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Adinkrah E, Najand B, Rahmani A, Maharlouei N, Ekwegh T, Cobb S, Zare H. Social Determinants of Mental, Physical, and Oral Health of Middle-Aged and Older African Americans in South Los Angeles. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:16765. [PMID: 36554645 PMCID: PMC9779480 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192416765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 12/10/2022] [Accepted: 12/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A growing body of research suggests that financial difficulties could weaken the protective effects of socioeconomic status (SES) indicators, including education and income, on the health status of marginalized communities, such as African Americans. AIM We investigated the separate and joint effects of education, income, and financial difficulties on mental, physical, and oral self-rated health (SRH) outcomes in African American middle-aged and older adults. METHODS This cross-sectional study enrolled 150 middle-aged and older African Americans residing in South Los Angeles. Data on demographic factors (age and gender), socioeconomic characteristics (education, income, and financial difficulties), and self-rated health (mental, physical, and oral health) were collected. Three linear regression models were used to analyze the data. RESULTS Higher education and income were associated with a lower level of financial strain in a bivariate analysis. However, according to multivariable models, only financial difficulties were associated with poor mental, physical, and oral health. As similar patterns emerged for all three health outcomes, the risk associated with financial difficulties seems robust. CONCLUSIONS According to our multivariable models, financial strain is a more salient social determinant of health within African American communities than education and income in economically constrained urban environments such as South Los Angeles. While education and income lose some protective effects, financial strain continues to deteriorate the health of African American communities across domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Adinkrah
- Department of Family Medicine, Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Babak Najand
- Marginalization-Related Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Arash Rahmani
- Marginalization-Related Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Najmeh Maharlouei
- Marginalization-Related Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Tavonia Ekwegh
- Mervyn M. Dymally School of Nursing, Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Sharon Cobb
- Mervyn M. Dymally School of Nursing, Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Hossein Zare
- Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- School of Business, University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC), Adelphi, Garden City, NY 20783, USA
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Assari S, Boyce S, Bazargan M, Thomas A, Cobb RJ, Hudson D, Curry TJ, Nicholson HL, Cuevas AG, Mistry R, Chavous TM, Caldwell CH, Zimmerman MA. Parental Educational Attainment, the Superior Temporal Cortical Surface Area, and Reading Ability among American Children: A Test of Marginalization-Related Diminished Returns. CHILDREN-BASEL 2021; 8:children8050412. [PMID: 34070118 PMCID: PMC8158386 DOI: 10.3390/children8050412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 05/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent studies have shown that parental educational attainment is associated with a larger superior temporal cortical surface area associated with higher reading ability in children. Simultaneously, the marginalization-related diminished returns (MDRs) framework suggests that, due to structural racism and social stratification, returns of parental education are smaller for black and other racial/ethnic minority children compared to their white counterparts. PURPOSE This study used a large national sample of 9-10-year-old American children to investigate associations between parental educational attainment, the right and left superior temporal cortical surface area, and reading ability across diverse racial/ethnic groups. METHODS This was a cross-sectional analysis that included 10,817 9-10-year-old children from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Parental educational attainment was treated as a five-level categorical variable. Children's right and left superior temporal cortical surface area and reading ability were continuous variables. Race/ethnicity was the moderator. To adjust for the nested nature of the ABCD data, mixed-effects regression models were used to test the associations between parental education, superior temporal cortical surface area, and reading ability overall and by race/ethnicity. RESULTS Overall, high parental educational attainment was associated with greater superior temporal cortical surface area and reading ability in children. In the pooled sample, we found statistically significant interactions between race/ethnicity and parental educational attainment on children's right and left superior temporal cortical surface area, suggesting that high parental educational attainment has a smaller boosting effect on children's superior temporal cortical surface area for black than white children. We also found a significant interaction between race and the left superior temporal surface area on reading ability, indicating weaker associations for Alaskan Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AIAN/NHPI) than white children. We also found interactions between race and parental educational attainment on reading ability, indicating more potent effects for black children than white children. CONCLUSION While parental educational attainment may improve children's superior temporal cortical surface area, promoting reading ability, this effect may be unequal across racial/ethnic groups. To minimize the racial/ethnic gap in children's brain development and school achievement, we need to address societal barriers that diminish parental educational attainment's marginal returns for middle-class minority families. Social and public policies need to go beyond equal access and address structural and societal barriers that hinder middle-class families of color and their children. Future research should test how racism, social stratification, segregation, and discrimination, which shape the daily lives of non-white individuals, take a toll on children's brains and academic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shervin Assari
- Minorities’ Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA; (S.B.); (M.B.)
