Background: Young adulthood is often associated with poor dietary habits that may increase risk of obesity and chronic diseases. As independence grows, little is known about strategies to help balance social, work, and education commitments that may override desires to incorporate healthful food choices. Objective: In advance of a randomized trial…

Background/Aims: The aim of this investigation was to identify which design elements on Natural American Spirit packs are salient to (i.e., noticed by) U.S. adult smokers and what meanings smokers derive from these elements. Method: We conducted a secondary analysis of qualitative data from a study of cigarette packaging design. U.S. adult smokers…

Most public health researchers and practitioners agree that we need to accelerate our efforts to eliminate health disparities and promote health equity. The past two decades of research have provided a wealth of descriptive studies, both qualitative and quantitative, that describe the size, scale, and scope of health disparities, as well as the…

An in-depth understanding of the citizen's perception and behavior is needed for the development of targeted public policies and interventions that can successfully encourage people to shift their dietary patterns and contribute to the prevention of non-communicable diseases. The present work aimed to identify barriers and facilitators for the…

Background: The complexity of the childhood obesity epidemic requires the application of community-based participatory research (CBPR) in a manner that can transcend multiple communities of stakeholders, including youth, the broader community, and the community of health care providers. Aim: To (a) describe participatory processes for engaging…

This qualitative study used a focus group approach (talking circles) to elicit tribal elder insight on important concepts for the purpose of creating a curriculum to teach tribal youth in South Dakota about nutrition and physical activity in culturally appropriate ways. The focus groups were part of a larger project that is exploring mechanisms…

Qualitative methods are not intrinsically progressive. Methods are simply tools to conduct research. Epistemology, the justification of knowledge, shapes methodology and methods, and thus is a vital starting point for a critical health equity research stance, regardless of whether the methods are qualitative, quantitative, or mixed. In line with…

Latina adults in the United States have a disproportionately higher prevalence of chronic diseases related to low physical activity levels than non-Hispanic women. Literature indicates that acculturation may be a contributing factor to being physically active, but the extent of this association remains unclear. An integrative review of literature…

African American women have the highest colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates among women of any race/ethnicity in the United States. Colonoscopy screening is an efficacious procedure for the prevention and early detection of colorectal cancer, making it a promising tool in the effort to eliminate colorectal cancer disparities. Toward…

Background: Despite the high ownership of smartphones, African Americans (AAs) remain underrepresented in health research and specifically mobile health (mHealth) research. This may be due to ineffective recruitment efforts. Purpose: To explore strategies for recruiting AAs into mHealth research and examine how these strategies may vary by gender…

Coal ash, a waste product generated from burning coal for energy, is composed of highly respirable particles containing heavy metals, radioactive elements, and polycylic aromatic hydrocarbons. Coal ash is stored in landfills and surface impoundments frequently located near neighborhoods. Fugitive dust from the storage sites exposes neighborhoods,…

Background: Recent federal policies aimed to ensure that all children have equitable access to healthy school nutrition environments. However, historically, disparities have persisted in the quality of school nutrition environments across geographic and socioeconomic groups. There is limited literature addressing if and how recent efforts to…

Background: Young African American women are disproportionately affected with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unintentional pregnancies. Despite adequate knowledge, assertiveness, and negotiation skills, consistent condom use remains low. Aims: We sought to assess the role of pregnancy and STI risk perception in condom decision making…

Additional strategies to evaluate the impact of community nutrition education programs on low-income individuals are needed. The objective of this qualitative study was to examine the use of the Memorable Messages Framework as an intermediary nutrition education program evaluation tool to determine what fruit and vegetable messages were reported…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks colorectal cancer (CRC) as the third most commonly diagnosed cancer among men in the United States; African American (AA) men are at even greater risk. The present study was from a larger study that investigates the church's role as a social marketer of CRC risk and prevention messages, and…