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Kim K, Joyce BT, Nannini DR, Zheng Y, Gordon-Larsen P, Shikany JM, Lloyd-Jones DM, Hu M, Nieuwenhuijsen MJ, Vaughan DE, Zhang K, Hou L. Inequalities in urban greenness and epigenetic aging: Different associations by race and neighborhood socioeconomic status. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadf8140. [PMID: 37379393 PMCID: PMC10306284 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adf8140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
Slower epigenetic aging is associated with exposure to green space (greenness); however, the longitudinal relationship has not been well studied, particularly in minority groups. We investigated the association between 20-year exposure to greenness [Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)] and epigenetic aging in a large, biracial (Black/white), U.S. urban cohort. Using generalized estimating equations adjusted for individual and neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics, greater greenness was associated with slower epigenetic aging. Black participants had less surrounding greenness and an attenuated association between greenness and epigenetic aging [βNDVI5km: -0.80, 95% confidence interval (CI): -4.75, 3.13 versus βNDVI5km: -3.03, 95% CI: -5.63, -0.43 in white participants]. Participants in disadvantaged neighborhoods showed a stronger association between greenness and epigenetic aging (βNDVI5km: -3.36, 95% CI: -6.65, -0.08 versus βNDVI5km: -1.57, 95% CI: -4.12, 0.96 in less disadvantaged). In conclusion, we found a relationship between greenness and slower epigenetic aging, and different associations by social determinants of health such as race and neighborhood socioeconomic status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyeezu Kim
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Brian T. Joyce
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Drew R. Nannini
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Yinan Zheng
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Penny Gordon-Larsen
- Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - James M. Shikany
- Division of Preventive Medicine, Heersink School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Donald M. Lloyd-Jones
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Ming Hu
- School of Architecture, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen
- Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Experimental and Health Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
- CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - Douglas E. Vaughan
- Department of Medicine, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
- Potocsnak Longevity Institute, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Kai Zhang
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
| | - Lifang Hou
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
- Potocsnak Longevity Institute, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
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