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PubMed2006

Relationship of alexithymia to cardiovascular disease risk factors among African Americans.

BACKGROUND: Alexithymia, a deficit in emotional awareness and expression, may contribute to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other diseases. African Americans have a high prevalence of CVD, but almost nothing is known about alexithymia in this ethnic group. This study examined the relationship of alexithymia to a range of risk factors for CVD among African Americans. METHODS: On a community sample of 162 African American adults, we assessed alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20) and several risk factor domains: physiological (body mass index, blood pressure), behavioral (smoking, exercise), emotional (trait anxiety, depression, and anger; forms of anger expression), racial discriminatory, and socioeconomic (income, education). RESULTS: Alexithymia was positively correlated with all emotional risk factors (P < .01) and inversely correlated with socioeconomic status (P < .01). Alexithymia has a small, inverse relationship with responses to racism (P < .01) but was not significantly related to the experience of racism. Alexithymia was weakly related to smoking but was unrelated to physiological risk factors. These relationships were largely unchanged when only people without hypertension (n = 116) were studied. CONCLUSIONS: This pattern of relationships is consistent with findings on ethnic majority samples and suggests that alexithymia as measured with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 is a valid construct among African Americans. It correlates with socioeconomic and emotional variables in this population, but only minimally or not at all with behavioral or physiological factors. If alexithymia influences CVD and other diseases, it appears to do so through social and emotional pathways.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

A meta-analysis of family-behavioral weight-loss treatments for children.

Childhood obesity is a major concern in the United States. Because children's diets can be significantly influenced by parental behavior (e.g., food purchases, meal preparation), researchers have included family intervention components in some childhood weight-loss programs. The relative benefits of adding the family component have not been well-established. This meta-analysis compared the mean effect sizes of family-behavioral, other treatment, and control weight-loss groups for children. A comprehensive literature review identified 16 studies with a total of 44 treatment groups. Results indicated that interventions containing a family-behavioral component produced larger effect sizes than the alternative treatment groups. This demonstrates that the inclusion of a family component may be advantageous to a child's weight-loss treatment.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed2005

Suicide among adolescents and young adults.

A closer analysis was made of all postmortems at the Benjamin Franklin Campus of the Institute of Forensic Medicine performed on juveniles who committed suicide at the age of 20 or below in the period from 1998 to 2003. A double suicide of a young couple, who met on the Internet and agreed on the procedure to be followed up to the act itself, which took place in Berlin, is presented as a representative case. The authors emphasise that in view of the danger of emulation, the media should exercise restraint in describing concrete details especially when reporting about suicides of juveniles.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

The effects of a celebrity suicide on suicide rates in Hong Kong.

BACKGROUND: Deaths of celebrities, especially by suicide, can be followed by an increase in population suicide rates, particularly where there is extensive media reporting. We have examined the impact on suicides following the death of a famous Hong Kong pop singer whose death from suicide by jumping from a height, occurred on 1st April 2003, and resulted in extensive and often dramatic media coverage. METHODS: Data on suicides were obtained from the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department and the Coroner's Court. The numbers of suicides in 2003 before and after the death of celebrity were compared to the same period in 1998-2002. The case files and suicide notes of people who died by suicide in 2003 were also studied qualitatively. RESULTS: There was a significant increase in suicides following the celebrity death, compared with the average over the preceding three months as well as the corresponding monthly average during 1998-2002. It was particularly marked in a subgroup comprising males, aged 25-39 years, many of whom died by jumping. The name of the celebrity was often mentioned in case files and suicide notes. LIMITATIONS: The statistical results in showing the excess of suicides were based on aggregated data only. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides further confirmation of the potential harmful consequences of sensational and excessive reporting of celebrity deaths.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Remarkable amine-TFA self assembly.

