Farmworkers long have been recognized as a disadvantaged group with a wide range of occupationally related health problems. A coherent picture of the major health problems faced by agricultural workers has begun to emerge. This study presents data from the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES) on the effects of ever having participated in farm work on health status. Thus, it provides the first national level perspective on the health of people who have participated in farm work with a focus on Hispanics. People with farm work experience considered themselves to be in worse physical health and had experienced more work–related disabilities than other Hispanics.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AngelR., and GuarnacciaP.J.1989“Mind, Body, and Culture: Somatization Among Hispanics,”Social Science and Medicine, 12: 1229–1238.
2.
BeanF. D., and TiendaM.1987The Hispanic Population of the United States.New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
3.
BleweisP. R., ReynoldsR. C., CohenL. D., and ButlerN. A.1977“Health Care Characteristics of Migrant Agricultural Workers in Three North Florida Counties,”Journal of Community Health, 3: 32–43.
4.
Bonilla SantiagoG.1986“Puerto Rican Migrant Farmworkers: An Untold Story,”Migration World Magazine, 14(4): 14–18.
5.
ColesR.1967Migrants, Sharecroppers, and Mountaineers.Boston: Little, Brown & Co.
6.
FrisvoldG., MinesR., and PerloffJ. M.1988“The Effects of Job Site Sanitation and Living Conditions on the Health and Welfare of Agricultural Workers,”American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 70: 875–885.
7.
GuarnacciaP. J., AngelR., and WorobeyJ. L.1989“The Factor Structure of the CES-D in the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey: The Influence of Ethnicity, Gender, and Language,”Social Science and Medicine, 29: 85–94.
8.
JohnstonH. L.1985Health for the Nation's Harvesters.Farmington Hills, MI: National Migrant Worker Council.
9.
LittlefieldC., and StoutC. L.1987“A Survey of Colorado's Migrant Farmworkers: Access to Health Care,”International Migration Review, 21(3): 688–707.
10.
Maldonado-DenisM.1980The Emigration Dialectic.New York: International Publishers.
11.
McWilliamsC.1939Factories in the Fields.Santa Barbara, CA: Peregrine Press.
12.
National Center for Health Statistics1985Plan and Operation of the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office (DHHS Publication No. PHS 85–1321, Series 1, No. 19).
13.
NobleK. B.1987“U.S. Told to Set Sanitation Rule for Field Hands,”The New York Times, February 7.
14.
OrtizJ. S.1980“The Prevalence of Intestinal Parasites in Puerto Rican Farm Workers in Western Massachusetts,”American Journal of Public Health, 70: 1103–1105.
15.
Pedraza-BaileyS.1985Political and Economic Migrants in America: Cubans and Mexicans.Austin: University of Texas Press.
16.
PortesA., and BachR. L.1985Latin Journey: Cuban and Mexican Immigrants in the United States.Berkeley: University of California Press.
17.
Rural Opportunities1988A Study of Farmworker Health Care Availability and Utilization.Rochester, NY: Rural Opportunities, Inc.
18.
SakalaC.1987“Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers in the United States: A Review of Health Hazards, Status and Policy,”International Migration Review, 21(3): 659–687.
19.
SchumanS. H., and DobsonR. L.1985“An Outbreak of Contact Dermatitis in Farm Workers,”Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 13: 220–223.
20.
SlesingerD. P.1979Health Needs of Migrant Workers in Wisconsin.Madison, WI: Bureau of Community Health, Division of Health.
21.
SteinbeckJ.1939Grapes of Wrath.New York: Viking Press.
22.
VegaW., WarheitG., and PalacioR.1985“Psychiatric Symptomatology among Mexican American Farmworkers,”Social Science and Medicine, 20: 39–45.
23.
VegaW. A., ScutchfieldD., KarnoM., and MeinhardtK.1985“The Mental Health Needs of Mexican American Agricultural Workers,”American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 11: 47–55.
24.
WestI.1964“Occupational Disease of Farmworkers,”Archives of Environmental Health, 9: 92–98.
25.
WhitingW. B.1975“Occupational Illnesses and Injuries of California Agricultural Workers,”Journal of Occupational Medicine, 17: 177–181.
26.
WilkV.A., 1986The Occupational Health of Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers in the United States.Washington, DC: Farmworker Justice Fund.
27.
WilkV. A., and DavisN. S.1986“Results of a Farmworker Survey on Pesticides: New Jersey, 1983,”Migration World Magazine, 14(3): 27–30.
