Abstract Body (Do not enter title and authors here): Background
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in Black men, contributing to the shortest life expectancy among U.S. race/sex groups. Black men have the lowest attainment of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Life Essential 8 (LE8) metrics and high levels of psychosocial stress, which are critical for attainment of ideal cardiovascular health.

Research Question/Hypothesis
This study aims to evaluate the impact of a community-based intervention on cardiovascular health and psychosocial stress in Black men. Specifically, we hypothesize Black Impact will improve LE8 and psychosocial stress compared to usual care.

Methods/Statistical Analysis
Black Impact is a 24-week community-based lifestyle intervention focused on physical activity, health education, and addressing social needs. Participants meet weekly in teams for 90 minutes at community recreation and parks sites. The Black Impact curriculum is adapted from the Diabetes Prevention Program and AHA Check, Change, Control Program. Health coaches deliver the curriculum weekly, along with physical fitness trainers, to emphasize attainment of ideal LE8 health behaviors and related factors. Black Impact also addresses social needs via support from community health workers. LE8 and perceived stress are assessed at baseline, 12 and 24 weeks. The LE8 score is an average of the scores for the eight individual metrics: blood pressure, blood glucose, cholesterol, body mass index, nicotine exposure, diet, physical activity, and sleep and ranges from 0-100, with a higher number being better. The perceived stress scale score has a range of 0-40, with a lower number being better. Changes from baseline to 24 weeks were calculated using linear mixed-effects models in the overall cohort without accounting for randomization as this is an ongoing waitlist-controlled randomized clinical trial.

Results/Data
Among 198 Black men in Black Impact, the mean age was 54 years. Baseline LE8 and perceived stress scores were 63.5 (SD 11.9) and 12.6 (SD 6.7), respectively. At week 24 LE8 increased by 3.3 points (95% CI: 2.1, 4.6) and perceived stress scores decreased by 1.9 points (95%CI: -2.7, -1.2).

Conclusion(s):
Black Impact is an intervention aimed at improving cardiovascular health and perceived stress in Black men. The non-randomized findings support potential improvements in cardiovascular health and perceived stress, and we look forward to sharing full intervention vs. control findings in Fall 2026.