Socioecologic Factors and Racial Differences in Breast Cancer Multigene Prognostic Scores in US Women.

Importance: Disproportionately aggressive tumor biology among non-Hispanic Black women with early-stage, estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer contributes to racial disparities in breast cancer mortality. It is unclear whether socioecologic factors underlie racial differences in breast tumor biology.

Objective: To examine individual-level (insurance status) and contextual (area-level socioeconomic position and rural or urban residence) factors as possible mediators of racial and ethnic differences in the prevalence of ER-positive breast tumors with aggressive biology, as indicated by a high-risk gene expression profile.

Associations of gut microbiome richness and diversity with objective and subjective sleep measures in a population sample.

Study Objectives: Alterations in gut microbiota composition have been associated with several conditions, and there is emerging evidence that sleep quantity and quality are associated with the composition of the gut microbiome. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the associations between several measures of sleep and the gut microbiome in a large, population-based sample.

Methods: Data were collected from participants in the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin from 2016 to 2017 (N = 720).

Biomonitoring of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW) 2014-2016 and comparison with the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a growing class of manufactured chemical compounds found in a variety of consumer products. PFAS are ubiquitous in the environment and were found in many humans sampled in the United States (U.S.

Sense of community and mental health: a cross-sectional analysis from a household survey in Wisconsin.

Background: In the USA, one in five adults live with a mental illness, and researchers have estimated that nearly half of the population will have a mental illness over the course of their lifetime. Research has shown significant associations between social relationships and mental health outcomes at the individual and population levels. This study aims to examine whether sense of community, a type of social capital, is associated with mental health.

Biomonitoring of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW) 2014-2016 and comparison with the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a growing class of manufactured chemical compounds found in a variety of consumer products. PFAS have become ubiquitous in the environment and were found in many humans sampled in the United States (U.S.

Psychological distress and well-being among sensory impaired individuals during COVID-19 lockdown measures.

Purpose: Hearing and vision impairment are prevalent chronic conditions associated with poorer mental health. Limitations of in-person contacts during COVID-19-related lockdown measures may affect those with sensory impairments more severely exacerbating mental health problems. We aimed to determine whether hearing and/or visual impairment were associated with more psychological distress during a time of lockdown measures in Spring/Summer 2020 in Wisconsin.

Regulation of metabolic health by dietary histidine in mice.

Low-protein (LP) diets are associated with a decreased risk of diabetes in humans, and promote leanness and glycaemic control in both rodents and humans. While the effects of an LP diet on glycaemic control are mediated by reduced levels of the branched-chain amino acids, we have observed that reducing dietary levels of the other six essential amino acids leads to changes in body composition. Here, we find that dietary histidine plays a key role in the response to an LP diet in male C57BL/6J mice.

The adverse metabolic effects of branched-chain amino acids are mediated by isoleucine and valine.

Low-protein diets promote metabolic health in rodents and humans, and the benefits of low-protein diets are recapitulated by specifically reducing dietary levels of the three branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Here, we demonstrate that each BCAA has distinct metabolic effects. A low isoleucine diet reprograms liver and adipose metabolism, increasing hepatic insulin sensitivity and ketogenesis and increasing energy expenditure, activating the FGF21-UCP1 axis.

A Comparison of Self- and Proxy-Reported Subjective Sleep Durations With Objective Actigraphy Measurements in a Survey of Wisconsin Children 6-17 Years of Age.

Children's sleep quality and duration are important to overall development, health, and wellbeing. However, measuring children's sleep is challenging, especially in situations where objective assessment is impractical. This study aimed to assess age and proxy effects in comparing subjective sleep duration with objective measures, in a community-based sample of Wisconsin children (aged 6-17 years), recruited from 2014-2017.

Using recursive feature elimination in random forest to account for correlated variables in high dimensional data.

Background: Random forest (RF) is a machine-learning method that generally works well with high-dimensional problems and allows for nonlinear relationships between predictors; however, the presence of correlated predictors has been shown to impact its ability to identify strong predictors. The Random Forest-Recursive Feature Elimination algorithm (RF-RFE) mitigates this problem in smaller data sets, but this approach has not been tested in high-dimensional omics data sets.

Results: We integrated 202,919 genotypes and 153,422 methylation sites in 680 individuals, and compared the abilities of RF and RF-RFE to detect simulated causal associations, which included simulated genotype-methylation interactions, between these variables and triglyceride levels.

Shiftwork, Sleep Habits, and Metabolic Disparities: Results from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin.

Background: With the expanding demand for a 24-hour society, the prevalence of sleep deprivation and other sleep-related health problems is increasing. Shiftwork is an occupational health risk of growing significance because of its high prevalence and because of its potential role as a determinant of socioeconomic-related health disparities.

Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the associations of shiftwork with overweight status and type 2 diabetes, and explore whether a history of sleep problems mediates or modifies these associations.

Food insecurity and dyslipidemia in a representative population-based sample in the US.

