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The current study examined the effectiveness of a community-based lay health advisor intervention, combined with youth engagement, in improving lead poisoning prevention behaviors and associated beliefs in a rural Native American population located in and near a Superfund site containing mining waste. Three sequential (1997, 2000, and 2004) cross-sectional assessments involving in-person interviews with Native American and White caregivers of young children were conducted. Results showed significant improvements over time for Native American, but not for White, for children washing their hands before meals and snacks, and for annual blood lead testing of both Native American and White children. Findings lend support to the value of community-based education for primary prevention of lead poisoning in Native American and rural communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household smoking bans reduce exposure to secondhand smoke in adult nonsmokers and children. To explore the process families go through in adopting voluntary household smoking restrictions, qualitative interviews were conducted with rural African American and White adults in 102 households. The study investigated how families decide to restrict smoking in the home, who has significant influence in the decision-making process, the kinds of disagreements families have about household smoking restrictions, and reasons some families never consider household smoking policies. These findings have implications for designing intervention strategies and messages to promote household smoking bans and help family members negotiate smoke-free homes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: To examine the relationship among individual youth assets and adolescent sexual risk behaviors. METHODS: Cross-sectional, in-home interview data from randomly selected inner-city neighborhood teenagers (N = 1253) and their parents (N = 1253) were analyzed. Demographic information (e.g., age, parental income, family structure) was statistically controlled for while investigating the relationships among youth asset and sexual activity outcomes using logistic regression analyses. Potential interactions between the demographic variables and the assets were also examined. The five sexual risk behaviors included 'never had sexual intercourse,' current sexual activity, number of lifetime sexual partners, current use of birth control, and age at first intercourse. RESULTS: Youth mean age was 15.4 (+/- 1.7) years; 52% were female; 49% were Non-Hispanic Caucasian, 23% Non-Hispanic African-American, 19% Hispanic and 10% Non-Hispanic Native American. Sixty-three percent reported never having had sexual intercourse. Multiple logistic regression analyses indicated that, after controlling for the demographic variables and the other significant assets, Non-Parental Adult Role Models, Peer Role Models, Use of Time (Religion), and Future Aspirations were independently significantly related (p <.05) to whether or not youth had ever participated in sexual intercourse. Individual multiple logistic regression analyses indicated that, after controlling for the demographic variables, Peer Role Model and Family Communication assets were each significantly associated with birth control use by sexually active youth (p <.05). CONCLUSIONS: Specific youth assets may have a protective effect from certain sexual risk behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In spite of having the highest rate of smoking among major racial/ethnic groups in the U.S., very little research has been conducted on the initiation of smoking among American Indians. This research used focus groups to explore the functional value of smoking and nonsmoking from the perspective of American Indian youth. For smokers, the functional value of smoking was associated with peers, mood, image, addiction, family, and sensory pleasure. For nonsmokers, the functional value of nonsmoking was related to sensory aspects, health consequences, physical performance, physiologic response, and family. Subtleties associated with each of these themes highlight the complexity of designing interventions to prevent American Indian youth from smoking. Copyright (c) 1999 by Aspen Publishers, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]