College for Health, Community and Policy Faculty Research

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12588/259

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A Differential–Developmental Model (DDM): Mental Speed, Attention Lapses, and General Intelligence (g)
(2017-06-12) Coyle, Thomas R.
The aim of this paper is to provide a parsimonious account of developmental and individual differences in intelligence (measured as g). The paper proposes a Differential–Developmental Model (DDM), which focuses on factors common to intelligence and cognitive development (e.g., mental speed and attention lapses). It also proposes a complementary method based on Jensen’s box, a chronometric device. The device systematically varies task complexity, and separates two components of mental speed that differentially predict intelligence and cognitive development (reaction time and movement time). The paper reviews key assumptions of DDM, preliminary findings relevant to DDM, and future research on DDM.
A Scoping Review on Gender/Sex Differences in COVID-19 Vaccine Intentions and Uptake in the United States
(SAGE Publications, 2023-10-17) Sileo, Katelyn M.; Hirani, Inara M.; Luttinen, Rebecca L.; Hayward, Matt; Fleming, Paul J.
Objective: To explore the empirical literature on gender/sex differences in vaccine acceptance among U.S.-based adults and adolescents in approximately the first 2 years of the pandemic. Data source: Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, EBSCO, CINAHL, Web of Science Study inclusion and exclusion criteria: Peer-reviewed studies conducted in the U.S. with those aged 12 and older, published in English before January 12, 2022, examining the relationship between gender/sex on COVID-19 vaccine intentions and/or uptake. Data extraction: Three authors screened studies and extracted data. Data Synthesis: Univariate and multivariate results are summarized. Results: A total of 53 studies met inclusion criteria (48 intentions, 7 uptake), using mostly cross-sectional designs (92.5%) and non-random sampling (83.0%). The majority of studies supported men’s greater intentions to vaccinate compared to women, and men’s greater vaccine uptake in univariate analyses, but most multivariate analyses supported no gender differences in uptake. Few studies examined gender beyond binary categories (women/men), highlighting a gap in the studies inclusive of transgender or gender-diverse populations in analyses. Conclusion: Women may have been more hesitant to get the vaccine than men early in the pandemic, but these differences may not translate to actual behavior. Future research should include non-binary/transgender populations, explore the gender-specific reasons for hesitancy and differences by sub-populations, utilize more rigorous designs, and test gender-sensitive public health campaigns to mitigate vaccine concerns.
Acculturative Orientations Among Hispanic/Latinx Caregivers in the ABCD Study: Associations With Caregiver and Youth Mental Health and Youth Brain Function
(Elsevier, 2023-02-17) Meca, Alan; Peraza, Julio A.; Riedel, Michael C.; Hale, Willie; Pettit, Jeremy W.; Musser, Erica D.; Salo, Taylor; Flannery, Jessica S.; Bottenhorn, Katherine L.; Dick, Anthony S.; Pintos Lobo, Rosario; Ucros, Laura M.; Greaves, Chelsea A.; Hawes, Samuel W.; Sanchez, Mariana; Gonzalez, Marybel R.; Sutherland, Matthew T.; Gonzalez, Raul; Laird, Angela R.
Background: Population-based neuroscience offers opportunities to examine important but understudied sociocultural factors such as acculturation. Acculturation refers to the extent to which an individual retains their cultural heritage and/or adopts the receiving society’s culture and is particularly salient among Hispanic/Latinx immigrants. Specific acculturative orientations have been linked to vulnerability to substance use, depression, and suicide and are known to influence family dynamics between caregivers and their children. Methods: Using data from first- and second-generation Hispanic/Latinx caregivers in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (N = 1057), we examined how caregivers’ acculturative orientation affects their mental health, as well as the mental health and brain function of their children. Neuroimaging analyses focused on regions associated with self- and affiliation-based social processing (ventromedial prefrontal cortex, insula, and temporoparietal junction). Results: We identified 2 profiles of caregiver acculturation: bicultural (retains heritage culture while adopting U.S. culture) and detached (discards heritage culture and rejects U.S. culture). Bicultural caregivers exhibited fewer internalizing and externalizing problems than detached caregivers; furthermore, youth exhibited similar internalizing effects across caregiver profiles. In addition, youth with bicultural caregivers displayed increased resting-state brain activity (i.e., fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations and regional homogeneity) in the left insula, which has been linked to psychopathology; however, differences in long-range functional connectivity were not significant. Conclusions: Caregiver acculturation is an important familial factor that has been linked to significant differences in youth mental health and insula activity. Future work should examine sociocultural and neurodevelopmental changes across adolescence to assess health outcomes and determine whether localized, corticolimbic brain effects are ultimately translated into long-range connectivity differences.
