 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Amy Schulz, PhD1, Srimathi Kannan, PhD2, J. Timothy Dvonch, PhD3, Alison Benjamin4, and Paul Max4. (1) Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan, School of Public Health, 5134 SPH II, 1420 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, 734-647-0221, ajschulz@umich.edu, (2) Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan School of Public Health Human Nutrition Program, 1420 Washington Heights, School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, (3) Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, 109 Observatory St., 1608A SPH I, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, (4) Community Health Services, Detroit Department of Health, 1151 Taylor St., Detroit, MI 48202
Understanding the social determinants of environmental exposures, as well as the ways that aspects of the social and physical environments combine to shape risk factors for cardiovascular disease is an important challenge for public health professionals as well as communities that bear a disproportionate burden of disease. This presentation will describe a conceptual framework linking racial and socioeconomic inequalities to aspects of the social and physical environments, and in turn to more proximate risk and protective factors (e.g., health related behaviors, nutrient levels) associated with cardiovascular disease. We will examine existing evidence linking aspects of the social and physical exposures to cardiovascular disease. The overall design of the Healthy Environments Partnership study will be described and the relationship of various methods of data collection and analysis to the study’s conceptual model will be described. The study’s focus on social determinants of cardiovascular disease risk factors emphasizes the contributions of inequalities to aspects of the social and physical environment, and we will discuss mechanisms for understanding relationships among, for example, exposure to stressors in the social environment, exposure to airborne particulate matter, and more proximate risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as health related behaviors, hypertension and biomarkers. Finally, the presentation will discuss the rationale for use of community based participatory strategies to design research intended to inform multi-level (e.g., individual, community, policy) interventions to address social determinants of environmental health.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Social Inequalities, Air Pollutants
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.