César González-González

Old-Age Disability and Wealth among Return Mexican Migrants from the United States

Objective: To examine the old-age consequences of international migration with a focus on disability and wealth from the perspective of the origin country. Method: Analysis sample includes persons aged 60+ from the Mexican Health and Aging Study, a national survey of older adults in Mexico in 2001. Univariate methods are used to present a comparative profile of return migrants. Multivariate models are estimated for physical disability and wealth. Results: Gender differences are profound. Return migrant women are more likely to be disabled while men are wealthier than comparable older adults in Mexico. Discussion: Compared to current older adults, younger cohorts of Mexico—U.S. migrants increasingly include women, and more migrants seem likely to remain in the United States rather than return, thus more research will be needed on the old-age conditions of migrants of both countries.

The effect of adult children living in the United States on the likelihood of cognitive impairment for older parents living in Mexico

ABSTRACT Objective: The increased risk for poor physical and mental health outcomes for older parents in Mexico who have an adult child living in the United States may contribute to an increased risk for cognitive impairment in this population. The objective of this study was to examine if older adults in Mexico who have one or more adult children living in the United States are more or less likely to develop cognitive impairment over an 11-year period compared to older adults who do not have any adult children living in the United States. Design: Data for this study came from Wave I (2001) and Wave III (2012) of the Mexican Health and Aging Study. The final sample included 2609 participants aged 60 and over who were not cognitively impaired in 2001 and had one or more adult children (age ≥15). Participants were matched using a propensity score that was estimated with a multivariable logistic regression model that included sociodemographic characteristics and migration history of the older parents. Results: Having one or more adult children living in the United States is associated with lower socioeconomic status and higher number of depressive symptoms, but greater social engagement for older parents living in Mexico. No significant differences in the odds for developing cognitive impairment according to having one or more adult children living in the United States were detected. Conclusion: In summary, having one or more adult children living in the United States was associated with characteristics that may increase and decrease the risk for cognitive impairment. This may contribute to the non-significant relationship between migration status of adult children and likelihood for cognitive impairment for older parents living in Mexico.

Projecting diabetes prevalence among Mexicans aged 50 years and older: The Future Elderly Model-Mexico (FEM-Mexico)

Objective Diabetes has been growing as a major health problem and a significant burden on the population and on health systems of developing countries like Mexico that are also ageing fast. The goal of the study was to estimate the future prevalence of diabetes among Mexico’s older adults to assess the current and future health and economic burden of diabetes. Design A simulation study using longitudinal data from three waves (2001, 2003 and 2012) of the Mexican Health and Aging Study and adapting the Future Elderly Model to simulate four scenarios of hypothetical interventions that would reduce diabetes incidence and to project the future diabetes prevalence rates among populations 50 years and older. Participants Data from 14 662 participants with information on self-reported diabetes, demographic characteristics, health and mortality. Outcome measures We obtained, for each scenario of diabetes incidence reduction, the following summary measures for the population aged 50 and older from 2012 to 2050: prevalence of diabetes, total population with diabetes, number of medical visits. Results In 2012, there were approximately 20.7 million persons aged 50 and older in Mexico; 19.3% had been diagnosed with diabetes and the 2001–2003 diabetes incidence was 4.3%. The no-intervention scenario shows that the prevalence of diabetes is projected to increase from 19.3% in 2012 to 34.0% in 2050. Under the 30% incidence reduction scenario, the prevalence of diabetes will be 28.6% in 2050. Comparing the no-intervention scenario with the 30% and 60% diabetes incidence reduction scenarios, we estimate a total of 816 320 and 1.6 million annual averted cases of diabetes, respectively, for the year 2020. Discussion Our study underscores the importance of diabetes as a disease by itself and also the potential healthcare demands and social burden of this disease and the need for policy interventions to reduce diabetes prevalence.