Adaptive Complexity: Examining Texas Public Postsecondary Institutions' Provision of Student Basic Needs Programs
(MDPI, 2024-04-16) Zottarelli, Lisa K.; Xu, Xiaohe; Hatcher, Jayla M.; Thiruppathiraj, Raji; Ellis, Natasha; Chowdhury, Shamatanni; Sunil, Thankam
This study reveals that the likelihood and diversity of postsecondary institutions providing basic needs programs are significantly influenced by institutional factors such as the institutions' organization and size. This study also indicates that Hispanic-Serving Institutions tend to provide emergency housing, which highlights a targeted response to specific community needs. In addition, the analysis indicates that the presence of students with financial needs is linked to the availability of food pantry services, suggesting a strategic approach to address student welfare. The findings from this study provide critical insights into how institutional characteristics influence the provision and variety of basic needs services. These conclusions not only underscore the pivotal role of such services in supporting the overall well-being and academic success of students but also indicate institutional factors that support the formal implementation of a variety of basic needs programs to meet diverse student needs.
An Assessment of Prisoner Reentry, Legal Financial Obligations and Family Financial Support: A Focus on Fathers
(2021-09-13) Montes, Andrea N.; Wallace, Danielle; Fahmy, Chantal; Henson, Abigail; Chamberlain, Alyssa W.; Jacobs, Leah A.
Scholars have found that family support is an important facilitator of successful reentry from prison to the community. At the same time, they have argued that owing court-ordered fines or fees, also called legal financial obligations (LFOs), can act as an additional barrier to reentry, especially for parents. There remains a need to test how LFOs impact the financial support formerly incarcerated parents receive from their families. The current study responds to this gap by employing logistic regression analyses of the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) data to test whether owing court fees is associated with formerly incarcerated fathers’ (1) perceptions of available financial support from family and (2) receipt of financial support from family. We find that owing court fees is not associated with perceptions of available financial support. However, owing court fees has a positive, statistically significant association with receiving financial support from family during the first three months after prison release. This relationship remains after accounting for whether the person owes child support or sees their children monthly. Our results suggest that LFOs may create a greater need for financial support among formerly incarcerated fathers, making the financial challenges of reentry a consequence not just for those who were incarcerated but for their loved ones as well.
Are Religious Teens Nice Kids? Faith and Congeniality among American Adolescents
(2018-10-26) Fondren, Kristi M.; Bartkowski, John P.; Xu, Xiaohe; Levin, Martin L.
One body of extant research has documented the social contours and positive effects of teen religiosity, while another has explored the religious sources of social congeniality (“niceness”) among adult Americans. This study integrates these parallel bodies of scholarship by examining the religious bases of niceness among American teens. Using post-hoc interviewer ratings from wave 1 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we examine the degree to which religious teens are perceived more positively than their nonreligious peers. Associations linked to six dimensions of teen religiosity are considered. Select facets of teen religiosity are associated with more positive interviewer ratings, particularly for interpersonal warmth, thereby providing modest support for hypothesized patterns. Findings are interpreted in light of current theories of religious involvement, interpersonal dispositions, and social competencies.
Beyond Being Insured: Insurance Coverage Denial as a Major Barrier to Accessing Care During Pregnancy and Postpartum
(SAGE Publications, 2023-06-02) Lee, Jusung; Howard, Krista J.; Leong, Caleb; Grigsby, Timothy J.; Howard, Jeffrey T.
This study investigates the association between insurance coverage denial and delays in care during pregnancy and postpartum. An online survey was administered in March and April 2022 to women who were either pregnant or within 1 year postpartum (n = 1,113). The outcome was delayed care, measured at four time points: during pregnancy and 1 week, 2 to 6 weeks, and after 7 weeks postpartum. The key covariate was insurance coverage denial by providers during pregnancy. Delayed care due to having an unaccepted insurance and being “out-of-network” was more pronounced at 1 week postpartum with 3.37 times and 3.47 times greater odds and in 2 to 6 weeks postpartum with 5.74 times and 2.97 times greater odds, respectively. The association between insurance denial and delays in care encapsulated transportation, rural residency, time issues, and financial constraints. The findings suggest that coverage denial is associated with significant delays in care, providing practical implications for effective perinatal care.
