The skin we live in: pigmentation traits and tanning behaviour in British young adults, an observational and genetically-informed study.

Background: Skin cancer incidence has been increasing worldwide, representing a particularly high burden for populations of European ancestry. Outdoor and indoor tanning using ultraviolet radiation (UVR) devices are major risk factors for skin cancer. While tanning behaviours can be modified by targeted interventions to reduce skin cancer rates, there is insufficient evidence on the motivations for tanning preferences and their relationship with pigmentation phenotypes. The present observational and genetically-informed study investigates motives for tanning and the role that pigmentation phenotypes play on outdoor and indoor tanning behaviour in British young adults. Methods: This study included 3722 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children in South West England. Skin, hair and eye colour features, and tanning ability and preferences were collected using a questionnaire applied when participants were ~25 years of age. Genotypes for 41 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with pigmentation were obtained from a subset of participants who provided a biological sample, and used to estimate the probability of having particular pigmentation traits with the HIrisPlex-S system. Results: Liking to tan and outdoor tanning were strongly influenced by skin, hair and eye pigmentation, and tanning ability. However, the association of these traits with UV indoor tanning was weaker. Conversely, females, participants of lower socioeconomic position, individuals who were unhappy with their pigmentation phenotype during adolescence, and participants who believed that tanning helps prevent sunburn were more likely to have used UVR-based tanning devices. Conclusion: Our results provide evidence to support the implementation of skin cancer preventative interventions that consider individual biological characteristics and motives for undergoing outdoor and indoor tanning.

Does the socioeconomic positioned neighbourhood matter? Norwegian adolescents’ perceptions of barriers and facilitators for physical activity

Background and aims: A higher proportion of adolescents from lower socioeconomic position families tend to be less physically active than their counterparts from higher socioeconomic position families. More research is needed to understand the causes of these differences, particularly the influence of the neighbourhood environment. This qualitative study aims to explore how adolescents and their parents from higher and lower socioeconomic neighbourhoods perceive the social, organisational and physical environment influencing adolescents’ physical activity behaviours. Method: We conducted six semi-structured focus groups with 35 13–14-year-olds and eight interviews with some of their parents. The interviewees were recruited from one higher and two lower socioeconomic neighbourhoods in Oslo, Norway. Theme-based coding was used for analysis, and the results discussed in light of an ecological framework. Results: The results indicate that factors like social norms in a neighbourhood could shape adolescents’ physical activity behaviour, and a social norm of an active lifestyle seemed to be an essential facilitator in the higher socioeconomic neighbourhood. Higher availability of physical activity and high parental engagement seemed to facilitate higher physical activity in this neighbourhood. In the lower socioeconomic neighbourhoods, the availability of local organised physical activity and volunteer engagement from parents varied. Programmes from the municipality and volunteer organisations seemed to influence and be essential for adolescents’ physical activity behaviour in these neighbourhoods. Conclusions: The results illustrate the complexity of behaviour and environment interaction, and a limitation in explaining the phenomenon by focusing primarily on the individual level rather than an ecological perspective.

Prenatal Metal Exposures and Infants’ Developmental Outcomes in a Navajo Population

Early-life exposure to environmental toxicants can have detrimental effects on children’s neurodevelopment. In the current study, we employed a causal modeling framework to examine the direct effect of specific maternal prenatal exposures on infants’ neurodevelopment in the context of co-occurring metals. Maternal metal exposure and select micronutrients’ concentrations were assessed using samples collected at the time of delivery from mothers living across Navajo Nation with community exposure to metal mixtures originating from abandoned uranium mines. Infants’ development across five domains was measured at ages 10 to 13 months using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire Inventory (ASQ:I), an early developmental screener. After adjusting for effects of other confounding metals and demographic variables, prenatal exposure to lead, arsenic, antimony, barium, copper, and molybdenum predicted deficits in at least one of the ASQ:I domain scores. Strontium, tungsten, and thallium were positively associated with several aspects of infants’ development. Mothers with lower socioeconomic status (SES) had higher lead, cesium, and thallium exposures compared to mothers from high SES backgrounds. These mothers also had infants with lower scores across various developmental domains. The current study has many strengths including its focus on neurodevelopmental outcomes during infancy, an understudied developmental period, and the use of a novel analytical method to control for the effects of co-occurring metals while examining the effect of each metal on neurodevelopmental outcomes. Yet, future examination of how the effects of prenatal exposure on neurodevelopmental outcomes unfold over time while considering all potential interactions among metals and micronutrients is warranted.

