Neighborhood Matters: An Exploration of Neighborhood-Level Disadvantage and Cancer Protective Behaviors in Hispanic Youth with Unhealthy Weight

Abstract

Purpose: The present study aimed to assess the relationships between youth CPB (i.e., healthy dietary intake and physical activity), neighborhood influences measured by the Area Deprivation Index (ADI), parent stress, and parent socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., education, household income, and marital status) among Hispanic families who have youth with unhealthy weight. Additionally, we examined whether parent stress mediated the relationship between youth ADI and CPB. Methods: Baseline data from 280 Hispanic youth (Mage = 13.01 ± 0.83; 52.1% females; MBody Mass Index (BMI) Percentile = 94.55 ± 4.15) and their parents (Mage = 41.87 ± 6.49; 88.2% females) who enrolled in an RCT were used. Self-reported data on youth dietary intake and physical activity, parent stress, and parent socio-demographic characteristics were collected. Neighborhood impact was examined using ADI, a validated measure to classify neighborhood disadvantage (e.g., housing quality and neighborhood income) using data from the US Census Bureau. Structural Equation Modeling was used to evaluate the study model. Results: Our findings indicated significant associations between ADI and youth CPB (b = -0.17, p = .019), and parent stress (b = 0.23, p = .001). However, parent stress did not mediate the relationship between youth ADI and CPB. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that Hispanic youth living in disadvantaged neighborhoods may be less likely than youth in non-disadvantaged neighborhoods to engage in CPB. Future research should evaluate neighborhood resources to encourage physical activity and healthy eating.