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Racial Discrimination Is Associated with a Measure of Red Blood Cell Oxidative Stress: A Potential Pathway for Racial Health Disparities

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Abstract

Background

There are racial health disparities in many conditions for which oxidative stress is hypothesized to be a precursor. These include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and premature aging. Small clinical studies suggest that psychological stress may increase oxidative stress. However, confirmation of this association in epidemiological studies has been limited by homogenous populations and unmeasured potential confounders.

Purpose

We tested the cross-sectional association between self-reported racial discrimination and red blood cell (RBC) oxidative stress in a biracial, socioeconomically heterogeneous population with well-measured confounders.

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional analysis of a consecutive series of 629 participants enrolled in the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) study. Conducted by the National Institute on Aging Intramural Research Program, HANDLS is a prospective epidemiological study of a socioeconomically diverse cohort of 3,721 Whites and African Americans aged 30–64 years. Racial discrimination was based on self-report. RBC oxidative stress was measured by fluorescent heme degradation products. Potential confounders were age, smoking status, obesity, and C-reactive protein.

Results

Participants had a mean age of 49 years (SD = 9.27). In multivariable linear regression models, racial discrimination was significantly associated with RBC oxidative stress (Beta = 0.55, P < 0.05) after adjustment for age, smoking, C-reactive protein level, and obesity. When stratified by race, discrimination was not associated with RBC oxidative stress in Whites but was associated significantly for African Americans (Beta = 0.36, P < 0.05).

Conclusions

These findings suggest that there may be identifiable cellular pathways by which racial discrimination amplifies cardiovascular and other age-related disease risks.

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Abbreviations

RBC:

Red blood cells

CRP:

C-reactive protein

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Acknowledgments

The National Institute on Aging Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health supported this research. This publication was also made possible by 1KL2RR025006-01 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as the John A. Hartford Foundation’s Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Award Program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Sarah L. Szanton, Edgar R. Miller III & Roland J. Thorpe

  2. National Institute on Aging Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Joseph M. Rifkind, Joy G. Mohanty, Eneka Nagababu, Alan B. Zonderman & Michele K. Evans

  3. University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Elissa S. Epel

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  1. Sarah L. Szanton
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  2. Joseph M. Rifkind
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  3. Joy G. Mohanty
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  6. Eneka Nagababu
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Correspondence to Sarah L. Szanton.

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Szanton, S.L., Rifkind, J.M., Mohanty, J.G. et al. Racial Discrimination Is Associated with a Measure of Red Blood Cell Oxidative Stress: A Potential Pathway for Racial Health Disparities. Int.J. Behav. Med. 19, 489–495 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-011-9188-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-011-9188-z

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