Leading scholars and practitioners come together in this contributed volume to present the most current evidence on cutting edge health issues for South Asian Americans, the fastest growing Asian American population. The book spans a variety of health topics while examining disparities and special health needs for this population. Subjects discussed include: cancer, obesity, HIV/AIDS, women's health, LGBTQ health and mental health. Health of South Asians in the United States presents research-based recommendations to help determine priorities for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, education, and policies which will optimize the health and well-being of South Asian American communities in the United States. Although aimed at both students, healthcare professionals and policy makers, this book will prove to be useful to anyone interested in the health and well-being of the South Asian communities in the United States.

The South Asian Health Solution is the first book to provide an ancestral health-based wellness plan culturally tailored for those of South Asian ancestry living in India, the United States and across the world – a population identified as being at the highest risk for heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and related conditions. Dr. Ronesh Sinha, an internal medicine specialist in California’s Silicon Valley, sees high risk South Asian patients and runs education and wellness programs for corporate clients. He has taken many South Asians out of the high risk, high body mass category and helped them reverse disease risk factors without medications. His comprehensive lifestyle modification approach has been validated by cutting edge medical science and the real-life success stories he profiles throughout the book.

How does the media influence society? How do media representations of South Asians, as racial and ethnic minorities, perpetuate stereotypes about this group? How do advancements in visual media, from creative storytelling to streaming technology, inform changing dynamics of all non-white media representations in the 21st century? Analyzing audience perceptions of South Asian characters from The Simpsons, Slumdog Millionaire, Harold and Kumar, The Office, Parks and Recreation, The Big Bang Theory, Outsourced, and many others, Bhoomi K. Thakore argues for the importance of understanding these representations as they influence the positioning of South Asians into the 21st century U.S. racial hierarchy. On one hand, increased acceptance of this group into the entertainment fold has informed audience perceptions of these characters as “just like everyone else.” However, these images remain secondary on the U.S. Screen, and are limited in their ability to break out of traditional stereotypes. As a result, a normative and assimilated white American identity is privileged both on the Screen, and in our increasingly multicultural society.

This contributed volume is the first-known collection of essays that brings together scholarly review, critiques, and primary and secondary data to assess how sociocultural factors influence health behavior in South Asian women. The essays are authored by working scholars or healthcare practitioners from Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. In the chapters, the contributors acknowledge social, economic, and environmental factors to recommend improved interventions and health policy for women of the region. Studies on South Asian women’s health have targeted clinical evidence, with less attention on social and environmental factors driving health recovery and health outcomes. The South Asian region, more than any other part of the world, is driven by traditional and cultural forces that are possibly the most significant factors determining a woman’s health awareness and her rights to adopt healthy behavior or pursue health recovery. Women of the region share a common culture and political history, and there are benefits to understanding their problems collectively in order to design joint improvements in health policy for women. Salient, but neglected, socio-political areas that influence health behavior and health outcomes in women of the region are covered in the chapters including: Oral Narrations of Social Rejection Suffered by South Asian Women with Irreversible Health Conditions Women’s Role in Decision-Making for Health Care in South Asia Poverty, Health Coverage, and Credit Opportunities for South Asian Women Refugee, Displaced, and Climate-Affected Women of South Asia and Their Health Challenges The Political Sociology of South Asian Women’s Health The Sociology of South Asian Women’s Health is a useful resource for students, researchers, and academicians, especially those interested in public health, gender, social policy, and occupational management, as well as healthcare practitioners, administrators, health and public policy-makers, government officers, and scholars of South Asian studies.