Public Health

The Brazilian population in the US is growing and aging but remains underrepresented in US health research. In addition to group-specific genetic and environmental risks, the Brazilian immigrant population in the US likely presents risks for health inequities due to limited healthcare access/utilization and immigration-related stress. Language has been a barrier to recruiting the Brazilian-US population as Portuguese-speaking populations are not typically included in the US-Latinx cohorts.

The BRAINY-NJ cohort study is being initiated to investigate the impact of cardiovascular and lifestyle/sociocultural risk factors on cognition and brain function in 120 cognitively healthy Brazilian immigrants (55+) living in/around the New York City area (New Jersey / New York). The study follows a community-based participatory research (CBPR) paradigm to formalize the academic-community partnership through different actions: 1) establishing partnerships with the community organizations and leaderships through in-person events; 2) building a research team culturally sensitive and proficient in Portuguese; 3) collecting data at the events to assess community perceptions, interests, and priorities; 4) identify potential members for the study's Community Advisory Board; 5) identify community resources to recruit participants.

Over 10 months, the BRAINY-NJ organized three in-person events: one health fair and two educational 2.5-hour meetings. The events were in Portuguese and on weekends. The educational meetings included: 1) Educational component on brain/mental health, dementia prevention, and the BRAINY-NJ; 2) Social component(e.g., breakfast, Brazilian live music, and dance); and 3) Assessment of interests and suggestions. The educational meetings included 30-40 participants, the main topics of interest were aging, memory, sleep, and emotional health. Most participants (87%) reported never having participated in a study, and 93.3% reported interest in joining the study. More participants rated cognitive/emotional health as a main concern rather than physical health. The BRAINY-NJ study partners with local NGOs, and Brazilian faith-based organizations (e.g., Churches and Afro-Brazilian Umbanda Center).

Recruitment of underrepresented populations, including the Brazilian-US population, is urgently needed. In-person events are critical to engage a community with limited research in the US. Research activities that connect topics on brain/cognitive health with emotional health seem particularly of interest to the Brazilian immigrant community.