On this month's cover, a nursing student performs a blood pressure screening at the seventh annual Los Angeles First Ladies Health Day in Pasadena, California. The event was organized by the First Ladies Health Initiative-an association of more than 200 black and Hispanic pastors' wives ("First Ladies") representing cross-denominational congregations across the country.
The First Ladies partner with health care organizations and volunteers in their communities to offer free health screenings and education through local churches. (The group considers the church "the nucleus for large-scale health and wellness outreach.") In Los Angeles, for instance, more than 40 churches have hosted First Ladies-sponsored health events. Their efforts focus on tackling health problems that disproportionately affect minorities, including hypertension, diabetes, breast cancer, HIV, and heart disease.
As discussed in this month's Original Research CE article, the prevalence of cerebrovascular disease and hypertension is higher in the black population than in the white population-and the presence of vascular risk factors at midlife may influence cognitive outcomes in older adulthood. Elizabeth Devore and colleagues analyzed health data from black women to investigate this possible association. To learn about their findings, read "Midlife Hypertension and Hypercholesterolemia in Relation to Cognitive Function Later in Life in Black Women."-Diane Szulecki, editor