Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Jul 2022
The influence of civic associations and exposure to ideological heterogeneity on public views on mask wearing and social distancing.
Mask wearing and social distancing have been essential public health guidelines throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but faced resistance from skeptical subgroups in the United States, including Republicans and evangelicals. We examined the effects of participation in ideologically heterogeneous civic associations on attitudes toward public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among partisan and religious subgroups most resistant to public health guidelines. We analyzed panel survey data from a nationally representative cohort of 1222 U. ⋯ Evangelicals in ideologically diverse associations were also more likely to support social distancing compared to those in ideologically homogenous associations (0.089, p ≤ .05). Participation in civic associations with ideologically heterogeneous members was associated with greater support for public health measures among skeptical subgroups. Encouraging exposure to diverse ideologies may bolster support for public health measures to mitigate COVID-19.
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Preventive medicine · Jul 2022
ReviewFamily socioeconomic status and childhood adiposity in Europe - A scoping review.
Childhood obesity is a considerable public health problem worldwide. In Europe, lower parental socioeconomic status (SES) relates to higher childhood adiposity. This scoping review strives to discover, which SES indicators are the most commonly used and meaningful determinants of childhood adiposity (greater level of continuous adiposity indicator, e.g. body mass index z-score, or overweight or obesity categorized by established definitions). ⋯ Parents' employment appears to differ from other SES indicators, so that having an employed parent(s) does not associate with lower likelihood of adiposity. Positive associations seem to occur more frequently in poorer countries. Criteria for uniform childhood SES and adiposity measures should be established and used in studies in order to be able to produce comparable results across countries.
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Preventive medicine · Jul 2022
Brazilian smokers are ready for the ban on flavour additives in tobacco to be implemented.
Brazil became the first country to approve a national policy to ban all flavour additives in all tobacco leaf products in 2012. However, as of February 2022, the policy remained to be implemented. Cross-sectional data come from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Brazil Wave 3 Survey among adult smokers (N = 1216) in 2016-2017. ⋯ More than half of menthol smokers reported they would either quit or reduce the amount they smoked if menthol cigarettes were banned. Findings suggest that there is support for Brazil's ban on flavour additives, which is a determinant of successful policy implemented. Continued delays will postpone an important measure with demonstrated public health gains.
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Preventive medicine · Jul 2022
COVID-19 vaccine behaviors and intentions among a national sample of United States adults ages 18-45.
Vaccination for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 illness, is an important public health tool to reduce hospitalizations and deaths. ⋯ Several demographic variables, vaccine attitudes, and healthcare experiences were found to contribute to COVID-19 vaccine receipt and intentions. Targeted efforts are necessary to increase uptake of the vaccine in the U.S.
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Preventive medicine · Jul 2022
Neighborhood built environments and Hispanic/Latino adults' physical activity in the U.S.: The Hispanic community health study/study of Latinos community and surrounding areas study.
Despite experiencing health inequities, less is known about neighborhood environments and physical activity among Hispanic/Latino adults compared to other populations. We investigated this topic in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL). Hispanic/Latino adults in the San Diego, California area of the U. ⋯ Neighborhood features were unassociated with changes in MVPA over 6 years. Although changes in MVPA over time were similar across neighborhoods, Hispanic/Latino adults living in neighborhoods with design features supportive of walking and recreational activity (e.g., greater residential and retail density, more parks and recreation facilities) were consistently more active. Improving neighborhood environments appears important for supporting physical activity among Hispanic/Latino adults.