SAT-133 Vida Sana Year 3: Improvements in Health Literacy and Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome in Participants in a Healthy Lifestyle Initiative at a Clinic for Low-Income Inner City Patients

Background: The prevalence of diabetes and metabolic syndrome are a major health problem in the United States, disproportionately affecting underserved communities. Here we describe the impact of the Vida Sana or Healthy Life Initiative at "The Clinica Esperanza", a free clinic in Providence, Rhode Island that serves a cohort of low-income, uninsured, and predominantly Hispanic individuals. This initiative, first implemented in 2014, aims to increase the health literacy of and decrease risk factors for metabolic syndrome in its participants. Methods: Throughout 2016, 138 clinic patients participated in Vida Sana, an 8 week course with five two-hour long educational sessions followed by two social sessions and a final session. 47% of participants who completed the course were either pre-diabetic or diabetic. Participants’ weight, BMI, waist circumference, blood glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure were measured at the first and the last sessions. Results: Among the 138 patients who began the course, 78 completed at least 6 of 8 sessions and provided data at the last session (57%). Among those who took the pre-test and the post-test, 69% scored higher on the post-test. Among those who completed the course, 69% had maintenance or loss of weight and average weight change was a loss of 1.85 lbs. Average change in BMI at 8 weeks was a loss of 0.34 kg/m2.79% had maintenance or loss of waist circumference with an average change of a loss of 0.83 inches. 67% had maintenance or loss of a1c with the average change being a decrease of 0.09%. 55% had maintenance or improvement of blood glucose with an average change of a decrease of 5.69 mg/dL. 70% had maintenance or improvement of total cholesterol with an average change of a decrease by 5.12 mg/dL. 74% had maintenance or improvement in systolic blood pressure with an average change of a decrease of 4.81 mmHg. 69% had maintenance or improvement in systolic blood pressure with an average change of a decrease of 1.42 mmHg. Conclusions: The Vida Sana initiative at a free clinic in Providence, RI improved the health literacy of the majority of its participants. At 8 weeks, more than half of participants had improved scores on a health literacy test and saw maintenance or improvement of weight, BMI, waist circumference, a1c, blood sugar, total cholesterol, and blood pressure. Similar initiatives could decrease risk factors for metabolic syndrome in vulnerable patients.

Community-based childhood obesity prevention intervention for parents improves health behaviors and food parenting practices among Hispanic, low-income parents

Background

Given the current prevalence of childhood obesity among Hispanic populations, and the importance of parental feeding behaviors, we aimed to assess the impact of the evidence-based Healthy Children, Healthy Families (HCHF) intervention on responsive food parenting practices (FPPs) in a low-income Hispanic population.

Methods

This community-based pilot study used a non-experimental pre/post within-subjects design. Parents (n = 94) of children aged 3-11 years old were recruited to participate in an 8-week, weekly group-based intervention. The intervention was delivered to nine groups of parents by trained paraprofessional educators over a two-year period. Children participated in a separate curriculum that covered topics similar to those covered in the parent intervention. Parents completed self-administered pre/post surveys, which included demographic questions, seven subscales from the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire, and the 16-item HCHF Behavior Checklist. Descriptive statistics and paired samples t-tests were used to analyze data from parents that completed the intervention.

Results

Fifty-two, primarily Hispanic (93%) parents completed the intervention (39% attrition rate). For parents who completed the intervention, there was a significant increase in one of the feeding practice subscales: encouragement of balance and variety (p = 0.01). There were significant improvements in several parent and child diet and activity outcomes (p ≤ 0.01).

Conclusions

Although attrition rates were high, parents completing the study reported enjoying and being satisfied with the intervention. For parents who completed the intervention, reported 'encouragement of balance and variety', in addition to several health behaviors significantly improved. Larger studies utilizing an experimental design, should further explore the impact of the HCHF curriculum on improving certain FPPs and health behaviors that contribute to obesity.

Building better biotherapeutics and vaccines by design: EpiVax, Inc., an immunology company

EpiVax, Inc., is an early-stage informatics and immunology biotechnology company in Providence, Rhode Island. It applies computational tools to harness immunity in three major areas: immunomodulation, biotherapeutic immunogenicity risk assessment and de-risking, and vaccine development. Immunotherapy, bio-better and vaccine candidates under development at EpiVax promise to improve the health outcomes of millions of people affected by devastating immune-related diseases.