Something You Can See, Hear, and Feel: A Descriptive, Exploratory Mixed-Methods Analysis of Youths’ Articulations About Racism

This descriptive, exploratory, sequential mixed-methods study investigated youths’ articulations about racism via an open-ended survey question, and the extent to which these articulations differed based on youths’ demographic characteristics. This study included 384 youth who identified as African American ( n = 98), Latinx/o/Hispanic ( n = 74), Asian/Pacific Islander ( n = 52), Multiracial ( n = 38), Native American ( n = 20), and White ( n = 100). Youth were between 14 and 18 years of age ( Mage = 16.66, SD = 1.28) and were primarily cisgender girls (51.3%) followed by cisgender boys (44.5%) and transgender (4.2%) youth. Thematic analysis was used to analyze youths’ responses, finding that youth displayed an analysis of intrapersonal/interpersonal racism, structural racism, and color-evasive ideology. Cross-tabulation analysis revealed that youth from lower socioeconomic statues (SES) were more likely than higher SES youth to describe racism as an intrapersonal/interpersonal phenomenon, and girls and transgender youth were more likely than boys to express a structural analysis of racism. Study findings suggest that youths’ beliefs about racism are multidimensional and primarily characterize racism as an intrapersonal/interpersonal phenomenon. Results may be used to inform the development of youth programs that aim to discuss racism in critical ways.

Neighborhood Distribution of Unsheltered Homelessness and its Temporal Changes: Evidence from Los Angeles

Using the 2016–2020 point-in-time homeless count data, this study investigates neighborhood characteristics associated with the levels of and changes in unsheltered homeless population density in Los Angeles. The results show that unsheltered homeless people in the study area are heavily concentrated in and around the city center, and in neighborhoods with greater access to shelters and lower socioeconomic status. Notably, neighborhoods closer to the city center experienced a relatively large increase in unsheltered homelessness during the study period, implying a persistent spatial concentration of unsheltered homelessness. The results consistently indicate that residential land share, Hispanic resident share, and the number of bridges in the baseline year are significant predictors of relative changes in unsheltered homelessness in subsequent years, whereas access to shelters and poverty rates are not. This study’s findings provide several important policy implications that could potentially help prevent and mitigate unsheltered homelessness.

Brain tumor masquerading as dengue in a three-year-old boy

Paediatric gliomas represent the most common brain tumour in children. Early diagnosis and treatment greatly improve survival. Paediatric gliomas depend on pathways and genes responsible for mitotic activity and cell proliferation as well as angiogenesis (mitogen-activated protein kinases, vascular endothelial growth factor, epidermal growth factor pathways). Symptoms seen as persistent headaches, behavior changes, early morning nausea, emesis, diplopia, and papilledema. Patients may also present with more specific localizing symptoms such as focal motor deficits, hemiplegia, pyramidal tract findings, dysmetria, and chorea; depending upon the tumor’s location can facilitate diagnosis, but they are not always present and therefore diagnosis is occasionally delayed. Here we report a case of a boy hailing from lower socioeconomic status with history of abdominal pain, irritability, fever and cough initially mimicking clinical features and symptoms of dengue encephalitis but subsequent deterioration of patient though on medication and review with MRI suggestive of a glioma.

Socioeconomic, Eating- and Health-Related Limitations of Food Consumption among Polish Women 60+ Years: The ‘ABC of Healthy Eating’ Project

The study aimed at identifying the socioeconomic, eating- and health-related limitations and their associations with food consumption among Polish women 60+ years old. Data on the frequency of consumption of fruit, vegetables, dairy, meat, poultry, fish, legumes, eggs, water and beverages industrially unsweetened were collected with the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA®) and were expressed in the number of servings consumed per day or week. Three indexes: the Socioeconomic Status Index (SESI), the Eating-related Limitations Score (E-LS) and the Health-related Limitations Score (H-LS) were developed and applied. SESI was created on the base of two variables: place of residence and the self-reported economic situation of household. E-LS included: difficulties with self-feeding, decrease in food intake due to digestive problems, chewing or swallowing difficulties, loss of appetite, decrease in the feeling the taste of food, and feeling satiety, whereas H-LS included: physical function, comorbidity, cognitive function, psychological stress and selected anthropometric measurements. A logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the socioeconomic, eating-, and health-related limitations of food consumption. Lower socioeconomic status (vs. higher) was associated with a lower chance of consuming fruit/vegetables ≥2 servings/day (OR = 0.25) or consuming dairy ≥1 serving/day (OR = 0.32). The existence of multiple E-LS limitations (vs. few) was associated with a lower chance of consuming fruit/vegetables ≥2 servings/day (OR = 0.72), consuming dairy ≥1 serving/day (OR = 0.55) or consuming water and beverages industrially unsweetened ≥6 cups/day (OR = 0.56). The existence of multiple H-LS limitations was associated with a lower chance of consuming fruit/vegetables ≥2 servings/day (OR = 0.79 per 1 H-LS point increase) or consuming dairy ≥1 serving/day (OR = 0.80 per 1 H-LS point increase). Limitations found in the studied women were related to insufficient consumption of selected groups of food, which can lead to malnutrition and dehydration. There is a need for food policy actions, including practical educational activities, to eliminate barriers in food consumption, and in turn to improve the nutritional and health status of older women.

