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Background: Reducing cancer health disparities in Asian Americans requires orchestrated efforts and partnerships., Objectives: To describe the approach used by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, HOPE Clinic, and Asian American organizations to understand and engage Houston's Asian American communities in cancer research, as well as to share lessons learned., Methods: The community-academic-medical partnership used community-based research principles to build the partnership, form the community advisory board, conduct a community needs assessment, and offer cancer prevention engagement and education., Results: Some lessons learned included balancing language needs with limited resources, incorporating more time and resources to conduct health research in an ethnically diverse community, and promoting awareness of research and its role in cancer prevention in Asian American communities., Conclusions: Community-academic-medical partnerships are promising ways to engage the community, draw on combined expertise, and create research and programs that are scientifically strong and meaningful to the community.

Despite relatively low rates of overweight and obesity among Asian-American children, disparities exist based on acculturation, socioeconomic status, and Asian ethnicity. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between acculturation and weight change in Asian-American children. Secondary aims were to compare changes by Asian ethnic group and acculturation x socioeconomic status. Participants included 1200 Asian-American children from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-11, a longitudinal study of U.S. children attending kindergarten in 2010-2011. Multinomial logistic regressions were conducted to predict weight change based on body mass indices in kindergarten (spring 2011) and second grade (spring 2013): consistently healthy weight, consistently overweight/obese, healthy weight change, and unhealthy weight change. Models included demographic, household, socioeconomic status, and acculturation measures, specifically mother's English proficiency and percentage of life spent in the U.S. Overall, 72.3% of children were at healthy weights in kindergarten and second grade. Of all Asian ethnic groups, Filipino children had the highest rate of being consistently overweight/obese (24.8%) and the lowest rate of being consistently healthy weight (62.9%). In addition, mother's English proficiency predicted unhealthy weight change (OR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.75-0.92) and healthy weight change (OR: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.65-0.86), relative to "consistently healthy weight." English proficiency also predicted being consistently overweight/obese for children with less educated mothers. Findings enhance our understanding of obesity disparities within Asian Americans and highlight the need to disaggregate the population. Obesity interventions are needed for Filipino children and families with low socioeconomic status but high English proficiency., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Low physical activity is a major health issue among Chinese Americans. This study explored Chinese-American children's physical activity behaviors and influencing factors. Twenty-five children of Chinese or Taiwanese descent were interviewed to understand their favorite sports or physical activities, physical activity environments, and influences on their physical activity. All were between the ages of 9 and 13. Interviews were transcribed and coded using thematic data analysis procedures. Major themes included: (1) team sports, particularly basketball, were commonly listed as favorite sports or activities; (2) physical activity occurred mostly at school or an after-school setting; and (3) family played a major role in physical activity. Some trends/differences were detected based on age, sex, and socioeconomic status. Interventions to promote physical activity among Chinese-American children should emphasize team sports and encourage physical activity in schools, but also explore ways to involves families outside of school.

Childhood obesity has become an epidemic across all racial/ethnic groups in the U.S., including Asian Americans. With different cultures, beliefs, and lifestyles, Asian Americans may face unique sets of risk factors for childhood obesity. This review critically assesses and summarizes the literature on risk factors for childhood obesity among Asian Americans. Among the 14 studies identified, five (35.7%) used national or state-level data, seven (50%) targeted Chinese Americans, and two (14.3%) focused on Hmong Americans. Multiple risk factors for childhood obesity among Asian Americans were reported, including acculturation, generational status, and family functioning. Limitations of the literature included use of small samples, scarcity of ethnically specific data for Asian American subgroups, shortage of qualitative studies, and lack of theoretical foundation. More disaggregated studies are needed to examine the important variability that may exist in risk factors for childhood obesity among Asian American subgroups.

Numerous studies have explored dietary practices among children, but there are limited studies on children of Asian background in the US. This review had three aims: (a) review literature regarding Asian-American youth's dietary behaviors, (b) critically evaluate the methodological quality of such research, and (c) provide recommendations for future nutrition-related research on Asian-American youth. The authors conducted a systematic literature review through MEDLINE (EBSCO), CINAHL Plus with Full Text (EBSCO), and Embase (Ovid); extracted descriptive data; and evaluated methodological quality. Thirteen articles were included. Major findings included: (a) frequent consumption of milk, fruit, meat, unenriched white rice, vegetables, and high-fat and high-sugar items among Asian-American children and (b) acculturation's influences on diet, resulting in Asian-American youth consuming diets characterized by both Asian and American foods. Findings from this review may inform education and promotion programs and services for Asian Americans in the US.

Objectives: This study investigates dietary behaviors of Asian preschoolers on Texas WIC using Social Cognitive Theory (SCT). Methods: Sixty-eight Asian caregivers completed the Texas Food and Nutrition Questionnaire about themselves and their child, assessing demographics, food intake, and SCT variables. Results: Most children consumed juices, fruit, vegetables, and white rice daily. There were no differences in food intake before and after WIC food package changes. While controlling for covariates, the caregiver's fruit and vegetable intake and child's outcome expectancies (p < .05) predicted the child's fruit and vegetable intake (adjusted R²=0.644, p < .001). Conclusions: This study adds to nutrition and behavioral theory research on low-income Asian children in Texas, especially in light of WIC food package changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]