Asthma status moderates the relationship between neighbourhood disadvantage and obesity in African American adolescent females.

INTRODUCTION: Significant health disparities exist in asthma and obesity for African American youths. Successful interventions present an opportunity to address these disparities but require detailed study in order to ensure generalizability. This study investigated the intersection of obesity, neighbourhood disadvantage, and asthma. METHODS: Data were extracted from 129 African American females ages 13 to 19 years (mean = 15.6 years [SD = 1.9]). Obesity was measured via body mass index (BMI). Asthma status was based on clinical diagnosis and/or results of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies during Childhood (ISAAC) questionnaire. The concentrated disadvantage index (CDI) assessed neighbourhood disadvantage. RESULTS: Findings showed that 21.5% (n = 28) of participants were clinically defined as having asthma, 76.2% (n = 99) had obesity, and 24.9% (n = 31) were classified without obesity. The mean BMI was 35.1 (SD = 9.1) and the mean CDI was 1.0 (SD = 0.9). CDI and obesity were significantly associated in participants without asthma, but not in those with asthma. Multivariable linear regression results showed a significant interaction between CDI and asthma (t value = 2.2, P = .03). CONCLUSION: In sum, results from this study found that asthma moderated the relationship between neighbourhood disadvantage and obesity.

Incarcerated Black Women in the Southern USA: A Narrative Review of STI and HIV Risk and Implications for Future Public Health Research, Practice, and Policy.

Incarcerated black women in the southern USA are understudied despite the high prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STI) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). These incarceration and health disparities are rooted in centuries of historically inequitable treatment. Amidst the current dialogue on mass incarceration in the south and its relationship to the health of the black community, individual and environmental risk factors for STI/HIV transmission are seldom paired with discussions of evidence-based solutions. A narrative review of the literature from January 1995 to May 2015 was conducted. This sample of the literature (n = 18) revealed that partner concurrency, inconsistent condom use, sex work, previous STI, and drug abuse augmented individual STI/HIV risk. Recommended interventions include those which promote healthier relationships, cultural competence, and gender specificity, as well as those that enhance prevention skills. Policy recommendations include improving cultural sensitivity, cultural competence, and cultural humility training for clinicians, as well as substantially increasing funding for prevention, treatment, and rehabilitative services. These recommendations are timely given the recent national attention to incarceration, STI, and HIV disparities, particularly in the southern USA.

At the crossroad between obesity and gastric cancer.

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions worldwide with disproportionate prevalence in different communities and ethnic groups. Recently, the American Medical Association recognized obesity as a disease, which is a significant milestone that opens the possibilities of treating obesity under standardized health plans. Obesity is an inflammatory disease characterized by elevated levels of biomarkers associated with abnormal lipid profiles, glucose levels, and blood pressure that lead to the onset of metabolic syndrome. Interestingly, inflammatory biomarkers, in particular, have been implicated in the risk of developing several types of cancer. Likewise, obesity has been linked to esophageal, breast, gallbladder, kidney, pancreatic, and colorectal cancers. Thus, there exists a link between obesity status and tumor appearance, which may be associated to the differential levels and the circulating profiles of several inflammatory molecules. For example, mediators of the inflammatory responses in both obesity and gastric cancer risk are the same: pro-inflammatory molecules produced by the activated cells infiltrating the inflamed tissues. These molecules trigger pathways of activation shared by obesity and cancer. Therefore, understanding how these different pathways are modulated would help reduce the impact that both diseases, and their concomitant existence, have on society.