American journal of preventive medicine
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The gravity, scale, and nature of human rights violations are severe in North Korea. Little is known about the mental health consequences of the lifelong exposures to these violations. ⋯ This study highlights mental health consequences of lifelong human rights violations in North Korea. Beyond the conventional approach, it suggests the need for a collaborative preventive response from global health and human rights activists to address human rights in regard to mental health determinants of the 20 million people in North Korea.
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Sales of electronic vapor products have increased in recent years. This increase in use may be related to manufacturer price promotions. This study assessed the use of price-related promotions among current electronic vapor product users. ⋯ Nearly one in seven current U.S. adult electronic vapor product users reported using price promotions during 2015-2016, and variations in price promotion use existed by electronic vapor product use frequency and where electronic vapor products were obtained. Continued monitoring of the use of price-related promotions could help inform public health policy, planning, and practice.
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Perinatal transmission of hepatitis B virus among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders is a key driver of racial health disparities in liver cancer and mortality in the U.S. This study documents the prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection among pregnant women across racial/ethnic groups and among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to assess the need for intervention, and then identifies the individual correlates of hepatitis B virus infection among Asian American and Pacific Islander pregnant women. ⋯ Studies must disaggregate the pan-ethnic Asian American and Pacific Islander category to examine the health and health disparities of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Given the heterogeneity of hepatitis B virus infection prevalence among Asian American and Pacific Islander pregnant women, the effectiveness of prevention and intervention programs depends on careful consideration of ethnicity in conjunction with group-specific factors.
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Increasing mortality rates among midlife non-Hispanic whites have been identified but are not well understood. ⋯ Growth in fatal overdoses was strongly correlated with increased mortality rate and years of potential life lost for midlife non-Hispanic whites from 1999 to 2015, with a particularly large rise for young adults, especially males, and illicit opioids contributing most to this association.
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There are known racial differences in cardiovascular health behaviors, including smoking, physical activity, and diet quality. A better understanding of these differences may help identify intervention targets for reducing cardiovascular disease disparities. This study examined whether socioeconomic, psychosocial, and neighborhood environmental factors, in isolation or together, mediate racial differences in health behaviors. ⋯ Racial differences in health behavior scores appear to be mediated predominately by correspondingly large differences in socioeconomic factors. This study highlights the profound impact of socioeconomic factors, which are mostly not under an individual's control, on health behaviors. Policy action targeting socioeconomic factors may help reduce disparities in health behaviors.