Asian health overview

Statistics New Zealand 2018 defined the term Asian in New Zealand as being used to refer to people with origins from Asia, including West Asia (Afghanistan, Nepal), South Asian (Indian sub continent), East Asia (North/South Korea, China. Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan) and South East Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, Phillipines, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Kampuchea).

Our Asian population in New Zealand has been established through:

• migration
• 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th generation Asians born in NZ
• foreign students with fixed term visas
• asylum seekers and refugees. 

Over the past decade Asian refugees have arrived in Aotearoa New Zealand from Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and the Philippines.

The term ‘Asian’ used in Aotearoa New Zealand has a different meaning from that used in other countries, for example in the United Kingdom ‘Asian’ is used to refer to communities with South Asian backgrounds. 

In 2023, 17.3% of the New Zealand population identified themselves as Asian – 153,978 more than were identified in the 2018 Census. Most of the Asian population of 518,178 people in Aotearoa New Zealand live in the Auckland region.

There are 2 major age groups in the Asian community – 98,967 people of Asian descent are between 30 to 34 years old while 95,664 are between 35 to 39 years old.

In general, the Asian population is considered to have good health that is comparable to the general population in Aotearoa New Zealand. However, there is also the impression that people of Asian ethnicity have favourable outcomes on a range of health indicators compared to other major ethnic groups in NZ. This is based on the 'healthy migrant effect', where the health of immigrants is better than the natives born in the country for a period of time.

This is because they are thought to have a higher socioeconomic status in their home country, hence they have the resources to migrate. However, changes in economic environments, and through adaption to the behaviour and norms of the host country can have negative impacts on health and wellbeing, outweighing the ‘healthy migrant effect’. 

There have been a few publications in the past decade that particularly focus on Asian health. Both the Asian health chart(external link) book and the Health needs assessment of Asian people living in the Auckland region(external link) provide an in-depth analysis of Asian health outcomes. They concluded the following:

• Indians or South Asians have high rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes and low birth weight.
• South Asian women have higher LDL ('bad' cholesterol) than Māori women. 
• Chinese have a high risk of stroke.
• South Asian populations in Aotearoa New Zealand need to have their CVD risk factors checked 10 years earlier compared to other populations. 

It has also been found that the Asian ethnic group as a whole also has lower rates of access to health services and healthcare, particularly the Chinese. Examples of health services include:

• enrolment with a general practice
• use of screening services
• access to mental health services
• disability support
• aged residential care. 

The New Zealand Health Survey tracks health status and health-related behaviours over time and the latest findings suggest that there is an increasing trend in:

• numbers of overweight Asian adults
• vaping
• alcohol consumption
• fast food consumption.

Image credit: Canva

There are several factors that affect access and use of health services in the Asian and South Asian population. These include:

• communication and language barriers
• knowledge of the health system
• social isolation
• distance from friends and relatives
• socioeconomic status
• cultural beliefs 
• stigmatisation
• racism and discrimination
• burden – (older family members not wanting to burden younger family members with their health needs)
• elder abuse
• a preference to use alternative or herbal medication and treatments, rather than Western.

Examples of models of health in the Asian population include the following:

Scientific and Western biomedical model 

This model is based on disease causation and believes that medicine is the art and science of healing. Prevention and treatment of illness is key to maintain and restore health. 

Supernatural model

This model is based on the influence of a 'power' or 'powers' on one's health, eg, good health occurs when social relations are good while poor health occurs when social relations are disturbed. This can be in the form of evil eye or black magic, curses, or possession which can be a barrier to families reaching out for help in relation to mental health.  

Spiritual or religious model

This model is includes the concept that good health is thought to occur when you're fulfilling the requirements of your faith, while poor health means you haven't been true to your faith and you're being punished.

Humoral or balance model

This model is based on the theory that the human body is filled with 4 basic substances called humors: blood, yellow bile, black bile and phlegm. All diseases and disabilities result from an excess or deficit of one of these. 

Moral model

It's believed that a disease or a condition is caused by a moral defect such as laziness, weak will or selfishness. 

Psychosocial stress model

This model attributes illness to overwhelming psychosocial stressors. 

Asian Health Services (Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora)

This service provides language, cultural and emotional support for staff, Asian patients and their families in the Waitematā region. Services include:

• Asian Patient Support Service
• Asian Mental Health Service
• iCare health information line
• general practitioner booking and breast screening support
• WATIS interpreting, covering 90+ languages.

Visit Asian Health Services(external link).

Asian Family Services

Asian Family Services (AFS) provides professional, confidential, nationwide face-to-face or telephone support to Asian people living in Aotearoa New Zealand. These services are offered in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese, Thai and Hindi. An interpreter can be arranged for other languages.

Asha services(external link) – South Asian support services available in English and Hindi for gambling support from Asian Family Services

Visit Asian Family Services.(external link) 

The Asian Network Incorporated (TANI)

TANI supports Asian New Zealanders to enjoy an optimal quality of life and wellbeing and develop strong and healthy Asian communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. They have a range of events and resources for the Asian population. 

Visit The Asian Network Incorporated(external link). 

Your Local Doctor

This website provides information for Auckland's new migrant communities on:

• where to go for healthcare
• the benefits of seeing a family doctor
• the general practice enrolment process
• frequently asked questions
• useful case studies and links for migrant families.

This service is supported by the Auckland Regional Asian and Middle Eastern, Latin American, and African (MELAA) Primary Care working group. Visit Your Local Doctor(external link).

To find more Asian services use the HealthPoint website.(external link)