Low-income Hispanic women are more likely than their black and white counterparts to follow diets that are rich in fruits and vegetables, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The study looked at 603 low-income mothers who participate in Head Start programs in Alabama and Texas.Researchers found that while diets among all women in the study tended to be low in important nutrients, Hispanic women in general consumed more fruits and vegetables than blacks and whites.

The Center for Autism and Related Disorders at the Kennedy Krieger Institute is recruiting typically developing children, who are between 11-13 months of age or 26-28 months of age to participate in the study "Development of Relational Awareness", which looks at the development of memory and learning in children.

They are also recruiting children with an autism spectrum disorder and down syndrome, who are between the ages of 36-54 months to participate in a similar study: "Autism and the Development of Relational Awareness"

Hispanics who have even a small amount of plaque build-up in the neck artery are up to four times more likely to suffer or die from a stroke or heart attack than Hispanics who do not have plaque. According to a study by the the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurolog, researchers used ultrasound to determine the thickness of the plaque in the carotid artery of 2,189 men and women who were part of the multi-ethnic Northern Manhattan Study. Carotid plaque was found in 58 percent of the group.

Elderly Hispanics throughout the country tend to get inferior care, according to a Harvard study released on Tuesday. The study reported that Medicare data from 2004 reveals that hospitals with high percentages of Hispanic patients tend to have slightly lower quality indicators in three crucial areas: heart attacks, congestive heart failure and pneumonia.

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 27 (HealthDay News) -- A small U.S. study found that obese Hispanic children and adolescents with normal blood sugar levels had elevated markers for blood vessel inflammation that may put them at risk for both type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Researchers at the Joslin Diabetes Center studied 38 Hispanic youngsters, aged 10 to 18. Of those, 17 were lean and 21 were obese but had normal blood sugar levels, which means they had not yet developed diabetes.

According to a study published online Tuesday in the journal Neurology, Black and Hispanic Alzheimer's patients live longer than whites, Asian-Americans and American Indians who have the disease. For the study, scholars analyzed data from between 1984 and 2005 at more than 30 Alzheimer's Disease Centers across the nation. The study included information on more than 31,000 patients ages 65 and older who were diagnosed with possible or probable Alzheimer's disease. Eighty-one percent of patients were white, 12% were black, 4% were Hispanic and 1.5% were Asian-American.

Cultural stereotypes about Hispanics could impede Latino youth from seeking help for drug and alcohol abuse. In turn, substance-abuse treatment providers must better understand how their own attitudes toward culture can affect the provision of sufficient behavioral health services, according to a new study.

The study obtained first-hand information from practitioners to propose the development of culturally relevant, quality care for rural adolescent populations that have limited access to behavioral health care.

Like many minorities, a lack of access to care prevents many Hispanic women from getting early screening they need, making breast cancer the biggest cancer killer among that group. Most Hispanic women speak little or no English, so they already have limited access to information. But thanks to a breast health initiative funded by the Komen Foundation, the word about breast cancer is coming to them, not only in their living rooms and churches, but in their native language.

For many Hispanics, the cost of care forces them to make the difficult choice between feeding their family and taking care of their health. Support from the hospital and local radiologists plus the grant of almost $75,000 pays for transportation costs, mammograms, and for treatment for those who need it.

Many studies report that Hispanics in the United States have better or similar health to that of non-Hispanic Whites, despite Hispanics having lower incomes and less education. Most studies that examine differences in adult mortality find that Hispanics have relatively lower mortality rates compared with Whites. This better than-expected health and mortality of Hispanics, given their lower socioeconomic status (SES), has been called the Hispanic paradox.