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Sexual violence, alcohol use, hormonal contraception and psychological distress associated with normal body mass index in adolescent women
Methods: African-American (n=94, 16.8%) and Mexican-American (n=465, 83.2%) women (14-18 years) with sexual risk behavior, STI or violence histories, recruited from metropolitan sexual health clinics for participation in a clinical trial for behavioral interventions, completed semi-structured interviews to assess psychosocial and situational factors associated with high sexual risk behavior, substance use, STI acquisition, body mass index (BMI) and violence occurrence at study entry with follow-up BMI assessments at 6 and 12 months.
Results: Overweight/obesity status did not vary by ethnicity (38.1% Mexican-American, 37.2% African-American). Reports at study entry of ever using alcohol or experiencing sexual violence were associated with and predicted significantly lower BMI at 6 month follow-up. Reports at study entry of ever using alcohol, ever experiencing sexual violence and recent or current use of hormonal contraception was associated with and predicted significantly lower BMI at 6 month follow-up. Higher psychological distress measured via the CES-D and SCLR-90 identified significantly lower (normal) BMI at 6 and 12 months follow-ups.
Conclusion: Normal BMI was associated with experiences of sexual violence, alcohol use, hormonal contraception and psychological distress. Findings have implications for modification of evidence-based sexual health promotion interventions to enhance efficacy for prevention of violence, substance use, unintended pregnancy, obesity and STI among ethnic minority adolescent women.
Learning Areas:
Public health or related nursingLearning Objectives:
Describe association of sexual risk behavior, violence, substance use, psychological distress, sexually transmitted infection and obesity among adolescent women for modification of community sexual health interventions.
Keyword(s): Adolescents, Health Promotion and Education
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Through my program of interdisciplinary clinical research, I have developed gender and culture specific, evidence-based community interventions for particularly vulnerable at-risk minority populations. These studies include controlled-randomized trials of behavioral interventions for prevention of violence, substance use, STI/HIV and unintended pregnancy. These trials have been conducted among urban and rural populations of African-and Mexican-American women, including adolescents who have histories of sexual, physical or emotional violence, substance use and STI/HIV.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.