Associations Of Racial Discrimination Research Articles

Association of Racial Discrimination With Adiposity in Children and Adolescents

Childhood obesity is a major public health issue and is disproportionately prevalent among children from minority racial and ethnic groups. Personally mediated racism (commonly referred to as racial discrimination) is a known stressor that has been linked to higher body mass index (BMI; calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) in adults, but little is known about the association of racial discrimination and childhood and adolescent adiposity. To assess the prospective association between self-reported experiences of racial discrimination and adiposity (BMI and waist circumference) in a large sample of children and adolescents in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. This cohort study used complete data from the ABCD study (2017 to 2019), involving a total of 6463 participants. The ABCD study recruited a diverse sample of youths from across the US, with rural, urban, and mountain regions. Data were analyzed from January 12 to May 17, 2023. The child-reported Perceived Discrimination Scale was used to quantify racial discrimination, reflecting participants' perceptions of being treated unfairly by others or unaccepted by society based on their race or ethnicity. Weight, height, and waist circumference were measured by trained research assistants. BMI z scores were computed by applying the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's age and sex-specific reference standards for children and adolescents. Waist circumference (inches) was quantified as the mean of 3 consecutive measures. Measurements were taken from time 1 (ie, 2017 to 2019) and time 2 (ie, 2018 to 2020). Of the 6463 respondents with complete data, 3090 (47.8%) were female, and the mean (SD) age was 9.95 (0.62) years. Greater racial discrimination exposure at time 1 was associated with higher BMI z score in both unadjusted (β, 0.05; 95% CI, 0.02-0.08) and adjusted regression models (β, 0.04; 95% CI, 0.01-0.08). Discrimination at time 1 was associated with higher waist circumference in unadjusted (β, 0.35; 95% CI, 0.15-0.54) and adjusted (β, 0.24; 95% CI, 0.04-0.44) models. In this cohort study of children and adolescents, racial discrimination was positively associated with adiposity, quantified by BMI z score and waist circumference. Interventions to reduce exposure to racial discrimination in early life may help reduce the risk of excess weight gain across throughout life.

Association of racial discrimination in health care settings and use of electronic cigarettes to quit smoking among Black adults

IntroductionBlack people are disproportionately burdened by tobacco-related diseases and are less successful at cigarette cessation with current treatments. We know little about the effectiveness of e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation method compared to currently approved methods in Black adults who smoke. Many Black adults report experiencing racial discrimination in health care, but if discrimination is related to utilization of smoking cessation aids including e-cigarettes and success with smoking cessation in this population is unclear. Therefore, this exploratory study aimed to understand how negative experiences and racial discrimination in health care influence use of e-cigarettes for cigarette cessation and success with cigarette cessation among Black adults. MethodsThe study interviewed 201 Black adults who used cigarettes and tried to quit in their lifetime from the Family and Community Health Study in 2016. The study asked if they had tried and successfully quit cigarettes with e-cigarettes vs. other methods (support groups, medications, nicotine replacement therapies, call-in help lines, cold turkey [quit on their own], counseling) and asked about their negative experiences and racial discrimination in health care. We performed separate logistic regressions that evaluated the association of negative experiences and racial discrimination in health care with 1) use of e-cigarettes for cigarette cessation vs. other quitting methods and 2) success with cigarette cessation using any method among Black adults while controlling for age, sex, socioeconomic status, health insurance status, and age of onset of cigarette use. ResultsMore reported negative experiences and racial discrimination in health care were associated with ever trying to quit with e-cigarettes compared to other methods (OR:1.75, 95 % CI [1.05–2.91]), but negative experiences and racial discrimination in health care were not associated with cigarette quitting success. Interestingly, trying e-cigarettes was associated with being less successful at quitting compared to using other methods to quit smoking (OR: 0.40, 95 % CI [0.20, 0.81]). ConclusionsThese results suggest that educating health care professionals that anticipated discrimination in health care settings may be driving Black adults who smoke to engage in non-evidence-based smoking cessation practices, such as e-cigarettes instead of those that are evidence-based, and may be more effective in this population.

Racial discrimination associates with lower cingulate cortex thickness in trauma-exposed black women.

Racial discrimination (RD) has been consistently linked to adverse brain health outcomes. These may be due in part to RD effects on neural networks involved with threat appraisal and regulation; RD has been linked to altered activity in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) and structural decrements in the anterior cingulum bundle and hippocampus. In the present study, we examined associations of RD with cingulate, hippocampus and amygdala gray matter morphology in a sample of trauma-exposed Black women. Eighty-one Black women aged 19-62 years were recruited as part of an ongoing study of trauma. Participants completed assessments of RD, trauma exposure, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and underwent T1-weighted anatomical imaging. Cortical thickness, surface area and gray matter volume were extracted from subregions of cingulate cortex, and gray matter volume was extracted from amygdala and hippocampus, and entered into partial correlation analyses that included RD and other socio-environmental variables. After correction for multiple comparisons and accounting for variance associated with other stressors and socio-environmental factors, participants with more RD exposure showed proportionally lower cortical thickness in the left rACC, caudal ACC, and posterior cingulate cortex (ps < = 0.01). These findings suggest that greater experiences of RD are linked to compromised cingulate gray matter thickness. In the context of earlier findings indicating that RD produces increased response in threat neurocircuitry, our data suggest that RD may increase vulnerability for brain health problems via cingulate cortex alterations. Further research is needed to elucidate biological mechanisms for these changes.

