Temporal Differences and Trends in General Health Associated with Anxiety/Depression Symptoms among Hispanics/Latinos

Background General health has been linked with anxiety/depression symptoms in the general population, but there is limited information on Hispanic/Latino populations, who are the fastest-growing ethnic minority group. We investigated the temporal trend, disparities, and the association between general health and anxiety/depression symptoms among Hispanics/Latinos in the US. Methods A weighted retrospective cross-sectional national population-based data from the Health Information National Trends Survey (2011–2012, 2014, 2017–2019, and 2022) involving 1,927 Hispanics/Latinos aged ≥ 18 years was analyzed. Semi-elastic annual average percentage change (AAPC), bivariate Chi-square, and multivariate logistic regression were conducted to examine the prevalence trends, differences, and odds of anxiety/depression symptoms with general health, adjusting for sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and behavioral health factors. Results Among Hispanics/Latinos, the overall prevalence of anxiety/depression symptoms was 51.8% and 75.3% among those with fair/poor general health. There was an increasing relative risk of severity of anxiety/depression symptoms among Hispanics/Latinos with fair/poor general health. There was a 23.5% increase and 6.0% decrease in AAPC of anxiety/depression among Hispanics/Latinos with excellent/very good/good and fair/poor general health, respectively, across the survey years. Additionally, Hispanics/Latinos with fair/poor general health had higher odds of anxiety/depression symptoms than those with excellent/very good/good general health, after adjusting for the sociodemographic (AOR = 3.95, 95% CI = 2.76–5.64), socioeconomic (AOR = 3.56, 95% CI = 2.46–5.15), and behavioral health risk factors (AOR = 3.66, 95% CI = 2.47–5.44), respectively. Conclusion Our study shows Hispanics/Latinos with fair/poor general health are at a higher risk of experiencing anxiety/depression symptoms. We recommend additional research to better understand specific disease/health conditions that disproportionately contribute to anxiety/depression symptoms among Hispanics/Latinos.