Social science & medicine
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Social science & medicine · Feb 2020
The legacy of the Home Owners' Loan Corporation and the political ecology of urban trees and air pollution in the United States.
This study examines the persistent impacts of historical racebased discriminatory housing policies on contemporary urban environments in the United States. Specifically, we examine the relationships between Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) grades assigned to neighborhoods in the 1930s and the current distribution of tree canopy and level of exposure to air pollution hazards. ⋯ Our findings indicate that early 20th century discriminatory housing policies exert a contemporary influence on patterns of green space exposure in American cities, with implications for health and health inequities. Our findings suggest that, in order to achieve equitable access to the benefits of urban greenspace, we must acknowledge these historical influences and consider policies and practices that directly counter these influences, for example, through targeted greenspace development in areas historically identified as unfit for investment.
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Social science & medicine · Feb 2020
Diversity of adverse childhood experiences among adolescent mothers and the intergenerational transmission of risk to children's behavior problems.
It is important to investigate the diversity and variability among adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in young mothers because they are likely to experience considerable adverse exposures during childhood as well as challenging environments following childbirth. ⋯ Understanding the differences in how certain types of childhood adversity are associated with mothers' and their children's later health and well-being will bolster the use of only a sum score of ACEs for both how we research risk and in supporting clinicians to provide targeted care.