Supramolecular assemblies that are formed between amines and trifluoroacetic acid were studied using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. Distinctive association behavior of primary, secondary, and tertiary amines with trifluoroacetic acid upon identical experimental conditions is observed and indicates that steric effects dominate in the formation of these protonated clusters. Extraordinary complexation behavior is observed in the case of R-(+)-alpha-methylbenzylamine and 4-tert-butyl-cyclohexylamine that form high-order clusters. The strong relation between stereochemistry and assembly results in the specific association characteristics of trans 4-tert-butyl-1-phenylcyclohexylamine when compared with the cis isomer. The cis isomer gives rise to a highly abundant [M(4)TFA(3) + H](+) ion (M = amine molecule, TFA = trifluoroacetic acid), as observed for other primary amines. However, the trans isomer generates higher [M(n)TFA(m) + H](+) cluster ions, the largest and most abundant being an [M(7)TFA(6) + H](+) ion. Collision induced dissociation spectra that were recorded for several [M(n)TFA(m) + H](+) cluster ions typically show the consecutive losses of M.TFA moieties. Density functional theory calculations indicate that the highly abundant [M(4)TFA(3) + H](+) clusters are macrocycles and support the formation of these structures with TFA and not with acetic acid.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2006

Maternal prompts to eat, child compliance, and mother and child weight status.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if there is a relationship between maternal prompting to eat, child compliance, and mother and child weight. STUDY DESIGN: Seventy-one 3- to 6-year-old children and their mothers were videotaped tasting four foods (two familiar, two novel). Maternal prompts to eat and the child's compliance with the prompts were coded. Multiple logistic regression evaluated demographic, anthropometric, and food characteristics that predicted prompting and compliance; and demographic, behavioral, and food characteristics that predicted child body mass index Z score (BMIz) in the children of obese and non-obese mothers. RESULTS: Obese mothers did not prompt more than non-obese mothers, but children of obese mothers were more compliant (70.2% +/- 19.4 v 59.6% +/- 21.2, P = .04). Low maternal education, a novel food, and younger child age predicted prompting. Maternal obesity, a familiar food, and older child age predicted compliance. In children of obese mothers, low maternal education, more prompts to eat novel foods, fewer prompts to eat familiar foods, and fewer child bites of familiar foods predicted child BMIz (R(2) = 64%). In children of non-obese mothers, none of the covariates predicted child BMIz. CONCLUSIONS: Children of obese mothers may be more responsive to environmental cues to eat.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Identification of leucomyosuppressin in the German cockroach, Blattella germanica, as an inhibitor of food intake.

The feeding pattern of the adult female of Blattella germanica peaks in the middle of the vitellogenic cycle. Following the hypothesis that a factor inhibiting gut peristalsis also inhibits food intake and is involved in the regulation of feeding, we searched for the most powerful myoinhibitory peptide in brain extracts from B. germanica females collected after the peak within the feeding cycle. Through HPLC purification and sequence analysis, we obtained the peptide leucomyosuppressin (LMS): pQDVDHVFLRFamide. LMS elicited a powerful myoinhibitory effect on B. germanica foregut and hindgut, with ED(50) values around 10(-10) M. In addition, it inhibited food intake in vivo in a dose-dependent manner at doses between 5 and 50 microg. The study of the distribution of ingested food in the foregut, midgut and hindgut of B. germanica females treated with LMS showed that food accumulates in the foregut, which may be due to the myoinhibitory effects of the peptide. We propose that this accumulation inhibits food intake because of the persistence of the signals from gut stretch receptors.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Screening for cardiovascular disease with cholesterol.

BACKGROUND: Total cholesterol (TC) and lipoprotein measurements are among the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). ISSUES: The massive (and increasing) disease burden associated with cardiovascular disorders justifies public health measures, such as screening, which may assist with the identification and treatment of individuals who have a high risk of developing these disorders. Whole populations are placed at risk by environmental factors such as dietary habits and exercise patterns, and this may be reflected by simple tests such as TC that largely depend on dietary consumption of saturated fat and cholesterol. On the other hand, identification of high-risk individuals within populations requires more specific tests such as measurement of cholesterol in lipoprotein fractions. This recognizes that the contribution of different risk factors may vary between individuals. Dietary and pharmacological interventions, particularly those that reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), have been shown to prevent the onset or recurrence of CVD. CONCLUSIONS: It is desirable and justifiable to try to identify high-risk patients before the onset of clinical CVD because morbidity and mortality may occur as a consequence of the initial event. The relationship between the costs and the benefits of prophylactic interventions varies according to the extent to which clinical procedures, including laboratory testing, can estimate the level of cardiovascular risk. It can be argued that inappropriate cholesterol screening may have a negative effect on health economics and patient attitudes, but these problems appear easily surmountable. Techniques that enable the preclinical detection of CVD may help the process to strike a balance between public health initiatives that reduce the environmental factors responsible for the epidemic of CVD, and the strategies that are known to reduce event rates in high-risk individuals.

