Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) Use among Non-Hispanic White, Mexican American, and Vietnamese American Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

• Published in: Journal of health care for the poor and underserved 2014-11, Vol.25 (4), p.1941-1955
• Main Authors: Nguyen, Hannah, Sorkin, Dara H, Billimek, John, Kaplan, Sherrie H, Greenfield, Sheldon, Ngo- Metzger, Quyen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Asian Americans; Asian Americans - statistics & numerical data; California; Complementary Therapies - utilization; Diabetes; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - drug therapy; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - ethnology; Ethnicity; European Continental Ancestry Group - statistics & numerical data; Female; Health care; Herbs; Hispanic Americans; Humans; Hypoglycemic Agents - therapeutic use; Interviews as Topic; Male; Medication Adherence - ethnology; Medication Adherence - statistics & numerical data; Mexican Americans - statistics & numerical data; Middle Aged; Socioeconomic factors; Studies; Traditions; Vietnam - ethnology
• ISSN: 1049-2089; 1548-6869; 1548-6869
• DOI: 10.1353/hpu.2014.0178

This study examines the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) by ethnicity/race among patients with type 2 diabetes. Four hundred and ten (410) patients with type 2 diabetes recruited from an academic-medical center completed a survey assessing CAM use, diabetes status, and sociodemographic characteristics. Several significant ethnic/racial differences were observed in CAM use (both in the types of providers seen as well as in the herbs and dietary supplements used). Although White patients reported using CAM in addition to their diabetes medication (mean [SD] 4.9 [0.4] on a scale from 1=never to 5=always) more frequently than Mexican American patients (3.1 [1.6], p