To examine the associations of body mass index (BMI) across adulthood with hip shapes at age 60–64years.
Up to 1633 men and women from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development with repeat ...measures of BMI across adulthood and posterior-anterior dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry bone mineral density images of the proximal femur recorded at age 60–64 were included in analyses. Statistical shape modelling was applied to quantify independent variations in hip mode (HM), of which the first 6 were examined in relation to: i) BMI at each age of assessment; ii) BMI gain during different phases of adulthood; iii) age first overweight.
Higher BMI at all ages (i.e. 15 to 60–64) and greater gains in BMI were associated with higher HM2 scores in both sexes (with positive HM2 values representing a shorter femoral neck and a wider and flatter femoral head). Similarly, younger age first overweight was associated with higher HM2 scores but only in men once current BMI was accounted for.
In men, higher BMI at all ages was also associated with lower HM4 scores (with negative HM4 values representing a flatter femoral head, a wider neck and smaller neck shaft angle) but no associations with BMI gain or prolonged exposure to high BMI were found. Less consistent evidence of associations was found between BMI and the other four HMs.
These results suggest that BMI across adulthood may be associated with specific variations in hip shapes in early old age.
•BMI across adulthood was associated with variations in hip shape at age 60–64.•BMI gain and prolonged exposure to overweight were also linked to hip shape.•High BMI across adulthood may be associated with non-optimal shape of the hip joint.
Globally, the high prevalence of overweight and low levels of physical activity among children has serious implications for morbidity and premature mortality in adulthood. Various parental factors ...are associated with childhood overweight and physical activity. The objective of this paper was to investigate relationships between parental education or overweight, and (i) child overweight, (ii) child physical activity, and (iii) explore household coexistence of overweight, in a large international sample.
Data were collected from 4752 children (9-11 years) as part of the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment in 12 countries around the world. Physical activity of participating children was assessed by accelerometry, and body weight directly measured. Questionnaires were used to collect parents' education level, weight, and height.
Maternal and paternal overweight were positively associated with child overweight. Higher household coexistence of parent-child overweight was observed among overweight children compared to the total sample. There was a positive relationship between maternal education and child overweight in Colombia 1.90 (1.23-2.94) odds ratio (confidence interval) and Kenya 4.80 (2.21-10.43), and a negative relationship between paternal education and child overweight in Brazil 0.55 (0.33-0.92) and the USA 0.54 (0.33-0.88). Maternal education was negatively associated with children meeting physical activity guidelines in Colombia 0.53 (0.33-0.85), Kenya 0.35 (0.19-0.63), and Portugal 0.54 (0.31-0.96).
Results are aligned with previous studies showing positive associations between parental and child overweight in all countries, and positive relationships between parental education and child overweight or negative associations between parental education and child physical activity in lower economic status countries. Relationships between maternal and paternal education and child weight status and physical activity appear to be related to the developmental stage of different countries. Given these varied relationships, it is crucial to further explore familial factors when investigating child overweight and physical activity.
The objective was to investigate potential gene-environment interaction between body mass index (BMI) and each of eight TGFβ1 polymorphisms in knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA).
We conducted a ...case-control study of Caucasian men and women aged 45 to 86 years from Nottingham, United Kingdom (Genetics of OA and Lifestyle (GOAL) study). Cases had clinically severe symptoms and radiographic knee or hip OA; controls had no symptoms and no radiographic knee/hip OA. We used logistic regression to investigate the association of TGFβ1 polymorphisms and OA when stratifying by BMI. Knee and hip OA were analyzed separately with adjustment for potential confounders. Additive and multiplicative interactions were examined.
2,048 cases (1,042 knee OA, 1,006 hip OA) and 967 controls were studied. For hip OA, the highest risk was in overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2) individuals with the variant allele of single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1800468 (odds ratio (OR) 2.21, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.55, 3.15). Evaluation of gene-environment interaction indicated significant synergetic interaction (relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI) = 0.93, synergy index (SI) = 4.33) with an attributable proportion due to interaction (AP) of 42% (AP = 0.42; 95% CI 0.16, 0.68). Multiplicative interaction was also significant (OR for interaction (ORINT) = 2.27, P = 0.015). For knee OA, the highest risk was in overweight individuals with homozygous genotype 11 of SNP rs2278422 (OR = 6.95, P <0.001). In contrast, the variant allele indicated slightly lower risks (OR = 4.72, P <0.001), a significant antagonistic interaction (RERI = -2.66, SI = 0.59), AP = -0.56 (95%CI -0.94, -0.17) and a significant multiplicative interaction (ORINT = 0.47, P = 0.013).
TGFβ1 gene polymorphisms interact with being overweight to influence the risk of large joint OA.
Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) - largely the result of modifiable behavioral risks such as physical inactivity that gradually develop into physiological risks - are a main cause of ...morbidity and mortality worldwide. In Kenya, a nationally representative STEPwise survey of risk factors for NCDs established that 10.8% of Kenyans accumulated low levels of total physical activity.
Objectives: The goal of our analyses was to compare domains of self-reported physical activity in two Nairobi slums to national estimates.
Methods: Levels and time of self-reported activity in three domains (work, transport, and recreation), collected as part of a SCALE-UP study conducted in Korogocho and Viwandani slums in Nairobi, were compared to STEPwise findings.
Results: The samples included a total of 10,128 participants (5,628 slum, 4,500 national). Only 7.1% and 4.0% of slum dwellers reported low levels of work and transport physical activity, respectively, but 95.9% reported low levels of recreation-related activity. Slum residents reported higher mean daily minutes of total activity than the national estimate (499 minutes versus 291 minutes), however, both samples spent similar proportions of total activity on work (79.0% slum, 78.3% national), transport (20.4% slum, 18.1% national), and recreation (0.6% slum, 3.6% national) activities.
Conclusions: While the total amount of time spent in different domains of self-reported activity differs between urban slum residents and the national Kenyan population, proportions of time in each of the three domains are similar. It is important that such differences or similarities be considered when addressing NCD risk factors in these populations.
Kenya's 2016 report card aimed to highlight the health and well-being of Kenyan children and youth using the best available evidence on the physical activity of Kenyan children and youth. The report ...pointed at areas where Kenya was succeeding and areas where more action is required.
Inclusive analyses of available data sources on the core indicators related to physical activity and body weights of Kenyan children and youth (5 to 17 years) were conducted. These were assigned grades based on a set of specific criteria.
Results show that Active Play, Active Transportation, Overweight and Obesity, and Sedentary Behavior were favorable with a grade of B. Overall Physical Activity, Organized Sport Participation, and School (infrastructure, policies, and programs) each received a grade of C, while Family and Peers, Government and Nongovernment organizations, as well as the Community and the Built Environment were assigned grade D.
Over 72% of Kenyan children and youth use active transportation to and from school and in their daily lives. Although majority of the children and youth have normal body weight, there is need to ensure that they meet and maintain the physical activity levels recommended by the World Health Organization. More needs to be done especially in relation to the governmental and nongovernmental organizations, organized sports participation, as well as involvement of family and peers in promoting healthy active lifestyles among Kenyan children and youth. More representative data for all indicators are required in Kenya.
There is limited evidence on the relationship between disability, experiences of gender-based violence (GBV), and mental health among refugee women in humanitarian contexts.
A cross-sectional ...analysis was conducted of baseline data (
= 209) collected from women enrolled in a cohort study of refugee women accessing GBV response services in the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya. Women were surveyed about GBV experiences (past 12 months, before the last 12 months, before arriving in the refugee camps), functional disability status, and mental health (anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress), and we explored the inter-relationship of these factors.
Among women accessing GBV response services, 44% reported a disability. A higher proportion of women with a disability (69%) reported a past-year experience of physical intimate partner violence and/or physical or sexual non-partner violence, compared to women without a disability (54%). A higher proportion of women with a disability (32%) experienced non-partner physical or sexual violence before arriving in the camp compared to women without a disability (16%). Disability was associated with higher scores for depression (1.93, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.54-3.33), PTSD (2.26, 95% CI 0.03-4.49), and anxiety (1.54, 95% CI 0.13-2.95) after adjusting for age, length of encampment, partner status, number of children, and GBV indicators.
A large proportion of refugee women seeking GBV response services have disabilities, and refugee women with a disability are at high risk of poor mental health. This research highlights the need for mental health and disability screening within GBV response programming.
Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) participation is the standard of care for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who remain symptomatic despite bronchodilator therapies. However, ...there are questions about specific aspects of PR programming including optimal site of rehabilitation delivery, components of rehabilitation programming, duration of rehabilitation, target populations and timing of rehabilitation. The present document was compiled to specifically address these important clinical issues, using an evidence-based, systematic review process led by a representative interprofessional panel of experts. The evidence reveals there are no differences in major patient-related outcomes of PR between nonhospital- (community or home sites) or hospital-based sites. There is strong support to recommend that COPD patients initiate PR within one month following an acute exacerbation due to benefits of improved dyspnea, exercise tolerance and health-related quality of life relative to usual care. Moreover, the benefits of PR are evident in both men and women, and in patients with moderate, severe and very severe COPD. The current review also suggests that longer PR programs, beyond six to eight weeks duration, be provided for COPD patients, and that while aerobic training is the foundation of PR, endurance and functional ability may be further improved with both aerobic and resistance training.
