Ethnic, racial, and gender variations in health among farm operators in the United States

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to collect baseline prevalence data on the health problems faced by minority, white, and female farm operators. METHODS: An occupational health survey of farm operators was conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service between February and August 2000. A stratified random sample of farm operators from 50 U.S. states based on the 1997 Census of Agriculture was selected for telephone interview. Interviews were primarily conducted using a computer assisted telephone instrument system. RESULTS: Population prevalences were calculated for 7137 farm operators. Prevalences were greatest for musculoskeletal discomfort, followed by respiratory problems, hearing loss, and hypertension. Generally, Latino and Asian American operators had lower prevalences for health problems than white non-Latino and white operators, respectively. African-American operators had greater prevalences for hypertension, and osteoarthritis, but lower prevalences for hearing loss, skin problems, heart problems, and cancer than white operators. American Indian or Alaska Native operators had higher prevalences for musculoskeletal problems, skin problems, and hypertension. CONCLUSIONS: Prevalences for the different ethnicity and race groups are not the same. Studies that combine racial and ethnic groups, or study only white and non-Latino farm operators may overestimate or underestimate the prevalence of health conditions in the entire farm operator population.     

Periodontal outcomes and social, racial and gender inequalities in Brazil: a systematic review of the literature between 1999 and 2008

The objective of this study was to review the Brazilian epidemiologic literature on periodontal outcomes and socio-demographic factors, assessing bibliographic and methodological characteristics of this scientific production, as well as the consistency and statistical significance of the examined associations. A systematic review was carried out in six bibliographic sources. The review was limited to the period between 1999 and 2008, without any other type of restriction. Among the 410 papers identified, 29 were included in the review. An increasing number of articles, specifically in the last four years of study, was observed. However, there is a concentration of studies in the South and Southeast regions of Brazil, and many of them are not closely connected to theoretical formulations in the field. In spite of these shortcomings, the review findings corroborate the idea that poor socioeconomic conditions are associated with periodontal outcomes, as demonstrated primarily by income and schooling indicators.     

Association between racial discrimination and health-related quality of life and the impact of social relationships

Quality of Life Research - Interpersonal racial discrimination is associated with poor health. Social relationships may moderate the impact of discrimination and represent modifiable behaviors that...     

基于社交文本的高中到大学过渡阶段青少年情绪研究

  目的  分析大学生在社交网络平台上的文本信息,了解其在高中到大学过渡阶段时情绪状态及变化轨迹,为开展青少年心理健康教育提供参考。  方法  于2018年9—11月及2019年9—10月,通过线上和线下方式招募南昌大学534名本科生,提取其高三到大一时间区间内发布的QQ说说,以“月”为时间颗粒度进行标记。使用结巴分词程序和情绪词典,计算每月说说总词数、条数、积极情绪和消极情绪词平均词频。描述高中到大学阶段QQ说说的基本活跃度,使用多层线性模型分析消极情绪和积极情绪词词频的月变化趋势,进一步对高中和大学两阶段的基本活跃度和月变化趋势进行比较。  结果  青少年在进入大一后,对社交平台的使用度较高,说说总词数、条数、积极情绪、消极情绪词数均高于高三阶段(Wilcoxon Z值分别为-18.93,-18.03,-18.40,-13.60,P值均＜0.01);大一阶段,女生发表说说的说说总词数、条数、积极情绪、消极情绪词数均高于男生(Mann-Whitney U值分别为26 499.00,28 581.00,24 636.00,28 010.50,P值均＜0.05)。青少年说说积极情绪词比消极情绪词更多,积极情绪词的月平均词频(0.029)是消极情绪词(0.012)的2.40倍;在高三阶段的积极情绪词频、消极情绪词频会随着月份发生显著降低(β值分别为-6.01,-3.55;t值分别为-3.40,-2.86,P值均＜0.01)。  结论  青少年在高三阶段使用QQ说说的活跃度较低,但其说说中体现出的积极情绪、消极情绪波动均更为剧烈,高三阶段学生的情绪状态值得关注。     

Addressing racial disparities in social welfare programs: using social equity analysis to examine the problem

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) allows states considerable discretion in developing and implementing their Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs. Little research so far has compared the implementation of TANF programs across racial groups. Without such analysis, it is difficult to interpret program outcomes. Using client survey data from a large Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation (MDRC) study, the Project on Devolution and Urban Change, this article compares African-American, Hispanic and White Clients' experiences with diversion, case management, sanctioning, exiting welfare, and dispute resolution. Using residual differences analysis, this article identifies significant differences in treatment among racial and ethnic groups.     

Neighborhood playgrounds, fast food restaurants, and crime: relationships to overweight in low-income preschool children

BACKGROUND: We examined the relationship between overweight in preschool children and three environmental factors--the proximity of the children's residences to playgrounds and to fast food restaurants and the safety of the children's neighborhoods. We hypothesized that children who lived farther from playgrounds, closer to fast food restaurants, and in unsafe neighborhoods were more likely to be overweight. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of 7,020 low-income children, 36 through 59 months of age living in Cincinnati, OH. Overweight was defined as a measured body mass index > or =95th percentile. The distance between each child's residence and the nearest public playground and fast food restaurant was determined with geographic information systems. Neighborhood safety was defined by the number of police-reported crimes per 1,000 residents per year in each of 46 city neighborhoods. RESULTS: Overall, 9.2% of the children were overweight, 76% black, and 23% white. The mean (+/- SD) distances from a child's home to the nearest playground and fast food restaurant were 0.31 (+/- 0.22) and 0.70 (+/- 0.38) miles, respectively. There was no association between child overweight and proximity to playgrounds, proximity to fast food restaurants, or level of neighborhood crime. The association between child overweight and playground proximity did not differ by neighborhood crime level. CONCLUSIONS: Within a population of urban low-income preschoolers, overweight was not associated with proximity to playgrounds and fast food restaurants or with the level of neighborhood crime.     

