A new study was a collaboration between the Center for Community Studies at Jefferson Community College and faculty from the Gender and Women’s Studies department at SUNY Plattsburgh.
It looked at a number of factors for nearly 3,000 adults across five North Country counties, including Jefferson, St. Lawrence, Franklin, Essex, and Clinton. The study asked questions about chronic health conditions, mental health, menstrual health, and adverse childhood experiences.
Joel LaLone, the director at the Center for Community Studies, said the community’s eagerness to talk about these topics was surprising.
"It shocked me how absolutely interested in sharing folks were about the combination of health care, health, specifically menstrual health, but also, very difficult questions to ask on adverse childhood experiences,” he said.
Akanksha Misra, an associate professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at SUNY Plattsburgh, said the study is crucial because there’s a great need for more information about the health of women in rural communities.
"When it comes to women's health especially, it is so siloed, and it becomes important when it is related to fertility, or it becomes important when you're older. Get your breast cancer screening. And all of those things are important, but menstrual health is a broad spectrum,” Misra said.
The study’s findings point to a correlation between adverse childhood experiences, like parents who had mental illness or threatened to harm each other, and health challenges as adults.
LaLone said of people who reported having no adverse childhood experiences, 49% rate their physical health as excellent or good, compared to 33% of respondents who reported having adverse childhood experiences.
"And the mental health one is massive,” LaLone said. “If you did not experience any adverse childhood experience, 67% of the folks, 2 out of every 3, rated their current mental health as excellent or good. It goes down to only 40%."
The data also shows a correlation between childhood experiences and menstrual health. Of study participants who did not have adverse childhood experiences, 6% were diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS. Of participants with adverse childhood experiences, 17% reported being diagnosed with PCOS.
Misra said she hopes the findings will encourage more collaboration to find ways to help people, amid limited resources.
"How do we get the pediatrician who works with adolescents to sit on the same table with nutritionists to sit on the same table with somebody who does behavioral stuff, and be like, 'OK. PCOS, mental health, diet, trauma, this is all connected. How do we create more integrated plans and health centers?''' she said.
Misra said researchers are already connecting with local and regional non-profits and health organizations who are interested in the study’s data. She and LaLone hope that interest will expand even further.
