Sociocultural Influences on Dietary Intake Among Black Women in the Deep South

University Of Alabama At Birmingham, Birmingham AL

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Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by the applicant): Non-Hispanic blacks and residents of the Deep South, of whom about 1/3 are black, are disproportionately impacted by a myriad of chronic medical conditions including obesity, cancer, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. Black women living in Alabama and Mississippi are at particularly high risk with greater health risk factors than white counterparts in their state, and national averages for black women. Poor dietary intake is at least partially implicated in the expressed disparities. Comprehensive frameworks for explaining dietary behaviors have suggested influencing factors such as demographics (e.g., rural or urban residence, age), psychosocial factors (e.g., self-efficacy, nutrition knowledge), socio-cultural factors (e.g., social or cultural norms), and the built environment (e.g., access to supermarkets). To date, little attention has been focused on measuring the impact of socio-cultural influences in addition to individual psychosocial factors on dietary intake among black women in the Deep South. We hypothesize that: (1) there is a direct relationship between individual psychosocial factors and dietary intake, and (2) the relationship between socio-cultural factors and dietary intake is mediated by individual psychosocial factors. This study leverages the ongoing academic-community partnership of the UAB Deep South Network for Cancer Control and Prevention (DSN) that includes 22 counties in Alabama and Mississippi. Approximately 300 black women across the DSN will participate in concept mapping, a participatory and mixed methods design, to characterize the socio-cultural influences on dietary intake (Aim 1). An additional 350 black women will participate in a cross-sectional study to investigate the relationship between socio-cultural influences, individual factors, and dietary intake (Aim 2). We will then use cluster analysis to develop a typology of dietary intake influences among black women residing in the Deep South (Aim 3). Findings from this study have the potential to better explain the limited successes of black women achieving recommended dietary intake and, more importantly, better inform future interventions for black women at greatest risk for obesity and other chronic conditions.