Let's Move Together.

BACKGROUND: Due to shared health behaviors and disease risk, families may be more effective targets for health promotion. This study assessed whether providing family health history (FHH)-based risk information for heart disease and diabetes affected encouragement to engage in physical activity (PA) and healthy weight (HW) maintenance and co-engagement in physical activity among 320 Mexican-origin parents and their 1,081 children. METHOD: At baseline and 10 months, parents indicated who they encouraged and who encouraged them to engage in PA/HW, and with whom they co-engaged in PA. Households were randomized to receive FHH-based assessments either by one or all adult household members. Primary analyses consisted of regression analyses using generalized estimating equations. RESULTS: At baseline, parents reported encouraging their child for both PA and HW in 37.6% of parent-child dyads and reported receiving children's encouragement for both in 12.1% of dyads. These increased to 56.8% and 17.5% at 10 months ( p < .001). Co-engagement in PA increased from 11.4% to 15.7% ( p < .001), with younger children (30.4%) and mother-daughter dyads (26.8%) most likely to co-engage at 10 months. Providing FHH-based risk information to all adult household members (vs. one) was associated with increased parent-to-child encouragement of PA/HW ( p = .011) at 10 months but not child-to-parent encouragement. New encouragement from parent-to-child ( p = .048) and from child-to-parent ( p = .003) predicted new 10-month PA co-engagement. DISCUSSION: Providing FHH information on a household level can promote parental encouragement for PA/HW, which can promote greater parent-child co-engagement in PA. In this high-risk population with a cultural emphasis on family ties, using FHH-based risk information for all adult household members may be a promising avenue to promote PA.

What You Don't Know: Improving Family Health History Knowledge among Multigenerational Families of Mexican Origin.

BACKGROUND: This study investigated diabetes and heart disease family health history (FHH) knowledge and changes after providing personalized disease risk feedback. METHODS: A total of 497 adults from 162 families of Mexican origin were randomized by household to conditions based on feedback recipient and content. Each provided personal and relatives' diabetes and heart disease diagnoses and received feedback materials following baseline assessment. Multivariate models were fitted to identify factors associated with the rate of 'don't know' FHH responses. RESULTS: At baseline, US nativity was associated with a higher 'don't know' response rate (p = 0.002). Though confounded by country of birth, younger age showed a trend toward higher 'don't know' response rates. Overall, average 'don't know' response rates dropped from 20 to 15% following receipt of feedback (p < 0.001). An intervention effect was noted, as 'don't know' response rates decreased more in households where one family member (vs. all) received supplementary risk assessments (without behavioral recommendations; p = 0.011). CONCLUSIONS: Limited FHH knowledge was noted among those born in the US and younger participants, representing a key population to reach with intervention efforts. The intervention effect suggests that 'less is more', indicating the potential for too much information to limit health education program effectiveness.

The importance of older family members in providing social resources and promoting cancer screening in families with a hereditary cancer syndrome.

PURPOSE: This study evaluates the role of older family members as providers of social resources within familial network systems affected by an inherited cancer susceptibility syndrome. DESIGN AND METHODS: Respondents who previously participated in a study that involved genetic counseling and testing for Lynch syndrome and their family network members were invited to participate in a onetime telephone interview about family communication. RESULTS: A total of 206 respondents from 33 families identified 2,051 social relationships (dyads). Nineteen percent of the respondents and 25% of the network members were older (≥60 years). Younger respondents (≤59 years) were more likely to nominate older network members as providers of social resources than younger members: instrumental support (odds ratio [OR] = 1.68), emotional support (OR = 1.71), help in crisis situation (OR = 2.04), and dependability when needed (OR = 2.15). Compared with younger network members, older members were more likely to be listed as encouragers of colon cancer screening by both younger (OR = 3.40) and older respondents (OR = 1.90) independent of whether support exchange occurred in the relationship. IMPLICATIONS: Engaging older network members in health interventions to facilitate screening behaviors and emotional well-being of younger members within families affected by inherited conditions may be beneficial. Findings can be used to empower older individuals about their important social roles in enhancing the well-being of their family members and to inform younger individuals about their older relatives' resourcefulness to facilitate positive social interactions.

Willingness of Mexican-American adults to share family health history with healthcare providers.

BACKGROUND: Collecting family health history (FHH) information to share with healthcare providers is an important aspect of health-risk assessment. PURPOSE: To examine associations between the content of FHH-informed risk feedback and willingness to share the information with a healthcare provider. METHODS: Data were collected between June 2008 and July 2009 from 475 Mexican-origin adults residing in 161 households. Participants completed surveys 3 months after receiving FHH-informed risk feedback. Households were randomly assigned to feedback conditions in which household members received one or more of the following: an FHH pedigree, personalized risk assessments (PRAs), and tailored behavioral recommendations. Logistic regression models were fitted using generalized estimating equations, with exchangeable covariances, to account for the clustering of responses within and the random assignment of feedback condition to household. Analyses were completed in May 2010. RESULTS: Participants who received personalized risk assessments were more willing to share their feedback with a provider than those who received a pedigree only (OR=2.25, p=0.02). The receipt of tailored behavioral recommendations did not significantly increase willingness to share feedback with a provider (OR=0.79, p=0.48). CONCLUSIONS: The provision of PRAs in FHH assessments appears to motivate participants to consider sharing their FHH with a healthcare provider.