Beyond Depression and Suicide: The Mental Health of Transgender College Students
(2017-02-21) Oswalt, Sara B.; Lederer, Alyssa M.
Research studies examining the mental health of transgender individuals often focus on depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation through the use of clinic samples. However, little is known about the emerging adult (18–26 years old) transgender population and their mental health. The current study seeks to fill that gap by using a national dataset of college students (N = 547,727) to examine how transgender college students (n = 1143) differ from their cisgender peers regarding 12 different mental health conditions. Chi-square and regression analyses were conducted. Results demonstrate that transgender students have approximately twice the risk for most mental health conditions compared to cisgender female students. A notable exception is schizophrenia, in which transgender individuals have about seven times the risk compared to cisgender females. While these were significant findings, regression analyses indicate that being non-heterosexual is a greater predictor for mental health concerns. Implications for mental health practitioners at colleges and universities are discussed.
Black Disadvantage or Advantage? Misalignment between State and Popular Understandings of Blackness in Mexico
(SAGE Publications, 2024-01-25) Sue, Christina A.; Riosmena, Fernando; Telles, Edward
Growing numbers of countries are including ethnoracial questions on their national censuses, spawning new scholarship on the politics of state classification and ethnoracial stratification. However, these literatures have generally not focused on how alignment or misalignment between state and popular conceptualizations of ethnoracial categories affects official measurements, including population size and ethnoracial inequality. The authors leverage a quasi-natural experiment on state-popular alignment in Mexico by drawing on three recent government surveys, which, for the first time in the nation’s history, sought to measure black identification yet defined blackness in divergent ways. The authors find that questions that define blackness in cultural terms (which misalign with popular conceptions of blackness) produce substantially smaller population estimates and considerably less black disadvantage than a noncultural (racial origins) question. This article bridges the literatures on the politics of ethnoracial classification and stratification and produces new empirical and theoretical insights into the study of ethnoracial measurement and inequality.
Buddhism and Depressive Symptoms among Married Women in Urban Thailand
(2020-01-25) Xu, Ting; Xu, Xiaohe; Sunil, Thankam; Sirisunyaluck, Bangon
A growing body of research has documented salutary associations between religious involvement and poor mental health outcomes, such as depressive symptoms and psychological distress. However, little scholarly attention has been given to the association between Buddhism, a non-Western religious faith, and depressive symptomatology in Thailand. Using random survey data collected from urban Thailand, this study examines the association between religious involvement and depressive symptoms among married women in Bangkok. Findings from multiple linear regression models reveal that (1) Buddhist respondents report significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms than their non-Buddhist counterparts, (2) the frequency of participation in religious activities is significantly and inversely associated with the level of depressive symptoms, and (3) the inverse association between religious participation and depressive symptoms is more salient for Buddhists who frequently practice their faith (i.e., significant interaction effect). Research limitations and directions for future research are discussed.
Changes in the Retail Food Environment in Mexican Cities and Their Association with Blood Pressure Outcomes
(2022-01-26) Armendariz, Marina; Pérez-Ferrer, Carolina; Basto-Abreu, Ana; Lovasi, Gina S.; Bilal, Usama; Barrientos-Gutiérrez, Tonatiuh
Shifting food environments in Latin America have potentially contributed to an increase in the consumption of ultra-processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages, along with decreases in healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables. Yet, little is known about the impact that such changes in the food environment have on blood pressure in low- and middle-income countries, including Mexico. We utilized individual-level systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP) measures from the 2016 Mexican Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT, n = 2798 adults). Using an inventory of food stores based on the economic census for 2010 and 2016, we calculated the change in the density of fruit and vegetable stores, convenience stores, and supermarkets. Multilevel regression was used to estimate the association between the 2010–2016 food environment neighborhood-level changes with individual-level blood pressure measured in 2016. Declines in neighborhood-level density of fruit and vegetable stores were associated with higher individual SBP (2.67 mmHg, 95% CI: 0.1, 5.2) in unadjusted models, and marginally associated after controlling for individual-level and area-level covariates. Increases in the density of supermarkets were associated with higher blood pressure outcomes among adults with undiagnosed hypertension. Structural interventions targeting the retail food environment could potentially contribute to better nutrition-related health outcomes in Latin American cities.
