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Retzinger AC, Retzinger GS. The Acari Hypothesis, IV: revisiting the role of hygiene in allergy. FRONTIERS IN ALLERGY 2024; 5:1415124. [PMID: 39055609 PMCID: PMC11270752 DOI: 10.3389/falgy.2024.1415124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Allergy and its manifestations were first appreciated in the 1870 s. Today, the mechanism by which specific substances elicit allergic reactions remains poorly understood. This is problematic from a healthcare perspective because the prevalence of allergic disease and its societal costs are substantial. Regarding mechanistic understanding of allergy, a new proposal, The Acari Hypothesis, has been forwarded. The Hypothesis, borne from consideration of alpha-gal syndrome, postulates that acarians, i.e., mites and ticks, are operative agents of allergy. By way of their pathogenic payloads and salivary pattern recognition receptor(s), acarians potentiate in human hosts the generation of IgE against acarian dietary elements. Those elements account for most, if not all, known human allergens. Inasmuch as acarian-human interactions occur on human epithelial surfaces, it is to be expected factors that influence the presence and/or operation of acarians on those surfaces influence the expression of allergic diseases. In this report, it is proposed that two adaptations of catarrhine primates, i.e., Old World monkeys, apes and humans, evolved to deter acarian species: firstly, the expansion of eccrine glands across the entirety of body surface area, and, secondly, the secretion of sweat by those glands. Contemporary hygienic practices that reduce and/or disrupt the operation of eccrine glands are likely responsible for the increase in allergic disease seen today.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew C. Retzinger
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Camden Clark Medical Center, West Virginia University, Parkersburg, WV, United States
| | - Gregory S. Retzinger
- Department of Pathology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
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Purc-Stephenson R, Roy N, Chimaobi A, Hood D. An Evidence-Based Guide for Delivering Mental Healthcare Services in Farming Communities: A Qualitative Study of Providers' Perspectives. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2024; 21:791. [PMID: 38929037 PMCID: PMC11203791 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21060791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2024] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 06/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Individuals living in rural areas often face challenges in accessing healthcare, increasing their risk of poor health outcomes. Farmers, a sub-population in rural areas, are particularly vulnerable to mental health issues and suicide, yet they exhibit low rates of help-seeking behavior. The aim of our study was to develop an in-depth understanding of the issues influencing mental help-seeking among farmers living in rural areas from the perspectives of healthcare providers, as well as to explore the strategies providers use to navigate through these issues to effectively engage with this vulnerable population. METHODS We used a descriptive phenomenological approach to understand healthcare providers' perspectives, experiences, and approaches to providing mental healthcare to farmer clients in rural areas. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 participants practicing in Canada between March and May 2023. RESULTS Our analysis yielded five thematic areas: (1) ensuring accessibility, (2) establishing relatability, (3) addressing stoicism and stigma, (4) navigating dual roles, and (5) understanding community trauma. CONCLUSIONS Healthcare service delivery for farmers is multifaceted. This study fills a gap in knowledge by translating these data to inform an evidence-based model and a list of recommendations for implementing agriculturally informed practices in rural areas.
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Kuźma Ł, Dąbrowski EJ, Kurasz A, Święczkowski M, Jemielita P, Kowalewski M, Wańha W, Kralisz P, Tomaszuk-Kazberuk A, Bachórzewska-Gajewska H, Dobrzycki S, Lip GY. Effect of air pollution exposure on risk of acute coronary syndromes in Poland: a nationwide population-based study (EP-PARTICLES study). THE LANCET REGIONAL HEALTH. EUROPE 2024; 41:100910. [PMID: 38665621 PMCID: PMC11041836 DOI: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2024.100910] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Revised: 04/03/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Background Air pollution (AP) is linked up to 20% of cardiovascular deaths. The aim of this nationwide study was to investigate subpopulations vulnerable to AP for non-ST- (NSTEMI) and ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) incidence. Methods We analysed short- (lags up to seven days) and mid-term (0-30 days moving average) influence of particulate matter (PM2.5), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) on hospitalizations due NSTEMI and STEMI in 2011-2020. Data on AP concentrations were derived using GEM-AQ model. Study included residents of five voivodeships in eastern Poland, inhabited by over 8,000,000 individuals. Findings Higher NO2 and PM2.5 concentrations increased mid-term risk of NSTEMI in patients aged < 65 years by 1.3-5.7%. Increased SO2 and PM2.5 concentration triggered STEMI in the short- (SO2, PM2.5) and mid-term (PM2.5) amongst those aged ≥ 65 years. In the short- and mid-term, women were more susceptible to PM2.5 and BaP influence resulting in increased STEMI incidence. In rural regions, STEMI risk was triggered by SO2, PM2.5 and BaP. Income-based stratification showed disproportions regarding influence of BaP concentrations on NSTEMI incidence based on gross domestic product (up to 1.4%). Interpretation There are significant disparities in the influence of air pollution depending on the demographic and socio-economic factors. AP exposure is associated with the threat of a higher risks of NSTEMI and STEMI, especially to younger people, women, residents of rural areas and those with lower income. Funding National Science Center and Medical University of Bialystok, Poland.
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Affiliation(s)
- Łukasz Kuźma
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Emil J. Dąbrowski
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Anna Kurasz
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Michał Święczkowski
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Piotr Jemielita
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Mariusz Kowalewski
- Department of Cardiac Surgery and Transplantology, National Medical Institute of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, 137 Wołoska St., Warszawa 02-507, Poland
- Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Department, Heart and Vascular Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Cardiovascular Research Centre Maastricht (CARIM), P. Debyelaan 25, Maastricht 6229 HX, the Netherlands
- Department for the Treatment and Study of Cardiothoracic Diseases and Cardiothoracic Transplantation, IRCCS-ISMETT, 1 Via Tricomi, Palermo 90127, Italy
- Thoracic Research Centre, Collegium Medicum Nicolaus Copernicus University, Innovative Medical Forum, 13/15 Jagiellońska St., Bydgoszcz 85-067, Poland
| | - Wojciech Wańha
- Thoracic Research Centre, Collegium Medicum Nicolaus Copernicus University, Innovative Medical Forum, 13/15 Jagiellońska St., Bydgoszcz 85-067, Poland
- Department of Cardiology and Structural Heart Diseases, Medical University of Silesia, 15 Poniatowskiego St., Katowice 40-055, Poland
| | - Paweł Kralisz
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Anna Tomaszuk-Kazberuk
- Department of Cardiology, Lipidology and Internal Medicine with Intensive Coronary Care Unit, Medical University of Bialystok, 14 Żurawia St., Białystok 15-540, Poland
| | - Hanna Bachórzewska-Gajewska
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Sławomir Dobrzycki
- Department of Invasive Cardiology, Medical University of Białystok, 1 Kilinskiego St., Białystok 15-089, Poland
| | - Gregory Y.H. Lip
- Department of Cardiology, Lipidology and Internal Medicine with Intensive Coronary Care Unit, Medical University of Bialystok, 14 Żurawia St., Białystok 15-540, Poland
- Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science at University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Heart & Chest Hospital, Egerton Court, 2 Rodney St, Liverpool L3 5UX, United Kingdom
- Danish Center for Health Services Research, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7K, Aalborg 9220, Denmark
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Rheinheimer N, Vacaru SV, van Immerseel JC, Kühn S, de Weerth C. Infant Care: Predictors of Outdoor Walking, Infant Carrying and Infant Outdoor Sleeping. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2024; 21:694. [PMID: 38928940 PMCID: PMC11203610 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21060694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2024] [Revised: 05/19/2024] [Accepted: 05/23/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although spending time outdoors is beneficial for development, little is known about outdoor time during infancy. The aim of this study was to assess frequencies and durations of (1a) outdoor walking and carrying in mother-infant dyads and (1b) infant outdoor sleeping in a stationary cot or pram. We furthermore aimed to identify associations of (2a) outdoor walking and carrying and (2b) infant outdoor sleeping, with infant, maternal and environmental sample characteristics. METHODS An online survey was distributed among mothers of 0- to 12-month-old infants. Initially, 1453 mothers were recruited, of which 1275 were included in the analyses. With respect to (1a) the outcomes of interest were: mother-infant dyads' total weekly duration of walking in minutes, frequency of walking on weekdays, as well as weekends, and the frequency of using an infant carrier during walks, as well as the daily duration of carrying in hours (indoors and outdoors together). With respect to (1b) the outcome variables were: placing the infant outdoors to sleep (yes/no), the total weekly duration of outdoor sleeping and the weekly frequency of outdoor sleeping. For aim 2, associations of the outcome variables with infant (i.e., age), maternal (i.e., working status) and environmental (i.e., house type) sample characteristics were assessed. RESULTS Mother-infant dyads engaged in walks for a total weekly duration of 201 min, for approximately one to three walks over weekdays (Monday through Friday), as well as one to three walks on the weekend. The infant carrier was used by 22% of mothers at least half of the time during outdoor walks, and 18% reported a daily duration of infant carrying of one hour or more. Among other associations, infant and maternal enjoyment of outdoor walking correlated positively with the duration as well as the frequency of walking during weekdays and during the weekend. Furthermore, employed mothers walked for a shorter duration and less frequently on weekdays as compared to mothers on maternity leave or mothers without a paid job. The availability of nearby recreational areas correlated positively with the weekly duration and frequency of walks. The infant carrier was used more frequently during outdoor walks if more than one child lived in the household. Infant carrying during outdoor walks was also related to infant behavior at night. Roughly a third of the mothers (29%) regularly had their infant sleep outdoors for a weekly duration of four hours and a weekly frequency of approximately one to two times. Younger infants, infants of mothers with higher education and infants living in detached houses were more likely to be placed outdoors to sleep. DISCUSSION We identified associations of infant, maternal and environmental characteristics with outdoor time spent during infancy. These results lay the foundation for future research on the effects of the outdoors on child development as well as on facilitators and barriers for caregivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Rheinheimer
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, 6525 GA Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Stefania V. Vacaru
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, 6525 GA Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Department of Psychology, New York University-Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 129188, United Arab Emirates
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies & Amsterdam Public Health, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Julie C. van Immerseel
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, 6525 GA Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Simone Kühn
- Center for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20249 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Carolina de Weerth
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, 6525 GA Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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Zhou W, Huang K, Bu D, Zhang Q, Fu J, Hu B, Zhou Y, Chen W, Fu Y, Zhang A, Fu J, Jiang G. Remarkable Contamination of Short- and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Free-Range Chicken Eggs from Rural Tibetan Plateau. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:5093-5102. [PMID: 38386012 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c08815] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Rapid social-economic development introduces modern lifestyles into rural areas, not only bringing numerous modern products but also new pollutants, such as chlorinated paraffins (CPs). The rural Tibetan Plateau has limited industrial activities and is a unique place to investigate this issue. Herein we collected 90 free-range chicken egg pool samples across the rural Tibetan Plateau to evaluate the pollution status of CPs. Meanwhile, CPs in related soils, free-range chicken eggs from Jiangxi, and farmed eggs from markets were also analyzed. The median concentrations of SCCPs (159 ng g-1 wet weight (ww)) and MCCPs (1390 ng g-1 ww) in Tibetan free-range chicken eggs were comparable to those from Jiangxi (259 and 938 ng g-1 ww) and significantly higher than those in farmed eggs (22.0 and 81.7 ng g-1 ww). In the rural Tibetan Plateau, the median EDI of CPs via egg consumption by adults and children were estimated to be 81.6 and 220.2 ng kg-1 bw day-1 for SCCPs and 483.4 and 1291 ng kg-1 bw day-1 for MCCPs, respectively. MCCPs might pose potential health risks for both adults and children in the worst scenario. Our study demonstrates that new pollutants should not be ignored and need further attention in remote rural areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Kai Huang
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Duo Bu
- School of Ecology and Environment, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000, China
| | - Qiangying Zhang
- School of Ecology and Environment, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000, China
| | - Jie Fu
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Boyuan Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Yunqiao Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Resources and Environment (TPESRE), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Weifang Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Yilin Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
| | - Aiqian Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
| | - Jianjie Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
- School of Ecology and Environment, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000, China
| | - Guibin Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
- School of Environment, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou 310024, China
- School of Ecology and Environment, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000, China
