Journal of Urban Health-Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine最新文献

Housing insecurity is a key social determinant of a wide range of health outcomes, subject to large racial inequities, and with a likely sensitive period in childhood. Housing insecurity can manifest in multiple ways and change over time, but previous studies have primarily focused on single dimensions or a single time point. This study examines cumulative exposure to multiple forms of housing insecurity from birth to adolescence, overall, and by race in large US cities. Using data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), we estimated cumulative incidence and mean cumulative count of several forms of housing insecurity, accounting for missing data (due primarily to gaps between waves) using lower bounds and a mixed modeling approach. Between 45% (lower bound) and 71% (modeled) of children experienced at least one housing insecurity event by age 15. The average number of events among children who had any event was between 2.63 (lower bound) and 6.11 (modeled). Children of non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic mothers, compared to non-Hispanic White mothers, were more likely to experience an initial event, but once experienced, had similar numbers of events. We find a massive and cyclical burden of housing insecurity during childhood. Large racial differences in incidence of first events, but not repeated events, suggest that preventive interventions would most effectively mitigate racial inequities in housing insecurity.

Sub-Saharan Africa's (SSA) rapid urbanization and climate change have resulted in habitat loss, deforestation, and reduction in urban green spaces. Urban greenness is vital for biodiversity, public health, and climate resilience. Urban green spaces have several health advantages, including lowering urban heat stress and enhancing mental and physical well-being of the population. However, little is known about the accessibility, use, and effects of urban greenness on population health in the region. This scoping review maps the evidence on urban green space availability, utilization, and population health impacts in SSA. The review also identifies the barriers and facilitators that strengthen and contribute to sustainability and urban health. In accordance with the JBI scoping review framework and PRISMA-ScR criteria, this study screened 10,683 records from major databases, grey literature, and reference checks. Initial title and abstract screening produced 118 records for full-text screening, from which 72 records were incorporated into the final analysis, which mapped the evidence using thematic analysis and narrative synthesis. It was found that urban green spaces in SSA are characterized by significant disparities in availability and accessibility, with such areas frequently falling short of international standards. Poor maintenance, corruption, safety issues, and socioeconomic disparities are factors that limit urban green space utilization, while proximity facilitates usage. Stress reduction, increased physical activity, and lower risk of non-communicable diseases, including obesity and hypertension, are identified benefits of the usage of urban green spaces. However, lack of green spaces and neglect of these spaces increase the risk of respiratory problems and vector-borne diseases. Strategic investments in urban green spaces, policy reforms, and community-led greening initiatives are required to improve access and utilization, especially in green-depleted areas. Future research needs to concentrate on experimental and longitudinal methods to demonstrate causal links between urban green space and health outcomes, enhancing sustainable urban planning and health equity in SSA to achieve Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 13.

Using generalised linear models (GLMs) with a Poisson link, this study analysed the short-term effect of NO₂, ozone, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 on the daily number of emergency hospital admissions due to cardiovascular disease (CVD), acute cerebrovascular disease, acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and ischaemic heart disease (IHD). The impact of the minimum daily temperature in cold waves and maximum daily temperature in heat waves was likewise analysed. Specific dose-response functions were calculated for each province and cause of admission considered. We used random effects mixed models to analyse the relationship between the percentage of admissions in each province and the following provincial variables: income level; number of inhabitants; population percentage aged 65 years and over and percentage of women. Our results indicated that in Spain there were 10,167 (95%CI: 3.679, 16.554) emergency CVD-related annual admissions attributable to the variables considered, which accounted for 7.7% of total annual CVD-related admissions in Spain and broke down as follows: 6.9% attributable to air pollution in general, and NO₂ and O₃ in particular, and 0.8% attributable to extreme temperatures, especially during cold waves. A similar pattern could be observed for the specific causes. With respect to the percentage of CVD-related admissions attributable to air pollution, higher income level was a protective element and age over 65 years was a risk factor for the percentage of the population concerned. Air pollution is a risk factor for short-term emergency hospital admissions due to CVD in Spain, with the effect NO₂ and O₃ being especially noteworthy, in terms of all CVD-related causes and the specific causes considered. The impact of extreme temperatures is of a lower order of magnitude than that of air pollution, and the effect of the maximum daily temperature in heat waves on CVD is extremely small.

