Prevention

Author(s):  
C. Barr Taylor ◽  
Ellen E. Fitzsimmons-Craft ◽  
Neha J. Goel

Eating disorders (EDs) are important and common problems among adolescents and young women, and preventing them would be an important public health achievement. Fortunately, several recent studies, informed by cross-sectional, longitudinal, and clinical risk factor research, have demonstrated a significant decrease in ED risk factors, with several programs also achieving a significant reduction in ED onset within at-risk females. This chapter reviews and evaluates the state of ED prevention research, highlighting current theoretical approaches and effective programs, emphasizing emerging empirical support for cognitive dissonance, Internet, school-based, media literacy, and combined ED and obesity prevention programs. Conclusions about how to enhance recent progress in the field of EDs are provided.

Author(s):  
Meghan M. Sinton ◽  
C. Barr Taylor

Eating disorders (EDs) are important and common problems among adolescents and young women, and preventing them would be an important public health achievement. Fortunately, several recent studies, informed by cross-sectional, longitudinal, and clinical risk factor research, have evidenced a significant decrease in ED risk factors, with two programs also achieving a significant reduction in ED onset within at-risk females. The present chapter reviews and evaluates the state of ED prevention research, highlighting current theoretical approaches and effective programs, emphasizing emerging empirical support for cognitive dissonance, Internet, school-based, and combined ED and obesity prevention programs. Conclusions about how to enhance recent progress in the field of EDs are provided.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise L Hardy ◽  
Rona MacNiven ◽  
Tuguy Esgin ◽  
Seema Mihrshahi

AbstractBackgroundIn New South Wales (Australia) there has been substantial long term investment in school-based child obesity prevention programs. Whether these programs have led to population level improvements in children’s adiposity and weight-related behaviours in Aboriginal children, who are at greater risk of poorer health outcomes, is yet to be determined. The purpose of this study was to describe changes in adiposity and weight-related behaviours of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children and to examine the equality of changes between the two groups.MethodsRepresentative cross-sectional population surveys conducted in 2010 and 2015 among children age 5-16 years (n=15,613), stratified by Aboriginality. Indicators of weight-related behaviour (diet, physical activity, school travel, screen-time) were measured by questionnaire with parents responding for children age <10 years and self-report by children age >10 years. Objective measurements included height, weight, waist circumference, cardiorespiratory fitness, and fundamental movement skills.ResultsAdiposity prevalences were significantly higher in 2015, than 2010 among non-Aboriginal children only, however adiposity prevalences were consistently higher among Aboriginal than non-Aboriginal children. There were positive changes towards adopting healthier weight-related behaviours in all children between surveys, which were consistently significant among non-Aboriginal, but not Aboriginal, children. The magnitude of changes and the 2015 prevalences in weight-related behaviours were generally similar for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children, however positive changes in fruit consumption and locomotor skills were significantly larger among Aboriginal than non-Aboriginal children. The prevalence of being driven to school in 2015 was significantly higher than 2010 for both groups.ConclusionsOverall, there are signs that Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children are shifting towards healthier weight-related behaviours. However, many unhealthy weight-related behaviours remain highly prevalent. Our findings may have utility for the direction of future health policy and service delivery to Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children and the development of health promotion programs to build on these improvements in health behaviours.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 939
Author(s):  
Ana Fresan ◽  
Alma Delia Genis-Mendoza ◽  
María Lilia López-Narváez ◽  
Tania Guadalupe Gómez-Peralta ◽  
Daniela Georgina Aguilar-Velázquez ◽  
...  

