Heart Disease and Hispanic Americans

How Does Heart Disease Affect Hispanic / Latino American Populations?

In 2023, Hispanic adults were 50% less likely to have coronary heart disease than non-Hispanic white adults.¹
In 2020, Hispanics/Latinos were 30% less likely to die from heart disease than non-Hispanic whites.²

Diagnosis

Coronary heart disease among adults age 18 and over, age-adjusted percentage, 2023
Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
3.0	5.8	0.5

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Center for Health Statistics. Interactive Summary Health Statistics for Adults. Percentage of coronary heart disease for adults aged 18 and over, United States, 2019–2023.

Death Rates

Death due to heart disease, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 population, 2020
	Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
Male	157.5	217.3	0.7
Female	94.3	131.7	0.7
Both Sexes	122.7	170.8	0.7

Source: CDC, 2023. Deaths: Final Data for 2020. National Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 72, No. 10. Table 10.

Hypertension

Hypertension prevalence among adults age 18 and over, age-adjusted percentage, 2017–2018
	Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
Men	50.1	50.2	1.0
Women	36.8	36.7	1.0
Total	43.7	43.6	1.0

Source: CDC, 2020. Hypertension Prevalence and Control Among Adults Aged 18 and Over: United States, 2017–2018. NCHS Data Brief, No. 364.  Figure 2.

Persons age 18 and over who have high blood pressure, age-adjusted percentage, 2018
Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White, Single Race	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
23.7	24.0	1.0

Source: CDC 2019. Summary Health Statistics: National Health Interview Survey: 2018. Table A-1a.

Adults age 18 and over with controlled hypertension, age-adjusted percentage, 2015–2016
	Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
Men	43.5	47.7	0.9
Women	48.1	57.1	0.8
Total	45.0	50.8	0.9

Source: CDC, 2017. Hypertension Prevalence and Control Among Adults: United States, 2015–2016. NCHS Data Brief, No. 289.  Figure 4.

High Cholesterol

Persons age 20 and over who have high cholesterol, age-adjusted percentage, 2017–2020
	Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
Male	9.2	9.7	0.9
Female	9.8	10.0	1.0
Total	9.7	9.9	1.0

Source: CDC. National Center for Health Statistics Data Query System. Cholesterol in Adults, measured.

Adults who received a blood cholesterol measurement in the last five years, percentage, 2021
Hispanic, all races	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
90.0	88.9	1.0

Source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports. Data Query.

Cigarette Smoking

Adults age 18 and over who are current cigarette smokers, age-adjusted percentage, 2018
	Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
Male	12.3	16.7	0.7
Female	6.9	14.4	0.5
Total	9.6	15.5	0.6

Source: CDC, 2019. Summary Health Statistics: National Health Interview Survey: 2018. Table A-12a.

Adults who were current e-cigarette users, percentage, 2018
Hispanic	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
2.5	3.7	0.7

Source: CDC, 2020. Electronic Cigarette Use Among U.S. Adults, 2018. NCHS Data Brief, no. 365. Figure 2.

Adult smokers who received advice from a health professional to quit, percentage, 2020
Hispanic, all races	Non-Hispanic White	Hispanic / Non-Hispanic White Ratio
32.9	49.8	0.7

Source: AHRQ. National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports. Data Query.

¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Center for Health Statistics. Interactive Summary Health Statistics for Adults. Percentage of coronary heart disease for adults aged 18 and over, United States, 2019–2023. (back)

² CDC, 2023. Deaths: Final Data for 2020. National Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 72, No. 10. Table 10. (back)