Working to Reduce Health Disparities in Border Communities
Nov. 15, 2021
Dr. Aminata Kilungo (Assistant Professor of Practice, Community, Environment & Policy, Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health) and Dr. Mónica Ramírez-Andreotta (Associate Professor, Environmental Science, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences) received funds from the Hispanic Serving Institution (HIS) Faculty Seed Grant Program at the University of Arizona (UA) to improve understanding of potential exposures to Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and arsenic to reduce health disparities in border communities.
The UA’s HIS Faculty Seed Grant Program is offered through Faculty Affairs and HSI Initiatives with funding from Research, Innovation, and Impact (RII). The goal of the fund is to support scholarly research and creative work among early-career faculty which enriches the UA’s designation as an Hispanic Serving Institution (HIS), advances scholarship that directly impacts Latinx/a/o and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students and communities, and advances UA’s Purpose and Values around integrity, compassion, exploration, adaptation, inclusion, and determination.
This seed grant proposal, “Prevalence of H. pylori, Arsenic and Associated Health Outcomes in the Arizona-Mexico Border,” aims to improve the understanding of potential exposures to Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a carcinogenic microorganism associated with gastric cancer, as well as arsenic, associated with diabetes and obesity, to reduce health disparities in the Arizona-Mexico border communities.
Specific objectives of this work:
1) Identify potential environmental sources of H. pylori and arsenic in surface and private well water sources that vulnerable populations are reliant upon in the Arizona-Sonora Border region
2) Improve our understanding of the prevalence of these environmental sources and prevalence of distal gastric cancer, diabetes, and obesity in Arizona
3) Share all information collected with participating families to increase environmental health literacy
Expected outcomes of this project:
1) Inform science, policymakers, and the community on needed interventions to improve water quality
2) Reduce risks associated with the development of gastric cancer, diabetes, and obesity
3) Build community resilience by improving environmental health literacy so the communities can better advocate for their health