Background/Aim: Obesity in adolescents is increasing; as such, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of obesity in Mexican adolescents and examine its possible association with hours of sleep. Methods: A school-based cross-sectional study was carried out. This study included 863 adolescents aged between 11 and 16 years. The prevalence of obesity was estimated using the body mass index (BMI). The duration of sleep (and other information) was assessed by a self-reported questionnaire. The Cochran–Mantel–Hansel test for categorical variables and a general linear model for continuous variables were used to evaluate the interaction effect of BMI and sex with respect to sleeping and assessed activity conditions. Results: It was found that 47.6% of the adolescents were overweight/obese. Men were more frequently overweight/obese than women (52.6% vs. 41.8%, p = 0.002). Moreover, overweight/obese adolescents were younger and spent fewer daily hours watching television (p < 0.05). Men practiced sports more hours per week than women (p = 0.04). However, women spent more daily time on the internet (p = 0.05), and overweight/obese adolescent women slept fewer hours than overweight/obese men and adolescents with normal weight (p = 0.008). Conclusions: The development of strategies for the prevention of overweight/obesity and the improvement of sleep duration should include a gender perspective to improve health habits in Mexican adolescents.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1356336X2110046
Author(s):  
Penny Lamb ◽  
Graham King

This article reports on a dyad model of lesson study aimed at scaffolding the theory and practice of learning to teach physical education. Participants were pre-service teachers (PSTs) completing a 38-week Master’s-level Postgraduate Certificate in Education in eastern England, training to teach the secondary age range (11–18 years). A total of 40 PSTs volunteered to participate in the study during their school-based training. A three-year cross-sectional case-study framework involving three distinct cohorts of PSTs allowed for a comparison of data, captured through computer-mediated communication. Dialogue through email communications and electronic evaluations was analysed inductively. Three substantive themes were identified as a result of the PSTs’ experiences: (a) developing confidence in the classroom through collaboration with a peer; (b) developing physical education pedagogies to support students’ individual learning needs; and (c) developing physical education pedagogies to support assessment of students’ progress. The dyad lesson study model provided a safe and non-hierarchical platform for collaboration between PSTs. Peer-to-peer reflection on aspects of their own practice instilled confidence and enhanced understanding, particularly in relation to understanding students’ individual learning needs to promote progress and assessing such progress. Dyad lesson study positively supported PSTs’ professional development against prescribed Teachers’ Standards beyond the formal hierarchical rules and structures associated with the school-based training process. Such collaborative conversations can help to minimise professional isolation for PSTs during their school-based training and address the juxtaposition of connecting the theory of learning to teach with a holistic view of student learning in practice.


Author(s):  
Chan Ying Ying ◽  
S Maria Awaluddin ◽  
Lim Kuang Kuay ◽  
Cheong Siew Man ◽  
Azli Baharudin ◽  
...  

Internet addiction (IA) among adolescents is an issue of growing concern with adverse effects on adolescents’ health and social functioning. This study aims to determine the prevalence of IA among school-going adolescents in Malaysia and its associated factors—specifically, lifestyle factors. A nationwide cross-sectional school-based health survey was conducted in 2017 among 27,497 students from 212 randomly selected secondary schools. Information regarding sociodemography, lifestyle, and internet use was obtained using a self-administered questionnaire. IA was measured using the Malay Version of Internet Addiction Test (MVIAT). The prevalence of internet addiction was 29.0%. A multivariable logistic analysis revealed that inadequate fruit and vegetable intakes, consumed carbonated soft drinks at least once a day, consumed fast food at least three days/week, sedentary behavior, current E-cigarette users, and ever/current alcohol drinkers were lifestyle factors significantly associated with IA. Adolescents from urban schools, of higher school grade, and those whose parents are married but living apart were also found to have a greater risk for internet addiction. A positive association was found between IA with unhealthy dietary and lifestyle behaviors among adolescents. The modification of lifestyle factors needs to be considered while developing strategies and interventions for awareness-raising and prevention of IA among adolescents.


2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (11) ◽  
pp. 2053-2062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Gontijo de Castro ◽  
Laura A. Barufaldi ◽  
Michael Maia Schlüssel ◽  
Wolney Lisboa Conde ◽  
Maurício Soares Leite ◽  
...  

