Lifestyle Behaviors and Obesity: Brief Observations from the Arab Teens Lifestyle Study (ATLS) Findings

Herbal tea is full of many medicinal qualities. It’s claimed that they can help with everything from easing a cold and indigestion to fighting infection and nausea. Dietary and lifestyle behaviors among adolescents are risk factors for several chronic diseases in adulthood. The objective of the study is to evaluate the effect of Herbal Tea on weight and fitness. One hundred adolescents of age group 20-35 years in Agra district were selected and significant effects of herbal tea were observed on the health in youth.

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Indirect Health Effects of COVID-19: Unhealthy Lifestyle Behaviors during the Lockdown in the United Arab Emirates

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18041964 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 1964

Author(s):

Hadia Radwan ◽

Mahra Al Kitbi ◽

Hayder Hasan ◽

Marwa Al Hilali ◽

Nada Abbas ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

United Arab Emirates ◽

Lifestyle Change ◽

Change Score ◽

Lifestyle Changes ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Negative Consequences ◽

Unhealthy Lifestyle ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Study Results

Background: Lockdown measures were implemented in many countries to limit the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, such restrictions could precipitate unintended negative consequences on lifestyle behaviors. The main objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence and determinants of unhealthy behavior changes during the COVID-19 lockdown among residents of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods: A cross-sectional web-based survey of adults residing in the UAE was carried out during lockdown (n = 2060). Using a multi-component questionnaire, the collected data included questions regarding the following lifestyle changes: Increased dietary intake, increased weight, decreased physical activity, decreased sleep, and increased smoking. An unhealthy lifestyle change score was calculated based on the number of unhealthy lifestyle changes each participant reported. In addition, sociodemographic and living conditions information was collected. Descriptive statistics as well as simple and multiple linear regression analyses were used to examine the prevalence and determinants of the unhealthy lifestyle changes considered in this study. Results: Among the unhealthy lifestyle changes examined, increased food intake was the most common (31.8%), followed by decreased physical activity (30%), increased weight (29.4%), decreased sleep (20.8%), and increased smoking (21%). In addition to identifying the correlates of each of the aforementioned lifestyle changes, the results of the multiple regression linear analyses revealed the following correlates for the overall unhealthy lifestyle change score: females (β = 0.32, CI: 0.22; 0.42), living in an apartment (β = 0.12, CI: 0.003; 0.23) and being overweight/obese (β = 0.24, CI: 0.15; 0.32) had higher scores, while older adults (>40 years) had lower scores (β = −0.23, CI: −0.34; −0.12). Conclusions: The COVID-19 lockdown has resulted in a high prevalence of unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and practices among UAE residents. The findings of this study provided the evidence base for officials to design interventions targeting high-risk groups and aiming to improve healthy lifestyle factors among residents during the pandemic.

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Identification of Lifestyle Behaviors Associated with Recurrence and Survival in Colorectal Cancer Patients Using Random Survival Forests

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers13102442 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (10) ◽

pp. 2442

Author(s):

Moniek van Zutphen ◽

Fränzel J. B. van Duijnhoven ◽

Evertine Wesselink ◽

Ruud W. M. Schrauwen ◽

Ewout A. Kouwenhoven ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Colorectal Cancer ◽

Recurrence Risk ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Sugary Drinks ◽

All Cause Mortality ◽

Random Survival Forests ◽

Colorectal Cancer Patients ◽

Survival Forests ◽

Risk Of Cancer

Current lifestyle recommendations for cancer survivors are the same as those for the general public to decrease their risk of cancer. However, it is unclear which lifestyle behaviors are most important for prognosis. We aimed to identify which lifestyle behaviors were most important regarding colorectal cancer (CRC) recurrence and all-cause mortality with a data-driven method. The study consisted of 1180 newly diagnosed stage I–III CRC patients from a prospective cohort study. Lifestyle behaviors included in the current recommendations, as well as additional lifestyle behaviors related to diet, physical activity, adiposity, alcohol use, and smoking were assessed six months after diagnosis. These behaviors were simultaneously analyzed as potential predictors of recurrence or all-cause mortality with Random Survival Forests (RSFs). We observed 148 recurrences during 2.6-year median follow-up and 152 deaths during 4.8-year median follow-up. Higher intakes of sugary drinks were associated with increased recurrence risk. For all-cause mortality, fruit and vegetable, liquid fat and oil, and animal protein intake were identified as the most important lifestyle behaviors. These behaviors showed non-linear associations with all-cause mortality. Our exploratory RSF findings give new ideas on potential associations between certain lifestyle behaviors and CRC prognosis that still need to be confirmed in other cohorts of CRC survivors.

