Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Tyler McDaniel, Dawn K. Wilson, M. Sandra Coulon, Allison M. Sweeney, M. Lee Van Horn
Summary: The study aimed to assess the impact of gene-by-neighborhood social environment interactions on waist circumference as a marker of metabolic risk in underserved African-American adults. The findings showed that neighborhood and genetic factors dually influence metabolic risk, and these relationships may be complex and require further study.
ANNALS OF BEHAVIORAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Bjorn Kluwe, Songzhu Zhao, David Kline, Robin Ortiz, Guy Brock, Justin B. Echouffo-Tcheugui, Mario Sims, Rita R. Kalyani, Sherita H. Golden, Joshua J. Joseph
Summary: In an African American cohort, various measures of adiposity, including BMI, waist circumference, leptin, and subcutaneous adipose tissue, were found to be negatively associated with morning serum cortisol levels. These findings suggest that adiposity may influence cortisol levels in this population.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Mercedes Sotos-Prieto, Songzhu Zhao, David Kline, Guy Brock, Holly Gooding, Josiemer Mattei, Fernando Rodriguez-Artalejo, Yuan- Min, Eric B. Rimm, Katherine L. Tucker, Joshua J. Joseph
Summary: The Healthy Heart Score, a lifestyle-based CVD risk prediction model, showed high-moderate discrimination for CVD events in African American population but little improvement over the age-only model. Participants without diabetes at baseline had better performance in both the age-only and Healthy Heart Score models with good calibration. In African Americans, the Healthy Heart Score does not significantly improve the prediction of mid-life CVD events beyond age alone.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Rania Kanchi, Priscilla Lopez, Pasquale E. Rummo, David C. Lee, Samrachana Adhikari, Mark D. Schwartz, Sanja Avramovic, Karen R. Siegel, Deborah B. Rolka, Giuseppina Imperatore, Brian Elbel, Lorna E. Thorpe
Summary: This national cohort study of US veterans found that the risk of type 2 diabetes in different community types is associated with the neighborhood food environment, with the relative density of fast-food restaurants positively correlated with risk, while the relative density of supermarkets is associated with lower risk in suburban and rural areas. This suggests that tailored interventions targeting supermarkets availability may help reduce diabetes risk, particularly in suburban and rural communities, while restrictions on fast-food restaurants could be beneficial in all community types.
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Yuta Mori, Taishi Tsuji, Ryota Watanabe, Masamichi Hanazato, Takuto Miyazawa, Katsunori Kondo
Summary: This study investigated the relationship between built environments and the onset of frailty after 3 years. The findings suggest that both individual-level and community-level built environments are associated with the development of frailty. Negative built environments at the individual level increase the risk of frailty, while positive built environments reduce the risk. In the community level, areas with difficult walking conditions have a lower risk of developing frailty.
ARCHIVES OF GERONTOLOGY AND GERIATRICS
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Georgina Harmer, Susan A. Jebb, Georgia Ntani, Christina Vogel, Carmen Piernas
Summary: Research found that large supermarkets had healthier environments compared to small ones, with consistent patterns across various variables. While healthfulness scores remained stable in large stores, there was a trend towards increased healthfulness in small stores. Neighborhood deprivation did not affect overall store healthfulness.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuwen Sui, Dick Ettema, Marco Helbich
Summary: This study examines the associations between changes in neighborhood physical and social environments and mental health changes using panel data. The findings suggest that an increase in blue space is associated with improved mental health, while an increase in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is associated with declined mental health. Furthermore, females experience a greater decline in mental health with increasing PM2.5 concentrations, and increasing levels of socioeconomic deprivation are associated with further declines in mental health among lower-income individuals.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Zsu-Zsu Chen, Julian Avila Pacheco, Yan Gao, Shuliang Deng, Bennet Peterson, Xu Shi, Shuning Zheng, Usman A. Tahir, Daniel H. Katz, Daniel E. Cruz, Debby Ngo, Mark D. Benson, Jeremy M. Robbins, Xiuqing Guo, Magdalena del Rocio Sevilla Gonzalez, Alisa Manning, Adolfo Correa, James B. Meigs, Kent D. Taylor, Stephen S. Rich, Mark O. Goodarzi, Jerome I. Rotter, James G. Wilson, Clary B. Clish, Robert E. Gerszten
Summary: This study utilized non-targeted metabolomics methods to investigate a cohort of underrepresented African Americans and identified several known and unknown metabolites associated with diabetes. The inclusion of these metabolites along with clinical risk factors improved diabetes prediction modeling, highlighting the importance of using non-targeted metabolomics methods in ethnically diverse populations for understanding diabetes development.
