Grant Details
Grant Number: |
5R01CA281042-02 Interpret this number |
Primary Investigator: |
Shier, Victoria |
Organization: |
University Of Southern California |
Project Title: |
Redeveloping Low-Income Communities of Color: Impacts on Residents' Obesity and Related Health Behaviors |
Fiscal Year: |
2024 |
Abstract
Project Summary
Socioeconomic and racial-ethnic inequalities in obesity are well documented in the literature. It is vital to
understand the determinants of these disparities in obesity, as obesity is linked to increased risk for many
other health outcomes including cancer, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, stroke, asthma, and early mortality. It is
suggested that these disparities are due, to some extent, to the built and natural environments as well as in
housing quality in the communities where low-income and minority populations live. However, it is unclear as
to the extent to which health disparities can be reduced by improving housing and neighborhood
environments, e.g., by improving walkability, green space, healthy food access, safety, and air quality, in low-
income minority communities. To address this research gap, we propose to study a time-sensitive natural
experiment that will ultimately significantly improve opportunities for health by altering the built-environment
and housing quality in a low-income urban community. The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles is
planning to redevelop the Rancho San Pedro (hereafter, Rancho) community, an obsolete 478-unit public
housing project located next to the Port of Los Angeles. The redevelopment will build new housing for existing
residents, add additional units for affordable housing, mixed-income housing and homeownership units,
provide several opportunities for healthier lifestyles via parks, green spaces, jogging trails, community gardens,
street lighting, and retail space, and create housing and built environment enhancements that will reduce air
pollution exposure from the Port. Current Rancho residents will continue to live in existing housing during the
redevelopment, and as a result, residents will experience construction-related disruption (loss of greenspace
and walkability, noise and air pollution). Our goal is to study the effects of these short-term disruptions on
residents’ BMI and related health outcomes (e.g., cardiovascular, asthma exacerbation). We will do this by
following a cohort of residents of Rancho and a control public housing site. In Aim 1, we will examine the short-
term impact of the Rancho public housing redevelopment on residents’ BMI and related health outcomes. In
Aim 2, we will unpack the potential mechanisms for the observed change in health outcomes to investigate
both why and how observed changes occur. Finally, in Aim 3, we will explore moderating effects by time-
activity patterns, socio-demographics, and health status to understand for whom and under what
circumstances changes were observed.
Publications
None