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Health Disparities

Understanding US Immigration Detention: Reaffirming Rights and Addressing Social-Structural Determinants of Health

A crisis of mass immigration detention exists in the United States, which is home to the world’s largest immigration detention system. The immigration detention system is legally classified as civil, rather than criminal, and therefore non-punitive. Yet it mimics the criminal incarceration system and holds detained individuals in punitive, prison-like conditions. Within immigration detention centers, there are increasing reports and recognition of civil and human rights abuses, including preventable in-custody deaths.

Integration of social epidemiology and community-engaged interventions to improve health equity

The past quarter century has seen an explosion of concern about widening health inequities in the United States and worldwide. These inequities are central to the research mission in 2 arenas of public health: social epidemiology and community-engaged interventions. Yet only modest success has been achieved in eliminating health inequities.

Neighborhood Social Environment and Risk of Death: Multilevel Evidence from the Alameda County Study

Recent reports suggest the importance of associations between residential area characteristics and health status, but most research uses only census data to measure these characteristics. The current research examined the effect of overall neighborhood social environment on 11-year risk of death. On the basis of data, the authors developed a three-component neighborhood social environment scale: 1) commercial stores; 2) population socioeconomic status; and 3) environment/housing.

Breastfeeding gaps between white, black, Hispanic mothers in the US

Breastfeeding rates differ among white, black and Hispanic mothers, new American research indicates. This study looked to see if ethnic and racial disparities in breastfeeding could be explained by differences in the use of formula in hospitals, family history of breastfeeding, mother's belief that 'breast is best'; and demographic measures including poverty, education and relationship status.

Assessing the impact of the public nutrition information environment

Objective: A growing body of research suggests that exposure to too much information – particularly contradictory information that characterizes much health-related information – can lead to feeling overwhelmed. This construct has been conflated with fatalistic beliefs that are negatively associated with preventive behaviors.

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