Adolescent and young adult mortality by cause: age, gender, and country, 1955 to 1994.

PURPOSE: To compare mortality rates from motor vehicle accidents (MVA), homicide, and suicide across countries, age groups, and time. METHODS: The World Health Organization Mortality Database was used to construct age- and gender-specific rates in 26 countries for individuals aged 15 to 34 years during the period 1955 to 1994. The rates were adjusted for differences among countries in the age-and-gender distributions of their populations. Cause-specific rates were compared by country, 4-year age groups, 8-year time blocks, and male/female ratios. RESULTS: The proportion of deaths in 15-34-year-olds owing to MVA, homicide, and suicide increased from 26% to 43% over the 40-year study period. Mortality rates differ by country more than time block, peak at ages 15-29 years, and are higher in males than females. Compared to the United States, 24 countries had lower homicide rates and 23 had lower MVA-death rates. CONCLUSIONS: Despite declining rates of death from other causes, the rates of adolescent and young adult death from MVA, homicide, and suicide remain high in countries throughout the world. The proportion of deaths attributable to these causes increased steadily during the latter half of the 20th century. Fatal risk behaviors begin to increase during adolescence but do not peak until age 30 years, suggesting that the target population for prevention extends well beyond the teenage years.     

Frontline work and racial disparities in social and economic pandemic stressors during the first COVID-19 surge

Objective

To assess the magnitude of racial–ethnic disparities in pandemic-related social stressors and examine frontline work's moderating relationship on these stressors.

Data Sources

Employed Californians' responses to the Institute for Governmental Studies (IGS) poll from April 16–20, 2020, were analyzed. The Pandemic Stressor Scale (PSS) assessed the extent to which respondents experienced or anticipated problems resulting from the inability to pay for basic necessities, job instability, lacking paid sick leave, unavailability of childcare, and reduced wages or work hours due to COVID-19.

Study Design

Mixed-effects generalized linear models estimated (1) racial–ethnic disparities in pandemic stressors among workers during the first COVID-19 surge, adjusting for covariates, and (2) tested the interaction between race–ethnicity and frontline worker status, which includes a subset of essential workers who must perform their job on-site, to assess differential associations of frontline work by race–ethnicity.

Data Collection

The IGS poll data from employed workers (n = 4795) were linked to the 2018 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Social Vulnerability Index at the zip code level (N = 1068).

Principal Findings

The average PSS score was 37.34 (SD = 30.49). Whites had the lowest PSS score (29.88, SD = 26.52), and Latinxs had the highest (50.74, SD = 32.61). In adjusted analyses, Black frontline workers reported more pandemic-related stressors than White frontline workers (PSS = 47.73 vs. 36.96, p < 0.001). Latinxs reported more pandemic stressors irrespective of frontline worker status. However, the 5.09-point difference between Latinx frontline and non-frontline workers was not statistically different from the 4.6-point disparity between White frontline and non-frontline workers.

Conclusion

Latinx workers and Black frontline workers disproportionately reported pandemic-related stressors. To reduce stress on frontline workers during crises, worker protections like paid sick leave, universal access to childcare, and improved job security are needed, particularly for those disproportionately affected by structural inequities, such as racially minoritized populations.     

The social dynamics of the interview: age, class, and gender

Researchers have paid only limited attention to how social structural factors influence the course and content of interviews. Speech, comportment, and values inherent to gender and other social, structural, and contextual factors, such as age, socioeconomic positioning, and ethnicity, all influence the direction, flow, and content of interviews, informing how we might interpret the information collected in the process. Drawing on interviews conducted within an Australian study on chronic illness and disability, the authors explore the performative nature of the interview and how interviewers and interviewees respond to the structural factors shaping the social dynamics of the interview to produce accounts of social life.     

The epidemiology of acute appendicitis in California: racial, gender, and seasonal variation.

The incidence of acute appendicitis has been reported to vary substantially by country, geographic region, race, sex, season, and occupation, but the reasons for this variation are unknown. We evaluated several risk factors for appendicitis by analyzing data from hospital discharge abstracts on all cases of acute appendicitis treated surgically in nonfederal hospitals in California from 1983 to 1986 (N = 102,546). Comparison of age and sex-specific incidence rates for four racial/ethnic groups (white, Hispanic, black, and Asian/other) revealed rates in blacks and the Asian/other group one-half or less of the rates for whites and Hispanics between the ages of 5 and 29 years. Incidence rates in males were higher than rates in females in all racial/ethnic groups for most ages (RR = 1.1-1.7). Seasonal variation in incidence was modest. Peak rates occurred in July, August, and September, and the lowest rates occurred in December. Hypotheses about the etiology of appendicitis must account for substantial racial/ethnic, gender, age variation, and modest seasonal variation in the incidence.