Cardiovascular Diseases↗
PubMed2002

Theory of liquid chromatography of mono- and difunctional macromolecules. I. Studies in the critical interaction mode.

The theory of liquid chromatography of mono- and difunctional polymers based on the model of ideal polymer chain in wide slit-like pores is presented. Analytical equations describing chromatographic behavior of functional macromolecules in both adsorption, exclusion and critical modes are derived and compared with experiments. The focus of this experimental study was on the verification of the theory in chromatography at critical conditions. Chromatographic behavior of low molar mass end-functionalized polyethylene glycols was found to be in a very good qualitative and in a reasonable quantitative agreement with the theory.

Chromatography, Liquid↗
PubMedDate not supplied

An evaluation of a structural model for studies of the initiation of dieting among adolescent girls.

A model proposed to elucidate the sociopsychological processes involved in the initiation of dieting behavior among female adolescents was evaluated in the present study. The model incorporates social influence (as modeling, conformity, and compliance), autonomous functioning (as conformity disposition, individuation, self-reliance, and locus of control), skill-related functioning (as interpersonal negotiation skills and social self-efficacy), and parental style (in care and overprotection). It was investigated using path analytic procedures. One hundred forty-eight female high school students, aged between 13 and 16 years, completed a battery of questionnaires and were also interviewed individually. The results emphasized that adolescent dieting needs to be understood as a complex multicausal phenomenon. Adolescents' perceptions of direct pressure from their parents to diet was found to be a significant predictor of dieting, and perceived parental encouragement of autonomy, and self-confidence were associated with less dieting behavior. Moreover, whereas body mass index (BMI) and body dissatisfaction significantly predicted dieting, the three sociopsychological variables remained significant predictors of dieting when taking BMI into account, and perceived parent influence to diet remained a significant predictor when taking body dissatisfaction into account. The effect of autonomous functioning on dieting was mediated by body dissatisfaction. The findings suggest a reformulated model for use in large-scale longitudinal investigations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Obesity.

Obesity is a chronic disease, which similar to diabetes and hypertension, requires long-term treatment. The patient must be willing to make major changes in eating habits, lifestyle, and physical activity to achieve long-lasting results.

Appetite Depressants↗
PubMed1999

Cervical cancer screening: spatial associations of outcome and risk factors in Rotterdam.

OBJECTIVE: Obtaining insight into the geographic distribution of attendance and smear test results at the cervical cancer screening program in Rotterdam neighbourhoods, associated with socio-economic status, marital status and the percentage migrants. DESIGN: Ecological analysis was carried out on data on cervical cancer screening outcome and population figures, provided by the Rotterdam Local Health Information System, in which health information is collected at neighbourhood level. SETTING: The cervical cancer screening program in the city of Rotterdam. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty-three neighbourhoods, with overall 569,105 inhabitants, of whom 70,621 women between 1992 and 1994 were invited for the screening program. MAIN RESULTS: Between neighbourhoods a large difference in attendance rate and the percentage positive smears exists. A high socio-economic level of a neighbourhood, and a low percentage migrants, single or divorced women correspond with high attendance. A high socio-economic status of a neighbourhood and a low percentage migrants correspond with a low percentage smear test Pap 3B or higher. Socio-economic status, percentage migrants and marital status are highly interrelated on neighbourhood level. Multivariate analysis showed a negative correlation between the attendance rate and the percentage of single and divorced women, and a positive correlation between the percentage migrants and the percentage of positive smears (Pap 3B or higher). CONCLUSION: Various risk groups, showing low attendance or a high percentage of positive smears, are clustered in neighbourhoods and can be identified by socio-economic status, marital status and nationality. Activities to improve attendance can be focused towards these neighbourhoods.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Binge and purge behavior among adolescents: associations with sexual and physical abuse in a nationally representative sample: the Commonwealth Fund survey.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To examine associations between binge and purge behavior and sexual and physical abuse among adolescents; (2) to determine if these associations remain significant after controlling for sociodemographic and anthropometric characteristics; and (3) to identify aspects of abuse associated with binge and purge behavior. METHOD: A nationally representative sample of 6728 adolescents in 5th-12th grades completed the Commonwealth Fund Survey of the Health of Adolescent Girls and Boys. RESULTS: Binge and purge behavior was nearly twice as prevalent among girls (13%) as boys (7%), and was significantly associated with all abuse types (physical, sexual, or both). Associations were strongest among individuals who had experienced both physical and sexual abuse [odds ratios 4.28 (girls) and 8.25 (boys)]. Differences in binge and purge behavior by gender and type of abuse across abuse characteristics were limited. A higher percentage of abused youth that did not discuss their abuse reported binge-purge behavior than those who did discuss their abuse. Abused girls and boys who did talk to someone about the abuse most often discussed the abuse with their best friend (42.5% and 18.0%, respectively), their mother (38.8% and 32.2%, respectively), and their friends (27.2% and 19.5%, respectively). DISCUSSION: Being physically and/or sexually abused was associated with greater likelihood for engaging in binge and purge behaviors. Discussing the abuse experience with another person may help to reduce binge-purge behavior, as abused adolescents who did not discuss the abuse were more likely to report binge-purge behavior than those who did discuss their abuse.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Synthesis, characterization, DNA-binding and cleavage studies of [Ru(bpy)2(actatp)]2+ and [Ru(phen)2(actatp)]2+ (actatp=acenaphthereno[1,2-b]-1,4,8,9-tetraazariphenylence).

