The Old Man and the Meat: On Gender Differences in Meat Consumption across Stages of Human Life

It is not a radically new insight that men eat more meat than women do. However, one piece of the puzzle was previously missing: the development of a gender bias in total and red meat consumption across stages of human life. To identify the gender bias across stages of human life, we apply a multiple-group regression across seven age classes. Data for the empirical analysis stem from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Regression results reveal that gender differences in meat consumption start only after the age of four and then move in some parallel with the development of biological differences, reaching a maximum between 51 and 65 years. The effect of both household income and education on meat consumption is negative and per-capita consumption of meat rises with household size.

"I'm trying to reach out, I'm trying to find my people": Loneliness and loneliness distress in autistic adults

Despite the persistent stereotype that autistic individuals are not motivated to seek meaningful social relationships, rates of loneliness among the autistic population are higher than in the non-autistic population. In this two-part, mixed methods study, we sought to 1) quantify the level of distress associated with loneliness in autistic and non-autistic adults and 2) gain qualitative insight into autistic experiences of loneliness. In Study A, 209 participants (encompassing a group of autistic individuals and a group of non-autistic comparison participants) completed questionnaire ratings of their level of loneliness, associated distress, trait anxiety, depression, and sensory sensitivity. Results indicated that the autistic group scored higher levels across all measures. Both groups manifest strong correlations between loneliness and loneliness distress. In the autistic group, but not the non-autistic group, regression analyses showed that loneliness and sensory sensitivity predicted levels of anxiety, wherein the effect of loneliness on anxiety was partially mediated by the level of sensory sensitivity. In Study B, nine autistic adults took part in ten-minute, unstructured dyadic conversations around the topic of loneliness. Inductive and deductive analyses enriched qualitative understanding of the experiences of loneliness of autistic individuals. Our results broadly oppose the social motivation deficit hypothesis and we instead frame our findings within the larger context of ‘ethical loneliness’, concluding that a concerted effort is needed to overcome the fundamental disconnect with the neurotypical world experienced by many autistic people.

A Retrospective Clinical Analysis of the Serum Bile Acid Alteration Caused by Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can cause damage to peripheral organ systems, such as digestive organ system, and alterations of gut microbiota in addition to brain injury. Our previous study found that TBI induced gastrointestinal dysfunction accompanied by alterations of bile acid metabolism. Bile acid and its receptors have been reported to play important roles in various neurological diseases. To further examine the changes of bile acid metabolism in TBI patients, we performed a retrospective clinical analysis. In this study, 177 patients were included, and the results showed that TBI patients had more frequent antibiotic use compared with a control group. Regression analysis identified TBI as an independent factor for reduction of serum bile acid level (B = −1.762, p = 0.006), even with antibiotic use taken into a regression model. Sub-group regression analysis of TBI patients showed that antibiotic use was negatively associated with bile acid level, while creatinine and triglyceride were positively associated with bile acid level. In conclusion, these data indicated that TBI could greatly reduce serum bile acid. This study provided preliminary but novel clinical evidence of TBI interfering with bile acid metabolism, and further studies with large sample sizes are needed to validate these findings in the future.

Comparison Between Isometric and Concentric Motor Fatigability in Persons With Multiple Sclerosis and Healthy Controls – exploring central and peripheral contributions of motor fatigability

Background Motor fatigability (i.e. contraction-induced reduction in muscle strength) from a concentric task associate stronger to walking and perception of fatigue in persons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS), compared with an isometric task. However, the central and peripheral contributions of motor fatigability between these tasks have not been investigated. Objective Compare the central and peripheral contributions of motor fatigability in the knee extensors in a sustained isometric fatigability protocol versus a concentric fatigability protocol and in pwMS versus healthy controls (HCs). Methods Participants (n=31 pwMS; n=15 HCs) underwent neuromuscular testing before and immediately after two knee extensor fatigability tasks (sustained isometric and concentric) in an isokinetic dynamometer. Neuromuscular testing of fatigability consisted of maximal voluntary contraction, voluntary activation (central/neural contributor), and resting twitch (peripheral/muscular contributor) determined by the interpolated twitch technique. Results Sustained isometric and concentric fatigability protocols resulted in motor fatigability for both pwMS and HCs, with no between-protocols differences for either group. Regression analysis showed that motor fatigability variance in pwMS was mainly attributed to central fatigability in the sustained isometric protocol and to both central and peripheral fatigability in the concentric protocol. In HCs, the variance in sustained isometric and concentric fatigability were attributed to both peripheral and central fatigability. Conclusion Central and peripheral contributions of motor fatigability differed between sustained isometric and concentric protocols as well as between pwMS and HCs. These between-protocol differences in pwMS provide a neuromuscular dimension to the reported difference in the strength of associations of concentric and isometric tasks to walking and perception of fatigue in pwMS.

