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We examine the efficacy of MARHABA, a social marketing-informed, lay health worker (LHW) intervention with patient navigation (PN), to increase breast and cervical cancer screening among Muslim women in New York City. Muslim women were eligible if they were overdue for a mammogram and/or a Pap test. All participants attended a 1-h educational seminar with distribution of small media health education materials, after which randomization occurred. Women in the Education + Media + PN arm received planned follow-ups from a LHW. Women in the Education + Media arm received no further contact. A total of 428 women were randomized into the intervention (214 into each arm). Between baseline and 4-month follow-up, mammogram screening increased from 16.0 to 49.0% in the Education + Media + PN arm (p

Objectives: To determine whether actual community-level risk for COVID-19 in the Black community influenced "individual" perceptions of community-level and personal risk and how self-assessment of personal risk was reflected in the adoption of COVID-19 precautionary behaviors. Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 20 Black Chicago adults from February to July 2021. A grounded theory approach was used for the qualitative analysis and initial, focused, and theoretical coding were performed. Results: We developed a grounded model consisting of four major themes: (a) Pre-Existing Health Conditions; (b) Presence of COVID-19 Infection in Participant Social Network; (c) COVID-19-Related Information, Participant Trust, and Perceived Personal Risk; and (d) Perceived Higher Burden of COVID-19 in the Black Community. Conclusions: Higher perceptions of personal risk were shaped by pre-existing health conditions and experiences with COVID-19 in one's social network but were not influenced by perceived higher burden of COVID-19 in the Black community. Policy Implications: Black adults' perceptions of their individual risk and precautionary behaviors were not congruent with public health data and recommendations. Therefore, COVID-19 messaging and mitigation should be informed by local community engagement and transparent communication.

Immigration has been historically and contemporarily racialized in the United States. Although each immigrant group has unique histories, current patterns, and specific experiences, racialized immigrant groups such as Latino, Asian, and Arab immigrants all experience health inequities that are not solely due to nativity or years of residence but also influenced by conditional citizenship and subjective sense of belonging or othering. Critical race theory and intersectionality provide a critical lens to consider how structural racism might uniquely impact the health of racialized immigrants, and to understand and intervene on the interlocking systems that shape these shared experiences and health consequences. We build on and synthesize the work of prior scholars to advance how society codifies structural disadvantages for racialized immigrants into governmental and institutional policies and how that affects health via three key pathways that emerged from our review of the literature: (1) formal racialization via immigration policy and citizenship status that curtails access to material and health resources and political and civic participation; (2) informal racialization via disproportionate immigration enforcement and criminalization including ongoing threats of detention and deportation; and (3) intersections with economic exploitation and disinvestment such as labor exploitation and neighborhood disinvestment. We hope this serves as a call to action to change the dominant narratives around immigrant health, provides conceptual and methodological recommendations to advance research, and illuminates the essential role of the public health sector to advocate for changes in other sectors including immigration policy, political rights, law enforcement, labor protections, and neighborhood investment, among others.

