title: Patterns and predictors of health behaviors among racially/ethnically diverse residents of low-income housing developments.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine behavioral patterns and sociodemographic predictors of diet, inactivity, and tobacco use among a diverse sample of residents from low-income housing developments.
  
  
  METHODS
  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.
  
  
  METHODS
  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.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  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.
authors.forename: Amy E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Harley
authors.forename: May
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Anne M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Stoddard
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Adamkiewicz
authors.forename: Renee
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: Reginald D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Tucker-Seeley
authors.forename: Jennifer D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: Glorian
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sorensen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000367:Age Factors; D001900:Boston / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet / Q000208:ethnology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011638:Public Housing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D057185:Sedentary Behavior / Q000208:ethnology; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D064424:Tobacco Use / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: African Americans; Health Behavior; Health Promotion; Health focus: fitness/physical activity, nutrition, and smoking control; Immigrants; Low-Income Population; Manuscript format: research; Outcome measure: behavioral; Prevention Research; Public Housing; Research purpose: modeling/relationship testing; Setting: local community; Study design: nonexperimental; Target population age: adults; Target population circumstances: education/income level, geographic location, and race/ethnicity