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Workplace Healthy Lifestyle Determinants and Wellbeing Needs across the Preconception and Pregnancy Periods: A Qualitative Study Informed by the COM-B Model

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18084154 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (8) ◽

pp. 4154

Author(s):

Seonad K. Madden ◽

Claire A. Blewitt ◽

Kiran D. K. Ahuja ◽

Helen Skouteris ◽

Cate M. Bailey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Healthy Lifestyle ◽

Intervention Development ◽

Health Behavior Change ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Specific Reference ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Policy Makers ◽

Health And Wellbeing ◽

Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

And Control

Overweight and obesity present health risks for mothers and their children. Reaching women during the key life stages of preconception and pregnancy in community settings, such as workplaces, is an ideal opportunity to enable health behavior change. We conducted five focus groups with 25 women aged between 25 and 62 years in order to investigate the determinants of healthy lifestyle behaviors, weight management, and wellbeing needs during the preconception and pregnancy periods in an Australian university workplace. Discussions explored women’s health and wellbeing needs with specific reference to workplace impact. An abductive analytical approach incorporated the capability, opportunity, and motivation of behavior (COM-B) model, and four themes were identified: hierarchy of needs and values, social interactions, a support scaffold, and control. Findings highlight the requirement for greater organization-level support, including top-down coordination of wellbeing opportunities and facilitation of education and support for preconception healthy lifestyle behaviors in the workplace. Interventionists and organizational policy makers could incorporate these higher-level changes into workplace processes and intervention development, which may increase intervention capacity for success.

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Lifestyle Changes and Determinants of Children’s and Adolescents’ Body Weight Increase during the First COVID-19 Lockdown in Greece: The COV-EAT Study

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu13030930 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 930

Author(s):

Odysseas Androutsos ◽

Maria Perperidi ◽

Christos Georgiou ◽

Giorgos Chouliaras

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Body Weight ◽

Fast Food ◽

Online Survey ◽

Lifestyle Changes ◽

The Body ◽

Weight Increase ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Lifestyle Habits ◽

Body Weight Increase

Previous studies showed that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown imposed changes in adults’ lifestyle behaviors; however, there is limited information regarding the effects on youth. The COV-EAT study aimed to report changes in children’s and adolescents’ lifestyle habits during the first COVID-19 lockdown and explore potential associations between changes of participants’ lifestyle behaviors and body weight. An online survey among 397 children/adolescents and their parents across 63 municipalities in Greece was conducted in April–May 2020. Parents self-reported changes of their children’s lifestyle habits and body weight, as well as sociodemographic data of their family. The present study shows that during the lockdown, children’s/adolescents’ sleep duration and screen time increased, while their physical activity decreased. Their consumption of fruits and fresh fruit juices, vegetables, dairy products, pasta, sweets, total snacks, and breakfast increased, while fast-food consumption decreased. Body weight increased in 35% of children/adolescents. A multiple regression analysis showed that the body weight increase was associated with increased consumption of breakfast, salty snacks, and total snacks and with decreased physical activity. The COV-EAT study revealed changes in children’s and adolescents’ lifestyle behaviors during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Greece. Effective strategies are needed to prevent excessive body weight gain in future COVID-19 lockdowns.

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Rationale and design of a type 2 diabetes prevention intervention for at-risk mothers and children at a Federally Qualified Healthcare Center: EPIC El Rio Families Study Protocol

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-021-10392-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

David G. Marrero ◽

Robert M. Blew ◽

Kelly N. B. Palmer ◽

Kyla James ◽

Denise J. Roe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

At Risk ◽

Cardiovascular Health ◽

Excess Body Weight ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Group Randomized Trial ◽

