Prevalence of overweight and obesity in children from urban and rural Niagara

Purpose: The influence of environment in the development of overweight and obesity is an ongoing concern. This investigation examined the influence of urbanization on the rates of childhood overweight and obesity. Method: 2167 (1090M, 1077F) grade four children from 75 schools in Ontario's Niagara Region were sampled. A sophisticated algorithm overlaying electoral boundaries, population densities, and the knowledge of community members was used to classify schools into one of three location categories: urban {N= 1588), urban fringe {N= 379), and rural (A^= 234). Each subject was measured for: height, weight, and aerobic performance (Leger). Physical activity was evaluated with the self-report Participation Questionnaire (free-time and organized sport activities), and teacher's evaluations of student activity. Overweight (overweight and obesity combined) was measured both as a continuous (BMI) and categorical variable (BMI category), to evaluate the prevalence by location. A multivariate analysis was used to test for a suppression effect. Results: BMI and BMI category did not differ significantly by location or gender, and no evidence of a gender interaction existed. According to both a linear and logistic regression, physical activity or fitness levels did not suppress the influence of location on BMI and BMI category. Age, gender, free-time activity, organized sports, fitness level, and number of siblings, were all found to significantly influence overweight. Conclusions: It is plausible that the prevalence of overweight does not differ in urban and rural children from the Niagara Region. Further investigation is recommended, examining subjects by individual location of residence, in multiple regions throughout Ontario.

Bullying in physical education : its prevalence & impact on the intention to continue secondary school physical education

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of bullying in physical education and its influence on students' intention to participate in the class in the future. Additionally, the study researched the relationship between bullying and body image as well as bullying and physical competency in physical education. A survey was utilized that collected both quantitative and qualitative data about students' experiences in physical education. Two-hundred and thirty-four grade 10 students (144 female and 90 male) from 8 different secondary schools participated in the study. Data analyses were completed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0. Results showed thaLapproximately 18.3% of respondents had .experienced physical bullying in physical education; 23.7% had experienced verbal bullying; and 20.4% experienced social bullying. Furthermore, those who experienced frequent bullying in physical education did not intend on taking the class in the future. The relationship between body image and bullying was not found to be significant. However, physical competence was found to significantly predict bullying in physical education. These results show how prevalent bullying is in physical education classes and how it negatively impacts future participation in the class.

THE PREVALENCE AND PREDICTION OF PULMONARY FIBROSIS IN AN

This thesis describes an ancillary project to the Early Diagnosis of Mesothelioma and Lung Cancer in Prior Asbestos Workers study and was conducted to determine the effects of asbestos exposure, pulmonary function and cigarette smoking in the prediction of pulmonary fibrosis. 613 workers who were occupationally exposed to asbestos for an average of 25.9 (SD=14.69) years were sampled from Sarnia, Ontario. A structured questionnaire was administered during a face-to-face interview along with a low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) of the thorax. Of them, 65 workers (10.7%, 95%CI 8.12—12.24) had LDCT-detected pulmonary fibrosis. The model predicting fibrosis included the variables age, smoking (dichotomized), post FVC % splines and post- FEV1% splines. This model had a receiver operator characteristic area under the curve of 0.738. The calibration of the model was evaluated with R statistical program and the bootstrap optimism-corrected calibration slope was 0.692. Thus, our model demonstrated moderate predictive performance.