Food environments in times of crises: Examining menu changes in response to COVID-19 among Hispanic Caribbean restaurants in New York City.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected independently-owned restaurants with implications for food access and health equity. Changes in healthy food availability (HFA) were examined in a randomly selected sample of Hispanic Caribbean restaurants in New York City, before and after the COVID-19 onset (n=76), using an adapted Nutrition Environment Measurement Survey for Restaurants. An overall decrease in HFA scores was found and changes HFA components (fried foods and vegetarian options increased, 100% fruit juice decreased, p<0.10). Changes were examined against restaurant characteristics. This work augments our understanding of ethnic restaurants and the nutrition implications of business adaptations when responding to emergencies.

The criminogenic and psychological effects of police stops on adolescent black and Latino boys.

Proactive policing, the strategic targeting of people or places to prevent crimes, is a well-studied tactic that is ubiquitous in modern law enforcement. A 2017 National Academies of Sciences report reviewed existing literature, entrenched in deterrence theory, and found evidence that proactive policing strategies can reduce crime. The existing literature, however, does not explore what the short and long-term effects of police contact are for young people who are subjected to high rates of contact with law enforcement as a result of proactive policing. Using four waves of longitudinal survey data from a sample of predominantly black and Latino boys in ninth and tenth grades, we find that adolescent boys who are stopped by police report more frequent engagement in delinquent behavior 6, 12, and 18 months later, independent of prior delinquency, a finding that is consistent with labeling and life course theories. We also find that psychological distress partially mediates this relationship, consistent with the often stated, but rarely measured, mechanism for adolescent criminality hypothesized by general strain theory. These findings advance the scientific understanding of crime and adolescent development while also raising policy questions about the efficacy of routine police stops of black and Latino youth. Police stops predict decrements in adolescents' psychological well-being and may unintentionally increase their engagement in criminal behavior.

Social determinants of adult sex ratios and racial/ethnic disparities in transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections in the USA.

In Black population centres in the USA, adult sex ratios (ASRs) are strongly female-biased primarily due to high male incarceration and early mortality rates. I explore the system of social determinants that shape these ASRs, and describe their apparent consequences. Evidence suggests that female-biased ASRs play a role, along with racial residential segregation, to increase mixing between core and peripheral members of sexual networks, facilitating transmission of human immunodeficiency virus and other sexually transmitted infections. Unique historical factors underlie Black male incarceration and mortality rates in the USA, making comparisons with other groups or other countries challenging.This article is part of the themed issue 'Adult sex ratios and reproductive decisions: a critical re-examination of sex differences in human and animal societies'.