Prevention Model ◽

History Of

Abstract Background Exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with increased risk for type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in mothers, and poor cardiovascular health among offspring. Identifying effective methods to mitigate T2DM risk has the potential to improve health outcomes for mothers with a history of GDM and their children. The goal of the EPIC El Rio Families Study is to implement and evaluate the effects of a 13-week behavioral lifestyle intervention on T2DM risk factors in at-risk mothers and their 8- to 12-year-old children. We describe herein the rationale for our specific approach, the adaption of the DPP-based curriculum for delivery to patients of a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), and the study design and methodology. Methods The effects of the intervention on reduction in excess body weight (primary outcome), hemoglobin A1c, blood pressure, and changes in lifestyle behaviors associated with weight trajectory and T2DM risk in mother-child dyads will be evaluated during a 13-week, group randomized trial wherein 60 mothers and their children will be recruited to the intervention or wait-listed control conditions at one of two FQHC locations. Intervention participants (n = 30) will begin the group program immediately, whereas the wait-listed controls (n = 30) will receive a booklet describing self-guided strategies for behavior change. Associated program delivery costs, acceptability of the program to participants and FQHC staff, and potential for long-term sustainability will also be evaluated. Discussion Successful completion in our aims will produce a scalable program with high potential for replication and dissemination, and estimated intervention effects to inform T2DM prevention efforts on families who use the FQHC system. The results from this study will be critical in developing a T2DM prevention model that can be implemented and scaled across FQHCs serving populations disproportionately burdened by T2DM. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03781102; Date of registration: 19 December 2018.

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Indoor Environmental Quality in Dwellings and Lifestyle Behaviors during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Russian Perspective

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18115975 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (11) ◽

pp. 5975

Author(s):

Vladimir Reshetnikov ◽

Oleg Mitrokhin ◽

Elena Belova ◽

Victor Mikhailovsky ◽

Maria Mikerova ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Medical Students ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

Indoor Environmental Quality ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Contagious Diseases ◽

Health Authorities ◽

Public Health Authorities ◽

Isolation Index ◽

Novel Coronavirus

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern, and as a response, public health authorities started enforcing preventive measures like self-isolation and social distancing. The enforcement of isolation has consequences that may affect the lifestyle-related behavior of the general population. Quarantine encompasses a range of strategies that can be used to detain, isolate, or conditionally release individuals or populations infected or exposed to contagious diseases and should be tailored to circumstances. Interestingly, medical students may represent an example of how the COVID-19 pandemic can form new habits and change lifestyle behaviors. We conducted a web-based survey to assess changes in lifestyle-related behavior of self-isolated medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Then we analyzed the sanitary-hygienic regulations of the Russian Federation to determine the requirements for healthy buildings. Results showed that during the pandemic, the enforcement of isolation affects medical students’ lifestyle-related behavior and accompanies an increase in non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) and healthy buildings are cutting-edge factors in preventing COVID-19 and NCDs. The Russian sanitary-hygienic regulations support improving this factor with suitable requirements for ventilation, sewage, waste management, and disinfection. Herein, assessing isolation is possible through the hygienic self-isolation index.

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Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, Sleep and Self-Regulation in Spanish Preschoolers during the COVID-19 Lockdown

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18020693 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 693

Author(s):

Alicia M. Alonso-Martínez ◽

Robinson Ramírez-Vélez ◽

Yesenia García-Alonso ◽

Mikel Izquierdo ◽

Antonio García-Hermoso

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Sedentary Time ◽

Self Regulation ◽

National Level ◽

Global Strategy ◽

World Health ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Public Health Response ◽

Validated Questionnaire ◽

Health Organization

Background: A better understanding of the effects of the lockdown on lifestyle behaviors may help to guide the public health response to COVID-19 at a national level and to update the global strategy to respond COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study was to examine the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on device-measured physical activity (PA), sedentary time, sleep and self-regulation; and to determine whether PA and sleep are related to self-regulation problems during the lockdown. Methods: PA, sedentary time and sleep were assessed using accelerometry in the week in which the Spanish national state of alarm was declared (n = 21). Parents reported preschooler’s self-regulation difficulties (internalizing and externalizing) before (n = 268) and during the lockdown (n = 157) by a validated questionnaire. Results: Preschoolers showed a decrease in total PA (mean difference [MD] = −43.3 min per day, 95% CI −68.1 to −18.5), sleep efficiency (MD = −2.09%, 95% CI −4.12 to −0.05), an increase in sedentary time (MD = 50.2 min per day, 95% CI 17.1 to 83.3) internalizing (MD = 0.17, 95% CI 0.06 to 0.28) and externalizing (MD = 0.33, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.44) problems. Preschoolers who met the World Health Organization recommendations for PA had lower internalizing scores than non-active peers (MD = −1.28, 95% CI −2.53 to −0.03). Conclusions: Our findings highlight the importance of meeting PA recommendations to reduce psychosocial difficulties during a lockdown situation.

