Health diary study of Japanese residents in Greater Boston: variables related to high incidence of health problems

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the impact of migration on the incidence of illness episodes and health care seeking behavior among Japanese residents in Greater Boston. Subjects were instructed to keep diaries about illnesses experienced and visits to physicians. A total of 62 problems (0.77 per person) occurred over a four-week period with only 9 problems (15 percent) receiving medical consultation. Residents who were in the U.S. for less than one year had the highest rate of perceived stress and the highest incidence of health problems. The number of people available for support to an individual did not correlate with the occurrence of health problems. Surprisingly no emotional or psychological problems were recorded in the diary in spite of explicit encouragement to note such problems. An increased occasion of family get-togethers compared to that in Japan was perceived as stressful by men, but not by women. This contrasts with the perception of children's educational issues as stressful exclusively by women.