[HKLB-Mental_Health] Black gay men, lesbians, have fewer mental disorders than whites, says Mailman School of PH study

[Isabelle S BARBOUR]

Black gay men, lesbians, have fewer mental disorders than whites, says
Mailman School of PH study

October 1, 2007 -- According to a study conducted at Columbia
University*s Mailman School of Public Health among lesbian, gay, and
bisexual populations, blacks and Latinos do not have more mental
disorders than whites. Based on the theory that stress related to
prejudice would increase risk for mental disorders, researchers
typically expect that black lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals face
prejudice related to both racism and homophobia and therefore would have
more disorders than their white counterparts. Contrary to this
expectation, however, the Mailman School study found that black
lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals had significantly fewer disorders than
white individuals. Latinos had a prevalence of disorders similar to
whites. The findings will be reported in the November 2007 American
Journal of Public Health.

*These findings suggest that black lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals
have effective ways to cope with prejudice related to racism and
homophobia* noted Ilan H. Meyer, PhD, associate professor of clinical
Sociomedical Sciences at the Mailman School of Public Health and
principal investigator of the study.

The study of 388 white, black and Latino New York City residents aged
18 * 59 who identified themselves as lesbian, gay, or bisexual is the
first population-based study of its kind to examine the prevalence of
mental disorders among black and Latino, versus white, lesbians, gay
men, and bisexual individuals.

By contrast to the findings about mental disorders, more black and
Latino gay men, lesbians, and bisexuals than whites reported a history
of serious suicide attempts. *Because these suicide attempts occurred
at an early age, typically during the teenage, we can speculate that
they coincided with a coming-out period and were related to the social
disapprobation afforded to lesbian, gay, and bisexual identities,* Dr.
Meyer said. The findings were consistent with the notion that these
problems may be more potent among lesbians, gay men, and bisexual youth
in Latino and other communities of color. *In the absence of higher
prevalence of mood disorders in this population, these findings pose
challenge to mental health professionals* said Dr. Meyer. *If this
is indeed the case, public health professionals should address what
prevention efforts are required to reduce suicide risk among lesbian,
gay, and bisexual youths in these communities* Dr. Meyer said.

The study also found that, across all race/ethnic groups, younger
cohorts of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals (those in age groups 18 *
29 and 30 * 44 as compared with 45 * 59 years old) had lower
prevalence of almost all mental disorders categories, and the difference
was statistically significant for mood disorders. Younger cohorts also
had fewer serious suicide attempts than did older cohorts (but this was
statistically significant only for the middle cohort).

*The finding regarding younger cohorts of lesbians, gay men, and
bisexuals is consistent with social stress theories that predicted that
the liberalization of social attitudes toward homosexuality over the
past few decades can lead to a decline in stress and related mental
disorders and suicide among lesbians, gay men, and bisexual
individuals* said Dr. Meyer.

In other findings, the study reported that bisexual identity was
related to higher prevalence of substance use disorders but not of
anxiety or mood disorders and it confirmed previous observations that
among gay populations, men and women do not differ substantially in
disorder prevalence.

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The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.