The relationship between racial discrimination and white matter among Black older adults.

ABSTRACT: Black older adults experience worse brain and cognitive aging than White older adults, on average. Racially patterned psychosocial stressors may contribute to these disparities. Maintaining white matter health is important for cognitive aging, particularly among Black older adults, and it is uniquely vulnerable to stress. Examining associations between racial discrimination and white matter may elucidate mechanisms of disparities. A sample of Black older adults in the Washington Heights-Inwood Columbia Aging project were included (N = 217). Everyday and major life discrimination were self-reported on well-validated scales. Diffusion tensor imaging quantified white matter fractional anisotropy (FA). Multivariable regressions revealed more major life discrimination was associated with lower

SUBMITTER: Palms JD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12908408 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature