OBJECTIVE
To examine prospectively associations of neighborhood opportunity with the presence of dampness or pests in the home environment during early adolescence.
STUDY DESIGN
We geocoded residential addresses from 831 children (mean age 7.9 years, 2007-2011) in the Project Viva cohort. We linked each address with census tract-level Child Opportunity Index scores, which capture neighborhood conditions and resources influencing child heath including educational, health, environmental, and socioeconomic factors. Our primary outcome was presence of dampness or pests in the home in early adolescence (mean age 13.2 years, 2013-2016). Secondary outcomes included current asthma and lung function testing results. Mixed-effects regression models estimated longitudinal associations of Child Opportunity Index scores with outcomes, adjusting for individual and family sociodemographics.
RESULTS
Children residing in neighborhoods with higher overall opportunity were less likely to live in homes with dampness or pests approximately 5 years later (adjusted odds ratio = 0.85 per 20-unit increase in Child Opportunity Index percentile rank, 95% confidence interval 0.73, 0.998). We observed no significant associations in adjusted models of overall neighborhood opportunity with current asthma or lung function. Lower school poverty or single-parent households and higher access to healthy food or economic resource index were associated with lower odds of a home environment with dampness or pests.
CONCLUSIONS
More favorable neighborhood conditions in mid-childhood were associated with lower likelihood of living in a home with dampness or pests in the early adolescence.