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Dal Bello-Haas VPM, O’Connell ME, Ursenbach J. Comparison across age groups of causes, circumstances, and consequences of falls among individuals living in Canada: A cross-sectional analysis of participants aged 45 to 85 years from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0300026. [PMID: 38483932 PMCID: PMC10939241 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Falls are a leading cause of injury-related deaths and hospitalizations among Canadians. Falls risk has been reported to be increased in individuals who are older and with certain health conditions. It is unclear whether rurality is a risk factor for falls. This study aimed to investigate: 1) fall profiles by age group e.g., 45 to 54 years, 55 to 64 years, 65 to 74 years, 75 to 85 years; and 2) falls profiles of individuals, by age group, living in rural versus urban areas of Canada. Data (N = 51,338) from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging was used to examine the relationship between falls and age, rurality, chronic conditions, need for medical attention, and fall characteristics (manner, location, injury). Self-reported falls within a twelve-month period occurred in only 4.8% (single fall) and 0.8% (multiple falls) of adults. Falls were not related to rural residence or age, but those with memory impairment, multiple sclerosis, as well as other chronic conditions such as mood disorder, anxiety disorder, and hyperthyroidism not often thought to be associated with falls, were also more likely to fall. Older individuals were more likely to fall indoors or fall while standing or walking. In contrast, middle-aged individuals were more likely to fall outdoors or while exercising. Type of injury was not associated with age, but older individuals were more likely to report hospitalization after a fall. This study shows that falls occur with a similar frequency in individuals regardless of age or urban/rural residence. Age was associated with fall location and activity. A more universally applicable multi-facted approach, rather than one solely based on older age considerations, to screening, primary prevention and management may reduce the personal, social, and economic burden of falls and fall-related injuries.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Megan E. O’Connell
- Department of Psychology & Health Studies, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Jake Ursenbach
- Department of Psychology & Health Studies, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
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Kwiatek SM, Cai L, Cagney KA, Copeland WE, Hotz VJ, Hoyle RH. Comparative assessment of the feasibility and validity of daily activity space in urban and non-urban settings. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0297492. [PMID: 38289963 PMCID: PMC10826934 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Activity space research explores the behavioral impact of the spaces people move through in daily life. This research has focused on urban settings, devoting little attention to non-urban settings. We examined the validity of the activity space method, comparing feasibility and data quality in urban and non-urban contexts. Overall, we found that the method is easily implemented in both settings. We also found location data quality was comparable across residential and activity space settings. The major differences in GPS (Global Positioning System) density and accuracy came from the operating system (iOS versus Android) of the device used. The GPS-derived locations showed high agreement with participants' self-reported locations. We further validated GPS data by comparing at-home time allocation with the American Time Use Survey. This study suggests that it is possible to collect daily activity space data in non-urban settings that are of comparable quality to data from urban settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah M. Kwiatek
- Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America
| | - Liang Cai
- Department of Sociology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Kathleen A. Cagney
- Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America
| | - William E. Copeland
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States of America
| | - V. Joseph Hotz
- Department of Economics, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Rick H. Hoyle
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
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Hohm I, Wormley AS, Schaller M, Varnum MEW. Homo temporus: Seasonal Cycles as a Fundamental Source of Variation in Human Psychology. PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2024; 19:151-172. [PMID: 37428561 PMCID: PMC10790523 DOI: 10.1177/17456916231178695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Many animal species exhibit seasonal changes in their physiology and behavior. Yet despite ample evidence that humans are also responsive to seasons, the impact of seasonal changes on human psychology is underappreciated relative to other sources of variation (e.g., personality, culture, development). This is unfortunate because seasonal variation has potentially profound conceptual, empirical, methodological, and practical implications. Here, we encourage a more systematic and comprehensive collective effort to document and understand the many ways in which seasons influence human psychology. We provide an illustrative summary of empirical evidence showing that seasons impact a wide range of affective, cognitive, and behavioral phenomena. We then articulate a conceptual framework that outlines a set of causal mechanisms through which seasons can influence human psychology-mechanisms that reflect seasonal changes not only in meteorological variables but also in ecological and sociocultural variables. This framework may be useful for integrating many different seasonal effects that have already been empirically documented and for generating new hypotheses about additional seasonal effects that have not yet received empirical attention. The article closes with a section that provides practical suggestions to facilitate greater appreciation for, and systematic study of, seasons as a fundamental source of variation in human psychology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Hohm
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia
| | | | - Mark Schaller
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia
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Molitor D, Mullins JT, White C. Air pollution and suicide in rural and urban America: Evidence from wildfire smoke. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2221621120. [PMID: 37695917 PMCID: PMC10515164 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2221621120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Air pollution poses well-established risks to physical health, but little is known about its effects on mental health. We study the relationship between wildfire smoke exposure and suicide risk in the United States in 2007 to 2019 using data on all deaths by suicide and satellite-based measures of wildfire smoke and ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations. We identify the causal effects of wildfire smoke pollution on suicide by relating year-over-year fluctuations in county-level monthly smoke exposure to fluctuations in suicide rates and compare the effects across local areas and demographic groups that differ considerably in their baseline suicide risk. In rural counties, an additional day of smoke increases monthly mean PM2.5 by 0.41 μg/m3 and suicide deaths by 0.11 per million residents, such that a 1-μg/m3 (13%) increase in monthly wildfire-derived fine particulate matter leads to 0.27 additional suicide deaths per million residents (a 2.0% increase). These effects are concentrated among demographic groups with both high baseline suicide risk and high exposure to outdoor air: men, working-age adults, non-Hispanic Whites, and adults with no college education. By contrast, we find no evidence that smoke pollution increases suicide risk among any urban demographic group. This study provides large-scale evidence that air pollution elevates the risk of suicide, disproportionately so among rural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Molitor
- Gies College of Business, University of Illinois, Champaign, IL61820
- National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA02138
| | - Jamie T. Mullins
- Department of Resource Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA01003
| | - Corey White
- Department of Economics, Monash University, Caulfield East, VIC3145, Australia
- IZA Institute of Labor Economics, 53113Bonn, Germany
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10
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Swetschinski L, Fong KC, Morello-Frosch R, Marshall JD, Bell ML. Exposures to ambient particulate matter are associated with reduced adult earnings potential. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023:116391. [PMID: 37308068 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2023] [Revised: 05/27/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The societal costs of air pollution have historically been measured in terms of premature deaths (including the corresponding values of statistical lives lost), disability-adjusted life years, and medical costs. Emerging research, however, demonstrated potential impacts of air pollution on human capital formation. Extended contact with pollutants such as airborne particulate matter among young persons whose biological systems are still developing can result in pulmonary, neurobehavioral, and birth complications, hindering academic performance as well as skills and knowledge acquisition. Using a dataset that tracks 2014-2015 incomes for 96.2% of Americans born between 1979 and 1983, we assessed the association between childhood exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and adult earnings outcomes across U.S. Census tracts. After accounting for pertinent economic covariates and regional random effects, our regression models indicate that early-life exposure to PM2.5 is associated with lower predicted income percentiles by mid-adulthood; all else equal, children raised in high pollution tracts (at the 75th percentile of PM2.5) are estimated to have approximately a 0.51 decrease in income percentile relative to children raised in low pollution tracts (at the 25th percentile of PM2.5). For a person earning the median income, this difference corresponds to a $436 lower annual income (in 2015 USD). We estimate that 2014-2015 earnings for the 1978-1983 birth cohort would have been ∼$7.18 billion higher had their childhood exposure met U.S. air quality standards for PM2.5. Stratified models show that the relationship between PM2.5 and diminished earnings is more pronounced for low-income children and for children living in rural environments. These findings raise concerns about long-term environmental and economic justice for children living in areas with poor air quality where air pollution could act as a barrier to intergenerational class equity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucien Swetschinski
- Yale School of the Environment, Yale University, 195 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA.
| | - Kelvin C Fong
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
| | - Rachel Morello-Frosch
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA; School of Public Health, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.
| | - Julian D Marshall
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Michelle L Bell
- Yale School of the Environment, Yale University, 195 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA.
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Yang Y, Pentland A, Moro E. Identifying latent activity behaviors and lifestyles using mobility data to describe urban dynamics. EPJ DATA SCIENCE 2023; 12:15. [PMID: 37220629 PMCID: PMC10193357 DOI: 10.1140/epjds/s13688-023-00390-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Urbanization and its problems require an in-depth and comprehensive understanding of urban dynamics, especially the complex and diversified lifestyles in modern cities. Digitally acquired data can accurately capture complex human activity, but it lacks the interpretability of demographic data. In this paper, we study a privacy-enhanced dataset of the mobility visitation patterns of 1.2 million people to 1.1 million places in 11 metro areas in the U.S. to detect the latent mobility behaviors and lifestyles in the largest American cities. Despite the considerable complexity of mobility visitations, we found that lifestyles can be automatically decomposed into only 12 latent interpretable activity behaviors on how people combine shopping, eating, working, or using their free time. Rather than describing individuals with a single lifestyle, we find that city dwellers' behavior is a mixture of those behaviors. Those detected latent activity behaviors are equally present across cities and cannot be fully explained by main demographic features. Finally, we find those latent behaviors are associated with dynamics like experienced income segregation, transportation, or healthy behaviors in cities, even after controlling for demographic features. Our results signal the importance of complementing traditional census data with activity behaviors to understand urban dynamics. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1140/epjds/s13688-023-00390-w.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanni Yang
- Department of Computing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
- Connection Science, Institute for Data Science and Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA United States
| | - Alex Pentland
- Connection Science, Institute for Data Science and Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA United States
| | - Esteban Moro
- Connection Science, Institute for Data Science and Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA United States
- Grupo Interdisciplinar de Sistemas Complejos (GISC), Department of Mathematics, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Leganés, Madrid, Spain
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12
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Huerta D, Schobel T, Alexander-Ozinskas A, Hild J, Lauder J, Reynolds P, Von Behren J, Meltzer D, Ramírez-Andreotta MD. Probabilistic risk assessment of residential exposure to metal(loid)s in a mining impacted community. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 872:162228. [PMID: 36791848 PMCID: PMC10023505 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Revised: 01/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
The "Gold Country" region of California is impacted by legacy and active gold mines. Concomitantly, Gold Country has an increased rate of female breast cancer relative to the state average. Using community-based participatory research methods, 40 participants completed surveys and collected a total of 354 water, soil, home-grown foods, and dust samples from their homes, which we compared to state, federal, and international contamination standards for arsenic, cadmium, and lead. All soil samples exceeded U.S. EPA and California EPA soil standards for arsenic. When comparing other media to state, federal and international standards for arsenic, cadmium, and lead, 15 additional exceedances for indoor/outdoor dust, drinking water, and/or vegetable were documented. A probabilistic risk assessment was conducted to determine an adult female's exposure to arsenic, cadmium, and lead and estimated risk. Arsenic exposure, due largely to water (63.5 %) and homegrown food (33.3 %), presents carcinogenic risks in excess of the EPA recommended upper limit for contaminated sites (1 × 10-4) in 12.5 % of scenarios, and exceeds a risk level of 1 × 10-6 in 98.0 % of cases. Cadmium exposure results mainly from homegrown food consumption (83.7 %), and lead exposure results from a broader range of sources. This research indicates that rural areas in Gold Country face environmental exposures different than in urban areas. Exposure to arsenic in the female population of Gold Country may be driven by consumption of home-grown foods and water, and exposure to cadmium is driven by home-grown food intake. Since mining sites are of concern internationally, this risk assessment process and associated findings are significant and can be used to inform and tailor public health interventions. The weight of the evidence suggests that the arsenic exposure identified in this study could contribute to increases in the cancer rate among those living in Gold Country, California.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diego Huerta
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States of America
| | - Taylor Schobel
- Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA, United States of America
| | | | - Joanne Hild
- Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA, United States of America
| | - Jeff Lauder
- Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA, United States of America
| | - Peggy Reynolds
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, United States of America
| | - Julie Von Behren
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, United States of America
| | - Dan Meltzer
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, United States of America
| | - Mónica D Ramírez-Andreotta
- Department of Environmental Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States of America; Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health's Division of Community, Environment & Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States of America.