Racial Discrimination is Linked to Variation in Brain Structure and Function in Trauma-Exposed Black Women

Racial discrimination (RD) increases risk for adverse brain health outcomes in Black Americans, but little is known about how these stressors affect brain structure and function, which may mediate outcomes. We examined associations of RD with brain structure and function in trauma-exposed Black American women.

Is Racial Discrimination Associated with Number of Missing Teeth Among American Adults?

ObjectiveThe objectives of this study are to assess the association of racial discrimination with tooth loss among American adults and whether this relationship, if existed, explains ethnic differences in tooth loss.MethodsData is from the Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) 2014, a cross-sectional survey of a nationally representative sample of American adults. The survey included data on sociodemographic characteristics, behaviour, health insurance and number of missing teeth. The survey also included questions on whether a person was treated differently because of his/her race. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the relationship between tooth loss and indicators of discrimination. We also examined the relation between ethnicity and indicators of discrimination.ResultsThe analysis included 4858 participants aged 18 to 44 years. Tooth loss (> one tooth) was reported by 26% of participants. Among those reporting discrimination at healthcare facility, there was 141% increase in tooth loss compared to those not reporting discrimination. Discrimination at work and emotional impact of discrimination were both significantly associated with tooth loss in the partially adjusted models. Accounting for discrimination slightly attenuated ethnic differences in too loss. Black Americans had significantly higher odds for reporting all types of discrimination used here.ConclusionThis study demonstrated a potential role for discrimination in tooth loss among American adults. Discrimination could also explain part of ethnic inequalities in oral health.

Estimating the mental health costs of racial discrimination.

BackgroundRacial discrimination is a pervasive social problem in several advanced countries such as the U.S., U.K., and Australia. Public health research also indicates a range of associations between exposure to racial discrimination and negative health, particularly, mental health including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the direct negative health impact of racial discrimination has not been costed so far although economists have previously estimated indirect non-health related productivity costs. In this study, we estimate the burden of disease due to exposure to racial discrimination and measure the cost of this exposure.MethodsUsing prevalence surveys and data on the association of racial discrimination with health outcomes from a global meta-analysis, we apply a cost of illness method to measure the impact of racial discrimination. This estimate indicates the direct health cost attributable to racial discrimination and we convert the estimates to monetary values based on conventional parameters.ResultsRacial discrimination costs the Australian economy 235,452 in disability adjusted life years lost, equivalent to $37.9 billion per annum, roughly 3.02% of annual gross domestic product (GDP) over 2001–11, indicating a sizeable loss for the economy.ConclusionSubstantial cost is incurred due to increased prevalence of racial discrimination as a result of its association with negative health outcomes (e.g. depression, anxiety and PTSD). This implies that potentially significant cost savings can be made through measures that target racial discrimination. Our research contributes to the debate on the social impact of racial discrimination, with implications for policies and efforts addressing it.

Associations of racial discrimination and parental discrimination coping messages with African American adolescent racial identity.

Research links racial identity to important developmental outcomes among African American adolescents, but less is known about the contextual experiences that shape youths' racial identity. In a sample of 491 African American adolescents (48% female), associations of youth-reported experiences of racial discrimination and parental messages about preparation for racial bias with adolescents' later racial identity were examined. Cluster analysis resulted in four profiles of adolescents varying in reported frequency of racial discrimination from teachers and peers at school and frequency of parental racial discrimination coping messages during adolescents' 8th grade year. Boys were disproportionately over-represented in the cluster of youth experiencing more frequent discrimination but receiving fewer parental discrimination coping messages, relative to the overall sample. Also examined were clusters of adolescents' 11th grade racial identity attitudes about the importance of race (centrality), personal group affect (private regard), and perceptions of societal beliefs about African Americans (public regard). Girls and boys did not differ in their representation in racial identity clusters, but 8th grade discrimination/parent messages clusters were associated with 11th grade racial identity cluster membership, and these associations varied across gender groups. Boys experiencing more frequent discrimination but fewer parental coping messages were over-represented in the racial identity cluster characterized by low centrality, low private regard, and average public regard. The findings suggest that adolescents who experience racial discrimination but receive fewer parental supports for negotiating and coping with discrimination may be at heightened risk for internalizing stigmatizing experiences. Also, the findings suggest the need to consider the context of gender in adolescents' racial discrimination and parental racial socialization.

PS3-19: Association of Racial Discrimination and Overweight Status Among Adolescents

Background/Aims The percent of overweight adolescents has tripled in the last 30 years, with increasing the risk for obesity and chronic diseases. Evidence suggests racial discrimination has implications for academic performance and health; however, research examining its contribution to obesity among adolescents is limited. We examined the association between discrimination and overweight status in a racially-diverse sample of healthy adolescents.