Low-income Mexican immigrants might be healthier than the overall U.S. population on some measures, but that health advantage fades as immigrants adjust to life in the U.S. That in turn can have worrying consequences when it comes to Latina birth outcomes.
Medical experts meeting at the NIH over the next three days are going to try to reach a consensus on whether to shift to a different testing method for gestational diabetes. If they decide to make the shift, the prevalence of gestational diabetes in U.S. pregnancies can be expected to double.
Doctors are debating whether to lower the blood-sugar threshold for determining whether a woman has with gestational diabetes. If that happens the number of pregnant women treated for gestational diabetes could more than double.
This story takes a closer look at why Latinos have higher rates of birth defects of the brain and spine and what's being done about it. It is the first of three fellowship stories about health disparities in Utah by race/ethnicity and geography.