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Gauthier-Manuel H, Bernard N, Boilleaut M, Giraudoux P, Pujol S, Mauny F. Spatialized temporal dynamics of daily ozone concentrations: Identification of the main spatial differences. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2023; 173:107859. [PMID: 36898173 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.107859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Revised: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Ground-level ozone (O3) is one of the most worrisome air pollutants regarding environmental and health impacts. There is a need for a deeper understanding of its spatial and temporal dynamics. Models are needed to provide continuous temporal and spatial coverage in ozone concentration data with a fine resolution. However, the simultaneous influence of each determinant of ozone dynamics, their spatial and temporal variations, and their interaction make the resulting dynamics of O3 concentrations difficult to understand. This study aimed to i) identify different classes of temporal dynamics of O3 at daily and 9 km2 resolution over a long-term period of 12 years, ii) identify the potential determinants of these dynamics and, iii) explore the spatial distribution of the potential classes of temporal dynamics on a spatial continuum and over about 1000 km2. Thus, 126 time series of 12-year daily ozone concentrations were classified using dynamic time warping (DTW) and hierarchical clustering (study area centered on Besançon, eastern France). The different temporal dynamics obtained differed on elevation, ozone levels, proportions of urbanized and vegetated surfaces. We identified different daily ozone temporal dynamics, spatially structured, that overlapped areas called urban, suburban and rural. Urbanization, elevation and vegetation acted as determinants simultaneously. Individually, elevation and vegetated surface were positively correlated with O3 concentrations (r = 0.84 and r = 0.41, respectively), while the proportion of urbanized area was negatively correlated with O3 (r = -0.39). An increasing ozone concentration gradient was observed from urban to rural areas and was reinforced by the elevation gradient. Rural areas were both subject to higher ozone levels (p < 0.001), least monitoring and lower predictability. We identified main determinants of the temporal dynamics of ozone concentrations. The joint influence of determinants was also synthesized. This study proposed a systematic, and reproducible way to build exposure area mapping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honorine Gauthier-Manuel
- Chrono-environnement UMR 6249, CNRS, Université de Franche-Comté, F-25000 Besançon, France; Unité de méthodologie en recherche clinique, épidémiologie et santé publique (uMETh), Inserm CIC 1431, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besançon, 25030, Besançon Cedex, France.
| | - Nadine Bernard
- Chrono-environnement UMR 6249, CNRS, Université de Franche-Comté, F-25000 Besançon, France; Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, UMR 6049, Laboratoire ThéMA, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 25000 Besançon, France
| | | | - Patrick Giraudoux
- Chrono-environnement UMR 6249, CNRS, Université de Franche-Comté, F-25000 Besançon, France
| | - Sophie Pujol
- Chrono-environnement UMR 6249, CNRS, Université de Franche-Comté, F-25000 Besançon, France; Unité de méthodologie en recherche clinique, épidémiologie et santé publique (uMETh), Inserm CIC 1431, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besançon, 25030, Besançon Cedex, France
| | - Frédéric Mauny
- Chrono-environnement UMR 6249, CNRS, Université de Franche-Comté, F-25000 Besançon, France; Unité de méthodologie en recherche clinique, épidémiologie et santé publique (uMETh), Inserm CIC 1431, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besançon, 25030, Besançon Cedex, France
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Isidorio UDA, de Assis EV, Lacerda SNB, Feitosa ADNA, Alves BDCA, Gascón T, da Veiga GL, Fonseca FLA. Relationship between Lifestyle and Residence Area with 25(OH)D Levels in Older Adults. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 20:407. [PMID: 36612728 PMCID: PMC9819462 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20010407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate whether the habitat of older adults living in the urban and rural areas is a contributing factor to altered serum 25(OH)D levels. An analytical, cross-sectional research with a quantitative approach was conducted in the upper backwoods of Paraíba with older adults registered at the Reference Center for Social Assistance (CRAS), addressing residents of both rural area (n = 41) and urban area (n = 43) who were randomly chosen to participate in the study. Data collection took place between January and February 2020. Higher rates of handgrip strength were observed in rural older adults (29.22 ± 8.92 Kgf) with serum 25(OH)D levels in the range of 30 to 40 ng/mL when compared to older adults with concentrations below 30 ng/mL (21.82 ± 5.00 Kgf) and above 40 ng/mL (23.47 ± 6.88 Kgf). Older people living in the urban area, with 25(OH)D levels above 40 ng/mL, presented a lower muscle power index when compared to individuals with vitamin levels from 21 to 29 ng/mL (17.40 ± 6.34 s; 15.33 ± 2.00 s). The urbanization associated with 25(OH)D levels can cause changes in skeletal and respiratory muscle strength, because the habitat associated with 25(OH)D levels affects the parameters of muscle strength of the upper limbs for older adults living in a rural area and the muscle strength of the lower limbs for those living in an urban area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ubiraídys de Andrade Isidorio
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde, Faculdade Santa Maria de Cajazeiras, Cajazeiras 58900-000, Brazil
- Laboratório de Análises Clínicas, Centro Universitário FMABC, Santo André 09060-870, Brazil
| | - Elisangela Vilar de Assis
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde, Faculdade Santa Maria de Cajazeiras, Cajazeiras 58900-000, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Thais Gascón
- Laboratório de Análises Clínicas, Centro Universitário FMABC, Santo André 09060-870, Brazil
| | | | - Fernando Luiz Affonso Fonseca
- Laboratório de Análises Clínicas, Centro Universitário FMABC, Santo André 09060-870, Brazil
- Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Diadema 09972-270, Brazil
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15
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Lin C, Ma Y, Liu R, Shao Y, Ma Z, Zhou L, Jing Y, Bell ML, Chen K. Associations between short-term ambient ozone exposure and cause-specific mortality in rural and urban areas of Jiangsu, China. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 211:113098. [PMID: 35288156 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.113098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Revised: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Most previous studies on the acute health effects of ozone are limited to urban areas, largely due to the paucity of air pollutant measurements in rural areas. We here estimated the county-specific daily maximum 8-h average ozone concentration in Jiangsu Province, China during 2015-2018, using a recently developed spatiotemporal machine learning model at a spatial resolution of 0.1° × 0.1° (∼11 × 11 km). Counties were equally divided into urban and rural groups based on the median of the percentage of urban residents across Jiangsu counties obtained from the National Population Census in 2010. We first conducted time-series analyses to estimate the county-specific effect of ozone using generalized linear models, then pooled the effect estimates by random-effects modeling. A 10 μg/m3 increase in the 4-day moving average (lag 0-3) of ambient ozone exposure was associated with increases of 0.66% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.36%-0.95%) in daily nonaccidental mortality in rural areas and 0.42% in urban areas (95% CI, 0.27%-0.56%). Short-term ambient ozone exposure was associated with an increased risk of mortality caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and stroke. Our finding suggests that both urban and rural residents suffer adverse health effects from short-term ozone exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chengyi Lin
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Yiqun Ma
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Riyang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yanchuan Shao
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Zongwei Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
| | - Lian Zhou
- Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanjing, China; College of Applied Meteorology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, China.
| | - Yuanshu Jing
- College of Applied Meteorology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, China
| | - Michelle L Bell
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Kai Chen
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale Center on Climate Change and Health, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA.
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16
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The Impact of Physical Activity Levels and Functional Fitness Status on the Quality of Life Perceived by Older Adults Living in Rural and Urban Areas: The Portuguese Inland Case. Healthcare (Basel) 2022; 10:healthcare10071266. [PMID: 35885795 PMCID: PMC9317387 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare10071266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is influenced by several factors, such as living place, physical activity (PA), and functional fitness levels. Evidence shows that functional fitness and PA levels are strongly associated with positive HRQoL, especially in the older population. However, the impact of the living place has not been investigated as an influencing variable in this context. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between the HRQoL, PA, and functional fitness of older adults living in rural and urban areas of Portugal. A cross-sectional study was performed with community-dwelling adults aged 65 years and over (n = 261) living in the city of Guarda. The participants were assessed for sociodemographic, anthropometric, clinical health, HRQoL, PA levels, and functional fitness status. The results showed that rural residents presented higher scores of HRQoL and functional fitness than older individuals living in urban areas. Regression models showed that functional fitness variables influence the HRQoL overall score and mental and physical subcomponents of HRQoL, regardless of the living place. In contrast, PA levels only influenced the HRQoL score in rural residents. The findings suggest that intervention programs to improve the physical health, quality of life, and well-being of the older population need to consider the country’s different geographical areas.
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Hu K, Keenan K, Hale JM, Liu Y, Kulu H. A longitudinal analysis of PM2.5 exposure and multimorbidity clusters and accumulation among adults aged 45-85 in China. PLOS GLOBAL PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 2:e0000520. [PMID: 36962462 PMCID: PMC10021527 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
While previous studies have emphasised the role of individual factors in understanding multimorbidity disparities, few have investigated contextual factors such as air pollution (AP). We first use cross-sectional latent class analysis (LCA) to assess the associations between PM2.5 exposure and multimorbidity disease clusters, and then estimate the associations between PM2.5 exposure and the development of multimorbidity longitudinally using growth curve modelling (GCM) among adults aged 45-85 in China. The results of LCA modelling suggest four latent classes representing three multimorbidity patterns (respiratory, musculoskeletal, cardio-metabolic) and one healthy pattern. The analysis shows that a 1 μg/m3 increase in cumulative exposure to PM2.5 is associated with a higher likelihood of belonging to respiratory, musculoskeletal or cardio-metabolic clusters: 2.4% (95% CI: 1.02, 1.03), 1.5% (95% CI: 1.01, 1.02) and 3.3% (95% CI: 1.03, 1.04), respectively. The GCM models show that there is a u-shaped association between PM2.5 exposure and multimorbidity, indicating that both lower and higher PM2.5 exposure is associated with increased multimorbidity levels. Higher multimorbidity in areas of low AP is explained by clustering of musculoskeletal diseases, whereas higher AP is associated with cardio-metabolic disease clusters. The study shows how multimorbidity clusters vary contextually and that PM2.5 exposure is more detrimental to health among older adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Hu
- Population and Health Research Group, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Katherine Keenan
- Population and Health Research Group, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Jo Mhairi Hale
- Population and Health Research Group, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Yang Liu
- Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Hill Kulu
- Population and Health Research Group, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
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18
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Association of Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviors with the Risk of Refractive Error in Chinese Urban/Rural Boys and Girls. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14095539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Background: Research shows physical activity (PA) is negatively associated with refractive error, especially outdoor activity. Our study aimed to examine the association of PA levels and sedentary time (SED) with refractive error in boys and girls living in urban and rural areas. Methods: A total of 8506 urban/rural boys and girls (13.5 ± 2.8 years old) in Shaanxi Province, China participated in this study. Questions about PA, SED, outdoor exercises, and digital screen time were asked in the study survey. Non-cycloplegic refractive error was measured by an autorefractor. The differences between sex/area groups have been analyzed by one-way ANOVA. The association of PA/SED with spherical equivalent (SE) and cylinder power was analyzed by general linear regression. The association between PA/SED and the risk of refractive error was determined using the binary logistic regression model. Results: Of the 8506 participants, the prevalence of refractive error was significantly higher in girls and urban students (p < 0.05). Less SED and digital screen time, and more outdoor activity were significantly associated with SE (p < 0.05), respectively. More PA and less SED were significantly associated with lower cylinder power (p < 0.05), respectively. More PA and less SED were significantly associated with lower risks of myopia and astigmatism, respectively (p < 0.05). Conclusions: PA and SED were associated with the risk of refractive error. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help to reduce the risk of refractive error in boys and girls.
