ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health Education and Promotion
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1528486
Over the Counter Medication Use Among Mexican Immigrants in Southern Arizona: A Cross-Sectional Study
Provisionally accepted
Estefania Ochoa Mora1,2*
Adriana Maldonado3
Melissa Flores4Mariella Rodiguez3Daniel E Martinez5
Rebecca M. Crocker3
David O Garcia3- 1University of Arizona, Tucson, United States
- 2College of Medicine Department of Clinical & Translational Sciences University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States
- 3Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Department of Health Promotion Sciences University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States
- 4College of Science Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States
- 5College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Department of Sociology University of Arizona, Tucson, United States
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Introduction: Over-the-counter (OTC) medication use is high among Mexican immigrants before migrating to the U.S. However, changes in OTC medication use during migration process remain unclear. This study describes OTC medication use patterns among Mexican immigrants in Southern Arizona, explores changes caused during the migration process, and examines the influence of sociodemographic factors on OTC medication use. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a purposive community-based sample (n=300) of Mexican immigrant adults. Poisson regression model was utilized to assess the relationship between perceived discrimination, importance of health care use, pre-existing chronic health conditions, years living in the U.S. and the number of OTC medications used in the U.S. while adjusting for demographics and number of OTC medications used in Mexico. Results: Acetaminophen, NSAID, and supplement use increased post-migration. The number of OTC medications used in Mexico was associated with OTC medication use in the U.S. (RR=1.35, 95% CI: 1.26, 1.45). Men in the U.S. had a 24% lower rate of OTC medication use compared to women (RR=0.76, 95% CI: 0.59, 0.97). Length of stay in the U.S. was significantly associated with OTC medication use (95% CI: 0.00, 0.38; p=0.002). Divorced/separated individuals had a 29% lower rate of OTC use compared to married individuals (RR=0.71, 95% CI: 0.53, 0.96). Discussion: This study is among the first to examine OTC medication use patterns among Mexican immigrants in Southern Arizona. Further research is needed to understand the factors driving these changes and their impact on health outcomes.
Keywords: Mexican immigrant, OTC medication, demographic factors, Sociodemographic, self-medication
Received: 14 Nov 2024; Accepted: 15 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ochoa Mora, Maldonado, Flores, Rodiguez, Martinez, Crocker and Garcia. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Estefania Ochoa Mora, University of Arizona, Tucson, United States
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.