Negative mood is associated with sociobehavioral factors contributing to cardiovascular risk in an immigrant population.

BACKGROUND: After settling in the United States (US), immigrants often accumulate obesity and cardiovascular risk factors. As mood is often associated with health behaviors in the US population, mood may be an important mediating factor in immigrant populations. METHODS: The Healthy Immigrant Community (HIC) study, set in southeast Minnesota, enrolled 475 adult participants in a weight loss intervention designed to reduce cardiovascular risk. Baseline questionnaires assessed mood, nutrition, physical activity, self-efficacy for healthy eating and physical activity, social support, and cohesion. A single-item mood rating of poor or fair was considered "negative", while ratings of good, very good, or excellent were considered "positive". RESULTS: Hispanic/Latino (n = 268) and Somali (n = 181) adults enrolled in HIC completed baseline measures and were included in this analysis. Participants endorsing negative mood compared to positive mood had lower healthy eating scores (p = 0.02), lower physical activity levels (p = 0.03), lower confidence in eating a healthy diet (p = 0.001), and felt less of a sense of belonging to their community (p = 0.01). Those endorsing negative mood reported receiving less social support to eat healthy (p = < 0.001) and be physically active (p = 0.01). They also accessed community resources for healthy eating (p = 0.001) and physical activity (p = < 0.01) less frequently than participants endorsing positive mood. CONCLUSIONS: On self-report, negative mood was associated with less healthy nutrition, lower confidence in eating healthy, sedentary lifestyle, and perceived lack of belonging to the community. Integrating mood management and self-efficacy strategies may enhance the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions to reduce obesity and cardiovascular risk among immigrants who report negative mood. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT05136339; April 23, 2022.

Negative Mood is Associated with Sociobehavioral Factors Contributing to Cardiovascular Risk in an Immigrant Population.

Background: Immigrants to the United States, on average, accumulate cardiovascular risk after resettlement, including obesity. There is a need to co-create interventions to address these disparities, and mood may be an important mediating factor. Methods: The Healthy Immigrant Community (HIC) study, set in southeast Minnesota, enrolled 475 adult participants in a weight loss intervention to reduce cardiovascular risk. Baseline questionnaires assessed mood, nutrition, physical activity, self-efficacy for healthy eating and physical activity, social support, and cohesion. A single-item mood rating of poor or fair was considered "negative", while ratings of good, very good, or excellent were considered "positive". Results: A total of 449 HIC participants (268 Hispanic/Latino and 181 Somali) with complete baseline measures and were included in this analysis. Participants endorsing negative mood compared to those endorsing positive mood had lower scores for healthy eating (p = 0.02) and physical activity levels (p = 0.03), lower confidence in eating a healthy diet (p = 0.001), and felt less of a sense of belonging to their community (p = 0.01). Those endorsing negative mood also reported receiving less social support from their family and friends to eat healthy (p = < 0.001) and be physically active (p = 0.01), and less often accessed community resources for healthy eating (p = 0.001) and physical activity (p = < 0.01) compared to participants reporting positive mood. Conclusions: Negative mood was associated with less healthy nutrition, lower confidence in eating healthy, sedentary lifestyle, and perceived lack of belonging to the community. Integrating mood management and self-efficacy strategies may enhance the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions among immigrants who report negative mood. ClinicalTrialsgov registration: NCT05136339; April 23, 2022.

Pilot Social Network Weight Loss Intervention With Two Immigrant Populations During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

PURPOSE: To examine the feasibility and acceptability of a social network weight loss intervention delivered by lay health promoters (HPs) to immigrant populations. DESIGN: Single-arm, non-randomized, pilot study of a social network weight loss intervention developed by a community-based participatory research partnership and delivered by HPs. SETTING: Community-based setting in Southeastern Minnesota, United States. SAMPLE: Somali and Hispanic immigrants to the United States: 4 social networks of adults (2 Hispanic and 2 Somali) with 39 network participants. INTERVENTION: Twelve-week behavioral weight loss intervention delivered by HPs (4 weeks in-person and then 8 weeks virtual). MEASURES: Feasibility was assessed by recruitment and retention rates. Acceptability was assessed by surveys and focus groups with HPs and participants. Behavioral measures included servings of fruits and vegetables, drinking soda, and physical activity. Physiologic measures included weight, blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, and triglycerides. ANALYSIS: Paired t-tests of pre- to post-intervention changes at the end of 12 weeks of treatment. RESULTS: Recruitment was feasible and post-intervention was 100%. Participants highly rated the intervention on satisfaction, motivation, and confidence to eat a healthy diet, be physically active, and lose weight. Participants were motivated by group social support and cohesion of their social networks. On average, participants lost weight (91.6 ± 15.9 to 89.7 ± 16.6 kg, P < .0001), lowered their systolic blood pressure (133.9±16.9 to 127.2 ± 15.8 mm Hg; P < .001), lowered their diastolic blood pressure (81 ± 9.5 to 75.8 ± 9.6 mm Hg; P < .0001), had more servings of vegetables per day (1.9 ± 1.2 to 2.6 ± 1.4; P < .001), and increased their physical activity (2690 ± 3231 to 6595 ± 7322 MET-minutes per week; P = .02). CONCLUSION: This pilot study of 2 immigrant communities who participated in a peer-led weight loss social network intervention delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated high feasibility and acceptability. Participants lost weight, improved their health status, and improved their health behaviors.

Meal Planning Program to Reduce Barriers and Improve Diet Quality in Worksite Wellness Center Members.

OBJECTIVE: Many adults struggle with eating healthfully. To address this problem, dietitians and a physician at a worksite wellness center designed and implemented a healthy eating program to identify and reduce barriers and to improve nutrition knowledge, confidence, and eating habits. METHODS: A single cohort study design of members of a worksite wellness center who attended the program. RESULTS: Eight-six participants demonstrated significant improvement in reducing perceived barriers (P < 0.001), improving nutritional knowledge (P = 0.001), increasing confidence (P < 0.001), and increasing the frequency of preparing healthy meals (P < 0.001) and intake of fruits and vegetables (P < 0.001). These improvements were maintained at the 6-month follow-up. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that participation in a 6-week nutrition education program at a worksite wellness center decreases barriers to healthy eating and improves dietary intake.