Jay Maddock

Throughout rural and urban communities in the United States, as well as in many places globally, chronic disease rates are high and increasing. Previous evidence suggests that residential environments and their designs play a role in shaping health behaviors and outcomes. Combining land use development with urban agricultural practices to create agriculturally-integrated neighborhoods (‘agrihoods’) has potential for improving the built, natural, and food environments while building community. However, the research on agrihoods is limited, and no structured reviews to date have synthesized the literature pertaining to agrihood impacts on community health. We begin filling this gap by providing a narrative review of the published and grey literature exploring opportunities and challenges of agrihoods for improving health, with an emphasis on integration of community engagement.

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The impact of ambient temperature on myocardial infarction (MI) has been documented but remains inconsistent across geographic regions and climate conditions Prior studies link extreme temperatures to increased cardiovascular events, but the magnitude and direction vary with local environmental, sociodemographic, and healthcare factors Texas experiences extreme heat and periodic cold spells, providing an opportunity to examine short-term temperature extremes and MI incidence to improve public health interventions and clinical preparedness. Vulnerable populations, including older adults and socioeconomically disadvantaged groups, may be more susceptible to temperature-related cardiovascular risks, highlighting the need for targeted mitigation strategies. This study investigates the short-term association between ambient temperature and incident MI within a large, diverse patient cohort. We hypothesize that both extreme heat and cold increase MI incidence and that certain subgroups, such as older adults and those in socioeconomically vulnerable neighborhoods, face disproportionate risk.

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Poor nutrition and inadequate physical activity are key contributors to rising chronic disease rates across the United States. It is well-documented that neighborhood built environments play an important role in shaping these modifiable health behaviors. Agriculturally-integrated neighborhoods (“agrihoods”) offer a relatively new and promising approach to health-promoting residential design and development. Centered around a working farm, agrihoods are designed to connect residents with fresh foods and outdoor spaces that encourage physical activity. However, no rigorous or longitudinal evaluations of their impact on resident health have been conducted to date. We detail the protocol for a naturalistic study that aims to (1) assess short-term changes in dietary intake, physical activity, cardiometabolic health indicators, and social connectedness among agrihood and matched comparison residents; (2) document time use with and preferences for agrihood design features; and (3) examine agrihood economic benefits.

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