"Bone Health Disparities among Hispanic/Latino Adults of Caribbean Origin: Is dietary quality an important risk factor for this population?"
Abstract
Although osteoporosis has been traditionally viewed as a condition affecting primarily non-Hispanic/Latino white women, Hispanic/Latino adults have been shown to have similar and/or higher prevalence of osteoporosis compared with non-Hispanic/Latino white adults. Bone research among U.S. Hispanic/Latino adults has focused mainly on Mexican Americans but given the considerable heterogeneity among Hispanic/Latino groups of different backgrounds, there is a need to study risk factors and bone outcomes among the individual groups. Hispanic/Latino adults of Caribbean origin experience higher burden of several chronic conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, which may increase risk of poor bone outcomes. Thus, identifying major modifiable and unique risk factors of osteoporosis, such as dietary quality, may provide important strategies for prevention and management of osteoporosis among those who are disproportionately affected by this silent chronic condition.
Data on prevalence of osteoporosis among Puerto Rican adults from the Boston Puerto Rican Osteoporosis Study compared with Mexican American, non-Hispanic/Latino white, non-Hispanic/Latino black adults from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005-2010) will be presented. This presentation will describe the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of osteoporosis among Hispanic/Latino adults of Caribbean origin and will examine the relationship between dietary quality and bone outcomes in this population.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Sabrina Noel is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Nutritional Sciences and Director of Community Engagement for the Center for Population Health at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. She serves on the Medical and Scientific Advisory Board for American Bone Health. Dr. Noel is a nutritional epidemiologist and registered dietitian with over 15 years of experience studying the role of dietary quality on age-related chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis, and on racial and ethnic health disparities in underserved populations. She partners with surrounding communities to understand the multiple factors influencing healthy and productive aging to inform programs, policies and local infrastructure.