Folate degradation due to ultraviolet radiation : possible implications for human health and nutrition

Folate is essential for human health in the prevention of megaloblastic anaemia and neural tube birth defects as well as roles in cardiovascular disease and cancer. Therefore research into environmental factors that may impact folate status, such as solar ultraviolet radiation, is of great health significance. In vitro studies have shown that ultraviolet (UV) radiation can degrade folate and folic acid in human blood and this has been confirmed in several human studies. Despite these findings, there is a dearth of epidemiological research into investigating the relationship between folate status and the links to solar UV exposure.

Sustainability of a successful health and nutrition program in a remote Aboriginal community

OBJECTIVE: To assess the long term effect of a nutrition program in a remote Aboriginal community (Minjilang). DESIGN: Evaluation of nutritional outcomes over the three years before and the three years after a health and nutrition program that ran from June 1989 to June 1990. Turnover of food items at the community store was used as a measure of dietary intake at Minjilang and a comparison community. SETTING: A community of about 150 Aboriginal people live at Minjilang on Croker Island, 240 km north-east of Darwin. A similar community of about 300 people on another island was used as the comparison. RESULTS: The program produced lasting improvements in dietary intake of most target foods (including fruit, vegetables and wholegrain bread) and nutrients (including folate, ascorbic acid and thiamine). Sugar intake fell in both communities before the program, but the additional decrease in sugar consumption during the program at Minjilang "rebounded" in the next year. Dietary improvements in the comparison community were delayed and smaller than at Minjilang. CONCLUSIONS: The success of the program at Minjilang was linked to an ongoing process of social change, which in turn provided a stimulus for dietary improvement in the comparison community. When Aboriginal people themselves control and maintain ownership of community-based intervention programs, nutritional improvements can be initiated and sustained.

Porosity: Establishing the relationship between drying parameters and dried food quality [SpringerBriefs in Food, Health, and Nutrition]

The preservation technique of drying offers a significant increase in the shelf life of food materials, along with the modification of quality attributes due to simultaneous heat and mass transfer. Variations in porosity are just one of the microstructural changes that take place during the drying of most food materials. Some studies found that there may be a relationship between porosity and the properties of dried foods. However, no conclusive relationship has yet been established in the literature. This paper presents an overview of the factors that influence porosity, as well as the effects of porosity on dried food quality attributes. The effect of heat and mass transfer on porosity is also discussed along with porosity development in various drying methods. After an extensive review of the literature concerning the study of porosity, it emerges that a relationship between process parameters, food qualities, and sample properties can be established. Therefore, we propose a hypothesis of relationships between process parameters, product quality attributes, and porosity.

Parent feeding interactions and practices during childhood cancer treatment: A qualitative investigation

In the general population it is evident that parent feeding practices can directly shape a child’s life long dietary intake. Young children undergoing childhood cancer treatment may experience feeding difficulties and limited food intake, due to the inherent side effects of their anti-cancer treatment. What is not clear is how these treatment side effects are influencing the parent–child feeding relationship during anti-cancer treatment. This retrospective qualitative study collected telephone based interview data from 38 parents of childhood cancer patients who had recently completed cancer treatment (child’s mean age: 6.98 years). Parents described a range of treatment side effects that impacted on their child’s ability to eat, often resulting in weight loss. Sixty-one percent of parents (n = 23) reported high levels of stress in regard to their child’s eating and weight loss during treatment. Parents reported stress, feelings of helplessness, and conflict and/or tension between parent and the child during feeding/eating interactions. Parents described using both positive and negative feeding practices, such as: pressuring their child to eat, threatening the insertion of a nasogastric feeding tube, encouraging the child to eat and providing home cooked meals in hospital. Results indicated that parent stress may lead to the use of coping strategies such as positive or negative feeding practices to entice their child to eat during cancer treatment. Future research is recommended to determine the implication of parent feeding practice on the long term diet quality and food preferences of childhood cancer survivors.

Cross-cultural comparisons of health-related quality of life in Australian and Japanese midlife women

Objective: The purpose of this study was to address (1) the existence of an association between menopausal status and the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in Australian and Japanese women and (2) the relative contributions of menopausal status, modifiable lifestyle risk factors, health, and sociodemographic factors on HRQOL. Design: The Australian and Japanese Midlife Women's Health Study (AJMWHS) was a multisite, population-based study conducted in 2001 to 2002. Measures were conducted on data collected from a survey questionnaire used for a sample of women from Australia and Japan. HRQOL was assessed with seven subscales from the Short Form-36. Results: The differences seen in physical functioning, general health, and vitality are significant. The results support an effect of country of residence on physical functioning and general health. The impact of menopausal status on HRQOL was significantly associated with bodily pain and role-emotional. The country of residence did have a modifying effect on the relationship between menopausal status and physical functioning. After control for confounders, there was a significant difference between Australian and Japanese women for HRQOL. Menopausal status was not associated with HRQOL in the areas of general health and physical functioning. Modifiable lifestyle risk factors contributed more highly to HRQOL for the Australian women than for the Japanese women. If the women had a lowered body mass index, undertook physical activity, consumed dietary phytoestrogens, and used alcohol, their physical functioning seemed to be better. Differences were seen in the contributions to HRQOL in these areas, with lower body mass index in the Australian women and physical activity in the Japanese women being the highest predictors. Somatic and psychological symptoms seem to negatively affect both Japanese and Australian women's physical functioning, contributing more than sociodemographic factors, menopausal status, and behavioral determinants combined to general health and physical functioning. Conclusions: It is important that that consideration be given to incorporating the same tool within the cross-cultural design of studies so that comparisons between cultures and patterns of healthy aging can be made. The research suggests that there seems to be variations across Australian and Japanese midlife women in some areas of HRQOL and some factors that contribute to these areas.

