Former Incarceration, Time Served, and Perceived Oral Health among African American Women and Men

Abstract

A large body of research has documented the far-reaching health consequences of mass incarceration in the United States. Yet, less scholarship has examined the relationship between former incarceration and oral health, a key reflection of health and disease occurring within the rest of the body. Using data extracted from the National Survey of American Life (n = 3343), this study examines associations among former incarceration status, duration of detention, and self-reported oral health among African American women and men. Results from gender-stratified ordered logistic models reveal that formerly incarcerated African American men and women experience significantly poorer oral health than their never incarcerated counterparts even after controlling for important social determinants of health. Furthermore, oral health is curvilinearly associated with the length of time that men are incarcerated such that odds of poor health decrease as detention duration increases up to approximately 15 years incarcerated. After 15 years of detainment, the odds of poor health tend to increase as duration increases. Findings extend research identifying gendered spillover health consequences of contact with the criminal legal system. Health professionals and policymakers should be conscious of incarceration as an important deleterious experience for the immediate and long-term condition of people’s teeth, mouth, and gums.

Local Confederate Memorialization and Gender-Ethnic Variation in Mental Health among Black Residents

“…Furthermore, we propose that other extensions of racism besides Confederate memorials may be more consequential for African American men’s mental health. For instance, research identifies greater criminalization of Black men as having detrimental health effects (e.g., police interactions, arrests) (McLeod et al 2020; Sewell et al 2016; Talbert and Macy 2022). Thus, ambient stressors such as Confederate memorials may impact women’s mental health while men’s mental health may be more affected by additional stressors not examined in this study (Moody et al 2022).…”

Formal Social Control and Mental Health: Ethnic Variation among Black Women

“…This study focuses on the mental health associations of three forms of direct contact with the justice system including negative police interactions, arrests, and incarceration. Much research examines the role that incarceration plays in shaping health patterns (Brown et al 2016; Talbert and Macy 2022; Wildeman and Wang 2017). Incarceration, while important, is only one form of criminal justice contact with potential deleterious health consequences.…”