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Davidson JC, Kent BV, Cozier YC, Kanaya AM, Warner ET, Eliassen AH, Williams DR, Shields AE. "Does Religious Service Attendance Modify the Relationship between Everyday Discrimination and Risk of Obesity? Results from the Study on Stress, Spirituality and Health". J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2023:10.1007/s40615-023-01765-5. [PMID: 37921946 PMCID: PMC11065965 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-023-01765-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 11/05/2023]
Abstract
This study examined the association of everyday discrimination with risk of obesity and the potential modifying effect of religious service attendance. Participants included Black, South Asian, and white women in three cohort studies that belong to the Study on Stress, Spirituality and Health. Logistic regression models estimated odds of obesity classification (BMI ≥ 30) relative to experiences of everyday discrimination. In initial pooled analyses, high levels of discrimination were related to increased odds of obesity. Race-specific analyses revealed marginal associations for white and South Asian women. Among Black women, high levels of discrimination and religious service attendance were both associated with higher odds of obesity. However, among women who attended religious services frequently, higher levels of everyday discrimination were associated with slightly lower odds of obesity. These findings underline the complex association between obesity and religion/spirituality, suggesting that higher levels of discrimination may uniquely activate religious resources or coping strategies. Findings highlight the need for additional studies to examine the impact of everyday discrimination on risk of obesity across racial/ethnic communities and how religious practices or coping strategies might affect these dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Clark Davidson
- Massachussetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
| | - Blake Victor Kent
- Massachussetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Yvette C Cozier
- Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alka M Kanaya
- University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Erica T Warner
- Massachussetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - A Heather Eliassen
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Alexandra E Shields
- Massachussetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Kent BV, Upenieks L, Kanaya AM, Warner ET, Cozier YC, Daviglus ML, Eliassen H, Jang DY, Shields AE. Religion/Spirituality and Prevalent Hypertension among Ethnic Cohorts in the Study on Stress, Spirituality, and Health. Ann Behav Med 2023; 57:649-661. [PMID: 37265144 PMCID: PMC10354840 DOI: 10.1093/abm/kaad007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hypertension is a significant public health issue, particularly for Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos, and South Asians who are at greater risk than whites. Religion and spirituality (R/S) have been shown to be protective, but this has been identified primarily in whites with limited R/S measures examined (i.e., religious service attendance). PURPOSE To assess hypertension prevalence (HP) in four racial/ethnic groups while incorporating an array of R/S variables, including individual prayer, group prayer, nontheistic daily spiritual experiences, yoga, gratitude, positive religious coping, and negative religious coping. METHODS Data were drawn from the Study on Stress, Spirituality, and Health, a consortium of ethnically diverse U.S. cohorts. The sample included 994 Black women, 838 Hispanic/Latino men and women, 879 South Asian men and women, and 3681 white women. Using a cross-sectional design, prevalence ratios for R/S and hypertension were reported for each cohort, in addition to pooled analyses. Given differences in R/S among men and women, all models were stratified by gender. RESULTS Different patterns of associations were found between women and men. Among women: 1) religious attendance was associated with lower HP among Black and white women; 2) gratitude was linked to lower HP among Hispanic/Latino, South Asian, and white women; 3) individual prayer was associated with higher HP among Hispanic/Latino and white women; 4) yoga was associated with higher HP among South Asian women, and 5) negative religious coping was linked to higher HP among Black women. Among men: significant results were only found among Hispanic/Latino men. Religious attendance and individual prayer were associated with higher HP, while group prayer and negative religious coping were associated with lower HP. CONCLUSION Religion/spirituality is a multifaceted construct that manifests differently by race/ethnicity and gender. Medical practitioners should avoid a one-size-fits-all approach to this topic when evaluating prevalent hypertension in diverse communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake Victor Kent
- Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
- Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura Upenieks
- Department of Sociology, Baylor University, Waco, TX, USA
| | - Alka M Kanaya
- University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Erica T Warner
- Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Yvette C Cozier
- Boston University Slone Epidemiology Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Martha L Daviglus
- University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA
| | | | - Daniel Y Jang
- Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Alexandra E Shields
- Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Kent BV, Davidson JC, Zhang Y, Pargament KI, VanderWeele TJ, Koenig H, Underwood LG, Krause N, Kanaya AM, Tworoger SS, Schachter AB, Cole S, O’Leary M, Cozier Y, Daviglus M, Giachello AL, Zacher T, Palmer JR, Shields AE. Religion and Spirituality among American Indian, South Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latina, and White Women in the Study on Stress, Spirituality, and Health. J Sci Study Relig 2021; 60:198-215. [PMID: 34012171 PMCID: PMC8127946 DOI: 10.1111/jssr.12695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Social scientists have increasingly recognized the lack of diversity in survey research on American religion, resulting in a dearth of data on religion and spirituality (R/S) in understudied racial and ethnic groups. At the same time, epidemiological studies have increasingly diversified their racial and ethnic representation, but have collected few R/S measures to date. With a particular focus on American Indian and South Asian women (in addition to Blacks, Hispanic/Latinas, and white women), this study introduces a new effort among religion and epidemiology researchers, the Study on Stress, Spirituality, and Health (SSSH). This multi-cohort study provides some of the first estimates of R/S beliefs and practices among American Indians and U.S. South Asians, and offers new insight into salient beliefs and practices of diverse racial/ethnic and religious communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake Victor Kent
- Westmont College, Department of Sociology, Santa Barbara, CA
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA
| | - James C. Davidson
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA
- California State University – Northridge, Department of Sociology, Northridge, CA
| | - Ying Zhang
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Kenneth I. Pargament
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Bowling Green State University, Department of Psychology, Bowling Green, OH
| | - Tyler J. VanderWeele
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Boston, MA
- Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Biostatistics, Boston, MA
| | - Harold Koenig
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Lynn G. Underwood
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Case Western Reserve University Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence, Cleveland, OH
| | - Neal Krause
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Alka M. Kanaya
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA
| | - Shelley S. Tworoger
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Boston, MA
- Moffitt Cancer Center Department of Cancer Epidemiology, Tampa, FL
| | - Anna B. Schachter
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA
| | - Shelley Cole
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Marcia O’Leary
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Missouri Breaks Industries Research, Inc., Eagle Butte, SD
| | - Yvette Cozier
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Boston University School of Public Health, Slone Epidemiology Center, Boston, MA
| | - Martha Daviglus
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | - Aida L. Giachello
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Northewestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Preventive Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | - Tracy Zacher
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
| | - Julie R. Palmer
- Boston University School of Public Health, Slone Epidemiology Center, Boston, MA
| | - Alexandra E. Shields
- National Consortium on Psychosocial Stress, Spirituality, and Health, Boston, MA
- Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital Center on Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA
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