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Bushong A, McKeon T, Regina Boland M, Field J. Publicly available data reveals association between asthma hospitalizations and unconventional natural gas development in Pennsylvania. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0265513. [PMID: 35358226 PMCID: PMC8970380 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0265513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Since the early 2000s, unconventional natural gas development (UNGD) has rapidly grown throughout Pennsylvania. UNGD extracts natural gas using a relatively new method known as hydraulic fracturing (HF). Here we addressed the association of HF with asthma Hospitalization Admission Rates (HAR) using publicly available data. Using public county-level data from the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PA-DOH) and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for the years 2001-2014, we constructed regression models to study the previously observed association between asthma exacerbation and HF. After considering multicollinearity, county-level demographics and area-level covariables were included to account for known asthma risk factors. We found a significant positive association between the asthma HAR and annual well density for all the counties in the state (3% increase in HAR attributable to HF, p<0.001). For a sensitivity analysis, we excluded urban counties (urban counties have higher asthma exacerbations) and focused on rural counties for the years 2005-2014 and found a significant association (3.31% increase in HAR attributable to HF in rural counties, p<0.001). An even stronger association was found between asthma hospitalization admission rates (HAR) and PM2.5 levels (7.52% increase in HAR attributable to PM2.5, p<0.001). As expected, asthma HAR was significantly higher in urban compared to rural counties and showed a significant racial disparity. We conclude that publicly available data at the county-level supports an association between an increase in asthma HAR and UNGD in rural counties in Pennsylvania.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Bushong
- Biology Program, Centre College, Danville, KY, United States of America
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
| | - Thomas McKeon
- Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
- Department of Geography and Urban Studies, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
| | - Mary Regina Boland
- Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
- Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine
| | - Jeffrey Field
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
- Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
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Kühn S, Mascherek A, Filevich E, Lisofsky N, Becker M, Butler O, Lochstet M, Mårtensson J, Wenger E, Lindenberger U, Gallinat J. Spend time outdoors for your brain - an in-depth longitudinal MRI study. World J Biol Psychiatry 2022; 23:201-207. [PMID: 34231438 DOI: 10.1080/15622975.2021.1938670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The effects of nature on physical and mental health are an emerging topic in empirical research with increasing influence on practical health recommendations. Here we set out to investigate the association between spending time outdoors and brain structural plasticity in conjunctions with self-reported affect. METHODS We established the Day2day study, which includes an unprecedented in-depth assessment of variability of brain structure in a serial sequence of 40-50 structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) acquisitions of each of six young healthy participants for 6-8 months (n = 281 MRI scans in total). RESULTS A whole-brain analysis revealed that time spent outdoors was positively associated with grey matter volume in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and positive affect, also after controlling for physical activity, fluid intake, free time, and hours of sunshine. CONCLUSIONS Results indicate remarkable and potentially behaviorally relevant plasticity of cerebral structure within a short time frame driven by the daily time spent outdoors. This is compatible with anecdotal evidence of the health and mood-promoting effects of going for a walk. The study may provide the first evidence for underlying cerebral mechanisms of so-called green prescriptions with possible consequences for future interventions in mental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Kühn
- Lise Meitner Group for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.,Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Anna Mascherek
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Elisa Filevich
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.,Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Berlin, Berlin, Germany.,Institute for Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nina Lisofsky
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.,Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Maxi Becker
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Oisin Butler
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Johan Mårtensson
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Elisabeth Wenger
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ulman Lindenberger
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.,Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jürgen Gallinat
- Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
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Physical Activity Participation in Rural Areas: A Case Study. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19031161. [PMID: 35162185 PMCID: PMC8834896 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19031161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Sport participation and physical activity promotion have been intensively studied, especially regarding large cities. However, in many cases, rural municipalities have comparatively reduced services, including health care, due to the low profitability that these have for companies and entities. In this sense, the purpose of this article was to describe a case study of the promotion of physical activity in rural areas based on the results of a European project. Carried out in a rural municipality of around 8500 inhabitants with a population density of less than 25 inhabitants/km2, the project's purpose was the promotion of autonomous physical activity among its inhabitants. For this, a diagnostic analysis of the sports areas of the environment and a survey of physical activity habits among the population were carried out. A series of routes were designed, marked, and signposted, and canopies with explanatory posters about the possibilities of healthy physical activity and recommendations were added. Free-use facilities were installed, and opening events were carried out in such a way as to stimulate sports practice among the population. This article presents the results obtained from the analysis, as well as the possibilities of replication in other municipalities with similar needs.
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Tizek L, Redlinger E, Ring J, Eyerich K, Biedermann T, Zink A. Urban vs rural - Prevalence of self-reported allergies in various occupational and regional settings. World Allergy Organ J 2022; 15:100625. [PMID: 35145605 PMCID: PMC8802121 DOI: 10.1016/j.waojou.2022.100625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2021] [Revised: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Allergies have an enormous individual and economic impact worldwide and affect more than one quarter of the population in Germany. Various factors influence the development of allergies: besides genetic predisposition the environment in which a person is raised and living also plays a role. The aim of the study was to evaluate differences in allergy prevalence in relation to age, sex, occupation, and living area (settlement structures). METHODS A cross-sectional study using a paper-based questionnaire about allergies was performed at the Munich Oktoberfest 2016. Participants were divided into 4 occupational groups and compared using descriptive statistics and multiple regression. RESULTS Overall, 2701 individuals (mean age 51.9 ± 15.3 years; 53.5% women) participated in the study. The overall rate of any self-reported allergy was 27.3% in the study population, in which women were more likely to be affected than men (OR = 1.82; 95% CI [1.50; 2.22]). Compared to farmers, all other occupational groups had a higher risk of reporting pollen allergies. Participants from rural areas (OR = 0.38; 95% CI [0.26; 0.58]) and suburban areas (OR = 0.44; 95% CI [0.30; 0.64]) were significantly less affected by allergies than participants from urban areas. Around 45.2% of the participants affected by allergies reported not receiving any treatment at all. CONCLUSION Differences in the self-reported prevalence of allergies were shown for age groups, sex, living area, and occupation. Especially the reported pollen allergy prevalence ranged widely between different occupations, indicating that those individuals with an occupational exposure to pollen may have a lower risk than indoor workers. Overall, there remains a high need for sufficient treatment of allergies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda Tizek
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
| | - Elisa Redlinger
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
| | - Johannes Ring
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
| | - Kilian Eyerich
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
- Division of Dermatology and Venereology, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Tilo Biedermann
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
| | - Alexander Zink
- Technical University of Munich, School of Medicine, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Biedersteinerstraße 29, Munich, 80802, Germany
- Division of Dermatology and Venereology, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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Adam MG, Tran PTM, Balasubramanian R. Air quality changes in cities during the COVID-19 lockdown: A critical review. ATMOSPHERIC RESEARCH 2021; 264:105823. [PMID: 34456403 PMCID: PMC8384485 DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosres.2021.105823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2021] [Revised: 08/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/21/2021] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
In response to the rapid spread of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) within and across countries and the need to protect public health, governments worldwide introduced unprecedented measures such as restricted road and air travel and reduced human mobility in 2020. The curtailment of personal travel and economic activity provided a unique opportunity for researchers to assess the interplay between anthropogenic emissions of primary air pollutants, their physical transport, chemical transformation, ultimate fate and potential health impacts. In general, reductions in the atmospheric levels of outdoor air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were observed in many countries during the lockdowns. However, the levels of ozone (O3), a secondary air pollutant linked to asthma and respiratory ailments, and secondary PM were frequently reported to remain unchanged or even increase. An increase in O3 can enhance the formation of secondary PM2.5, especially secondary organic aerosols, through the atmospheric oxidation of VOCs. Given that the gaseous precursors of O3 (VOCs and NOx) are also involved in the formation of secondary PM2.5, an integrated control strategy should focus on reducing the emission of the common precursors for the co-mitigation of PM2.5 and O3 with an emphasis on their complex photochemical interactions. Compared to outdoor air quality, comprehensive investigations of indoor air quality (IAQ) are relatively sparse. People spend more than 80% of their time indoors with exposure to air pollutants of both outdoor and indoor origins. Consequently, an integrated assessment of exposure to air pollutants in both outdoor and indoor microenvironments is needed for effective urban air quality management and for mitigation of health risk. To provide further insights into air quality, we do a critical review of scientific articles, published from January 2020 to December 2020 across the globe. Finally, we discuss policy implications of our review in the context of global air quality improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max G Adam
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore
| | - Phuong T M Tran
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore
- Faculty of Environment, University of Science and Technology, The University of Danang, 54 Nguyen Luong Bang Street, Lien Chieu District, Danang City, Viet Nam
| | - Rajasekhar Balasubramanian
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore
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24
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Del Fava E, Adema I, Kiti MC, Poletti P, Merler S, Nokes DJ, Manfredi P, Melegaro A. Individual's daily behaviour and intergenerational mixing in different social contexts of Kenya. Sci Rep 2021; 11:21589. [PMID: 34732732 PMCID: PMC8566563 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00799-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We investigated contact patterns in diverse social contexts in Kenya and the daily behaviours that may play a pivotal role in infection transmission to the most vulnerable leveraging novel data from a 2-day survey on social contacts and time use (TU) from a sample of 1407 individuals (for a total of 2705 person days) from rural, urban formal, and informal settings. We used TU data to build six profiles of daily behaviour based on the main reported activities, i.e., Homestayers (71.1% of person days), Workers (9.3%), Schoolers (7.8%), or locations at increasing distance from home, i.e., Walkers (6.6%), Commuters (4.6%), Travelers (0.6%). In the rural setting, we observed higher daily contact numbers (11.56, SD 0.23) and percentages of intergenerational mixing with older adults (7.5% of contacts reported by those younger than 60 years vs. less than 4% in the urban settings). Overall, intergenerational mixing with older adults was higher for Walkers (7.3% of their reported contacts), Commuters (8.7%), and Homestayers (5.1%) than for Workers (1.5%) or Schoolers (3.6%). These results could be instrumental in defining effective interventions that acknowledge the heterogeneity in social contexts and daily routines, either in Kenya or other demographically and culturally similar sub-Saharan African settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuele Del Fava
- Carlo F. Dondena Centre for Research on Social Dynamics and Public Policy, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
| | - Irene Adema
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kilifi, Kenya
| | - Moses C Kiti
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kilifi, Kenya
| | | | | | - D James Nokes
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kilifi, Kenya
- School of Life Sciences and Zeeman Institute for Systems Biology and Infectious Disease Epidemiology Research (SBIDER), University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | | | - Alessia Melegaro
- Carlo F. Dondena Centre for Research on Social Dynamics and Public Policy, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.
- Department of Social and Political Sciences, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.