Comparative Study of Angiotensin I-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibition of Soy Foods as Affected by Processing Methods and Protein Isolation
(2020-08-12) Handa, Cíntia L.; Zhang, Yan; Kumari, Shweta; Xu, Jing; Ida, Elza I.; Chang, Sam K. C.
Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) converts angiotensin I into the vasoconstrictor angiotensin II and eventually elevates blood pressure. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Studies show peptides present anti-hypertensive activity by ACE inhibition. During food processing and digestion, food proteins may be hydrolyzed and release peptides. Our objective was to determine and compare the ACE inhibitory potential of fermented and non-fermented soy foods and isolated 7S and 11S protein fractions. Soy foods (e.g., soybean, natto, tempeh, yogurt, soymilk, tofu, soy-sprouts) and isolated proteins were in vitro digested prior to the determination of ACE inhibitory activity. Peptide molecular weight distribution in digested samples was analyzed and correlated with ACE inhibitory capacity. Raw and cooked soymilk showed the highest ACE inhibitory potential. Bacteria-fermented soy foods had higher ACE inhibitory activity than fungus-fermented soy food, and 3 day germinated sprouts had higher ACE inhibition than those germinated for 5 and 7 days. The 11S hydrolysates showed higher ACE inhibitory capacity than 7S. Peptides of 1–4.5 kDa showed a higher contribution to reducing IC50. This study provides evidence that soy foods and isolated 7S and 11S proteins may be used as functional foods or ingredients to prevent or control hypertension.
Comparing same- and different-sex relationship dynamics: Experiences of young adults in Taiwan
(Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, 2019-03-05) Lin, Zhiyong; Yu, Wei-hsin; Su, Kuo-Hsien
Background: Few studies of same-sex relationships are able to capture the dynamics of these relationships from formation to dissolution, and even fewer provide evidence on these dynamics in a non-Western context. Objective: Using retrospective relationship history data collected from a nationally representative sample of young adults, this study compares the processes of forming and terminating relationships between same- and different-sex couples in Taiwan, an Asian society featuring both strong parental influences on children’s mate selection and an ongoing legislative effort to legalize same-sex marriage. Results: Results from event history models show that factors associated with relationship formation and dissolution are largely similar for same- and different-sex unions and that same-sex relationships do not have higher dissolution rates. Nevertheless, premarital coresidence with parents, which is likely to amplify parental influences on children’s mate selection, deters the entry into and accelerates the dissolution of same-sex relationships more than it does different-sex relationships. Moreover, same-sex relationships are more heterogamous in family economic background, but more homogamous in age and education level, than different-sex ones. Contribution: This study is among the first to provide evidence on the dynamics of same- and different-sex relationships in a non-Western context. Aside from a few differences between same- and different-sex relationships related to parental influences, our study provides strong evidence that same- and different-sex couples experience intimacies in similar ways – even in a relatively conservative cultural context like Taiwan.
The Contribution of Sociocultural Factors in Shaping Self-Reported Sickness Behavior
(Frontiers Media, 2020-01-24) Shattuck, Eric; Perrotte, Jessica K.; Daniels, Colton; Xu, Xiaohe; Sunil, Thankam
Sickness behavior is an evolutionarily conserved phenomenon found across a diverse range of animals involving a change in motivational priorities to theoretically maximize energetic investment in immune function and recovery. Typical components of sickness behavior include reduced sociability and activity, changes in diet, and depressed affect. Importantly, however, sickness behavior appears to be subject to other demands of life history in animal models, including reproduction and offspring survival. Thus, “feeling sick” is often context dependent with possible effects on morbidity and mortality. While humans may not always face the same life history trade-offs, sociocultural norms and values may similarly shape sickness behavior by establishing internalized parameters for “socially appropriate sickness.” We explore the role of these factors in shaping sickness behavior by surveying a national U.S. sample (n = 1,259). Self-reported and recalled sickness behavior was measured using the SicknessQ instrument, which has previously been validated against experimentally induced sickness behavior. After post-stratification weighting and correction for Type I error, generalized linear models showed that sickness behavior is significantly affected by various factors across sex and racial/ethnic groupings. Income below the national mean (b = 1.85, adj. p = 0.025), stoic endurance of pain and discomfort (b = 1.61, adj. p < 0.001), and depressive symptomology (b = 0.53, adj. p < 0.001) were each associated with greater sickness behavior scores. Familism (b = 1.59, adj. p = 0.008) was positively associated with sickness behavior in men, but not women. Endurance of pain and discomfort was associated with greater sickness behavior in Whites only (b = 1.94, adj. p = 0.002), while familism approached significance in African Americans only (b = 1.86, adj. p = 0.057). These findings may reflect different social contexts of sickness across demographic groups, which may in turn have important implications for pathogen transmission and recovery times, potentially contributing to health disparities.