Street-level environments play a vital role in children's development by promoting their physical activity, cognitive growth, and overall development. This study systematically reviews the measurement tools available to assess street environments according to children's needs. This systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA-COSMIN guidelines. Five databases were searched-Science, PubMed, EBSCO, PsycINFO, and Scopus-and gray Literature was identified using Google Scholar. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were formulated to screen the retrieved articles. The studies included were assessed for risk of bias using the COSMIN RoB checklist. A total of 25 assessment tools were included. The characteristics and measurement properties of these tools are described in two main categories: audit tools and questionnaires. The elements of street built environments addressed in the tools were reflected in five domains: convenience, functionality, safety, aesthetics, and overall perception. For future research, recommendations for tool improvement are proposed, involving participant inclusion and methodological strategies, tool selection, environmental domains, and technological applications in measurement tools. These findings highlight the importance of focusing on children's unique needs when using street environment assessment tools. Future tools should integrate urban big data and computer vision technologies to support the development of child-friendly street environments.

This study aimed to assess the feasibility of a participatory experiment involving residents of a Paris district, in which their dietary habits were monitored through the analysis of chemicals in wastewater. Unlike conventional sociological metrics, wastewater can be used to monitor the behavior of the entire population, regardless of their participation, with an almost 100% response rate. The results revealed changes in the chemistry of wastewater during the experimental week, when residents were encouraged to consume "more fruits and vegetables." A key challenge lies in understanding the possible influence of confounding factors that could affect the chemical dynamics and thus impact the results. These factors were also evaluated. For the first time, wastewater has demonstrated its potential as a monitoring medium for participatory experiments addressing issues of diet and health, which are critical components in shaping the trajectory of sustainable urban living for the future.

The food environment (FE) is the interface where consumers interact to acquire and consume their food. Over the last two decades, the FE has changed due to lifestyle changes, globalization, economic disparities, and supermarketization. In addition, research on the food environment has focused mostly on high-income countries. Our study shows the novelty of assessing the food environment using the market food diversity (MFD) in Nairobi, a rapidly urbanizing city. We assessed the food environment of three income regions of Nairobi-using market food diversity derived from the Minimum Dietary Diversity of Women (MDD-W) tool. In August-December 2023, we used the Global Positioning System (GPS) and a list-based questionnaire to map 3548 food vendors. Descriptive statistics show that informal vendors (86%) dominated across the three income regions compared to formal vendors (14%). The high-income region was characterized by the presence of more formal vendors (24.2%) compared to the other income regions. There were statistically significant differences in food group variations among vendors. The study shows that unhealthy foods remain dominant across the three income regions. Market food diversity was highest in the high-income (3.11) region compared to the low- (2.71) and middle-income (2.35) regions. Our results underscore the need for policy implementation that supports local food environments that promote access to healthier and more nutritious diets, particularly in rapidly urbanizing cities of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) such as Nairobi. Distinguishing income regions highlights the need for local policy officials to intervene to promote access to much healthier foods across the settlements.

Gayborhoods are urban neighborhoods characterized by a high concentration of LGBTQ + residents, businesses, community spaces, and subcultures. Living in gayborhoods may foster a sense of community and belonging that can be particularly beneficial for sexual minority men. However, existing research on gayborhoods has predominantly centered on the experiences of White gay men. The extent to which gayborhoods serve as an inclusive space for ethnically diverse sexual minority men remains largely unexplored. This paper examines the associations of gayborhood residence with LGBTQ + community connectedness, psychological distress, and substance use among ethnically diverse sexual minority men. Utilizing data from the 2023 Gay Asian Men Survey, this paper included 1071 cisgender sexual minority men of Asian backgrounds in Australia. The results indicated that older, middle-class, and gay men were more likely to live in gayborhoods than their younger, lower-class, and bisexual counterparts. The mediation analysis revealed the coexistence of positive and negative impacts of living in gayborhoods. Specifically, gayborhood residence was positively associated with LGBTQ + community connectedness, which was in turn associated with reduced levels of psychological distress but heightened levels of alcohol and drug use. The findings have significant implications for community organizing, mental health support, and substance use prevention. While leveraging gayborhoods to foster support networks and improve mental health among Asian sexual minority men is beneficial, it is equally crucial to address the pressures associated with conforming to community norms, particularly regarding social drinking and recreational drug use.

