Demographics and oral health status of latinos and Latino sub-populations

Hispanics are the largest minority group in the U.S. During the last decade, the Hispanic population increased by over 40%. Such growth represented over half of the total population growth in the U.S. As a group, Hispanics in the U.S. continue to suffer disproportionately from a greater burden of oral disease and poorer access to oral health care. Using recent NHANES data and Healthy People 2020 oral health objectives as a means to compare groups, Hispanics consistently fare worse. For example, as a population group Hispanics are the most likely to be uninsured, and the least likely to have had a dental visit in the past year. NHANES data also show that 26% of Hispanic 6 to 9 year old children have untreated caries, almost twice the prevalence found in non-Hispanic whites. However, U.S. Hispanics are not a homogeneous population group. Rather, extensive variation exists among Hispanic sub-groups in regards to national origin, language preference, education and income. Unfortunately, there is a relative paucity of high quality data on oral health in many Hispanic sub-groups. Such data are needed to guide the development of effective policies on oral health promotion and disease prevention targeting U.S. Hispanics. This presentation is intended to provide context for the talks that will follow. It will present a brief demographic portrait of U.S. Hispanics/Latinos and an overview of the oral health status of Latinos and Latino sub-populations.