New ligand acenaphthereno[1,2-b]-1,4,8,9-tetraazariphenylence (actatp) and its complexes [Ru(bpy)(2)(actatp)](ClO(4))(2).2H(2)O (1) (bpy=2,2'-bipyridine) and [Ru(phen)(2)(actatp)](ClO(4))(2).2H(2)O (2) (phen=1,10-phenanthroline) have been synthesized and characterized by UV-vis, 1H NMR, and mass spectra. The electrochemical behavior of the two complexes was studied by cyclic voltammetry. The interaction of the two complexes with calf thymus DNA has been investigated by spectrophotometric methods and viscosity measurements. The experimental results suggest that both complexes bind to DNA through an intercalative mode. The circular dichroism signals of the dialysates of the racemic complexes against calf thymus DNA are discussed. When irradiated at 302 nm, both complexes have also been found to promote the photocleavage of plasmid pBR 322 DNA.

2,2'-Dipyridyl↗
PubMed2003

Use of supermarket receipts to estimate energy and fat content of food purchased by lean and overweight families.

The aim of this study was to compare the energy and fat content of food purchased for home consumption by households comprising mainly overweight individuals (OH), with those comprising mainly lean individuals (LH). 214 supermarket shoppers and their household were recruited from a Tesco supermarket in Leeds (UK). Households collected supermarket receipts and completed a shopping diary for 28-days, and each member of the household completed a 4-day food record. OH purchased food higher in fat (38% total energy from fat) than LH, (34.9%: p=0.001) and they purchased more energy and fat per adult equivalent, per day than LH (10.05 MJ compared to 9.15 MJ: p=0.01 and 103 g compared to 86 g:p=0.001). Households were 15% more likely to be classified as OH for each additional MJ of energy purchased per person, per day, after adjusting for number of children, household size, age, sex and social class. It was concluded that food purchasing behaviour may be linked to the prevalence of obesity in households who shop at supermarkets.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

[Factors associated with cervical cancer screening in women covered by national health insurance].

BACKGROUND: The aims of our study were to examine the factors associated with cervical screening in women whose tests are supported by a national health insurance scheme, the Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale. METHODS: A self-administered postal questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 10,000 adults aged 20 to 60 years old living in France and insured with the Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale. Response rate was 66.5% (N=6,518). RESULTS: Of the 3,741 women aged 20 to 60 years old, 88.5% have had at least one cervical smear. Mean age for the first cervical smear was 29.3 years (95% CI: 29.0-29.6). Preventive practices (mammogram, cervical smear and fecal occult-blood testing) were strongly related. The predictive factors for cervical smear during the past three years included: age between 30 and 49 years, marital status (married, separated or divorced), the socioeconomic status (unskilled workers reported cervical smears less often than women from other socioeconomic status). Consulting a gynaecologist in the past twelve months increased 9-fold the probability of having a cervical smear and 2-fold when consulting a general practitioner compared to women who consulted neither a gynecologist nor a general practitioner. CONCLUSIONS: In a population whose tests were supported by a national health scheme, the socioeconomic status was one of the determinants of Pap smear.

Adult↗