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25
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Huang S, Guo C, Qie R, Han M, Wu X, Zhang Y, Yang X, Feng Y, Li Y, Wu Y, Liu D, Sun L, Hu D, Zhao Y. Solid fuel use and cardiovascular events: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. INDOOR AIR 2021; 31:1722-1732. [PMID: 34110043 DOI: 10.1111/ina.12867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2021] [Revised: 05/11/2021] [Accepted: 05/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Although solid fuel use has been increasingly linked to cardiovascular events (CVEs), conclusions have been inconsistent. We systematically searched 3 databases (PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science) up to July 3, 2020, to identify English language reports that assessed the association of solid fuel use with CVEs. Summary relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated with a random-effects model. Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses were conducted to explore the potential sources of heterogeneity and to test the stability of the results. We finally included 13 observational studies (8 cohort, 3 cross-sectional, and 2 case-control studies comprising 791,220 participants) in the meta-analysis. The risk of CVEs was increased 21% with the highest versus the lowest solid fuel use (highest/lowest, RRpooled = 1.21, 95% CI: 1.10-1.34). As for the subgroup analyses on study design, the pooled RR for cohort studies, case-control studies, and cross-sectional studies were 1.11 (95%CI: 1.03-1.19), 4.80 (95%CI: 2.22-10.39), and 1.46 (95%CI: 0.82-2.62), respectively. The results of this study suggested that high solid fuel use was associated with increased CVE risk, and that reducing the use of solid fuel will be important for improving the health of the populations in developing countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengbing Huang
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Chunmei Guo
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Ranran Qie
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Minghui Han
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Xiaoyan Wu
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yanyan Zhang
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xingjin Yang
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yifei Feng
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yang Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yuying Wu
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen, China
| | - Dechen Liu
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Liang Sun
- Department of Social Medicine and Health Management, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Dongsheng Hu
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yang Zhao
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
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Factors Affecting Adverse Health Effects of Gasoline Station Workers. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph181910014. [PMID: 34639318 PMCID: PMC8508572 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph181910014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2021] [Revised: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
This cross-sectional study examined the risk factors affecting adverse health effects from benzene exposure among gasoline station workers in Khon Kean province, Thailand. An interview questionnaire of adverse symptoms relating to benzene toxicity was administered to 151 workers. Area samplings for benzene concentration and spot urine for tt-muconic acid (tt-MA), a biomarker of benzene exposure, were collected. The factors associated with adverse symptoms were analysed by using multiple logistic regression. It was found that these symptoms mostly affected fuelling workers (77.5%), and the detected air benzene reached an action level or higher than 50% of NIOSH REL (>50 ppb). The top five adverse symptoms, i.e., fatigue, headache, dizziness, nasal congestion, and runny nose, were reported among workers exposed to benzene. More specific symptoms of benzene toxicity were chest pain, bleeding/epistaxis, and anaemia. The detected tt-MA of workers was 506.7 ug/g Cr (IQR), which was a value above the BEI and higher than that of asymptomatic workers. Risk factors significantly associated with adverse symptoms, included having no safety training experience (ORadj = 5.22; 95% CI: 2.16–12.58) and eating during work hours (ORadj = 16.08; 95% CI: 1.96–131.74). This study urges the tightening of health and safety standards at gasoline stations to include training and eating restrictions while working in hazardous areas.
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Wamai RG, Hirsch JL, Van Damme W, Alnwick D, Bailey RC, Hodgins S, Alam U, Anyona M. What Could Explain the Lower COVID-19 Burden in Africa despite Considerable Circulation of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus? INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:8638. [PMID: 34444386 PMCID: PMC8391172 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18168638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Revised: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The differential spread and impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), causing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), across regions is a major focus for researchers and policy makers. Africa has attracted tremendous attention, due to predictions of catastrophic impacts that have not yet materialized. Early in the pandemic, the seemingly low African case count was largely attributed to low testing and case reporting. However, there is reason to consider that many African countries attenuated the spread and impacts early on. Factors explaining low spread include early government community-wide actions, population distribution, social contacts, and ecology of human habitation. While recent data from seroprevalence studies posit more extensive circulation of the virus, continuing low COVID-19 burden may be explained by the demographic pyramid, prevalence of pre-existing conditions, trained immunity, genetics, and broader sociocultural dynamics. Though all these prongs contribute to the observed profile of COVID-19 in Africa, some provide stronger evidence than others. This review is important to expand what is known about the differential impacts of pandemics, enhancing scientific understanding and gearing appropriate public health responses. Furthermore, it highlights potential lessons to draw from Africa for global health on assumptions regarding deadly viral pandemics, given its long experience with infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard G. Wamai
- Department of Cultures, Societies, and Global Studies, Northeastern University, 201 Renaissance Park, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 02115, USA;
| | - Jason L. Hirsch
- Department of Cultures, Societies, and Global Studies, Northeastern University, 201 Renaissance Park, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 02115, USA;
| | - Wim Van Damme
- Department of Public Health, Institute of Tropical Medicine, B-2000 Antwerp, Belgium;
| | - David Alnwick
- DUNDEX (Deployable U.N.-Experienced Development Experts), FX68 Belturbet, Ireland;
| | - Robert C. Bailey
- School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA;
| | - Stephen Hodgins
- School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada;
| | - Uzma Alam
- Researcher Africa Institute for Health Policy Foundation, Nairobi 020, Kenya;
| | - Mamka Anyona
- T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA;
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28
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Jones ER, Laurent JGC, Young AS, MacNaughton P, Coull BA, Spengler JD, Allen JG. The Effects of Ventilation and Filtration on Indoor PM 2.5 in Office Buildings in Four Countries. BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT 2021; 200:107975. [PMID: 34366550 PMCID: PMC8336933 DOI: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.107975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is an airborne pollutant associated with negative acute and chronic human health outcomes. Although the majority of PM2.5 research has focused on outdoor exposures, people spend the majority of their time indoors, where PM2.5 of outdoor origin can penetrate. In this work, we measured indoor PM2.5 continuously for one year in 37 urban commercial offices with mechanical or mixed-mode ventilation in China, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States. We found that indoor PM2.5 concentrations were generally higher when and where outdoor PM2.5 was elevated. In India and China, mean workday indoor PM2.5 levels exceeded the World Health Organization's 24-hour exposure guideline of 25 µg/m3 about 17% and 27% of the time, respectively. Our statistical models found evidence that the operation of mechanical ventilation systems could mitigate the intrusion of outdoor PM2.5: during standard work hours, a 10 µg/m3 increase in outdoor PM2.5 was associated with 19.9% increase in the expected concentration of indoor PM2.5 (p<0.0001), compared to a larger 23.4% increase during non-work hours (p<0.0001). Finally, our models found that using filters with ratings of MERV 13-14 or MERV 15+ was associated with a 30.9% (95% CI: -55.0%, +6.2%) or 39.4% (95% CI: -62.0%, -3.4%) reduction of indoor PM2.5, respectively, compared to filters with lower MERV 7-12 ratings. Our results demonstrate the potential efficacy of mechanical ventilation with efficient filtration as a public health strategy to protect workers from PM2.5 exposure, particularly where outdoor levels of PM2.5 are elevated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily R. Jones
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
- Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 1350 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
- Corresponding author: ; 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | | | - Anna S. Young
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Piers MacNaughton
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Brent A. Coull
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - John D. Spengler
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Joseph G. Allen
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, 4 Floor West, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
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Bowers EP, Larson LR, Parry BJ. Nature as an Ecological Asset for Positive Youth Development: Empirical Evidence From Rural Communities. Front Psychol 2021; 12:688574. [PMID: 34149575 PMCID: PMC8213347 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.688574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite increasing emphasis on youth contact with nature and associated benefits, research has not examined the direct relationship between adolescents' nature-based experiences and holistic measures of positive youth development (PYD). This gap may stem from the lack of interdisciplinary work on nature and PYD. Our study integrates multiple disciplinary perspectives to explore direct associations between time in nature, connection to nature, and the five Cs of PYD (competence, connection, confidence, character, and caring) as well as the "sixth" C of contribution. From 2015 to 2016, we collected data from 587 diverse South Carolina middle school students (57% female, 40% BIPOC) between the ages of 11 and 14 (M age = 12.9) and living in predominantly low-income communities. OLS regression analyses indicated that across all youth, self-reported connection to nature was a consistent positive correlate of overall PYD and each of the individual Cs. Time in nature was associated with overall PYD and competence. Findings demonstrate significant associations between nature-based experiences and PYD and underscore the importance of ensuring that diverse youth can access and enjoy the developmental benefits of nature and nature-based recreation opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edmond P. Bowers
- Youth Development Leadership, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, United States
| | - Lincoln R. Larson
- Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Benjamin J. Parry
- School of Sport, Exercise, and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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30
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Groth M, Nyka K, Kulas L. Calibration-Free Single-Anchor Indoor Localization Using an ESPAR Antenna. SENSORS 2021; 21:s21103431. [PMID: 34069130 PMCID: PMC8156699 DOI: 10.3390/s21103431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 04/21/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In this paper, we present a novel, low-cost approach to indoor localization that is capable of performing localization processes in real indoor environments and does not require calibration or recalibration procedures. To this end, we propose a single-anchor architecture and design based on an electronically steerable parasitic array radiator (ESPAR) antenna and Nordic Semiconductor nRF52840 utilizing Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) protocol. The proposed algorithm relies on received signal strength (RSS) values measured by the receiver equipped with the ESPAR antenna for every considered antenna radiation pattern. The calibration-free concept is achieved by using inexpensive BLE nodes installed in known positions on the walls of the test room and acting as reference nodes for the positioning algorithm. Measurements performed in the indoor environment show that the proposed approach can successfully provide positioning results better than those previously reported for single-anchor ESPAR antenna localization systems employing the classical fingerprinting method and relying on time-consuming calibration procedures.
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31
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Adam MG, Tran PTM, Cheong DKW, Chandra Sekhar S, Tham KW, Balasubramanian R. Assessment of Home-Based and Mobility-Based Exposure to Black Carbon in an Urban Environment: A Pilot Study. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph18095028. [PMID: 34068742 PMCID: PMC8126254 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18095028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The combustion of fossil fuels is a significant source of particulate-bound black carbon (BC) in urban environments. The personal exposure (PE) of urban dwellers to BC and subsequent health impacts remain poorly understood due to a lack of observational data. In this study, we assessed and quantified the levels of PE to BC under two exposure scenarios (home-based and mobility-based exposure) in the city of Trivandrum in India. In the home-based scenario, the PE to BC was assessed in a naturally ventilated building over 24 h each day during the study period while in the mobility-based scenario, the PE to BC was monitored across diverse microenvironments (MEs) during the day using the same study protocol for consistency. Elevated BC concentrations were observed during the transport by motorcycle (26.23 ± 2.33 µg/m3) and car (17.49 ± 2.37 µg/m3). The BC concentrations observed in the MEs decreased in the following order: 16.58 ± 1.38 µg/m3 (temple), 13.78 ± 2.07 µg/m3 (restaurant), 11.44 ± 1.37 µg/m3 (bus stop), and 8.27 ± 1.88 µg/m3 (home); the standard deviations represent the temporal and spatial variations of BC concentrations. Overall, a relatively larger inhaled dose of BC in the range of 148.98–163.87 µg/day was observed for the mobility-based scenario compared to the home-based one (118.10–137.03 µg/day). This work highlights the importance of reducing PE to fossil fuel-related particulate emissions in cities for which BC is a good indicator. The study outcome could be used to formulate effective strategies to improve the urban air quality as well as public health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max Gerrit Adam
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore; (M.G.A.); (P.T.M.T.)
| | - Phuong Thi Minh Tran
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore; (M.G.A.); (P.T.M.T.)
