Early childhood family background predicts meal frequency behaviour in children: Five-year follow-up study

Aims: Childhood nutrition patterns have an important role in later health. We studied the role of family type, other family background factors and their changes over a five-year follow-up with respect to meal frequency among children. Methods: Longitudinal data were collected in 2007–2009 and 2013–2014. A nationally representative sample of Finnish children ( n = 1822) aged 0.5–5 years at baseline and 5–10 years at follow-up and their families were used. The participation rate was 83% at baseline and 54% at follow-up. Meal frequency was defined as four to six meals per day. The associations of meal frequency with family background factors over a five-year follow-up period were examined by bivariate and multivariate regression analyses. Results: Eighty-nine per cent of the 5–10-year-old boys and girls had the recommended meal frequency at follow-up. Living in a single-parent family at baseline increased the risk of not eating the recommended number of meals compared with those living in intact families. After adjustments, a mother’s low level of education (OR 0.51, CI 0.29–0.93) and a decrease in income sufficiency (OR 0.54, CI 0.35–0.84) during the follow-up period were unfavourably associated with the recommended meal frequency. The difference between children in stable single-parent, reconstituted or joint physical custody families and those living in stable intact families remained significant when controlling for other variables. Conclusions: Single-parent families with a low socioeconomic position represent important target groups for interventions designed to promote regular meal frequency.

Factors associated with health intentions and behaviour among health checkup participants in Japan

Health intentions and behaviours are essential for improving the health of individuals and society. This study used cross-sectional data from 20,155 health checkup participants in the Yamagata study to identify factors associated with health intentions and behaviours. Information regarding the current level of health intentions and behaviours was collected using a baseline survey questionnaire. Participants were categorised into three groups: having no intention (no intention), having intentions to improve but not acting on them (intention), and already active (action). The associations between background factors and the presence/absence of health intentions and behaviours were assessed using logistic regression analysis. Of the participants, 35.4%, 37.7%, and 26.9% belonged to the no intention, intention, and action groups, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that the factors associated with health intentions were being young, being female, longer duration of education, higher body mass index and abdominal circumference, diabetes, and dyslipidaemia. The factors associated with health behaviours were being older and male, not consuming alcohol, not smoking, performing daily exercise, and having diabetes. These results indicate that health guidance considering background factors, including age, gender, education, and comorbidities, may be useful for effectively promoting health intentions and health behaviours in the Japanese population.

Everyday Life Meaningfulness for the Community-Dwelling Oldest Old During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In many countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to strong restrictions and changed the everyday lives of older people. In Finland, people aged 70 and over were instructed to stay at home under quarantine-like conditions. Existing studies from other countries have reported increases in negative experiences and symptoms as a result of such restrictions, including psychosocial stress. However, little focus has been given to older people’s experiences of meaningfulness during the pandemic. Using survey and interview data, we ask to what extent have community-dwelling oldest old (80+) experienced meaningfulness during the pandemic, what background factors are associated with meaningfulness and what factors have contributed to everyday life meaningfulness during the pandemic. The data was collected as part of the COVID-19 sub-study of the third follow-up of the Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging and Dementia (CAIDE85+) study, a Finnish population-based cohort study carried out in the eastern part of the country. In the quantitative analyses, meaningfulness was assessed as part of the Experiences of Social Inclusion Scale. The association of meaningfulness with different background factors (gender, age, living alone, self-chosen quarantine or physical isolation, self-rated health, physical functioning, and cognitive capacity) was explored with the Chi-square test. The quantitative findings indicate that the majority of the participants experienced meaningfulness during the pandemic. Participants who did not practice any physical isolation measures and participants with higher self-rated health experienced more meaningfulness. There was no evidence for difference in the prevalence of meaningfulness and other background factors. The qualitative data was analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings indicated that factors contributing to meaningfulness in everyday life were social contacts, daily chores and activities, familiar places and seasonal changes. The small sample size does not provide possibilities for generalizing the results into the wider population of older adults. However, the results provide new understanding of the oldest old’s experiences of meaningfulness in everyday life during the global pandemic. The findings may help find ways to support older people’s meaningfulness in challenging times.

