Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #104342

Tina L. Harralson, PhD¹, Laura A. Lorenz, BA¹, Julie Cousler Emig, MSW, LSW², and Joanna Ortez Cruz². (1) Einstein Center for Urban Health Policy & Research, Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, One Penn Boulevard, Wister Tower, Suite 4442, Philadelphia, PA 19144, 215-951-8137, HarralsonT@einstein.edu, (2) Congreso de Latinos Unidos, 216 W. Somerset St., Philadelphia, PA 19133

Exercise is one of the most important things that a woman can do to improve and maintain her health. One hundred forty-four women have enrolled in our salsa aerobics exercise program, which focuses on the cardiac health of urban Latinas. However, due to various barriers, approximately 58% dropped out of the program in less than 8-weeks. This high rate occurred even though babysitting services and bus tokens were provided. In order to better understand the high dropout rate, a comparative analysis of women who dropped out vs. women who remained in the program for at least 8-weeks was conducted. During the first year of the program classes met 3 times a week for 12 weeks, and during the second year classes met 3 times a week for 16 weeks. The average age of participants is 44 years old (range 18-76 years). All women are Hispanic and classes are bi-lingual. Quantitative analysis revealed that Latinas who did not complete the exercise program were younger (p=. 008) and had greater levels of depression (p=. 036) than women who completed the salsa aerobics classes. Depression was measured using the CES-D scale. A focus group of Latinas who dropped out of the classes expressed interest in attending a social support group as part of the exercise program. Discussion will include additional analysis that will include data collected from 2 more 16-week exercise sessions and will include a discussion of the role of depression as a barrier to exercise and personal health.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to

• describe barriers to exercise for urban, Latinas, and
• discuss possible solutions to these barriers.

Keywords: Exercise, Latinas

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.