- Faculty of Environment, The University of Danang—University of Science and Technology, 54 Nguyen Luong Bang Street, Lien Chieu District, Danang City 50608, Vietnam
| | - David Kok Wai Cheong
- Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore; (D.K.W.C.); (S.C.S.); (K.W.T.)
| | - Sitaraman Chandra Sekhar
- Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore; (D.K.W.C.); (S.C.S.); (K.W.T.)
| | - Kwok Wai Tham
- Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore; (D.K.W.C.); (S.C.S.); (K.W.T.)
| | - Rajasekhar Balasubramanian
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576, Singapore; (M.G.A.); (P.T.M.T.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +65-6516-5135; Fax: +65-6779-1635
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Thompson DA, Bekelman TA, Ferrante MJ, McCloskey ML, Johnson SL, Bellows LL. Picture Perfect: How Attaining the Ideal Meal is Not So Easy for Parents of Young Children. JOURNAL OF NUTRITION EDUCATION AND BEHAVIOR 2021; 53:290-298. [PMID: 33558158 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2021.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Revised: 12/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To explore parental perspectives on the ideals and realities of family mealtimes. DESIGN Mini-focus groups (n = 7). SETTING Rural Colorado, US. PARTICIPANTS Parents (n = 30) were recruited at Head Start/preschool centers. PHENOMENON OF INTEREST Parent perspectives on mealtimes with preschool-aged children. ANALYSIS Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. RESULTS Three categories of themes emerged: participant conceptions of ideal family meals, challenges to achieving their ideal family meal, and parental solutions. The theme of participant conceptions of ideal family meals composed family togetherness, children liking and eating the prepared food, healthfulness of food, and a nonchaotic mealtime. Challenges to achieving their ideal family meal included work schedules, disruptive child behaviors, child pickiness, snacking, and negative role-modeling. Finally, parental solutions to challenges incorporated having flexible meal timings, considering child preferences in premeal preparations, role-modeling, and numerous other parenting strategies. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS While parents valued many aspects of a version of the ideal meal rooted in historical standards, families faced many challenges in trying to attain that ideal. Although parents employed various strategies to combat mealtime challenges, parental expectations for preschool-aged children's mealtime behaviors may be unrealistic for the developmental stage of early childhood. Future interventions could help parents develop age-appropriate mealtime expectations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darcy A Thompson
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO.
| | - Traci A Bekelman
- Lifecourse Epidemiology of Adiposity and Diabetes (LEAD) Center, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Mackenzie J Ferrante
- Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Morgan L McCloskey
- Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Susan L Johnson
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO
| | - Laura L Bellows
- Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
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Loebach J, Sanches M, Jaffe J, Elton-Marshall T. Paving the Way for Outdoor Play: Examining Socio-Environmental Barriers to Community-Based Outdoor Play. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph18073617. [PMID: 33807263 PMCID: PMC8037806 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18073617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Outdoor play and independent, neighborhood activity, both linked with healthy childhood development, have declined dramatically among Western children in recent decades. This study examines how social, cultural and environmental factors may be hindering children’s outdoor and community-based play. A comprehensive survey was completed by 826 children (aged 10–13 years) and their parents from 12 schools (four each urban, suburban and rural) from a large county in Ontario, Canada. Five multilevel regression models, controlling for any school clustering effect, examined associations between outdoor play time per week and variable sets representing five prevalent factors cited in the literature as influencing children’s outdoor play (OP). Models predicted that younger children and boys were more likely to spend time playing outdoors; involvement in organized physical activities, other children nearby to play with, higher perception of benefits of outdoor play, and higher parental perceptions of neighborhood social cohesion also predicted more time in outdoor play. Time outdoors was less likely among children not allowed to play beyond home without supervision, felt they were ‘too busy’ with screen-based activities, and who reported higher fears related to playing outdoors. Study findings have important implications for targeting environmental, cultural and policy changes to foster child-friendly communities which effectively support healthy outdoor play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janet Loebach
- Department of Design + Environmental Analysis, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, NY 14853, USA;
- Correspondence:
| | - Marcos Sanches
- Krembli Centre for Neuroinformatics, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, London, ON N6G 4X8, Canada;
| | - Julia Jaffe
- Department of Design + Environmental Analysis, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, NY 14853, USA;
| | - Tara Elton-Marshall
- Centre for Addiction and Mental, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, London, ON N6G 4X8, Canada;
- Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
- Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Toronto, ON M5T 3M7, Canada
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Western University, London, ON N6A 5C1, Canada
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Applying the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health to understand osteoarthritis management in urban and rural community-dwelling seniors. OSTEOARTHRITIS AND CARTILAGE OPEN 2021; 3:100132. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ocarto.2020.100132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 12/14/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
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Association between Household Crowding and Violent Discipline and Neglect of Children: Analysis of Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys in 26 Low- and Middle-Income Countries. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph18041685. [PMID: 33578662 PMCID: PMC7916333 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18041685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 02/05/2021] [Accepted: 02/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The influence of household crowding on physical and mental health has been well documented. However, research on the influence of household crowding on violent discipline and neglect of children is scarce. Therefore, we aimed to investigate whether household crowding was associated with violent discipline and neglect of children in low- and- middle-income countries (LMICs). Cross-sectional data for 280,005 and 73,030 children in 26 LMICs surveyed using the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey were analyzed for (1) violent discipline and (2) neglect, respectively. In each country, we used logistic regression models to estimate the effects of household crowding on multiple forms of violent discipline and stimulation activities (as a proxy of the level of child neglect). Estimates were pooled using random effects meta-analyses. After adjusting for confounding variables, household crowding was associated with higher odds of any violent discipline (odds ratio (OR) = 1.09, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.15, p = 0.002) and lower odds of engaging in four or more stimulation activities (OR = 0.88, 95% CI 0.83 to 0.94, p < 0.001). The associations were stronger for urban children and children living in low- and lower-middle-income countries. The findings suggest that screenings and interventions aimed at reducing the effects of household crowding might be effective in preventing and controlling violent discipline and neglect of children in LMICs.
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Yerrakalva D, Hajna S, Wijndaele K, Westgate K, Khaw KT, Wareham N, Griffin SJ, Brage S. Correlates of change in accelerometer-assessed total sedentary time and prolonged sedentary bouts among older English adults: results from five-year follow-up in the EPIC-Norfolk cohort. Aging (Albany NY) 2021; 13:134-149. [PMID: 33431710 PMCID: PMC7835006 DOI: 10.18632/aging.202497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Development of effective strategies to reduce sedentary time among older adults necessitates understanding of its determinants but longitudinal studies of this utilising objective measures are scarce. METHODS Among 1536 older adults (≥60 years) in the EPIC-Norfolk study, sedentary time was assessed for seven days at two time-points using accelerometers. We assessed associations of change in total and prolonged bouts of sedentary time (≥ 30 minutes) with change in demographic and behavioural factors using multi-level regression. RESULTS Over follow-up (5.3±1.9 years), greater increases in total sedentary time were associated with older age, being male, higher rate of increase in BMI, lower rate of increase in gardening (0.5 min/day/yr greater sedentary time per hour/week/yr less gardening, 95% CI 0.1, 1.0), a lower rate of increase in walking (0.2 min/day/yr greater sedentary time per hour/week/yr less walking, 95% CI 0.1, 0.3) and a higher rate of increase in television viewing. Correlates of change in prolonged sedentary bouts were similar. CONCLUSION Individuals in specific sub-groups (older, male, higher BMI) and who differentially participate in certain behaviours (less gardening, less walking and more television viewing) but not others increase their sedentary time at a higher rate than others; utilising this information could inform successful intervention content and targeting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dharani Yerrakalva
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Samantha Hajna
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Katrien Wijndaele
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Kate Westgate
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Kay-Tee Khaw
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Nick Wareham
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Simon J Griffin
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
| | - Soren Brage
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
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Ryti NRI, Korpelainen A, Seppänen O, Jaakkola JJK. Paradoxical home temperatures during cold weather: a proof-of-concept study. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOMETEOROLOGY 2020; 64:2065-2076. [PMID: 32852609 PMCID: PMC7658083 DOI: 10.1007/s00484-020-01998-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2019] [Revised: 02/16/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
There is substantial epidemiological evidence on the associations between cold weather and adverse health effects. Meteorological alarm systems are being developed globally, and generalized protective advice is given to the public based on outdoor exposure parameters. It is not clear how these shared outdoor exposure parameters relate to the individual-level thermal exposure indoors, where the majority of time is spent. We hypothesized a priori that there are opposite correlations between indoor and outdoor temperatures in residential apartments. Apartments were classified into 3 categories according to their response to declining outdoor temperature: under-controlled apartments cool down, controlled apartments maintain constant indoor temperature level, and over-controlled apartments warm up. Outdoor and indoor temperatures were measured in 30-min intervals in 417 residential apartments in 14 buildings in Kotka, Finland, between February and April 2018 with outdoor temperatures ranging from - 20.4 °C to + 14.0 °C. Different apartment types were present in all buildings. Floor and orientation did not explain the divergence. Indoor temperatures below the limit value + 20 °C by building code occurred in 26.2%, 7.9%, and 23.6% of the under-controlled, controlled, and over-controlled apartments, some in conjunction with increasing outdoor temperatures. Indoor temperatures above the limit + 25 °C occurred but were more rare. This proof-of-concept study demonstrates that while the home environment may be a source of thermal stress during cold weather, generalized advice for adjusting the heating may lead to paradoxical exposures in some cases. More elaborate conceptualizations of everyday thermal exposures are needed to safely reduce weather-related health risks using shared meteorological alarm systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niilo R I Ryti
- Center for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, PO Box 5000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland
- Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Anton Korpelainen
- Center for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, PO Box 5000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland
- Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | | | - Jouni J K Jaakkola
- Center for Environmental and Respiratory Health Research (CERH), Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, PO Box 5000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland.
- Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
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Abstract
The design of the built environment plays an important role as a determinant of health. As a society, we are spending an increasing proportion of our time indoors and now spend over 80% of our life inside, so the design of buildings can greatly impact on human health. Accordingly, architecture health indices (AHIs) are used to evidence the effects on human health associated with the design of buildings. AHIs provide quantitative and empirical data upon which architects, clients, users and other stakeholders might monitor and evaluate the healthiness (or otherwise) of architectural design. A systematic literature review was conducted to reveal the current state of knowledge, reveal gaps, explore potential usage and highlight best practice in this area. Whilst there are a number of different health indicators for the built/urban environments more generally, the scope of this review is limited to the scale of a building and specifically those aspects within the remit of a professional architect. In order to examine the range and characteristics of AHIs currently in use, this review explored three electronic bibliographic databases from January 2008 to January 2019. A two-stage selection was undertaken and screening against eligibility criteria checklist carried out. From 15 included studies, 127 documents were identified, and these included 101 AHI. A sample of the most commonly used AHIs was then analysed at an item level. The review reveals that most AHIs are limited to measuring communicable diseases that directly affect physical health through e.g. air quality or water quality. There are very few indicators focusing on factors affecting mental and social health; given the increase in mental and social health problems, greater focus on AHIs related to these health issues should be included. Furthermore, the research reveals an absence of AHIs that address non-communicable diseases (NCDs). As the majority of all poor health outcomes globally are now related to NCDs, and many are associated with the design of the built environment, there is an urgent need to address this situation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louis Rice
- University of the West of England Bristol, Bristol, UK.
