Occupational Disparities in the Association between Self-Reported Salt-Eating Habit and Hypertension in Older Adults in Xiamen, China

Global Impacts of Western Diet and Its Effects on Metabolism and Health: A Narrative Review

The Western diet is a modern dietary pattern characterized by high intakes of pre-packaged foods, refined grains, red meat, processed meat, high-sugar drinks, candy, sweets, fried foods, conventionally raised animal products, high-fat dairy products, and high-fructose products. The present review aims to describe the effect of the Western pattern diet on the metabolism, inflammation, and antioxidant status; the impact on gut microbiota and mitochondrial fitness; the effect of on cardiovascular health, mental health, and cancer; and the sanitary cost of the Western diet. To achieve this goal, a consensus critical review was conducted using primary sources, such as scientific articles, and secondary sources, including bibliographic indexes, databases, and web pages. Scopus, Embase, Science Direct, Sports Discuss, ResearchGate, and the Web of Science were used to complete the assignment. MeSH-compliant keywords such "Western diet", "inflammation", "metabolic health", "metabolic fitness", "heart disease", "cancer", "oxidative stress", "mental health", and "metabolism" were used. The following exclusion criteria were applied: (i) studies with inappropriate or irrelevant topics, not germane to the review's primary focus; (ii) Ph.D. dissertations, proceedings of conferences, and unpublished studies. This information will allow for a better comprehension of this nutritional behavior and its effect on an individual's metabolism and health, as well as the impact on national sanitary systems. Finally, practical applications derived from this information are made.

The Science of Salt: A focused review on salt-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviors, and gender differences

The aim of the current review was to examine the scope of studies published in the Science of Salt Weekly that contained a measure of self-reported knowledge, attitudes, and behavior (KAB) concerning salt. Specific objectives were to examine how KAB measures are used to evaluate salt reduction intervention studies, the questionnaires used, and whether any gender differences exist in self-reported KAB. Studies were reviewed from the commencement of Science of Salt Weekly, June 2013 to the end of August 2017. Seventy-five studies had relevant measures of KAB and were included in this review, 13 of these were salt-reduction intervention-evaluation studies, with the remainder (62) being descriptive KAB studies. The KAB questionnaires used were specific to the populations studied, without evidence of a best practice measure. 40% of studies used KAB alone as the primary outcome measure; the remaining studies used more quantitative measures of salt intake such as 24-hour urine. Only half of the descriptive studies showed KAB outcomes disaggregated by gender, and of those, 73% showed women had more favorable KAB related to salt. None of the salt intervention-evaluation studies showed disaggregated KAB data. Therefore, it is likely important that evaluation studies disaggregate, and are appropriately powered to disaggregate all outcomes by gender to address potential disparities.

Prevalence and Gender-Specific Influencing Factors of Hypertension among Chinese Adults: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study in Nanchang, China

Hypertension has become the leading cause of death worldwide; data on hypertension among Nanchang adults are sparse. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and gender-specific influencing factors of hypertension in adults in Nanchang, China. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with a representative sample of 2722 Chinese residents aged 18 years and above between May and September 2016, with a response rate of 92.4% (2516/2722). A stratified cluster sampling method was adopted in this study. Data on prevalence and influencing factors were obtained from a standard questionnaire and physical measurements. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to analyze the influencing factors. The age-standardized prevalence was 19.8% (18.2-21.3) (male: 19.5% (18.0-21.1); female, 20.01% (18.5-21.6)). Factors positively associated with hypertension prevalence were past smoking, diabetes mellitus (DM), and overweight and obesity in both genders. Abdominal obesity and family history of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) were risk factors only in males; sleeping time and consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits were related to the prevalence of hypertension only in females. These findings will form the baseline information for the development of more effective approaches to enhance current prevention and control management of hypertension.