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The US Latino/a population disproportionately lives in poverty and experiences household food insecurity, especially households with children. The Household Food Security Survey Module (FSSM) was originally developed among rural White women. Despite wide use in English and Spanish, how well the FSSM captures the food insecurity experiences of Latino/a households is not well known. This study explored how Latino/a caregivers understood, interpreted, and perceived FSSM items and responses, and how well quantitative FSSM responses captured their reported food insecurity experiences. Trained researchers conducted in-depth cognitive interviews in a qualitative study. Interviews were conducted between October 2021 and August 2022 with Latino/a adults (N = 62) experiencing food insecurity while caring for a child (aged 18 years or younger) in the same household, and living in California, New York, or Texas. Qualitative analysis using iterative summaries for data reduction focused on item interpretation, response patterns, and cross-cutting themes. Participants generally understood FSSM items as intended. The most salient findings were themes that applied across multiple FSSM items rather than wording issues with specific items. Underreporting of food insecurity was linked to nonaffirmative ("never") responses to items referencing not having enough money for food while describing reliance on nonmonetary resources (eg, food assistance or food pantries); emotional sensitivity to discussing food insecurity, particularly as it related to children; stigma and emotions related to skipping meals; and limited response options that participants believed did not reflect their experiences. These issues influenced multiple items, impeding ease of responding and leading to inaccurate responses in English- and Spanish-language versions. Assessing coping strategies and providing more acceptable response options could enhance FSSM validity. Considering emic perspectives of Latino/a caregivers and how food access experiences differ from quantitative survey measures of food security could strengthen policy and programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latino children are disproportionately affected by childhood obesity. Prior research has encouraged father engagement to bolster prevention efforts and outlined general strategies for father recruitment, engagement, and retention. However, behavioral nutrition or education programs with a focus on Latino fathers are lacking, which means there is little guidance for working with Latino fathers in motivation and maintenance. This perspective highlights strategies for supporting dietary and activity behaviors with Latino fathers. Researchers can apply strategies to observational studies or program development and implementation, and practitioners can use strategies to tailor education and counseling with Latino fathers as part of obesity prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Physical activity (PA) is linked to many health benefits. However, many children and adults do not meet PA recommendations. Specifically, Mexican-heritage (MH) families are less physically active and at greater risk for obesity and related co-morbidities than the general population. Culturally-tailored programs are needed to support MH families in healthy PA behaviors. Purpose: This article describes creation and pilot testing of ¡Haz Espacio para Papi! (Make Room for Daddy!), a PA curriculum tailored for MH families. Methods: Academic-based and promotora-researchers developed a six-week curriculum including weekly interactive lessons provided on weekends and take-home challenges focused on father-child co-participation in light-to-moderate PA. Participating families consisted of child (aged 9–11), mother, and father. Weekly telephone calls were placed to adult participants to secure qualitative evaluation data. Results: Most families reported trying program activities at home between sessions. Families reported spending time together as the most valuable part of the program, specifically engaging in father/child activities. Very few families reported suggestions to change program. Discussion: Positive responses by families speak to the success of culturally and contextually tailoring this curriculum to MH families. Translation to Health Education Practice: This curriculum provides evidence of a culturally and contextually tailored program for MH families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Mexican-origin women in the U.S. living in colonias (new-destination Mexican-immigrant communities) along the Texas-Mexico border suffer from a high incidence of food insecurity and diet-related chronic disease. Understanding environmental factors that influence food-related behaviors among this population will be important to improving the well-being of colonia households. This article focuses on cultural repertoires that enable food choice and the everyday uses of technology in food-related practice by Mexican-immigrant women in colonia households under conditions of material hardship. Findings are presented within a conceptual framework informed by concepts drawn from sociological accounts of technology, food choice, culture, and material hardship. Methods: Field notes were provided by teams of promotora-researchers (indigenous community health workers) and public-health professionals trained as participant observers. They conducted observations on three separate occasions (two half-days during the week and one weekend day) within eight family residences located in colonias near the towns of Alton and San Carlos, Texas. English observations were coded inductively and early observations stressed the importance of technology and material hardship in food-related behavior. These observations were further explored and coded using the qualitative data package Atlas.ti. Results: Technology included kitchen implements used in standard and adapted configurations and household infrastructure. Residents employed tools across a range of food-related activities identified as forms of food acquisition, storage, preparation, serving, feeding and eating, cleaning, and waste processing. Material hardships included the quality, quantity, acceptability, and uncertainty dimensions of food insecurity, and insufficient consumption of housing, clothing and medical care. Cultural repertoires for coping with material hardship included reliance on inexpensive staple foods and dishes, and conventional and innovative technological practices. These repertoires expressed the creative agency of women colonia residents. Food-related practices were constrained by climate, animal and insect pests, women's gender roles, limitations in neighborhood and household infrastructure, and economic and material resources. Conclusions: This research points to the importance of socioeconomic and structural factors such as gender roles, economic poverty and material hardship as constraints on food choice and food-related behavior. In turn, it emphasizes the innovative practices employed by women residents of colonias to prepare meals under these constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The availability of an adequate household food supply is critical for the older population. There is little work that has examined food security and the influence of nativity on food security among older Mexican Americans living along the Texas-Mexico border. Using data from 140 older women (age ≥ 50 y) who participated in the 2009 Colonia Household and Community Food Resource Assessment (C-HCFRA), we examined demographic characteristics, health characteristics, food access and mobility, federal and community food and nutrition assistance programs, quality of food environment, food security, eating behaviors, and alternative food sources. 77% of participants experienced food insecurity, with 68% experiencing very low food security. Very low food security was associated with being born in Mexico, adjusting for household income and food assistance program participation. This article provides compelling evidence for enhanced research efforts that will better understand coping strategies and the use of food and nutrition assistance programs for reducing hardship associated with very low food security among older U.S.- and Mexico-born Mexican American women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used a national household survey to examine knowledge, attitudes, and preferences pertaining to wildland fire. First, we present nationwide results and trends. Then, we examine opinions across region and race. Despite some regional variation, respondents are fairly consistent in their beliefs about assuming personal responsibility for living in fire-prone areas and believing that residents of such areas should follow government guidelines for managing fire risk. However, we find divergence of opinion on "trusting forest professionals" between African-American and Caucasian people. Across all survey questions related to fire management and public confidence, African-Americans appear to be relatively more concerned than Caucasian or Hispanic people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on African American and Hispanic visits to federal recreation areas. According to the data on file with Donald English of the Visitor Use Monitoring Project based in Washington, D.C., African American visits account for very low percentages of visits to national forests across the U.S. On the other hand, Hispanic visits to national forests in the Southwest are high. It is posed that factors such as private landownership and social definitions of place may be integral in considering African American use of wildland public recreation regions in the Southern states in the U.S.

