title: Intergenerational transmission of the effects of acculturation on health in Hispanic Americans: a fetal programming perspective.
abstract: We propose a transdisciplinary, life span framework for examining the underlying cause of the observed intergenerational decline in health among Hispanic Americans. We focus on acculturation, and we posit that acculturation-related processes in first-generation Hispanic immigrant mothers may affect the intrauterine development of an unborn child, via the process of fetal programming, to produce phenotypic effects that may alter the susceptibility for noncommunicable chronic diseases. In this manner, an intergenerational cascade of perpetuation may become established. Our framework may shed light on the biological, behavioral, and social causes of intergenerational cycles of vulnerability among immigrant minority groups, with public health and policy implications for primary prevention and intervention.
authors.affiliation: Molly Fox is with the Early Human and Lifespan Development Program and the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine. Sonja Entringer and Claudia Buss are with the UCI Development, Health, and Disease Research Program, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, and the Department of Medical Psychology, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany. Jessica DeHaene and Pathik D. Wadhwa are with the UCI Development, Health, and Disease Research Program, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine.
authors.forename: Molly
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fox
authors.forename: Sonja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Entringer
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Buss
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: DeHaene
authors.forename: Pathik D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Wadhwa
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D016901:Intergenerational Relations; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D012307:Risk Factors; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000208:ethnology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology