporting South Asian origin in the 2001 Census were foreign-born (68%), while only about a third were Canadian-born (32%) [3]. It is projected that by 2031, 55% of Canada’s foreign-born population will report origins in Asia [7]
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