Factor Analysis of Knowledge Level and Cultural Background on Health Care for Hypertension Patients in Bengkalis Regency in 2021

Hypertension is a degenerative disease that greatly affects a person's productivity and quality of life, is a silent killer with the highest prevalence rate in Indonesia. Untreated hypertension will cause complications. This study aims to determine the level of knowledge and cultural background factors on the health maintenance of hypertension patients in Bengkalis Regency in 2021. This type of research is quantitative analytic with a cross sectional design. The total population in this study was 5,938 with a total sample of 101 obtained using purposive sampling. The instrument in this study used a questionnaire used in the form of a google form. The data obtained in this study were analyzed by bivariate analysis. The results showed that there was no correlation between knowledge level factors (p=0.828) and cultural background factors (p=0.001) on health care for hypertension sufferers and the most dominant cultural background factors related to health care for hypertension sufferers (p=0.001). Keywords: Knowledge Level, Cultural Background, Health Care, Hypertension.

Physicians’ decreased tendency to choose palliative care for patients with advanced dementia between 1999 and 2015

Background Physicians’ decision-making for seriously ill patients with advanced dementia is of high importance, especially as the prevalence of dementia is rising rapidly, and includes many challenging ethical, medical and juridical aspects. We assessed the change in this decision-making over 16 years (from 1999 to 2015) and several background factors influencing physicians’ decision. Methods A postal survey including a hypothetical patient-scenario representing a patient with an advanced dementia and a life-threatening gastrointestinal bleeding was sent to 1182 and 1258 Finnish physicians in 1999 and 2015, respectively. The target groups were general practitioners (GPs), surgeons, internists and oncologists. The respondents were asked to choose between several life-prolonging and palliative care approaches. The influence of physicians’ background factors and attitudes on their decision were assessed. Results The response rate was 56%. A palliative care approach was chosen by 57 and 50% of the physicians in 1999 and 2015, respectively (p = 0.01). This change was statistically significant among GPs (50 vs 40%, p = 0.018) and oncologists (77 vs 56%, p = 0.011). GPs chose a palliative care approach less often than other responders in both years (50 vs. 63% in 1999 and 40 vs. 56% in 2015, p < 0.001). In logistic regression analysis, responding in 2015 and being a GP remained explanatory factors for a lower tendency to choose palliative care. The impact of family’s benefit on the decision-making decreased, whereas the influence of the patient’s benefit and ethical values as well as the patient’s or physician’s legal protection increased from 1999 to 2015. Conclusions Physicians chose a palliative care approach for a patient with advanced dementia and life-threatening bleeding less often in 2015 than in 1999. Specialty, attitudes and other background factors influenced significantly physician decision-making. Education on the identification and palliative care of the patients with late-stage dementia are needed to make these decisions more consistent.

Maternal Alexithymic Traits Are Related to Lower Maternal Sensitivity and Higher Hostility in Maternal Caregiving Behavior—The FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study