COUPLE IDENTITY WORK: Collaborative Couplehood, Gender Inequalities, and Power in Naming
(SAGE Publications, 2024-01-30) Sue, Christina A.; Vasquez-Tokos, Jessica; Núñez, Adriana C.
The study of baby naming is valuable for understanding how gender inequality is reproduced in families. Often treated as an event, baby naming also represents an important social and cultural process that can reveal gendered dynamics in couple decision-making. Baby naming, which represents a highly visible and symbolic family milestone, is a strategic site in which to examine how couple identities are constructed—for self, partner, and others—through the naming process and through stories parents tell of how they named the baby. Drawing on 46 interviews with U.S. Mexican-origin heterosexual parents, we expose tensions that result when practices do not align with a desired (egalitarian) couple identity and detail the ensuing cognitive, emotion, and narrative labor that parents—primarily women—perform to reconcile inconsistencies. We introduce the concept of couple identity work, or the work involved in creating and projecting a desired impression of a relationship for multiple audiences, to provide a theoretical framework for these gendered dynamics. We show how couple identity work is enacted—and power expressed—through men’s and women’s strategies of action/inaction and storytelling, and how this work reproduces and obscures gendered power and inequality in the intimate context of baby naming.
COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Nursing Homes Financial Performance
(SAGE Publications, 2024-03-21) Orewa, Gregory N.; Weech-Maldonado, Robert; Lord, Justin; Davlyatov, Ganisher; Becker, David; Feldman, Sue S.
Nursing homes expressed concern about potential severe adverse financial outcomes of COVID-19, with worries extending to the possibility of some facilities facing closure. Maintaining a strong financial well-being is crucial, and there were concerns that the pandemic might have significantly impacted both expenses and income. This longitudinal study aimed to analyze the financial performance of nursing homes during COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, we examined the impact of the pandemic on nursing home operating margins, operating revenue per resident day, and operating cost per resident day. The study utilized secondary data from various sources, including CMS Medicare cost reports, Brown University’s Long Term Care Focus (LTCFocus), CMS Payroll-Based Journal, CMS Care Compare, Area Health Resource File, Provider Relief Fund distribution data, and CDC’s NH COVID-19 public file. The sample consisted of 45 833 nursing home-year observations from 2018 to 2021. Fixed-effects regression analysis was employed to assess the impact of the pandemic on financial performance while controlling for various organizational and market characteristics. The study found that nursing homes’ financial performance deteriorated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Operating margins decreased by approximately 4.3%, while operating costs per resident day increased by $26.51, outweighing the increase in operating revenue per resident day by about $17. Occupancy rates, payer mix, and staffing intensity were found to impact financial performance. The study highlights the significant financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing homes. While nursing homes faced substantial financial strains, the findings offered lessons for the future, underscoring the need for nursing homes to improve the accuracy of their cost reports and enhance financial transparency and accountability.
The Criminalization of Immigrants & the Immigration-Industrial Complex
(MIT Press, 2013) Douglas, Karen Manges; Saenz, Rogelio
Over the last few decades, and particularly after 9/11, we have witnessed the increasing criminalization of immigrants in the United States. Changing policies have subjected immigrants to intensified apprehension and detention programs. This essay provides an overview of the context and policies that have produced the rising criminalization of immigrants. We draw on the institutional theory of migration to understand the business of detention centers and the construction of the immigration-industrial complex. We link government contracts and private corporations in the formation of the immigration-industrial complex, highlighting the increasing profits that private corporations are making through the detention of immigrants. We conclude with a discussion of how the privatization of detention centers is part of a larger trend in which basic functions of societal institutions are being farmed out to private corporations with little consideration for basic human rights.