| | - Mark Drane
- University of the West of England Bristol, Bristol, UK
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Stafoggia M, Renzi M, Forastiere F, Ljungman P, Davoli M, De' Donato F, Gariazzo C, Michelozzi P, Scortichini M, Solimini A, Viegi G, Bellander T. Short-term effects of particulate matter on cardiovascular morbidity in Italy: a national analysis. Eur J Prev Cardiol 2020; 29:1202-1211. [PMID: 33913491 DOI: 10.1093/eurjpc/zwaa084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2020] [Revised: 08/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/10/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
AIMS We aimed at investigating the relationship between particulate matter (PM) and daily admissions for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) at national level in Italy. METHODS AND RESULTS Daily numbers of cardiovascular hospitalizations were collected for all 8084 municipalities of Italy, in the period 2013-2015. A satellite-based spatiotemporal model was used to estimate daily PM10 (inhalable particles) and PM2.5 (fine particles) concentrations at 1-km2 resolution. Multivariate Poisson regression models were fit to estimate the association between daily PM and cardiovascular admissions. Flexible functions were estimated to explore the shape of the associations at low PM concentrations, also in non-urban areas. We analysed 2 154 810 acute hospitalizations for CVDs (25% stroke, 24% ischaemic heart diseases, 22% heart failure, and 5% atrial fibrillation). Relative increases of total cardiovascular admissions, per 10 µg/m3 variation in PM10 and PM2.5 at lag 0-5 (average of last 6 days since admission), were 0.55% (95% confidence intervals: 0.32%, 0.77%) and 0.97% (0.67%, 1.27%), respectively. The corresponding estimates for heart failure were 1.70% (1.28%, 2.13%) and 2.66% (2.09%, 3.23%). We estimated significant effects of PM10 and PM2.5 also on ischaemic heart diseases, myocardial infarction, atrial fibrillation, and ischaemic stroke. Associations were similar between less and more urbanized areas, and persisted even at low concentrations, e.g. below WHO guidelines. CONCLUSION PM was robustly associated with peaks in daily cardiovascular admissions, especially for heart failure, both in large cities and in less urbanized areas of Italy. Current WHO Air Quality Guidelines for PM10 and PM2.5 are not sufficient to protect public health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Stafoggia
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy.,Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, PO Box 210, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Matteo Renzi
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Forastiere
- Institute for Research and Biomedical Innovation, National Research Council, Via Ugo la Malfa 153, 90146 Palermo, Italy.,Environmental Research Group, King's College, 150 Stamford Street, SE1 9NH London, UK
| | - Petter Ljungman
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, PO Box 210, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden.,Department of Cardiology, Danderyds Hospital, Entrévägen 2, 182 57 Danderyd, Sweden
| | - Marina Davoli
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesca De' Donato
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Gariazzo
- Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Epidemiology and Hygiene Department, Italian Workers' Compensation Authority (INAIL), Via di Fontana Candida, 1, 00078 Monte Porzio Catone, Italy
| | - Paola Michelozzi
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Scortichini
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service-ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Angelo Solimini
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Viegi
- Institute for Research and Biomedical Innovation, National Research Council, Via Ugo la Malfa 153, 90146 Palermo, Italy.,Institute of Clinical Physiology, National Research Council, Via Giuseppe Moruzzi 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Tom Bellander
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, PO Box 210, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden.,Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Stockholm Region, Solnavägen 4 plan 10, 113 65 Stockholm, Sweden
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Nadini M, Zino L, Rizzo A, Porfiri M. A multi-agent model to study epidemic spreading and vaccination strategies in an urban-like environment. APPLIED NETWORK SCIENCE 2020; 5:68. [PMID: 32984500 PMCID: PMC7506211 DOI: 10.1007/s41109-020-00299-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 08/03/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Worldwide urbanization calls for a deeper understanding of epidemic spreading within urban environments. Here, we tackle this problem through an agent-based model, in which agents move in a two-dimensional physical space and interact according to proximity criteria. The planar space comprises several locations, which represent bounded regions of the urban space. Based on empirical evidence, we consider locations of different density and place them in a core-periphery structure, with higher density in the central areas and lower density in the peripheral ones. Each agent is assigned to a base location, which represents where their home is. Through analytical tools and numerical techniques, we study the formation mechanism of the network of contacts, which is characterized by the emergence of heterogeneous interaction patterns. We put forward an extensive simulation campaign to analyze the onset and evolution of contagious diseases spreading in the urban environment. Interestingly, we find that, in the presence of a core-periphery structure, the diffusion of the disease is not affected by the time agents spend inside their base location before leaving it, but it is influenced by their motion outside their base location: a strong tendency to return to the base location favors the spreading of the disease. A simplified one-dimensional version of the model is examined to gain analytical insight into the spreading process and support our numerical findings. Finally, we investigate the effectiveness of vaccination campaigns, supporting the intuition that vaccination in central and dense areas should be prioritized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthieu Nadini
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, 11201 USA
| | - Lorenzo Zino
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, 11201 USA
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9747 AG The Netherlands
| | - Alessandro Rizzo
- Dipartimento di Elettronica e Telecomunicazioni, Politecnico di Torino, Torino, 10129 Italy
- Office of Innovation, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, New York, 11201 USA
| | - Maurizio Porfiri
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, 11201 USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, 11201 USA
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Stafoggia M, Bellander T. Short-term effects of air pollutants on daily mortality in the Stockholm county - A spatiotemporal analysis. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2020; 188:109854. [PMID: 32798957 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Short-term exposure to air pollutants has been extensively related to daily mortality, however most of the evidence comes from studies conducted in major cities, and little is known on the extent of the spatial heterogeneity in the effects within areas including both urban and non-urban settings. We aimed to investigate the short-term association of air pollutants with daily cause-specific mortality in the Stockholm county, and to test whether an association exists also outside the metropolitan area. We used a spatiotemporal random forest model to predict daily concentrations of fine and inhalable particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3) at 1-km spatial resolution over Sweden for 2005-2016. We collected data on daily mortality for each small area for market statistics (SAMS) of the Stockholm county, to which we matched daily exposures to air pollutants and air temperature. We applied a case-crossover design to investigate the short-term association between the four pollutants and mortality from non-accidental, cardiovascular and respiratory causes. We compared the associations in and out the Stockholm urban area, by SAMS population density and across the 26 municipalities of the county. We found weak effects of most air pollutants on cause-specific mortality in the full year analysis, with estimates much larger and significant only during the warmer months (April to September): non-accidental mortality increased by 4.58% (95% confidence interval - 95% CI: 0.89%, 8.41%) and by 2.21% (95% CI: 0.71%, 3.73%) per 10 μg/m3 increase in lag 0-1 PM2.5 and O3, respectively. Associations were in general higher in the Stockholm city and in SAMS with high population density. When comparing the 26 municipalities, we didn't detect a significant heterogeneity in the short-term associations with air pollutants. In conclusion, we found a suggestion of a harmful role of air pollution also in non-urban areas, but the study was underpowered to draw firm conclusions. We consider this study as a pilot to investigate the spatial heterogeneity of the association between daily air pollution and mortality at the national level in Sweden.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Stafoggia
- Institute for Environmental Medicine (IMM), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Region Health Service, ASL Roma 1, Rome, Italy.
| | - Tom Bellander
- Institute for Environmental Medicine (IMM), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Stockholm Region, Stockholm, Sweden
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Nagelhout ES, Lensink R, Zhu A, Parsons BG, Haaland B, Hashibe M, Grossman D, VanDerslice J, Gren LH, Jensen JD, Wu YP. Higher Ultraviolet Radiation Exposure Among Rural-Dwelling Versus Urban-Dwelling Adults and Children: Implications for Skin Cancer Prevention. J Community Health 2020; 46:147-155. [PMID: 32542551 DOI: 10.1007/s10900-020-00860-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure is a primary risk factor for the development of melanoma. However, adults and adolescents often do not engage in preventive behaviors to reduce UVR exposure. Rural residents may be at higher risk for melanoma due to lower use of sun protection strategies, which increases their overall UVR exposure compared to those who live in urban areas. The purpose of this study was to evaluate differences in UVR exposure between rural and urban residents in a geographic area with high incidence of melanoma. Children (aged 8-17 years) and adults (≥ 18 years) from rural and urban areas of Utah were asked to wear a UVR monitoring device for 14 days. The sample included 97 children and 97 adults. Data was collected from June to October 2018. Non-parametric Mann-Whitney tests and quantile regression were used to compare UVR exposure levels between urban and rural participants, separately for adults and children. For adults, rural residence significantly increased total UVR dose ( β: 24.6; 95% CI 3.75, 42.74) and the UVR dose during peak UVR hours among participants with the highest UVR doses (β: 16.3; 95% CI 17.4, 24.63). Rural children exhibited significantly higher UVR doses for peak UVR hours for the entire study period (β: 4.14; 95% CI 0.83, 7.46) and on weekdays (β: 0.39; 95% CI 0.05, 0.73). The findings from this study indicate that rural residents may receive higher levels of UVR exposure than urban residents, and that prevention efforts could be tailored to address these geographical differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth S Nagelhout
- Division of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, 375 Chipeta Way, Suite A, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA
| | - Riley Lensink
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Angela Zhu
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Bridget G Parsons
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Benjamin Haaland
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
- Division of Biostatistics, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Utah, 295 Chipeta Way, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA
| | - Mia Hashibe
- Division of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, 375 Chipeta Way, Suite A, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA
| | - Douglas Grossman
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
- Department of Oncological Sciences, University of Utah, 201 Presidents Circle, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
- Department of Dermatology, University of Utah, 30 North 1900 East, Salt Lake City, UT, 84132, USA
| | - James VanDerslice
- Division of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, 375 Chipeta Way, Suite A, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA
| | - Lisa H Gren
- Division of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, 375 Chipeta Way, Suite A, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA
| | - Jakob D Jensen
- Department of Communication, University of Utah, 255 Central Campus Dr #2400, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Yelena P Wu
- Huntsman Cancer Institute, 2000 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA.
- Department of Dermatology, University of Utah, 30 North 1900 East, Salt Lake City, UT, 84132, USA.
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Wojnowska-Heciak M, Błaszczyk M, Suchocka M, Kosno-Jończy J. Urban-rural differences in perception of trees described by parents bringing up children in Warsaw and Jedlińsk, Poland. PeerJ 2020; 8:e8875. [PMID: 32296604 PMCID: PMC7150541 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.8875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 03/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Parents’ attitudes to trees and nature are reflected not only in their children’s outdoor activity, but also in the way they perceive, learn and value the environment. One hundred and eleven respondents, divided into two groups by place of residence, assessed statements in a survey questionnaire. Two groups of questions aimed at evaluating tree benefits and disservices as perceived by urban and rural parents, and identifying their preferences concerning outdoor activity of their children. Tree benefits and disadvantages were grouped into five categories (social, economic, environmental, health and aesthetic). Both urban and rural parents presented similar attitudes to trees as well as to their children’s play environments. Among 37 statements concerning tree benefits, only five revealed statistically significant differences. The most important difference appeared in the way urban and rural parents perceived the aspects of danger. Trees were not perceived as posing any risk on playgrounds for city residents, who—unlike villagers—opposed to the removal of trees from playgrounds.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Magdalena Błaszczyk
- Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marzena Suchocka
- Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Poland
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44
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A Random Forest Approach to Estimate Daily Particulate Matter, Nitrogen Dioxide, and Ozone at Fine Spatial Resolution in Sweden. ATMOSPHERE 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/atmos11030239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Air pollution is one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide. An accurate assessment of its spatial and temporal distribution is mandatory to conduct epidemiological studies able to estimate long-term (e.g., annual) and short-term (e.g., daily) health effects. While spatiotemporal models for particulate matter (PM) have been developed in several countries, estimates of daily nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3) concentrations at high spatial resolution are lacking, and no such models have been developed in Sweden. We collected data on daily air pollutant concentrations from routine monitoring networks over the period 2005–2016 and matched them with satellite data, dispersion models, meteorological parameters, and land-use variables. We developed a machine-learning approach, the random forest (RF), to estimate daily concentrations of PM10 (PM<10 microns), PM2.5 (PM<2.5 microns), PM2.5–10 (PM between 2.5 and 10 microns), NO2, and O3 for each squared kilometer of Sweden over the period 2005–2016. Our models were able to describe between 64% (PM10) and 78% (O3) of air pollutant variability in held-out observations, and between 37% (NO2) and 61% (O3) in held-out monitors, with no major differences across years and seasons and better performance in larger cities such as Stockholm. These estimates will allow to investigate air pollution effects across the whole of Sweden, including suburban and rural areas, previously neglected by epidemiological investigations.