Background: The quality of parental caregiving behavior with their child plays a key role in optimal mother–infant interaction and in supporting child adaptive development. Sensitive caregiving behavior, in turn, requires the ability to identify and understand emotions. Maternal alexithymia, with difficulties in identifying and describing feelings or emotions, as well as a concrete way of thinking, could potentially complicate the quality of caregiving. In this study, we aim to explore the possible association between maternal alexithymic traits and the quality of maternal caregiving behavior.Methods: The study sample consisted of 158 mother–infant dyads within the FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study population with an available report of maternal alexithymic traits at 6 months postpartum and observational data on maternal caregiving behavior at 8 months postpartum. Alexithymia was measured using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) including three alexithymia dimensions—Difficulty Identifying Feelings, Difficulty Describing Feelings (DDF), and Externally Oriented Thinking (EOT). Maternal caregiving behavior was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scale and in this study, all four parent dimensions (Sensitivity, Structuring, Non-intrusiveness and Non-hostility) were included. Maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms at 6 months postpartum were controlled for as potential confounders. In addition, background factors of mother's age and gestational weeks at the time of child birth, maternal educational level, monthly income and parity, as well as relationship status and the gender of the baby were assessed.Results: Maternal TAS-20 total score correlated negatively with Sensitivity (r = −0.169, p = 0.034) and with non-intrusiveness (r = −0.182, p = 0.022). In addition, maternal DDF correlated negatively with Sensitivity (r = −0.168, p = 0.035) and EOT with Non-hostility (r = −0.159, p = 0.047). Furthermore, in regression analyses with controlling for the associated background factors, maternal total score of alexithymic traits (p = 0.034, η2p = 0.029) and higher DDF (p = 0.044, η2p = 0.026) remained significantly associated with lower Sensitivity and higher EOT remained significantly associated with lower Non-hostility (p = 0.030, η2p = 0.030).Conclusions: In this explorative study we found preliminary evidence for the hypothesis that higher maternal alexithymic traits associate with lower maternal sensitivity and more hostile maternal caregiving behavior. Further studies are needed to explore these hypotheses and to investigate their possible implications for child development.

A Cross-Sectional Study of The Background Factors Associated With Academic Motivation Upon Admission To A Medical School in Japan

Background To become a doctor with a high level of professionalism and ethical standards, it is important to have and maintain a high level of motivation from the time of admission to medical school. However, no studies in Japan have quantitatively investigated the factors related to motivation immediately after enrollment. In this study, we identified the background factors that influence the motivation of medical students immediately after admission. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted. First-year medical students answered our questionnaire three weeks after admission. The questionnaire comprised 16 demographic items, and the 28-item Academic Motivation Scale was used to quantify motivation. Results Our analysis showed that amotivation, representing low self-determinant motivation, was significantly higher in students whose parents were medical professionals and in students who did not talk about their problems than in those whose parents were not medical professionals and those who did talk about their problems, respectively. Intrinsic motivation, which indicates the level of self-determinant motivation, was significantly lower in students who belonged to a sports club. Conclusions No previous studies have suggested that having parents who are medical professionals might be a factor associated with their children’s decreased motivation when entering medical school in Japan. However, further research is needed to analyze this relationship.

A Statistical Study on the Prevalence of Physical inactivity among Cardiovascular Diseases patients: The Predictive role of Demographic and Socioeconomic Factors

Physical inactivity (PI) is an established modifiable risk factor of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) which is the leading cause of global mortality. Researchers and practitioners have been trying to reduce the surge of PI in the population but still, a substantial chunk of the world population is struggling with the issues of PI. This study is aimed at determining the prevalence and associated background factors of PI among CVDs patients. Further, profiles of potentially physically inactive people will also be identified for the future. A cross-sectional study was conducted at Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) Lahore, Pakistan spanning the duration of September 2018 to February 2019. A sample of 230 CVDs patients, using 95% confidence interval (CI), 80% power of test and 5% margin of error was selected in the study. The data on PI was collected using standardized international physical activity questionnaire. In addition to descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis, multiple logistic regression analysis and odds ratios (OR) were also used. The study included 230 participants, in which 156 (68%) were males. The average age of the CVDs patients was 50.11±11.15 years. One hundred thirteen (49%) of the patients were physically inactive. Forward stepwise logistic regression estimated that good subjective financial well-being (OR= 0.560; 95% CI: 0.439-0.714), high years of schooling (OR = 0.932; 95% CI: 0.871-0.998), male gender (OR = 0.336, 95% CI: 0.162-0.698) and advanced ages (OR = 1.041, 95% CI: 1.011-1.072) were the strong factors in determining the likelihood of PI. This study concludes that the prevalence of PI in CVDs patients is alarming and background factors are the strong predictors of PI. These factors can be used to design customized strategies for the reduction of PI which would ultimately help in reducing the incidence of CVDs in the population.