The 3E Study: Economic and Educational Contributions to Emerging Adult Cardiometabolic Health

Fordham University, Bronx NY

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

Emerging adulthood represents a uniquely sensitive period for studying health and ways to promote health, as young people begin to establish their own paths towards higher education, careers, and financial independence. College represents a period of shifting socioeconomic position (SEP), a dynamic that has not been as thoroughly studied in health research. In the United States, over 40% of young adults aged 18–24 are enrolled as full-time college students, and, particularly at public institutions of higher education, many have experiences of poverty. Despite perceptions that emerging adult college students are at the peak of health, over one-third of college students report being overweight or obese, and the incidence of cardiovascular disease outcomes among young adults has been an increasing cause of concern, particularly among low-SEP students. Therefore, emerging adult college students are a priority population to promote cardiometabolic health before the onset of chronic disease. The proposed longitudinal research addresses these important scientific gaps by creating and studying a de novo, longitudinal cohort of 2,000 young adult college students from public institutions of higher education and followed over three years, including if they leave college. The study will incorporate anthropometric, institutional administrative, smartphone, behavioral, and self-reported data. The specific aims are: (1) To determine the contribution of emerging adults’ economic stressors (e.g., income, wealth, financial stress, basic needs, residential environment, subjective social status) to cardiometabolic health outcomes (e.g., weight-related measures, blood pressure) over time; (2) To determine the contribution of educational protective factors (e.g., use of social supports, academic supports, basic needs supports) to cardiometabolic health outcomes over time; (3) examine weight-related behaviors (i.e., sleep, physical activity, diet, disordered eating, smoking) as mechanisms of associations between economic stress, educational protective factors, and cardiometabolic health. Identifying risk and protective factors that could affect weight and blood pressure among emerging adult college students can help inform novel interventions and support services to promote cardiometabolic health in a significant portion of the young adult population.