- Department of Urban Public Health, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
- Department of Family Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
- Correspondence:
| | - Shanika Boyce
- Minorities’ Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA; (S.B.); (M.B.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
| | - Mohsen Bazargan
- Minorities’ Diminished Returns (MDRs) Center, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA; (S.B.); (M.B.)
- Department of Family Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
- Department of Family Medicine, University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Alvin Thomas
- Human Development and Family Studies Department, School of Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA;
| | - Ryon J. Cobb
- Department of Sociology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA;
| | - Darrell Hudson
- Brown School, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA;
| | - Tommy J. Curry
- Department of Philosophy, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9JS, UK;
| | - Harvey L. Nicholson
- Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-7330, USA;
| | - Adolfo G. Cuevas
- Psychosocial Determinants of Health (PSDH) Lab, Tufts University, Boston, MA 02155, USA;
- Department of Community Health, Tufts University, Boston, MA 02155, USA
| | - Ritesh Mistry
- Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA; (R.M.); (C.H.C.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Tabbye M. Chavous
- School of Education, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA;
- National Center for Institutional Diversity, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA
| | - Cleopatra H. Caldwell
- Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA; (R.M.); (C.H.C.); (M.A.Z.)
- Center for Research on Ethnicity, Culture, and Health (CRECH), University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA
| | - Marc A. Zimmerman
- Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA; (R.M.); (C.H.C.); (M.A.Z.)
- Prevention Research Center, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA
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Assari S, Boyce S. Resting-State Functional Connectivity between Putamen and Salience Network and Childhood Body Mass Index. Neurol Int 2021; 13:85-101. [PMID: 33806587 PMCID: PMC8006001 DOI: 10.3390/neurolint13010009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2020] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction: Although the putamen has a significant role in reward-seeking and motivated behaviors, including eating and food-seeking, minorities’ diminished returns (MDRs) suggest that individual-level risk and protective factors have weaker effects for Non-Hispanic Black than Non-Hispanic White individuals. However, limited research is available on the relevance of MDRs in terms of the role of putamen functional connectivity on body mass index (BMI). Purpose: Building on the MDRs framework and conceptualizing race and socioeconomic status (SES) indicators as social constructs, we explored racial and SES differences in the associations between putamen functional connectivity to the salience network and children’s BMI. Methods: For this cross-sectional study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data of 6473 9–10-year-old Non-Hispanic Black and Non-Hispanic White children from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. The primary independent variable was putamen functional connectivity to the salience network, measured by fMRI. The primary outcome was the children’s BMI. Age, sex, neighborhood income, and family structure were the covariates. Race, family structure, parental education, and household income were potential moderators. For data analysis, we used mixed-effect models in the overall sample and by race. Results: Higher right putamen functional connectivity to the salience network was associated with higher BMI in Non-Hispanic White children. The same association was missing for Non-Hispanic Black children. While there was no overall association in the pooled sample, a significant interaction was found, suggesting that the association between right putamen functional connectivity to the salience network and children’s BMI was modified by race. Compared to Non-Hispanic White children, Non-Hispanic Black children showed a weaker association between right putamen functional connectivity to the salience network and BMI. While parental education and household income did not moderate our association of interest, marital status altered the associations between putamen functional connectivity to the salience network and children’s BMI. These patterns were observed for right but not left putamen. Other/Mixed Race children also showed a pattern similar to Non-Hispanic Black children. Conclusions: The association between right putamen functional connectivity to the salience network and children’s BMI may depend on race and marital status but not parental education and household income. While right putamen functional connectivity to the salience network is associated with Non-Hispanic White children’s BMI, Non-Hispanic Black children’ BMI remains high regardless of their putamen functional connectivity to the salience network. This finding is in line with MDRs, which attributes diminished effects of individual-risk and protective factors for Non-Hispanic Black children to racism, stratification, and segregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shervin Assari
- Department of Family Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
- Department of Urban Public Health, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA
- Correspondence:
| | - Shanika Boyce
- Department of Pediatrics, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA;
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