Research Summary

The Environmental and Social Determinants of Health Group studies novel determinants and biological consequences of environmental and social factors that plausibly influence cardiometabolic health. The group’s major research efforts involve studying how physical (e.g., light, temperature, noise) and/or social (e.g., psychological stress; life satisfaction) attributes of neighborhood, housing, and work conditions affect sleep health and subsequent cardiometabolic dysfunction (e.g., obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease). We also study sleep as tool to prevent and treat chronic disease. The findings from these epidemiologic investigations can inform environmental, structural, and individual-level interventions designed to achieve and maintain optimal cardiovascular health.

Grounded in the socioecological and biopsychosocial conceptual frameworks, the group’s research centers around answering the following research questions:

• What modifiable and non-modifiable factors in our environment contribute to suboptimal sleep health and subsequent risk of 1) obesity, 2) type 2 diabetes, and 3) cardiovascular disease?
• Do the modifiable factors along with the magnitude of their influence differ across sociodemographic characteristics, including age, sex, race? If so, what are the most effective interventions?
• How do social determinants (e.g., housing, occupation) affect cardiometabolic dysfunction and contribute to variation in health across the aforementioned sociodemographic groups?
• Do independent evidence-based improvements in local environments lead to individual-level improvements in sleep health?
• Do improvements in sleep health help prevent or delay cardiometabolic dysfunction? If so, by what magnitude?

Group members use observational epidemiology studies and mixed methods research to inform future environmental and/or behavioral interventions designed to improve population health.

Jackson joined the NIEHS Epidemiology Branch as an Earl Stadtman Investigator in 2017, and also holds a secondary appointment at the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. She earned a M.S. in Cardiovascular Epidemiology from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Ph.D. in Cardiovascular Epidemiology from The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. She conducted epidemiologic research as an Alonzo Smythe Yerby postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a Research Associate at the Harvard Catalyst Clinical and Translational Science Center. Her research has been presented at national scientific conferences and published in academic journals (e.g., JAMA Internal Medicine, American Journal of Epidemiology), as well as major media outlets (e.g. US News & World Report, The New York Times). Jackson also serves as a member of the editorial board of Sleep Health, the journal of the National Sleep Foundation. She has received merit-based awards at Johns Hopkins and Harvard, including the Charlotte Silverman Award for outstanding commitment to public health, policy, and community outreach; an Outstanding Fellows Award at Harvard; and the Novartis Institutes Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Award.

Studies

Jackson Health Study (JHS)

The Jackson Heart Study is the largest single-site, prospective, epidemiologic investigation of cardiovascular disease among African Americans ever undertaken. It is also the largest study in history to investigate the inherited (genetic) factors that affect high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, diabetes and other important diseases in African Americans.

Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA)

The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) is a study of the characteristics of subclinical cardiovascular disease (disease detected non-invasively before it has produced clinical signs and symptoms) and the risk factors that predict progression to clinically overt cardiovascular disease or progression of the subclinical disease. MESA researchers study a diverse, population-based sample of 6,814 asymptomatic men and women aged 45-84. Approximately 38 percent of the recruited participants are white, 28 percent African-American, 22 percent Hispanic, and 12 percent Asian, predominantly of Chinese descent.

Study of Environment, Lifestyle & Fibroids (SELF)

The Study of Environment, Lifestyle and Fibroids (SELF) seeks to identify risk factors for uterine fibroid development. The study has enrolled a cohort of 1,696 African- American women, ages 23-34, from the Detroit, Michigan area. In addition to data related to uterine fibroids, risk factor and symptom data, physical measurements, as well as blood, urine, and vaginal swab specimens have been collected at enrollment. Specimens and questionnaire data are being collected at each follow-up visit.

The Sister Study 

The Sister Study prospectively examines environmental and familial risk factors for breast cancer and other diseases in a cohort of 50,000 sisters of women who have had breast cancer. Breast cancer-free participants aged 35-74 from across the U.S. territories who had a sister diagnosed with breast cancer enrolled from 2003-2009 by providing questionnaire data about life-time exposures and completing home exams including collection of biological samples. Participants are being followed with brief annual updates and periodic comprehensive questionnaires.