Background: Asian New York City residents have the lowest cancer screening uptake across race and ethnicity. Few studies have examined screening differences across Asian ethnic subgroups in New York City. Methods: Cross-sectional survey data were analyzed using multivariable logistic and multinomial regression analyses. Differences among Chinese, Korean, and South Asian adults in breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening uptake; breast and colorectal cancer screening knowledge; and cancer fatalism were examined. Associations between breast and colorectal cancer screening knowledge and their uptake were also assessed along with associations between cancer fatalism and breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening uptake. Results: Korean women reported 0.52 times [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.31-0.89] lower odds of Pap test uptake compared with Chinese women; South Asian adults had 0.43 times (95% CI, 0.24-0.79) lower odds of colorectal cancer screening uptake compared with Chinese adults. Korean adults reported 1.80 times (95% CI, 1.26-2.58) higher odds of knowing the correct age to begin having mammograms compared with Chinese adults; South Asian adults had 0.67 times (95% CI, 0.47-0.96) lower odds of knowing the correct age to begin colorectal cancer screening compared with Chinese adults. Korean adults had 0.37 times (95% CI, 0.27-0.53) lower odds of reporting cancer fatalism compared with Chinese adults. Conclusions: Low cancer screening uptake among Asian American adults, low screening knowledge, and high cancer fatalism were found. Cancer screening uptake, knowledge, and fatalism varied by ethnic subgroup. Impact: Findings indicate the need for ethnicity-specific cultural and linguistic tailoring for future cancer screening interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a significant gap in understanding the sexual health of Arab Americans. The purpose of this study is to explore family sex communication among Arab American young adults and its association with gender and sexual attitudes. We used a parallel mixed methods design and administered an electronic survey (N = 100); a subsample of 24 participants participated in five focus groups. We observed convergence in the findings. Participants reported rare occurrences of family sex communication, with women reporting less comfort than men. Family sex communication was often "unspoken," and reinforced prevailing social norms. Gender differences were reported based on sex communication topics. The most common source of sex information was peers/friends. Focus group participants perceived their parents to be more conservative and less knowledgeable about sex than they were. Future research on strategies to bridge generational differences is needed to promote family-based sex communication, given the multiple teachable moments at home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives Technology can enhance the health and quality of life of diverse populations and may play an important role in reducing health disparities. Although a "digital divide" between the young and the old has been noted, it is unclear whether the use of technology for managing health differs by race/ethnicity among older adults. This study uses nationally representative data from community-dwelling older Americans to characterize racial/ethnic differences in health-related technology use. Design and Methods Data came from 1,336 white, black, and Hispanic adults aged 54 and older who completed the 2014 technology module of the Health and Retirement Study. Racial/ethnic differences in overall health-related technology use were assessed using Poisson regression. Then, F -tests were used to assess differences in the use of phone calls, text messages, E-mails, social media, health management sites, health-related mobile applications, web searches, and brain games for health purposes. Results Compared to whites, older blacks and Hispanics were less likely to use technology for health-related purposes after accounting for demographic characteristics, education, and health conditions. They were also less likely to make or receive phone calls, use health management sites, search the web for health information, and use brain games for their health. Discussion and Implications Older racial and ethnic minorities are less likely than whites to use certain technologies when managing their health. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the patterns of health-related technology use across racially and ethnically diverse populations to appropriately tailor interventions aimed at improving minority health and eliminating health disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Immigration has been identified as an important social determinant of health (SDH), embodying structures and policies that reinforce positions of poverty, stress, and limited social and economic mobility. In the public health literature with regard to diet, immigration is often characterized as an individual-level process (dietary acculturation) and is largely examined in one racial/ethnic subgroup at a time. For this narrative review, we aim to broaden the research discussion by describing SDH common to the immigrant experience and that may serve as barriers to healthy diets., Methods: A narrative review of peer-reviewed quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies on cardiometabolic health disparities, diet, and immigration was conducted., Results: Cardiometabolic disease disparities were frequently described by racial/ethnic subgroups instead of country of origin. While cardiovascular disease and obesity risk differed by country of origin, diabetes prevalence was typically higher for immigrant groups vs United States (US)-born individuals. Common barriers to achieving a healthy diet were food insecurity; lack of familiarity with US food procurement practices, food preparation methods, and dietary guidelines; lack of familiarity and distrust of US food processing and storage methods; alternative priorities for food purchasing (eg, freshness, cultural relevance); logistical obstacles (eg, transportation); stress; and ethnic identity maintenance., Conclusions: To improve the health of immigrant populations, understanding similarities in cardiometabolic health disparities, diet, and barriers to health across immigrant communities-traversing racial/ethnic subgroups-may serve as a useful framework. This framework can guide research, policy, and public health practices to be more cohesive, generalizable, and meaningfully inclusive., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest: No conflicts of interest reported by authors.