New paper: Availability of healthy foods may decrease hypertension

March 28, 2009 at 8:28 am | In amenities, food deserts, grocery stores, health, hypertension, neighborhoods, supermarkets | Leave a Comment

“Neighborhood Characteristics and Hypertension,” authored by Mahasin Mujahid and others, was recently published in Epidemiology. From the abstract: The goal of this study was to investigate cross-sectional associations between features of neighborhoods and hypertension and to examine the sensitivity of results to various methods of estimating neighborhood conditions. We used data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis on 2612 individuals 45-85 years of age…. Neighborhood (census tract) conditions potentially related to hypertension (walking environment, availability of healthy foods, safety, social cohesion) were measured using information from a separate phone survey conducted in the study neighborhoods…. Residents of neighborhoods with better walkability, availability of healthy foods, greater safety, and more social cohesion were less likely to be hypertensive.

Two new studies find that supplementary educational settings and ethnoburbs important for Chinese immigrant incorporation

March 17, 2009 at 10:24 am | In amenities, churches, immigrants, neighborhoods, non-profits | Leave a Comment

In, “The Ethnic System of Supplementary Education: Non-profit and For-profit Institutions in Los Angeles’ Chinese Immigrant Community,” Min Zhou examines how particular types of informal social settings created and structured within ethnic communities generate resources for school success. By looking specifically at non-profit and for-profit institutions serving youth in Los Angeles’ Chinese immigrant community, Zhou highlights an ethnic system of supplementary education that not only offers tangible support but also reinforces cultural norms in pushing immigrant children to succeed in school. The full citation for the piece is:

Zhou, Min. 2008. “The Ethnic System of Supplementary Education: Non-profit and Forprofit Institutions in Los Angeles’ Chinese Immigrant Community.” Pp. 229-251 in Beth Shinn and Hirokazu Yoshikawa, eds., Toward Positive Youth Development: Transforming Schools and Community Programs. New York: Oxford University Press.

In addition, Min Zhou and her co-authors have published a piece looking at new patterns of residential assimilation through the case of a sprawling Chinese ethnoburb in the San Gabriel Valley of California. Using U.S. Census data, field observations, and previous literature, the authors demonstrate that new patterns of immigrant settlement are reshaping Chinese American commercial investment, real estate, educational institutions, and other organizations. The full citation for the piece is:

Zhou, Min, Yen-fen Tseng, and Rebecca Y. Kim. 2008. “Rethinking Residential Assimilation through the Case of Chinese Ethnoburbs in the San Gabriel Valley, California.” Amerasia Journal 34 (3): 55-83.


Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.