While both individual- and neighborhood-level factors play a role in the progression from gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), few studies have simultaneously examined these two sets of factors. In this retrospective cohort study of 3567 women with a history of GDM, we used multilevel survival analysis to quantify T2DM risk associated with patient-level and neighborhood-level factors. During a mean follow-up of 2.2 years, 195 women (5.5%) developed T2DM. Statistically significant risk factors of T2DM progression included Black or Asian race, preeclampsia, family history of diabetes, and overweight or obesity. Importantly, residing in neighborhoods with a top tertile social deprivation index was also associated with increased risk (HR = 1.78, 95% CI: 1.01-3.14). In addition, after accounting for other factors, the residual clustering associated with neighborhoods conferred a 19% higher risk. Interventions addressing both individual- and neighborhood-level factors, including socioeconomic disparities, are critical to reducing the risk of T2DM in women with GDM.

Urban agriculture, known as urban farming, urban gardening, or community gardening, has become an important avenue for community development, food security, and economic stability in response to increased urbanization. However, a less studied aspect of urban agriculture is its application for historically marginalized communities and refugee and immigrant communities specifically. Using a two-fold research question: What are the domains of application of urban agriculture interventions on refugee and/or migrant populations? What are the scales and geographic patterns of urban agriculture interventions? Following scoping review guidelines, 42 articles published from 1990 to 2024 were included after screening out 375 articles that were initially retrieved from the database search. Articles were examined based on the following criterion: population of interest, intervention type, intervention scale, and geography of author. Findings suggest five domains of application: well-being, physical health, ecological, economic, and sociological, the latter as the most common domain. Health, particularly mental health, was less evident in scholarship. In terms of scale and geography, findings suggest that studies about large-size interventions were mostly in the Global South (Middle East and African regions specifically), and studies on small and medium-sized interventions were in the Global North (United States, Canada and Australia specifically). For theory, findings point to two broad theoretical domains: relationality and materialist, and less attention to food and environmental justice. These findings raise questions pertaining to access to resources insofar as resources determine the scale/size of interventions and thus their application. Issues pertaining to health and food and environmental justice were applications that largely did not emerge in the data, raising questions for further research.

Throughout the past 50 years, sustainable urban development models (SUDMs) have been introduced in cities across the world with the intention of limiting environmental air pollution and, more recently, greenhouse gas emissions. However, the health and wellbeing impacts that these interventions have had on different demographic groups are not well understood. Feminist urbanists have often critiqued hierarchical and non-participatory approaches to urban design for the detrimental impact they may have on women and minority groups. With x-minute neighborhood policies gaining popularity in urban planning across the world, gathering evidence on the potential gendered health and wellbeing inequalities impacts of these policies is a salient issue. Our research questions were as follows: (1) In the existing literature, what is known about the health and wellbeing impacts of SUDMs on women? (2) What mechanistic pathways are outlined in existing literature from SUDMs to gendered health outcomes? This review searched Medline, SCOPUS, Science Citation Index Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, and ASSIA. A broad range of outcomes was included in the search, from physical and mental health and wellbeing to health behaviors. We searched for empirical papers published in English before January 1st, 2024, without limiting the search by year or country of publication. Screening was performed on Rayyan with 15% of records double-screened. Critical appraisal was conducted using the AXIS tool for cross-sectional studies and CASP cohort checklist for longitudinal studies. Narrative synthesis was used to explore results in depth, with an effect-direction plot used to visually summarize findings. The initial search returned 1263 records. After duplicates were removed, 1194 records remained for screening. Of these, 301 were included for full-text screening, with 25 included for data extraction. Most of the included papers explored associations between SUDMs and women's physical activity. These relationships were typically positive, although some found no significant associations. Papers which explored the gendered mechanisms leading to outcomes tended to posit that having more convenient non-motorized access to a range of destinations on foot helped women to balance their paid and unpaid labor, leading to increased physical activity. Increased safety and reduced social isolation within SUDMs were also hypothesized as key contributing factors to women's increased physical activity. We found that there are research gaps in relation to mental health and long-term physical health outcomes.