Abstract: There is a paucity of studies acknowledging the existence of alternative food sources, and factors associated with food purchasing from three common alternative sources: vendedores (mobile food vendors), pulgas (flea markets), and vecinos/amigos (neighbors/friends). This analysis aims to examine the use of alternative food sources by Mexican-origin women from Texas-border colonias and determine factors associated with their use. The design was cross-sectional. Promotora-researchers (promotoras de salud trained in research methods) recruited 610 Mexican-origin women from 44 colonias and conducted in-person surveys. Surveys included participant characteristics and measures of food environment use and household food security. Statistical analyses included separate logistic regressions, modeled for food purchase from mobile food vendors, pulgas, or neighbors/friends. Child food insecurity was associated with purchasing food from mobile food vendors, while household food security was associated with using pulgas or neighbors/friends. School nutrition program participants were more likely to live in households that depend on alternative food sources. Efforts to increase healthful food consumption such as fruits and vegetables should acknowledge all potential food sources (traditional, convenience, nontraditional, and alternative), especially those preferred by colonia residents. Current findings support the conceptual broadening of the retail food environment, and the importance of linking use with spatial access (proximity) to more accurately depict access to food sources. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract This article addresses the concern that death by legal intervention is a health outcome disproportionately experienced by boys and men of color, and predicated on the quality of the locations in which encounters with law enforcement occur. Using a more comprehensive cross-verified sample of police homicides from online databases and a nationally representative sample of law enforcement agencies, this study examines whether neighborhood social disorganization, minority threat, and defense of inequality theories help explain the odds that males of color will have a fatal interaction with police (FIP). There are several noteworthy results. First, in support of the defense of inequality thesis, we found that income inequality within the area in which a FIP occurred is related to increased relative odds of fatal injury for males of color and Hispanic males. Second, consistent with the minority threat thesis, we found low levels of racial segregation dramatically reduced the odds of a FIP for Black males while higher levels of segregation increased the odds for Hispanic males. Third, Hispanic males were over 2.6 times as likely as others to be killed by officers from agencies with relatively higher percentages of Hispanic officers. We conclude the study with a discussion of its implications for research and policy. Highlights • Minority threat and defense of inequality theories inform FIPs for males of color. • Income inequality heightens the chances of a police homicide for Hispanic males. • Lowered racial segregation reduces the odds of fatal injury for Black males. • Racial segregation increased the odds of a police homicide for Hispanic males. • Percentage of Hispanic officers raises risks of fatal injury for Hispanic males. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The U.S. Latino/a population is a large and fast-growing population in the country, which has experienced a disproportionate burden of food insecurity compared with the national average. There is a need to understand how Latino/a parents use different strategies to maintain food security. To understand the food security management and coping strategies of Latino/a households through in-depth interviews. A qualitative study with remote in-depth interviews, conducted in Texas (Oct. 2021-Aug. 2022), with Latino/a parents and caregivers living in Central Texas. Trained interviewers used an interview guide (≈75 minutes/interview). Data came from a multi-site study with cognitive and exploratory interviews related to food insecurity. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was completed through transcript review, summary sheets, coding, and peer-debriefing. A codebook was developed based on prior experience, the literature, and rounds of initial coding and discussion. The goal of analysis was to identify common patterns and develop themes and subthemes. Twenty Latino/a parents and caregivers completed interviews (16 female and 4 male participants). Most participants were Mexican heritage and spoke primarily English (3 Spanish speakers). Overall, participants described similar food security management and coping strategies, despite differences in lifecourse experiences or household characteristics. Inflation and rising food prices, the COVID-19 pandemic, and global events affected food choices and access to food assistance. Strategies included limiting or rationing food, skipping meals, value food shopping strategies, food assistance from food pantries/banks, churches, and federal food assistance programs, such as SNAP or WIC. Some participants described challenges accessing federal food assistance programs, such as eligibility restrictions. External factors exacerbated food insecurity, but community resources, like food banks/food pantries, and federal programs, like SNAP or WIC, were important to maintain food security. Given reauthorization of important nutrition policies, this study contributes additional evidence for strengthening nutrition and food assistance programs. Future work is needed to understand how management or coping strategies for Latino/a households. USDA This research is supported by the Food Security 25 Small Grant Program, funded through U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service in collaboration with Tufts University and University of Missouri (59-4000-0-0067, subaward #AG9033). This research is also supported by U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under award number 2021-77040-34877 (Nutrition LEADers Learning Community). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]