Background: History has recorded the tremendous concerns and apprehension expressed by African Americans about participating in research studies. This review enumerates the collaborative techniques that were utilized by the Jackson State University (JSU) Jackson Heart Study (JHS) community-focused team to facilitate recruitment and retention of the JHS cohort and to implement health education and health promotion in the JHS communities. Methods: This review describes the evolution of the JSU JHS community initiatives, an innovative community-driven operation, during the period 1999–2018. Results: JSU JHS community-focused investigators published approximately 20 manuscripts, including community-led research and publications with community lead authors and co-authors, research and publications in collaboration with other JHS staff, through other JSU-funded projects. The JSU JHS community-focused unit also initiated the JHS Community Training Activities, developed the Community Health Advisory Network (CHAN), and trained and certified 137 Community Health Advisors. In addition, the JSU JHS community-focused unit developed the Collaborative Community Science Model (CCSM) that symbolized its approach to community engagement and outreach, and a Trust Scale for ascertaining African Americans’ willingness to engage in biomedical research collaborations. Conclusion: This review offers educators, public health professionals, and research investigators a useful starting point for the development, selection, or improvement of techniques to motivate, inspire, and engage community residents in a community–academia partnership that yielded maximum benefits in the areas of health education, health promotion and interventions, and biomedical research. Substantial, meaningful community engagement is possible when prioritizing elimination of health disparities and long-term improvement in health care access in the target populations.
Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions and is linked to hypertension among African American youth. Optimistic bias influences behavior of youth causing them to underestimate their susceptibility to negative health outcomes. This study explored adolescent behaviors and prevalence of high blood pressure and obesity in a school district. We examined the relationship between individual health risk practices and optimistic bias on health outcomes; 433 African American high school students were administered a survey and had their obesity and blood pressure measured by the school nurse. Canonical correlational analyses were used to examine relationships between health risk practices and descriptive statistics for optimistic bias and health outcomes. Engaging in moderate exercise for at least 30 min in the last 7 days and lower blood pressure was the only statistically significant relationship. Two-thirds of the students did not perceive themselves to be at risk of developing cardiovascular disease with males at greater risk than females, despite the presence of clinical risk factors for hypertension and obesity. Reducing health optimistic bias is an effective way of motivating young people to adopt more positive behaviors using educational institutions to implement intervention programs that promote positive health behavior as a way to reduce health disparities.
In this issue of SLEEP, Tsai and colleagues 1 report findings on their study that examined the relationship between long sleep duration and increased arterial stiffness. The research examined the association between sleep duration and arterial stiffness among adults of different ages, adding to the findings from a previous study conducted only with an elderly sample. This research generated data that could be useful beyond the specific hypotheses and questions for this study. Tsai et al. found differences based on gender. Their study revealed that long sleep duration was associated with a higher risk of increased arterial stiffness in males and not in females. They found that sleep duration was different for participants with and without increased arterial stiffness in males, but not in females. Sleep Duration and Health OutcomesResearchers hold diverse views about the impact of sleep patterns on health outcomes. Even though it is widely believed that sleep duration is related to health status, the degree and the direction of the relationship between sleep duration and mortality risk are still heavily debated. The findings by Tsai et al. that long sleep duration was associated with a higher risk of increased arterial stiffness 2 are consistent with other research studies that have concluded that sleep duration may also have some relationship with various cardiovascular disease risks, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. However, there are published studies showing that both long and short sleep duration could be associated with cardiovascular disease. [3][4][5][6][7][8][9] Others have explained the paradox that both short and long sleep duration are predictors of cardiovascular outcomes by proposing that short sleep duration is related to a greater risk of developing or dying of coronary heart disease (CHD), and long sleep duration is related to a greater risk of CHD, stroke, and total cardiovascular disease (CVD). 10 Still, others reported that long sleepers, not short sleepers, were at increased risk of cardiovascular-related mortality. 9 Short and long sleep durations also have a relationship with elevated blood pressure which is linked to arterial stiffness. 11 While many researchers believe that short and long sleep durations have an impact on health, 12 some emphasize that a 7-8 hour sleep duration, which is considered normal, would directly and indirectly reduce chronic disease risk. 13
Objective: This research was designed to evaluate the perceptions of the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) community relating to their levels of involvement in JHS activities that were developed to address health disparities and promote health education and health promotion. Methods: The participants for this study comprised 128 community members, who included JHS participants, as well as family members and other friends of the JHS who resided in the JHS community of Hinds, Madison, and Rankin Counties in Mississippi and attended the JHS Annual Celebration of Life. We used the Chi-Square test to analyze the participants’ responses to the survey questions developed to address the six areas of focus: (1) ways to increase participation in community outreach activities; (2) reasons for participating in community outreach activities; (3) interest in research participation; (4) factors influencing engagement; (5) Participants’ preferences for communicating; (6) Chronic disease prevalence. Results: Participants residing in rural counties perceived television and radio as a medium to increase participation; More female respondents cited trust working with the JSU JHS Community Outreach Center (CORC) as a reason for remaining engaged in the community outreach activities; younger participants under 66 years of age recommended social media as a way to increase participation; participants residing in the rural areas saw their participation in the community outreach activities as a way to address community health problems. Conclusions: The knowledge gained from the details provided by the JHS community members can be used to refine research studies in existence, while promoting their sustainability.
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