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Purpose: To examine behavioral patterns and sociodemographic predictors of diet, inactivity, and tobacco use among a diverse sample of residents from low-income housing developments., Design: In this cross-sectional survey study, households and residents were randomly selected using multistage cluster sampling. Setting . The study was conducted in 20 low-income housing developments in the Boston, Massachusetts, metropolitan area., Subjects: Subjects were 828 residents who completed the survey (response rate = 49.3%). Forty-one percent of participants were Hispanic and 38% were non-Hispanic Black. Measures . Outcomes measured were diet, inactivity, and tobacco use. Predictors measured were age, race/ethnicity, gender, education, country in which the subject was born, language spoken, and financial hardship. Analysis . Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association of three health behaviors with sociodemographic factors., Results: Age, gender, language spoken, and financial hardship showed significant relationships with all three behaviors. For example, those who reported less financial hardship (odds ratio [OR] = 1.75) were more likely to eat healthier. Residents who spoke no English, or at least one language in addition to English, were significantly more likely to report healthier eating (OR = 2.78 and 3.30, respectively) than those who spoke English only. Men were significantly more likely to report less healthy eating (OR = 0.65) than were women. Similar trends emerged for inactivity and tobacco use., Conclusion: Effective health promotion interventions in low-income housing developments that leverage protective factors while addressing risk factors have the potential to reduce income-related health disparities in these concentrated resource-deprived neighborhoods.

Introduction: Few multiple behavior change interventions have addressed tobacco use in conjunction with fruit and vegetable consumption, particularly among high-risk blue-collar workers. Tools for Health, a cancer prevention intervention for construction laborers, was effective in achieving behavior change for smoking cessation and fruit and vegetable consumption separately. This study examines whether addressing smoking and fruit and vegetable consumption was successful in achieving positive change for both behaviors. We also explored possible explanations for the relationship between behavior changes in these 2 behavioral domains., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from a randomized controlled trial testing a smoking cessation and fruit and vegetable consumption intervention for construction workers. We used survey data from 300 intervention participants to answer our primary research question: Did participants who reported being smokers at baseline successfully quit smoking and increase their fruit and vegetable consumption by the end of the intervention? We used qualitative data from 16 small group discussions to help interpret these results., Results: Tools for Health participants achieved substantial levels of smoking cessation and increased their fruit and vegetable consumption, concurrently, during the course of the intervention., Conclusion: This study provides evidence that pairing smoking cessation with increasing fruit and vegetable consumption can be successful in a multiple behavior change intervention designed for high-risk blue-collar workers. Further, our findings provide potential directions for examining why this pairing might be complementary.

Regular physical activity is linked to a reduced risk of obesity and chronic disease. African American women bear a disproportionate burden from these conditions and many do not get the recommended amount of physical activity. Long-term success of interventions to initiate and maintain a physically active lifestyle among African American women has not been realized. By clearly elucidating the process of physical activity adoption and maintenance, effective programming could be implemented to reduce African American women's burden from chronic conditions. In-depth interviews were conducted with physically active African American women. Grounded theory, a rigorous qualitative research method used to develop theoretical explanation of human behavior grounded in data collected from those exhibiting that behavior, was used to guide the data collection and analysis process. Data derived inductively from the interviews and focus groups guided the development of a behavioral framework explaining the process of physical activity evolution.

We examined the influence of social and cultural contexts on participation in recommended levels of physical activity (PA) among African American women using a grounded theory approach. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and focus groups with 15 physically active African American women. Participants described social and cultural factors that served as challenges for participation in PA. Of particular importance, participants discussed their strategies for overcoming these challenges to initiate and maintain an active lifestyle. Strategies emerged to address three main areas: lack of PA exposure, PA norms and beliefs, and hair maintenance. Understanding contextually appropriate strategies to assist African American women in long-term PA maintenance will help inform effective health promotion efforts to reduce the burden of sedentary lifestyle and chronic disease in this community of women.