Extreme sports are good for your health : a phenomenological understanding of fear and anxiety in extreme sport

Extreme sports are traditionally explored from a risk-taking perspective which often assumes that participants do not experience fear. In this paper we explore participants’ experience of fear associated with participation in extreme sports. An interpretive phenomenological method was used with 15 participants. Four themes emerged: experience of fear, relationship to fear, management of fear, and fear and self transformation. Participant’s experience of extreme sports was revealed in terms of intense fear but this fear was integrated and experienced as a potentially meaningful and constructive event in their lives. The findings have implications for understanding fear as a potentially transformative process.

Recruiting and engaging new mothers in nutrition research studies : lessons from the Australian NOURISH randomised controlled trial

Background: Despite important implications for the budgets, statistical power and generalisability of research findings, detailed reports of recruitment and retention in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are rare. The NOURISH RCT evaluated a community-based intervention for first-time mothers that promoted protective infant feeding practices as a primary prevention strategy for childhood obesity. The aim of this paper is to provide a detailed description and evaluation of the recruitment and retention strategies used. Methods: A two stage recruitment process designed to provide a consecutive sampling framework was used. First time mothers delivering healthy term infants were initially approached in postnatal wards of the major maternity services in two Australian cities for consent to later contact (Stage 1). When infants were about four months old mothers were re-contacted by mail for enrolment (Stage 2), baseline measurements (Time 1) and subsequent random allocation to the intervention or control condition. Outcomes were assessed at infant ages 14 months (Time 2) and 24 months (Time 3). Results: At Stage 1, 86% of eligible mothers were approached and of these women, 76% consented to later contact. At Stage 2, 3% had become ineligible and 76% could be recontacted. Of the latter, 44% consented to full enrolment and were allocated. This represented 21% of mothers screened as eligible at Stage 1. Retention at Time 3 was 78%. Mothers who did not consent or discontinued the study were younger and less likely to have a university education. Conclusions: The consent and retention rates of our sample of first time mothers are comparable with or better than other similar studies. The recruitment strategy used allowed for detailed information from non-consenters to be collected; thus selection bias could be estimated. Recommendations for future studies include being able to contact participants via mobile phone (particular text messaging), offering home visits to reduce participant burden and considering the use of financial incentives to support participant retention.

The emergence of critical health psychology : can it contribute to promoting public health?

The purpose of this article is twofold : first to provide an overview of the emergence of critical health psychology for those working in the related social and health sciences and as a review of its major developments for health psychology; and second to discuss critically the potential for critical health psychology to contribute to promoting public health with specific reference to the directives espoused by Prilleltensky (2003) and Murray and Campbell (2003). The identification of three philosophical phases of the emergence of critical health psychology is used to examine the directions of the field and the challenges facing critical health psychology in order to contribute to public and global health.

Public health psychology : a conceptual and practical framework

Increasingly, the development of public health infrastructures requires psychology to reevaluate its contribution to public health at local, national and global levels. Already familiar to some psychologists, particularly those in community psychology and health promotion, the expansion of public health has implications for psychology in terms of knowledge/practice and working differently in multidisciplinary settings. In this article, I provide a critical overview of the implications of the historical and international development of health psychology and the changing nature of public health to strengthen the establishment of public health psychology. A conceptual and practical framework is proposed in which public health psychology theory, methods and practice are considered as well as its relevance to the health social sciences more generally.

The next generation health intervention tool - Can smart phone applications help young people track and moderate alcohol use and potential harms?

Whilst alcohol is a common feature of many social gatherings, there are numerous immediate and long-term health and social harms associated with its abuse. Alcohol consumption is the world’s third largest risk factor for disease and disability with almost 4% of all deaths worldwide attributed to alcohol. Not surprisingly, alcohol use and binge drinking by young people is of particular concern with Australian data reporting that 39% of young people (18-19yrs) admitted drinking at least weekly and 32% drank to levels that put them at risk of alcohol-related harm. The growing market penetration and connectivity of smartphones may be an opportunities for innovation in promoting health-related self-management of substance use. However, little is known about how best to harness and optimise this technology for health-related intervention and behaviour change. This paper explores the utility and interface of smartphone technology as a health intervention tool to monitor and moderate alcohol use. A review of the psychological health applications of this technology will be presented along with the findings of a series of focus groups, surveys and behavioural field trials of several drink-monitoring applications. Qualitative and quantitative data will be presented on the perceptions, preferences and utility of the design, usability and functionality of smartphone apps to monitoring and moderate alcohol use. How these findings have shaped the development and evolution of the OnTrack app will be specifically discussed, along with future directions and applications of this technology in health intervention, prevention and promotion.