MOCHA Moving Forward: findings and lessons learned from implementing a community-based chronic disease prevention...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Disparities
• Community-Based Interventions

Background:

• Black men in the U.S. face disproportionately high rates of chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and prostate cancer.
• These health issues are closely linked to chronic stressors including racial discrimination, economic instability, and societal gender role pressures.
• The Men of Color Health Awareness (MOCHA) program was created to address the holistic well-being of men of color through culturally relevant discussions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of two intervention models: the original MOCHA program (MO) and an enhanced version, MOCHA+.
• To assess the impact of these culturally grounded programs on stress, chronic disease risk factors, and overall well-being in men of color.
• To identify key implementation lessons for future community-based health interventions.

Main Methods:

• A community-academic feasibility trial randomized 210 men aged 35-70 into either the MO or MOCHA+ groups.
• Both groups participated in a 10-week program focused on stress management and chronic disease prevention.
• The MOCHA+ intervention incorporated culturally adapted narrative dialogue alongside the original program's content.

Main Results:

• Participants who completed the MO program showed statistically significant reductions in self-reported stress, BMI, anxiety, and depression.
• When combining both MO and MOCHA+ groups, significant reductions in stress and BMI were observed.
• High attrition rates and loss to follow-up (final sample size of 38) presented challenges to the study's feasibility and scalability.

Conclusions:

• The MOCHA program demonstrates potential as an effective intervention for reducing stress and chronic disease risk among men of color.
• The significant health improvements seen in program completers underscore its potential impact.
• Future research should focus on scalable adaptations and refining culturally tailored content to better support structurally marginalized populations and improve intervention retention.