Food consumption and diet quality choices of Roma in Romania: a counterfactual analysis

This paper analyses the diet quality aspect of food security of Roma in Romania. We employed a modified Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition technique using Household Budget Survey data for the period 2004–2011. The estimates suggest that Roma have inferior diet diversity compared to the non-Roma. Around one-third of the diet diversity gap is explained by the differences in observed socio-economic factors, whereas the remaining part of the gap is attributed to unobserved factors. We argue that the unexplained component of the diet diversity gap is caused by the discrimination of the Roma on the labour market and by their specific informal institutions

Optimizing a Community-Friendly HIV Risk Reduction Intervention for Injection Drug Users in Treatment: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

Research on behavioral HIV risk reduction interventions for injection drug users (IDUs) has focused on primary outcomes (e.g., reduced injection drug use, increased condom use) but has not fully examined the respective roles played by intervention components on these primary outcomes. In this paper, we present a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach in which we specify the causal pathways leading from theory-based intervention components to risk reduction outcomes among a sample of primarily IDUs (n = 226) participating in an inner-city community-based methadone maintenance program. Similar pathways were found leading to both drug- and sexual-related risk reduction outcomes. Findings suggest the importance of targeting participants' risk reduction motivation and behavioral skills versus employing more passive informational strategies. Findings also indicate that our intervention may be optimized by focusing more on participants' risk reduction motivation within the sexual-related content and placing equivalent emphasis on participants' risk reduction knowledge, motivation, and behavioral skills within the drug-related content. By quantifying the specific linkage between intervention components and risk reduction outcomes, our SEM findings offer empirical guidance for optimizing this intervention. This strategy may also serve as a useful theory- and data-driven means to inform the refinement of other behavioral interventions

Ethnic Differences in Body Mass Index Trajectories from Adolescence to Adulthood: A Focus on Hispanic and Asian Subgroups in the United States

BACKGROUND: Compared to whites, U.S. Hispanics have higher obesity rates; U.S. Asians have lower rates. However Hispanics and Asians are each comprised of several ethnic subgroups that differ with respect to country of origin, immigration history, and geographic distribution across the U.S. Among adolescents, ethnic differences in obesity have been previously reported, but no studies have examined longitudinal change in body mass index (BMI) by Hispanic and Asian subgroup category to understand when and why these disparities emerge, especially during the critical transition between adolescence and adulthood. METHODS: Using nationally-representative, longitudinal data from 1355 Hispanics (Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central/South American, Other Hispanic), 520 Asians (Chinese, Filipino, Other Asian), and 5061whites from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Waves II–IV: 1996–2009), we used linear mixed spline models to examine whether Hispanic and Asian adolescent subgroups shared the same BMI trajectories as whites as they aged into adulthood. We also investigated the role of social and behavioral factors in explaining race/ethnic differences. RESULTS: Among Hispanics, Mexican and Puerto Rican-origin individuals exhibited faster increases in BMI both in adolescence and in adulthood and these patterns were not attributable to the measured social and behavioral factors. There was also evidence of emerging disparities in Cuban males, and in Central/South Americans relative to whites. In contrast, Chinese, Filipino, and Other Asian adolescents had significantly lower BMI and slower BMI increases in adulthood compared to whites. In models adjusted for social and behavioral factors, Chinese-white and Other Asian-white differentials remained unexplained. CONCLUSIONS: Aggregate estimates of Hispanics and Asians mask important heterogeneity in BMI. A better understanding of weight dynamics early in the life course can inform how and when disparities emerge to better target prevention efforts