Children from homes where English is not the primary language have far more health problems than other kids in the U.S. and have less access to health insurance.

    The impact goes beyond those youngsters and their families, said study author Dr. Glenn Flores, director of general pediatrics at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

    "It ends up costing all society in missed school days and missed work days, and this is the population that is growing by leaps and bounds," said Flores, who published his findings in the June issue of Pediatrics. "The population surge that's going on means that this is our future work force, so these things will affect everybody."

    Flores' study found that Spanish is spoken in 62 percent of homes where English is not the primary language and that 42 percent of non-English-speaking households are poor based on federal standards. Only 13 percent of English-speaking households are poor.

    More than a quarter of the children from non-English-speaking families have no health insurance, and 39 percent have no dental insurance, the study said. Only 6 percent of children from English-speaking households don't have health insurance, and 20 percent don't have dental insurance, the study shows.

    The telephone survey of more than 100,000 households nationwide also indicated that:

    Forty-three percent of non-English-speaking households and 12 percent of English-speaking households reported that their children were not in excellent or good health.

    Forty-eight percent of children in non-English-speaking households and 39 percent of children in English-speaking households are overweight or at risk of being overweight.

    Hospitals and healthcare centers also lack enough interpreters to help non-English-speaking families, Flores said.

    School Districts Help

    Educators said children's health is crucial to their schooling. Districts such as Fort Worth, Birdville and Hurst-Euless-Bedford have opened school clinics with JPS Health Network.

    "If they're uncomfortable, or they're in pain or things are going untreated, it's a little harder to concentrate, to be able to benefit from the instruction," said Chuck Hoffman, Fort Worth schools' assistant superintendent for student support services. "One of the biggest challenges is in oral health. Dental pain causes a lot of discomfort."

    Flores' study found that dental care is a major issue; 27 percent of children from non-English-speaking homes and 7 percent of other children have teeth in fair or poor condition.

    Michael Steinert, the Fort Worth school district's director of family and community resources, said the need for the clinics was evident almost as soon as they opened.

    "JPS clinics have a capacity to see about 25 kids a day. All of the clinics that we have now are running on average of 20 to 25 a day," Steinert said.

    By the Numbers

    39: Percent of children from non-English-speaking families who have no dental insurance.

    20: Percent of children from English-speaking families who have no dental insurance.

    42: Percent of non-English-speaking households that are poor based on federal standards.

    13: Percent of English-speaking households that are poor based on federal standards.