Bmc Public Health
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Few animal experiments and volunteer-based intervention studies have showed a controversial effect of spicy foods on weight management; however, information is scant on the association between spicy food intake and obesity. This study aims to examine the impact of spicy food on quantitative adiposity measures in the Chinese population; a population with a low prevalence of general obesity, but a high prevalence of central obesity. ⋯ The data indicate that spicy food intake is a risk factor for obesity in Chinese adult population, especially for central obesity in males. Further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this association.
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Tobacco use among young Pacific populations continues to undermine efforts to reduce the escalating rates of non-communicable disease in the region. Reducing tobacco use to less than 5 percent by 2025 is now a World Health Organisation (WHO) mandated target for the Pacific region. Yet, little is known about the drivers to uptake of tobacco use among young people in the Pacific. Family and peers are expected to be important in this process, but similarly, tobacco marketing may also play an important role. The tobacco industry has been highly adaptive to the changing media environment across the Pacific Islands. The aim of this study was to develop an understanding of the social cultural and media drivers to tobacco uptake and use among young Samoans to contribute to the design of effective tobacco control intervention. ⋯ In order to develop effective and culturally relevant tobacco control policies, the public health community must consider social norms around tobacco use as well as patterns of media use among young Samoans.
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Good nutrition is important during pregnancy, breastfeeding and early life to optimise the health of women and children. It is difficult for low-income families to prioritise spending on healthy food. Healthy Start is a targeted United Kingdom (UK) food subsidy programme that gives vouchers for fruit, vegetables, milk, and vitamins to low-income families. This paper reports an evaluation of Healthy Start from the perspectives of women and health practitioners. ⋯ Our evaluation of the Healthy Start programme in England suggests that a food subsidy programme can provide an important nutritional safety net and potentially improve nutrition for pregnant women and young children living on low incomes. Factors that could compromise this impact include erosion of voucher value relative to the rising cost of food, lack of access to registered retailers and barriers to registering for the programme. Addressing these issues could inform the design and implementation of food subsidy programmes in high income countries.
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The prevalence of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) is still unknown in Nepal. The Ministry of Health and Population, Government of Nepal has not yet formulated policy regarding NCDs in the absence of evidence based finding. The study aims to find out the hospital based prevalence of NCDs in Nepal, thus directing the concerned authorities at policy level. ⋯ The study was able to reveal that Nepal is also facing the surging burden of NCDs similar to other developing nations in South East Asia. Furthermore, the study has provided a background data on NCDs in Nepal which should prove useful for the concerned organizations to focus and contribute towards the prevention, control and reduction of NCD burden and its risk factors.
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To respond to growing prevalence of hypertension in Vietnam, it is critical to have an in-depth understanding about quality of life (QOL) among people living with hypertension and related factors. This study aimed to measure QOL among hypertensive people in a rural community in Vietnam, and its association with socio-demographic characteristics and factors related to treatment. ⋯ WHOQOL-BREF is a reliable instrument to measure QOL among hypertensive patients. The results revealed low QOL in psychological domain and inequality in QOL across socio-demographic characteristics. Given the results, encouraging physical activities and strengthening treatment adherence should be considered to improve QOL of hypertensive people, especially for psychological aspect. Actions to improve QOL among hypertensive patients targeted towards women, lower educated and unmarried patients are needed in the setting.