Many interventions have been implemented to improve maternal health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Currently, however, systematic information on the effectiveness of these interventions ...remains scarce. We conducted a systematic review of published evidence on non-drug interventions that reported effectiveness in improving outcomes and quality of care in maternal health in SSA.
African Journals Online, Bioline, MEDLINE, Ovid, Science Direct, and Scopus databases were searched for studies published in English between 2000 and 2015 and reporting on the effectiveness of interventions to improve quality and outcomes of maternal health care in SSA. Articles focusing on interventions that involved drug treatments, medications, or therapies were excluded. We present a narrative synthesis of the reported impact of these interventions on maternal morbidity and mortality outcomes as well as on other dimensions of the quality of maternal health care (as defined by the Institute of Medicine 2001 to comprise safety, effectiveness, efficiency, timeliness, patient centeredness, and equitability).
Seventy-three studies were included in this review. Non-drug interventions that directly or indirectly improved quality of maternal health and morbidity and mortality outcomes in SSA assumed a variety of forms including mobile and electronic health, financial incentives on the demand and supply side, facility-based clinical audits and maternal death reviews, health systems strengthening interventions, community mobilization and/or peer-based programs, home-based visits, counseling and health educational and promotional programs conducted by health care providers, transportation and/or communication and referrals for emergency obstetric care, prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, and task shifting interventions. There was a preponderance of single facility and community-based studies whose effectiveness was difficult to assess.
Many non-drug interventions have been implemented to improve maternal health care in SSA. These interventions have largely been health facility and/or community based. While the evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to improve maternal health is varied, study findings underscore the importance of implementing comprehensive interventions that strengthen different components of the health care systems, both in the community and at the health facilities, coupled with a supportive policy environment.
PROSPERO CRD42015023750.
A physical activity transition to declining activity levels, even among children, now poses a serious public health concern because of its contribution to a rising prevalence of noncommunicable ...diseases. Childhood physical activity levels are associated with parental perceptions of the neighborhood; however, these relationships have not been explored in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The objective was to investigate relationships between parental perceptions of the neighborhood and physical activity indicators among Kenyan children.
Data were collected from children 9 to 11 years old in Nairobi as part of the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and Environment. Child physical activity was assessed by accelerometry, and information on obtaining sufficient physical activity, active transport, and parental perceptions of the neighborhood collected using questionnaires.
Of 563 participating children, 45.7%, 12.6%, and 11.4% used active school transportation, met physical activity guidelines, and were sufficiently active, respectively. Parental perception of positive neighborhood social cohesion, positive environs and connectivity, and negative child safety concerns, were associated with child physical activity outcomes.
Aspects of parental perceptions of the neighborhood were associated with child physical activity outcomes and should be further explored to appropriately inform policy and practice in curbing declining physical activity levels among children in SSA.
Background: Body mass index (BMI) is rising globally with a faster increase in urban areas in low- and middle-income countries. It is critical to identify modifiable risk factors for BMI to prevent ...the occurrence of associated health consequences.
Objective: To investigate socio-demographic, behavioural and biological factors associated with BMI in Nairobi slums.
Methods: In 2014-2015, a cross sectional study of men and women aged 40-60 years in Nairobi slums (Korogocho and Viwandani) was conducted. Data were collected on socio-demographic, behavioural and biological characteristics. Mean BMI, overweight and obesity were computed. Hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis was conducted separately for men and women to explore factors associated with BMI.
Results: In total, 1942 study participants (54.4%, women) with a mean age (SD) of 48.3 (5.3) years and 48.8(5.6) years for women and men respectively were recruited. Mean BMI was higher among women than men (27.6 versus 22.8; p < 0.001). More women were overweight (30.9% versus 19.6%; p < 0.001) and obese (32.1% versus 5.1%; p < 0.001) than men. Among men, BMI was independently associated with wealth index, bread consumption and self-reported diabetes and was negatively associated with current tobacco smoking, HIV and TB infections. Among women, BMI was independently associated with wealth, current non-problematic drinking, and sedentary time, but was lower among other ethnicities compared to Kikuyu, among current smokers, women with longer sleep, and those with HIV infection and tuberculosis. Wealth index contributed the most variance in BMI among women and men (10.4%, 7.5%, respectively), but behavioural factors (7.4%) among men and biological factors (6.5%) among women accounted for most of the additional BMI variance.
Conclusions: Adults aged 40-60 years in the urban slums of Nairobi have a high BMI associated with wealth. Bread consumption by men and sedentary life among women are the main risky behaviours that need urgent targeted interventions.