The Factors Altering the Age of Onset of Menstruation among Adolescent Girls in Wardha Region

Introduction: Several studies have found that the most common age of menstruation onset has come down dramatically over the previous century, and that there has been a profane (with respect to time) tendency toward early menstruation onset in most metropolitan countries. Emerging economies, such as India, have also suffered a drop in recent years. The purpose of our study was to determine how diet and socioeconomic status influenced menarche age in this location. Methods: Following a simple random sampling among the schools, 100 girls between the ages of 10 and 15 were volunteered for this study. The girls were given a pre-designed questionnaire after receiving clearance and agreement from the school principal/class teacher. The female doctor gave the girls a brief examination. The age of the mother during menarche, as well as the family's socioeconomic situation and other characteristics, were all enquired about in depth. Results: Our study shows that the age of onset of menstruation in higher socioeconomic classes is lower as compared to Lower Socioeconomic class. No significant relation between BMI & type of food and usual age of onset of menstruation was seen in this study. Conclusions: As we progress from a lower to a better socioeconomic level, we see a trend of lowering the age of first menstrual flow. Because such data is scarce in this portion of India, more research must be conducted among girls from other parts of the state before the data can be compared to national figures.

Staged entrepreneurship: the formation of hybrid and spawning entrepreneurial intentions

Most individuals find their way into entrepreneurship through combinations of self-employment and paid employment. However, prior research on entrepreneurial intentions has overlooked intended career transitions. Drawing on social cognitive career theory, we argue that, against the background of personal and environmental factors, individuals form career intentions that involve the combination of and transition between paid employment and self-employment. Such staged entrepreneurial intentions include the delay of entrepreneurial entry by intermediate stages of paid employment (i.e., spawning entrepreneurial intentions) or immediate entrepreneurial entry in parallel combination with paid employment at established organizations (i.e., hybrid entrepreneurial intentions). We test these theoretical ideas based on a survey involving 1003 individuals prior to career entry. The results indicate that individuals proactively align their envisioned career stages according to expected socio-cognitive enablers and barriers (i.e., their entrepreneurial self-efficacy, personal attitudes to entrepreneurship, subjective norms, and socioeconomic status). Notably, we find that individuals with lower levels of perceived social support for an entrepreneurial career more likely intend to combine their existing entrepreneurial activities with a conventional career at an established organization. Furthermore, individuals from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds as well as women are more likely to delay entrepreneurial entry by starting their professional careers in paid employment. The study’s primary contribution is the introduction of a novel perspective on entrepreneurial intentions based on individuals’ intended career transitions.

Enabling Better Physical Activity and Screen Time Behaviours for Adolescents from Middle Eastern Backgrounds: Semi-Structured Interviews with Parents

The unrelenting obesity pandemic in Middle Eastern (ME) adolescents living in Australia warrants culturally responsive and locally engineered interventions. Given the influence of parents on the lifestyle behaviours of adolescents, this qualitative study aimed to capture the opinions of ME parents on the barriers and enablers to sufficient physical activity and limiting screen time behaviours in adolescents. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 ME parents (female) aged 35–59 years old, most of whom resided in lower socioeconomic areas (n = 19). A reflexive thematic analysis using the Theoretical Domains Framework and the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour model was performed for coding. Parents voiced confidence in their knowledge of the importance of physical activity and limiting screen time but were less optimistic in their ability to enable change in behaviours, especially for older adolescents without outside support. Despite adolescents having the necessary skills to engage in a wide array of sports, the parents admitted deep fears regarding the safety of the social environment and restricted their children’s independent mobility. Gender differences were noted, with parents reporting older girls expressing disinterest in sports and having limited physical opportunities to participate in sports at school. It may be that a community-based participatory framework is needed to improve physical activity opportunities and to address specific physical, social, and cultural barriers.