The aim of this study was to describe the distribution of waist circumference (WC) and WC to height (WCTH) values among Kaingáng indigenous adolescents in order to estimate the prevalence of high WCTH values and evaluate the correlation between WC and WCTH and body mass index (BMI)-for-age. A total of 1,803 indigenous adolescents were evaluated using a school-based cross-sectional study. WCTH values > 0.5 were considered high. Higher mean WC and WCTH values were observed for girls in all age categories. WCTH values > 0.5 were observed in 25.68% of the overall sample of adolescents. Mean WC and WCTH values were significantly higher for adolescents with BMI/age z-scores > 2 than for those with normal z-scores. The correlation coefficients of WC and WCTH for BMI/age were r = 0.68 and 0.76, respectively, for boys, and r = 0.79 and 0.80, respectively, for girls. This study highlights elevated mean WC and WCTH values and high prevalence of abdominal obesity among Kaingáng indigenous adolescents.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 680-687
Author(s):  
Atasi Chatterjee ◽  
Christoph Tegenkamp ◽  
Herbert Pfnür

Even though there have been many experimental attempts and theoretical approaches to understand the process of electromigration (EM), it has not been quantitatively understood for ultrathin structures and at grain boundaries. Nevertheless, we showed recently that it can be used reliably for the formation of single atomic point contacts after careful pre-structuring of the initial Ag nanostructures. The process of formation of nanocontacts by EM down to a single-atom point contact was investigated for ultrathin (5 nm) Ag structures at 100 K by measuring the conductance as a function of the time during EM. In this paper, we compare the process of thinning by EM of structures with constrictions below the average grain size of Ag layers (15 nm) with that of structures with much larger initial constrictions of around 150 nm having multiple grains at the centre constriction prior to the formation of a point contact. Even though clear morphological differences exist between both types of structures, quantized conductance plateaus showing the formation of single point contacts have been observed for both. Here we put emphasis on the thinning process by EM, just before a point contact is formed. To understand this thinning process, the semi-classical regime before the contact reaches the quantum regime was analyzed in detail. For this purpose, we used experimental conductance histograms in the range between 2G 0 and 15G 0 and their corresponding Fourier transforms (FTs). The FT analysis of the conductance histograms exhibits a clear preference for thinning along the [100] direction. Using well-established models, both atom-by-atom steps and ranges of stability, presumably caused by electronic shell effects, can be discriminated. Although the directional motion of atoms during EM leads to specific properties such as the instabilities mentioned, similarities to mechanically opened contacts with respect to cross-sectional stability were found.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
André O. Werneck ◽  
Erin Hoare ◽  
Danilo R. Silva

Abstract Objective: To investigate the role of potential shared mediators in the association of TV-viewing and frequency of ultra-processed food consumption with anxiety-induced sleep disturbance. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Data from the Adolescent School-based Health Survey, a Brazilian nationally representative survey of 9th grade adolescents conducted in 2015 were used. Participants: 99,791 adolescents (52,015 girls) with a mean age of 14.3 years (range: 11–19 years) participated. All variables were collected through a self-reported questionnaire based on the Global School-based Student Health Survey. Anxiety-induced sleep disturbance was the outcome. More than 4h/day of TV-viewing and daily consumption of ultra-processed foods were the exposures. Body satisfaction, loneliness, self-rated health and eating while watching TV or studying were mediators. Age, ethnicity, food insecurity, type of city (capital or interior), country region, and physical activity were covariates. Logistic regression and mediation models (Karlsson-Holm-Breen method) assessed associations. Results: Both daily ultra-processed food consumption [boys:OR:1.48(95%CI:1.30-1.70); girls:1.46(1.34-1.60)] and TV-viewing [boys:1.24(1.08-1.43); girls:1.09(1.00-1.19)] were associated with higher odds for anxiety-induced sleep disturbance. Loneliness and eating while watching TV or studying consistently mediated the association of both daily ultra-processed food consumption (loneliness: boys: 17.4%, girls: 23.4%; eat while watching TV or studying: girls: 6.8%) and TV-viewing (loneliness: boys: 22.9%, girls: 45.8%; eat while watching TV or studying: boys: 6.7%, girls: 17.9%) with anxiety-induced sleep disturbance. Conclusions: Daily ultra-processed food consumption and TV-viewing share mediators and can act in synergic mechanisms in the association with anxiety-induced sleep disturbance. Therefore, future interventions should focus in the reduction of both behaviors in combination.


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