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Yuta Mori, Taishi Tsuji, Ryota Watanabe, Masamichi Hanazato, Yu-Ru Chen, Katsunori Kondo
Summary: This study investigated the association between subjective built environment and the onset of frailty in older adults living in the community. The results showed that access to parks and sidewalks, fresh food stores, houses or facilities where people feel free to drop in, and fascinating views or buildings can reduce the risk of frailty. Walking time, depression, and social support were found to be mediating factors in this relationship.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION
(2023)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Weidi Qin, Christy L. Erving, Ann W. Nguyen
Summary: This study focuses on older African Americans and aims to identify trajectories of depressive symptoms over a 9-year period, examine the association between neighborhood characteristics and depressive symptom trajectories, and assess whether this association differs by gender. The findings suggest that high levels of neighborhood social cohesion may protect against increasing depressive symptoms in older African Americans, and that older African American men may be more susceptible to the negative mental health effects of neighborhood physical disadvantage.
AGING & MENTAL HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Communication
Angela A. Omondi, Ashleigh M. Day, Rodney Washington, Paul B. Burns
Summary: This study examines the influence of media coverage, myths, political leaders, and community leaders on attitudes and misconceptions about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination uptake in the Mississippi Delta region. The findings highlight the need for multi-sectoral collaborations to provide accurate health information and address misinformation in rural communities.
HEALTH COMMUNICATION
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Fatima A. Varner, Jelani Mandara, Lorraine E. Scott, Carolyn B. Murray
Summary: This study found that parents in racially integrated and European American neighborhoods tended to communicate more preparation for bias messages, while parents in predominantly African American neighborhoods were more likely to convey cultural empowerment messages. Parents of boys in racially integrated and European American neighborhoods tended to convey more cultural empowerment messages, while older girls were more likely to receive egalitarian messages. African American parents may use more empowerment and preparation for bias messages when they feel their children are culturally isolated or likely to experience racial discrimination.
JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Lu Gao, Xiangdong Sun, Honglin Yang, Quangang Xu, Juan Li, Jingli Kang, Ping Liu, Yi Zhang, Youming Wang, Baoxu Huang
Summary: The study conducted a preliminary analysis of African swine fever outbreaks in China, finding significantly higher outbreak rates in small farms compared to medium and large farms. Swill feeding and mechanical dissemination were identified as major contributing factors. The response speed has been gradually increasing. Recommendations include improving biosecurity levels and enhancing supervision in breeding, transportation, and slaughter practices.
TRANSBOUNDARY AND EMERGING DISEASES
(2021)
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Shawin Vitsupakorn, Nia Pierce, Tiarney D. Ritchwood
Summary: This article reviews the integration of culture in HIV prevention and treatment interventions focused on Black/African Americans. A total of 25 interventions were identified, with most of them targeting prevention. Only three interventions were grounded in cultural theory, and only two explicitly defined culture. There was much diversity in how interventions integrated cultural elements, with some conflating race/ethnicity with culture.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Byoungjun Kim, Wendy M. Troxel, Tamara Dubowitz, Gerald P. Hunter, Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, Basile Chaix, Kara E. Rudolph, Christopher N. Morrison, Charles C. Branas, Dustin T. Duncan
Summary: In this study, the association between physical characteristics of neighborhoods and sleep health outcomes was examined, and the mediating role of physical activity was assessed. It was found that urban design features were associated with increased wakefulness after sleep onset, and neighborhood disorder and crime rate were negatively associated with sleep efficiency. However, no strong and consistent mediating role of physical activity was found. Therefore, interventions to improve sleep should target modifiable factors such as urban design and neighborhood disorder.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2023)