Depression Mediates the Relationship between Food Insecurity and Pain Interference in College Students
(2020-12-24) Umeda, Masataka; Ullevig, Sarah L.; Chung, Eunhee; Kim, Youngdeok; Escobedo, Tanya J.; Zeitz, Christopher J.
Food insecurity (FI) typically produces unfavorable health conditions. Research shows the high prevalence of FI among college students, and depression is one of the adverse effects of FI among them. It is possible that FI may increase the risk of pain via depression; however, it is currently unclear whether FI is linked to pain among college students. Therefore, this study compared pain experiences between students with and without FI, and examined the relationship between FI, depression, and pain. One hundred seventy-six college students at a Hispanic-serving institution in the southwestern region of US completed self-report measures to assess FI, depression, pain severity, and pain interference. Results indicated that approximately 24% of the students were categorized as food insecure, and those students scored higher on pain interference compared to food-secure students. FI was positively associated with depression and pain interference scores, and depression scores were positively associated with pain interference scores. The mediation analyses based on the counterfactual framework demonstrated a significant mediation effect of depression, where 50.59% of the total effect of FI on pain interference was attributable to the depression. These results suggest that FI extends its negative effects into pain interference among college students, but better management of depression may help alleviate the effects of FI on pain interference.
Development and psychometric validation of the Dispositional Recovery and Dysfunction Inventory: a tool to assess for positive and negative cognitions following trauma exposure
(Cambridge University Press, 2021-05-31) Moore, Brian A.; Hale, Willie J.; Ludkins, Jason L.; Peterson, Alan L.
Background: Recovery from trauma can be naturally occurring or facilitated through psychotherapy. Few brief measures exist to provide clinicians with dispositional, empirical assessments of patient’s sentiments during psychotherapy. Aims: This manuscript presents the Dispositional Recovery and Dysfunction Inventory (DRDI), a measure created to assist clinicians in evaluating patient’s treatment progress during psychotherapy, as well as evaluate its factor structure, reliability estimates, measurement invariance, and correlates. Method: The DRDI was created based on feedback from experts with experience treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and was structurally validated in two distinct populations. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted in sample 1 consisting of (n=401) university students. Confirmatory factor analysis, measure validity and structure validation were then conducted in sample 2 (n=249) composed of 49% individuals with clinically significant PTSD symptoms. Results: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the DRDI was best represented by a two-factor correlated traits model representing sentiments related to dispositional recovery and dysfunctional cognitions. The recovery subscale exhibited relationships with convergent measures including authenticity and psychological hardiness (r values of .30 to .60). The dysfunctional beliefs subscale exhibited relationships with convergent measures: PTSD, depression, suicidality and stress (r values of .55 to 80). Measurement invariance across gender and PTSD status was observed. Conclusion: Initial findings indicate that the DRDI has the potential to be a useful tool to assess individuals’ beliefs about their propensity to recover from and thrive through adversity.
Dietary Intake and Elevated C-Reactive Protein Levels in US Military Veterans
(2021-01-06) Ansley, Stephanie D.; Howard, Jeffrey T.
Elevated inflammatory markers, such as high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), have been associated with the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related diseases. However, limited studies have evaluated the potential association between dietary consumption and hs-CRP levels in a large, nationally representative sample, and fewer have investigated their role in ethnic and racial minority military populations. The goal of this study is to explore the relationship between dietary intake, health behaviors, and hs-CRP in individuals with prior military status and whether these associations differ by race/ethnicity. A complex, multistage, probability sample design was used from the National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) 2015–2018 waves. Our results indicate that previously deployed military service members had a higher prevalence of clinically elevated hs-CRP levels than civilians. Differences in hs-CRP among deployed veterans and civilians remained even after multivariable adjustment. Individuals classified as overweight and obese demonstrated clinically elevated hs-CRP levels compared with those with a normal body mass index (BMI). Dietary factors did not attenuate the association between changes in hs-CRP levels and veteran status. These findings suggest the need for further investigation into how military-specific stressors contribute to unfavorable health outcomes for the military population.

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