Discuss the background of the White non-Hispanic populations.
The opening images for this chapter depict objects symbolic of items used to maintain, protect, and/or restore HEALTH for people in the White European American communities. Figure 13–1 is an Italian horn and worn, carried, or hung in the home for protection and luck. Figure 13–2 is a pysanka, or egg. The pysanka is a traditional symbol of life, which has evolved over the centu- ries. It is given as a gift to family and friends to wish them prosperity, strength,
Figure 13–4Figure 13–3Figure 13–2Figure 13–1
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health, and happiness. They are mainly painted at Easter and symbolize the re- newal of life. Figure 13–3 is a “belt” that was purchased in a Russian Orthodox church in Moscow. The belt is worn under clothing to separate the “clean” upper body from the “dirty” lower body. Figure 13–4 is an example of an over- the-counter herbal remedy. These remedies are sold in homeopathic pharma- cies in many European countries. This particular remedy is a laxative and was purchased in Switzerland.
■ Background The 2010 census showed that the U.S. population on April 1, 2010, was 308.7 million. Out of the total population, 223.6 million people, or 63.7%, iden- tified as White alone and 72.4% reported they were White in combination with one or more other races. The White population increased at a slower rate than the total population. The population of Whites who reported more than 1 race grew in every region between 2000 and 2010, particularly in the South and the Midwest. The following is the regional distribution of the White alone popula- tion: Northeast, 18.3%; Midwest, 24.1%; South, 37.7%; and the West, 21.9%. The states with the largest percentage of White alone were California, 7.6%; Texas, 5.8%; Florida, 5.5%; New York, 5.7%; and Pennsylvania, 5.1%. The cities with the largest number of White alone in 2010 were New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and San Diego, California. The places with the largest multi- ple-race White populations were New York and Los Angeles. In 2010, 87.6 mil- lion people over 25 graduated high school and 19.8 million were college graduates or more (Hixson, Hepler, & Kim, 2011).
Members of White European American communities have been immi- grating to this country since the very first settlers came to the shores of New England. The White non-Hispanic population has diverse and multiple origins. The recent literature in the area of ethnicity and health/HEALTH has focused on people of color, and little has been written about the HEALTH traditions of the White non-Hispanic ethnic communities. In this chapter, an introductory over- view of the differences in traditional HEALTH beliefs and practices, by ethnicity, is presented. Given that we are talking about 63.7–70% of the American popula- tion, from many diverse countries, and with diverse ethnocultural and religious heritages, the enormity of the task of attempting to describe each difference is readily apparent. Instead, this chapter presents an overview of the relevant demographics of the White non-Hispanic population, highlights some of the basic beliefs of selected groups (those groups with which I have had the great- est exposure), and presents a comparison of the health status of Whites to the whole population as well as the census cohorts. The overview includes not only library research but also firsthand interviews and observations of people in their daily experiences with the health care delivery system, both as inpatients and as community residents receiving home care.
The major groups migrating to this country between 1820 and 1990 included people from Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Ireland,