The Association Between Mechanical Power and Mortality in Ventilated Patients with Pneumonia

Background: Recent studies reported that mechanical power (MP) has been associated with increased mortality in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We aimed to investigate the association between 28-day mortality and MP in patients with severe pneumonia. Methods: In total, 313 patients with severe pneumonia were enrolled. Serial MP was recorded daily for either 21 days or until ventilator support was no longer required. The associations between all variables and 28-day mortality were analyzed using binary logistic regression analyses. Results: The ARDS group (106 patients) demonstrated lower age, higher Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, lower history of diabetes mellitus, high incidences of shock and jaundice, higher MP and driving pressure on Day 1, and higher death within 28 days than the non-ARDS group. Regression analysis revealed that MP was an independent factor associated with 28-day mortality (odds ratio, 1.041; 95% confidence interval, 1.013-1.071). MP persisted high in non-survivors and low in survivors among the ARDS group, the non-ARDS group and all patients.Conclusions: MP was associated with the 28-day mortality in ventilated patients with severe pneumonia both in the ARDS and non-ARDS groups. MP had better predicted value for 28-day mortality than driving pressure.

Consumer empowerment on online purchasing

This research investigates the influence of social, demographic, and economic characteristics toward consumer empowerment on online purchasing in Asia, using a cross-sectional study through an online survey of 100 samples who experienced online purchasing. Multiple linear regression is performed for data analysis. The result showed that early adult males withhigh education, Javanese ethnic, lived in an urban area and were an employee with more than one million incomes per month was the most empowered group. Regression analyses resultreveals that gender, ethnic, and income significantly negatively influenced consumer empowerment. Meanwhile, a male with non-Sundanese ethnic and low income would increase the consumer empowerment index.

Association of ERCC5 Genetic Polymorphisms With Cirrhosis and Liver Cancer

Introduction: To explore association of excision repair cross-complementing 5 ( ERCC5) genetic polymorphisms with cirrhosis and liver cancer. Methods: A total of 365 patients were enrolled, including control group (n = 133), cirrhosis group (n = 122), and liver cancer group (n = 110). The genotyping of ERCC5 rs2016073, rs751402, rs2094258, rs2296147, and rs2296148 was measured by using MassARRAY iPLEX technology. Results: There were no significant differences in gender and drinking among the 3 groups ( P > .05). There were significant differences among the 3 groups in both age-group ≤60 and >60 subgroup patients. Locus rs2016073 was significantly different among 3 groups, and genotype GG (n = 0) was not observed in liver cancer group. As for locus rs751402, there were significant differences among 3 groups, and genotype AA (n = 0) was not observed in liver cancer group. As for locus rs2094258, there were no significant differences among 3 groups. Locus rs2296147 showed no significant differences among 3 groups ( P > .05), but genotype CC was not observed in liver cancer group (n = 0). As for locus rs2296148, there were significant differences among 3 groups, and genotype TC (n = 0) was not observed in cirrhosis group. Regression analysis found locus rs751402 had significant difference between control group and cirrhosis group, patients with genotype AA and genotype GG were more likely to have cirrhosis than those with genotype GA. Conclusion: Our study suggested that genotype AA, genotype GG of ERCC5 locus rs751402, and genotype TC of locus rs2296148 may be important targets for cirrhosis, while ERCC5 polymorphisms (rs2016073 and ERCC5 polymorphisms, rs2016073 with genotype GG, and rs751402 with genotype AA) may be potential markers for liver cancer.

Large Group Regression and the Emergence of Psychopolitical Criminality

This article examines criminality that can emerge within the context of a political party’s large group regression. The group behavior of the Democratic party after its loss in the 2016 United States Presidential election serves as a case that illustrates this concept. Psychoanalytic concepts discussed by Vamik Volkan are used as the framework for understanding the party’s group behavior. Since its loss in the election, the Democratic party has demonstrated remarkable coherence in its hostility towards Republicans. The hostility has ranged from uncivil behavior to violence manifested across a range of socioeconomic statuses and locations. The steep decline in the Democratic party’s civility towards its opponent is indicative of a large group regression. The loss of the 2016 Presidential election precipitated the party’s regression, which has left its members responding in primitive psychological ways. A range of criminality has emerged within this regressed state, such as assault, battery, and false police allegations. The regressed state of the party leaves it vulnerable to malignant narcissistic leadership or dysfunctional ideologies, which can normalize the regressive behavior. The large group regression examined in this paper may apply to other Western societies that experience dramatic sociopolitical change.