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Bang F, McFaull S, Cheesman J, Do MT. The rural-urban gap: differences in injury characteristics. Health Promot Chronic Dis Prev Can 2019; 39:317-322. [PMID: 31825784 PMCID: PMC6938276 DOI: 10.24095/hpcdp.39.12.01] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Injuries are among the top 10 leading causes of death in Canada. However, the types and rates of injuries vary between rural versus urban settings. Injury rates increase with rurality, particularly those related to motor vehicle collisions. Factors such as type of work, hazardous environments and longer driving distances contribute to the difference in rural and urban injury rates. Further examination of injuries comparing rural and urban settings with increased granularity in the nature of injuries and severity is needed. METHODS The study population consisted of records from the electronic Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (eCHIRPP) from between 2011 and July 2017. Rural and urban status was determined based on postal codes as defined by Canada Post. Proportionate injury ratios (PIRs) were calculated to compare rural and urban injury rates by nature and severity of injury and sex, among other factors. RESULTS Rural injuries were more likely to involve multiple injuries (PIR = 1.66 for 3 injuries) and crush injuries (PIR = 1.72). More modestly elevated PIRs for rural settings were found for animal bites (1.14), burns (1.22), eye injuries (1.32), fractures (1.20) and muscle or soft tissue injuries (1.11). Injuries in rural areas were more severe, with a higher likelihood of cases being admitted to hospital (1.97), and they were more likely to be due to a motor vehicle collision (2.12). CONCLUSION The nature of injuries in rural settings differ from those in urban settings. This suggests a need to evaluate current injury prevention efforts in rural settings with the aim to close the gap between rural and urban injury rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Bang
- Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Steven McFaull
- Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - James Cheesman
- Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Minh T Do
- Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Health Sciences, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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Pesticides as a risk factor for metabolic syndrome: Population-based longitudinal study in Korea. Mol Cell Toxicol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s13273-019-0047-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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Nayak SG, Shrestha S, Sheridan SC, Hsu WH, Muscatiello NA, Pantea CI, Ross Z, Kinney PL, Zdeb M, Hwang SAA, Lin S. Accessibility of cooling centers to heat-vulnerable populations in New York State. JOURNAL OF TRANSPORT & HEALTH 2019; 14:10.1016/j.jth.2019.05.002. [PMID: 38854424 PMCID: PMC11157955 DOI: 10.1016/j.jth.2019.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2024]
Abstract
Introduction Spending a few hours to cool down in a cooling center reduces the impact of heat on health. But limited or lack of accessibility of these facilities is often a barrier to their utilization. The objective of this study was to assess accessibility of the cooling centers to heat-vulnerable populations in New York State (NYS) by various modes of transportation. Methods We estimate the proximity of 377 cooling centers to general and heat-vulnerable populations in NYS (excluding New York City (NYC)) and determine their accessibility via walking, public transportation and driving. Distances between tract populations and nearest cooling center, and between cooling centers and public transportation stops were estimated. Accessibility in four metropolitan regions was determined via public transportation while accessibility in heat-vulnerable rural areas was estimated via driving. Results Distances to nearest cooling center ranged from 0 to 53.2 miles with only a third of NYS population within walking distance (0.5 miles) of a cooling center. About 51% of heat-vulnerable tracts were within 0.5 miles, with an average distance of 2.4 miles to the nearest cooling center. Within the four metro politan regions 80% of cooling centers within 0.5 miles of a public transportation stop. All cooling centers in heat-vulnerable tracts were accessible via public transportation. In rural heat-vulnerable tracts, driving distances averaged at about 18 miles. Conclusions In urban areas many residents were not within walking distance of a cooling center, but most, and nearly all in the most heat-vulnerable areas, were within walking distance of public transportation to a cooling center. In rural locations distances were longer, and accessibility is a greater issue. Cooling centers can be a valuable resource for general and heat-vulnerable populations during an extreme heat event. When planning and implementing cooling centers, it is therefore important to improve accessibility and address other barriers that can hamper their utilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seema G. Nayak
- New York State Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Srishti Shrestha
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | | | - Wan-Hsiang Hsu
- New York State Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Neil A. Muscatiello
- New York State Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Cristian I. Pantea
- New York State Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA
| | - Zev Ross
- ZevRoss Spatial Analysis, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Patrick L. Kinney
- Boston University School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Zdeb
- University at Albany, School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Rensselaer, NY, USA
| | - Syni-An A. Hwang
- New York State Department of Health, Center for Environmental Health, Albany, NY, USA
- University at Albany, School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Rensselaer, NY, USA
| | - Shao Lin
- University at Albany, School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Rensselaer, NY, USA
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Delisle Nyström C, Barnes JD, Blanchette S, Faulkner G, Leduc G, Riazi NA, Tremblay MS, Trudeau F, Larouche R. Relationships between area-level socioeconomic status and urbanization with active transportation, independent mobility, outdoor time, and physical activity among Canadian children. BMC Public Health 2019; 19:1082. [PMID: 31399049 PMCID: PMC6688238 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-019-7420-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2019] [Accepted: 07/31/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Active transportation (AT), independent mobility (IM), and outdoor time are promising ways to increase children’s physical activity. However, in order to create interventions to increase those forms of physical activity, it is important to understand the relationships between area-level socioeconomic status (SES) and type of urbanization with AT, IM, outdoor time, and physical activity, and this was the aim of the study. Methods One thousand six hundred ninety-nine children in grades 4 to 6 (mean age: 10.2 ± 1.0 years) from three Canadian regions participated. AT, IM, and outdoor time were assessed using questionnaires and physical activity was measured using the SC-StepRX pedometer. Area-level SES was assessed using the median household income of the census tract in which the school was located and type of urbanization was determined for each school using standardized procedures. Generalized linear and general linear mixed models were used to examine the relationships. Results Area-level SES and the type of urbanization were generally not related to AT, IM, or physical activity for either gender. However, we observed that both boys and girls living in lower SES areas had decreased odds of spending > 2 h outdoors on weekend days compared to their peers from higher SES areas. Girls living in suburban or rural areas were more likely to spend > 2 h outdoors on weekdays compared to their urban counterparts. Conclusions AT, IM, and physical activity are generally not associated with area-level SES or the type of urbanization in this sample of Canadian children. The finding regarding outdoor time showing that both boys and girls of lower SES areas had decreased odds of spending > 2 h outdoors on weekends compared to their peers from higher SES areas suggest that additional efforts should be implemented to offer outdoor play opportunities in lower SES areas. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-7420-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Delisle Nyström
- Healthy Active Living and Obesity (HALO) Research Group, CHEO Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, K1H 8L1, Canada. .,Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, NEO, 141 83, Huddinge, Sweden.
| | - Joel D Barnes
- Healthy Active Living and Obesity (HALO) Research Group, CHEO Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - Sébastien Blanchette
- Départment des sciences de l'activité physique, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Quebéc, G9A 5H7, Canada
| | - Guy Faulkner
- School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z1, Canada
| | - Geneviève Leduc
- Healthy Active Living and Obesity (HALO) Research Group, CHEO Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - Negin A Riazi
- School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z1, Canada
| | - Mark S Tremblay
- Healthy Active Living and Obesity (HALO) Research Group, CHEO Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, K1H 8L1, Canada
| | - François Trudeau
- Départment des sciences de l'activité physique, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Quebéc, G9A 5H7, Canada
| | - Richard Larouche
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, T1K 3M4, Canada
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Stafoggia M, Bellander T, Bucci S, Davoli M, de Hoogh K, De' Donato F, Gariazzo C, Lyapustin A, Michelozzi P, Renzi M, Scortichini M, Shtein A, Viegi G, Kloog I, Schwartz J. Estimation of daily PM 10 and PM 2.5 concentrations in Italy, 2013-2015, using a spatiotemporal land-use random-forest model. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2019; 124:170-179. [PMID: 30654325 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 128] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Revised: 01/04/2019] [Accepted: 01/06/2019] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Particulate matter (PM) air pollution is one of the major causes of death worldwide, with demonstrated adverse effects from both short-term and long-term exposure. Most of the epidemiological studies have been conducted in cities because of the lack of reliable spatiotemporal estimates of particles exposure in nonurban settings. The objective of this study is to estimate daily PM10 (PM < 10 μm), fine (PM < 2.5 μm, PM2.5) and coarse particles (PM between 2.5 and 10 μm, PM2.5-10) at 1-km2 grid for 2013-2015 using a machine learning approach, the Random Forest (RF). Separate RF models were defined to: predict PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 concentrations in monitors where only PM10 data were available (stage 1); impute missing satellite Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) data using estimates from atmospheric ensemble models (stage 2); establish a relationship between measured PM and satellite, land use and meteorological parameters (stage 3); predict stage 3 model over each 1-km2 grid cell of Italy (stage 4); and improve stage 3 predictions by using small-scale predictors computed at the monitor locations or within a small buffer (stage 5). Our models were able to capture most of PM variability, with mean cross-validation (CV) R2 of 0.75 and 0.80 (stage 3) and 0.84 and 0.86 (stage 5) for PM10 and PM2.5, respectively. Model fitting was less optimal for PM2.5-10, in summer months and in southern Italy. Finally, predictions were equally good in capturing annual and daily PM variability, therefore they can be used as reliable exposure estimates for investigating long-term and short-term health effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Stafoggia
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy; Karolinska Institutet, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Tom Bellander
- Karolinska Institutet, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Simone Bucci
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Marina Davoli
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Kees de Hoogh
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Francesca De' Donato
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Gariazzo
- INAIL, Department of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, Monteporzio Catone, Italy
| | - Alexei Lyapustin
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - Paola Michelozzi
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Renzi
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Scortichini
- Department of Epidemiology, Lazio Regional Health Service/ASL Roma 1, Via C. Colombo 112, 00147 Rome, Italy
| | - Alexandra Shtein
- Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Giovanni Viegi
- Institute of Biomedicine and Molecular Immunology "Alberto Monroy", National Research Council, Palermo, Italy
| | - Itai Kloog
- Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Joel Schwartz
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Stieb DM, Yao J, Henderson SB, Pinault L, Smith-Doiron MH, Robichaud A, van Donkelaar A, Martin RV, Ménard R, Brook JR. Variability in ambient ozone and fine particle concentrations and population susceptibility among Canadian health regions. Canadian Journal of Public Health 2019; 110:149-158. [PMID: 30617991 PMCID: PMC6964403 DOI: 10.17269/s41997-018-0169-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2017] [Accepted: 12/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Objectives To estimate the proportion of the Canadian population that is more susceptible to adverse effects of ozone (O3) and fine particle (PM2.5) air pollution exposure and how this varies by health region alongside ambient concentrations of O3 and PM2.5. Methods Using data from the census, the Canadian Community Health Survey, vital statistics and published literature, we generated cross-sectional estimates for 2014 of the proportions of the Canadian population considered more susceptible due to age, chronic disease, pregnancy, outdoor work, socio-economic status, and diet. We also estimated 2010–2012 average concentrations of O3 and PM2.5. Analyses were conducted nationally and for 110 health regions. Results Restrictive criteria (age < 10 or ≥ 75; asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart disease, or diabetes; pregnancy) suggested that approximately one third of the Canadian population is more susceptible, while inclusive criteria (restrictive plus age 10–19 and 65–74, outdoor work, less than high school education, low vitamin C intake) increased this proportion to approximately two thirds. Across health regions, estimates ranged from 24.4% to 41.2% (restrictive) and 61.2% to 87.0% (inclusive). Ten health regions were in the highest quartile of both population susceptibility and O3 or PM2.5 concentrations, all of which were outside major urban centres. Conclusions A substantial proportion of the Canadian population exhibits at least one risk factor that increases their susceptibility to adverse effects of O3 and PM2.5 exposure. Both risk communication and management interventions need to be increasingly targeted to regions outside large urban centres in the highest quartiles of both susceptibility and exposure. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.17269/s41997-018-0169-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Stieb
- Health Canada, Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Federal Tower, 420-747 West Hastings St., Vancouver, BC, V6C 1A1, Canada. .,School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Room 101 600 Peter Morand Crescent, Ottawa, ON, K1G 5Z3, Canada.
| | - Jiayun Yao
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada.,School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, 2206 E Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Sarah B Henderson
- British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada.,School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, 2206 E Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Lauren Pinault
- Analytical Studies Branch, Statistics Canada, 100 Tunney's Pasture Driveway, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0T6, Canada
| | - Marc H Smith-Doiron
- Health Canada, Environmental Health Science and Research Bureau, Federal Tower, 420-747 West Hastings St., Vancouver, BC, V6C 1A1, Canada
| | - Alain Robichaud
- Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2121, route Transcanadienne, Dorval, QC, H9P 1J3, Canada
| | - Aaron van Donkelaar
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, 6310 Coburg Road, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Randall V Martin
- Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, 6310 Coburg Road, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Richard Ménard
- Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2121, route Transcanadienne, Dorval, QC, H9P 1J3, Canada
| | - Jeffrey R Brook
- Air Quality Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 4905 Dufferin St, 4th Floor, Office 4S310, Toronto, ON, M3H 5T4, Canada.,Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Health Sciences Building 155 College Street, 6th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5T 3M7, Canada
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