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Breakfast Eating Habits and Lifestyle Behaviors among Saudi Primary School Children Attending Public Versus Private Schools

Children ◽

10.3390/children8020134 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 134

Author(s):

Laura Jabri ◽

Amani A. Al-Rasheedi ◽

Rayan A. Alsulaimani ◽

Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa

Keyword(s):

Private Schools ◽

School Children ◽

Eating Habits ◽

Primary School Children ◽

Cluster Method ◽

School Type ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

School Canteen ◽

Breakfast Eating ◽

Public Versus Private

We investigated breakfast eating habits and lifestyle behaviors among Saudi school children attending public versus private schools. A random sample of 1149 children (girls: 54.4%) from public and private schools was selected from elementary schools using the multistage stratified cluster method. Measurements included body weight, height, body mass index (BMI), and self-reported questionnaires filled by the child’s parents. There was no significant (p = 0.44) difference in the prevalence of breakfast intake between children attending public (20.6%) versus private (19.4%) schools. However, there was a gender by school type interactions in breakfast intake frequency, as boys in private but not in public schools had significantly (p = 0.006) higher (26.3%) daily breakfast intake than girls (13.3%). Over 56% of the children ate and drank from the school canteen, and impacting factors on children’s choices were children’s desire, food taste, and parental influence. More parents of children in private (12.1%) than in public (6.9%) schools were satisfied with the food in the school canteen. Younger age (aOR = 0.889, 95% CI = 0.815–0.970, p = 0.008), higher father education (aOR = 1.380, 95% CI = 1.130–1.686, p = 0.002), family income (aOR = 1.227, 95% CI = 1.005–1.498, p = 0.044), and insufficient sleep duration (aOR = 0.740, 95% CI = 0.553–0.990, p = 0.042) were significantly associated with being in a private school. Furthermore, no significant differences, when adjusted for socio-demographic factors, appeared in breakfast intake or overweight/obesity relative to school type. Interventions to improve daily breakfast consumption and lifestyle behaviors of Saudi children are warranted.

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Individual-Level Determinants of Lifestyle Behavioral Changes during COVID-19 Lockdown in the United States: Results of an Online Survey

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18084364 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (8) ◽

pp. 4364

Author(s):

Xiaotao Zhang ◽

Abiodun Oluyomi ◽

LeChauncy Woodard ◽

Syed Ahsan Raza ◽

Maral Adel Fahmideh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Alcohol Use ◽

Online Survey ◽

Healthy Lifestyle ◽

The United States ◽

Lifestyle Changes ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Individual Level ◽

Diet And Physical Activity ◽

Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors

This study examined individual-level determinants of self-reported changes in healthy (diet and physical activity) and addictive (alcohol use, smoking, and vaping) lifestyle behaviors during the initial COVID-19 lockdown period in the USA. A national online survey was administered between May and June 2020 that targeted a representative U.S. sample and yielded data from 1276 respondents, including 58% male and 50% racial/ethnic minorities. We used univariate and multivariable linear regression models to examine the associations of sociodemographic, mental health, and behavioral determinants with self-reported changes in lifestyle behaviors. Some study participants reported increases in healthy lifestyle behaviors since the pandemic (i.e., 36% increased healthy eating behaviors, and 33% increased physical activity). However, they also reported increases in addictive lifestyle behaviors including alcohol use (40%), tobacco use (41%), and vaping (46%). With regard to individual-level determinants, individuals who reported adhering to social distancing guidelines were also more likely to report increases in healthy lifestyle behaviors (β = 0.12, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.21). Conversely, women (β = −0.37, 95% CI −0.62 to −0.12), and unemployed individuals (β = −0.33, 95% CI −0.64 to −0.02) were less likely to report increases in healthy lifestyle behaviors. In addition, individuals reporting anxiety were more likely to report increases in addictive behaviors (β = 0.26, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.43). Taken together, these findings suggest that women and unemployed individuals may benefit from interventions targeting diet and physical activity, and that individuals reporting anxiety may benefit from interventions targeting smoking and alcohol cessation to address lifestyle changes during the pandemic.

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