Objective: The association of food insecurity with dyslipidemia has not been firmly established. The main objective of this study was to assess whether food insecurity was associated with dyslipidemia.

Method: A population-based sample of 1,663 adults from the 2008-2011 Survey of the Health of Wisconsin was used.

The association between neighborhood economic hardship, the retail food environment, fast food intake, and obesity: findings from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin.

Background: Neighborhood-level characteristics such as economic hardship and the retail food environment are assumed to be correlated and to influence consumers' dietary behavior and health status, but few studies have investigated these different relationships comprehensively in a single study. This work aims to investigate the association between neighborhood-level economic hardship, the retail food environment, fast food consumption, and obesity prevalence.

Methods: Linking data from the population-based Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW, n = 1,570, 2008-10) and a commercially available business database, the Wisconsin Retail Food Environment Index (WRFEI) was defined as the mean distance from each participating household to the three closest supermarkets divided by the mean distance to the three closest convenience stores or fast food restaurants.

Overall prescription medication use among adults: findings from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin.

Purpose: To analyze overall prescription medication use patterns among study participants in a representative statewide sample of Wisconsin adults.

Methods: We analyzed data on 1572 participants from the 2008-2010 cycles of the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW). SHOW is a statewide population-based survey that collects health information, including prescription medications, from 21 to 74 year olds.

The Wisconsin Assessment of the Social and Built Environment (WASABE): a multi-dimensional objective audit instrument for examining neighborhood effects on health.

Background: Growing evidence suggests that mixed methods approaches to measuring neighborhood effects on health are needed. The Wisconsin Assessment of the Social and Built Environment (WASABE) is an objective audit tool designed as an addition to a statewide household-based health examination survey, the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW), to objectively measure participant's neighborhoods.

Methods: This paper describes the development and implementation of the WASABE and examines the instrument's ability to capture a range of social and built environment features in urban and rural communities.

Urban-rural and regional variability in the prevalence of food insecurity: the survey of the health of Wisconsin.

Background: Food insecurity is a public health concern estimated to affect 18 million American households nationally, which can result in chronic nutritional deficiencies and other health risks. The relationships between food insecurity and specific demographic and geographic factors in Wisconsin are not well documented. The goals of this paper are to investigate sociodemographic and geographic features associated with food insecurity in a representative sample of Wisconsin adults.

Predictors of discordance between perceived and objective neighborhood data.

Purpose: Pathways by which the social and built environments affect health can be influenced by differences between perception and reality. This discordance is important for understanding health impacts of the built environment. This study examines associations between perceived and objective measures of 12 nonresidential destinations, as well as previously unexplored sociodemographic, lifestyle, neighborhood, and urbanicity predictors of discordance.

Aspirin for primary prevention of CVD: are the right people using it?

Purpose: Aspirin is recommended for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adults at high risk, but little is known about sociodemographic disparities in prophylactic aspirin use. This study examined the association between sociodemographic characteristics and regular aspirin use among adults in Wisconsin who are free of CVD.

Methods: A cross-sectional design was used, and data collected from 2008 to 2010.

Evaluating effects of statewide smoking regulations on smoking behaviors among participants in the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin.

Background: Studies have shown that laws banning smoking in public places reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, but the impact of such laws on exposure to smoke outside the home and on household smoking policies has not been well documented. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of 2009 Wisconsin Act 12, a statewide smoke-free law enacted in July 2010, among participants in the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW).

Methods: Smoking history and demographic information was gathered from 1341 survey participants from 2008 to 2010.

The Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW), a novel infrastructure for population health research: rationale and methods.

Background: Evidence-based public health requires the existence of reliable information systems for priority setting and evaluation of interventions. Existing data systems in the United States are either too crude (e.g.

Effective environmental public health surveillance programs: a framework for identifying and evaluating data resources and indicators.

The complexity and multidisciplinary nature of environmental public health (EPH) surveillance call for a systematic framework and a concrete set of criteria to guide development, selection, and evaluation of environmental public health indicators. Environmental public health indicators are the foundation of a comprehensive EPH surveillance system, providing quantitative summary measures and descriptive information about spatial and temporal trends of hazard, exposure, and health effects over person, place, and time. A case-synthesis review of environmental regulatory and public health indicator models was employed to develop a framework and outline a methodological approach to EPH surveillance system development, including the selection of content areas and the corresponding data and environmental public health indicators.

Tracking health and the environment: a pilot test of environmental public health indicators.

Examining the relationship between health outcomes and environmental exposures requires summary measures, or indicators. To advance the use of indicators, the Johns Hopkins Center for Excellence in Environmental Public Health Tracking piloted three pairs of indicators: 1) air toxics and leukemia in New Jersey, 2) mercury emissions and fish advisories in the United States, and 3) urban sprawl and obesity in New Jersey. These analyses illustrate the feasibility of creating environmental hazard, exposure, and health outcome indicators, examining their temporal and geographic trends, and identifying their temporal and geographic relationships.