Hours of sleep and associated factors in college students during the COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND

Sleep alterations are common in college students, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sociodemographic factors may predict these alterations in this population.

OBJECTIVE

To identify the sociodemographic factors and health characteristics associated with the number of hours of sleep of college students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study carried out with 244 university students from a multicampi public university in the State of Bahia, Northeast Brazil. Data collection was performed online and participants answered a specific questionnaire to assess sleep hours, sociodemographic and health variables.

RESULTS

Significant associations were observed between hours of sleep and older students (odds ratio adjusted -ORaj: 3.75; 95% Confidence Interval -CI: 1.81-7.75; p <  0.01), attending the final semesters (ORaj: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.05-3.25; p <  0.03), and who reported having some disease (ORaj: 2.18; 95% CI: 1.05-4.50; p <  0.03) with greater chances of getting less sleep. However, those who used tobacco (ORaj: 0.08; 95% CI: 0.01-0.45; p <  0.001) were likely to have more hours of sleep per night.

CONCLUSION

Sleep restriction was common among participating college students, which has likely intensified due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its restrictions. This encourages specific public health actions, contemplating the health and hours of sleep of this population.

Factors Associated with the Lifestyle of Pediatric Healthcare Professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The objective of this study was to analyze the association between sociodemographic and occupational variables with the lifestyle of health professionals in pediatric units during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 407 health professionals working in four pediatric health units in the State of Bahia, northeast Brazil. The Fantastic Lifestyle Questionnaire and a questionnaire with sociodemographic and employment variables self-applied via Google Forms were used. The final binary logistic regression models revealed significant associations between those who received 3 to 5 minimum wages, without a marital relationship and with more than one employment relationship. Data suggest that these sociodemographic and occupational profiles are more exposed to risky lifestyle behaviors. The findings of this study demonstrated the need for greater attention to the health of health professionals in the pediatric field, as well as the promotion of initiatives that seek to value the work of these professionals and reduce the damage caused to their lifestyle, especially in a pandemic scenario.

Cardiovascular Risk and Factors Associated to the Health in Hypertensive African Descent People Resident in Quilombola Community

Introduction: Hypertension is a cardiovascular risk factor of wide magnitude among people of African descent, especially those living in Quilombos. However, little is known about the factors associated with cardiovascular risk in residents of the urban Quilombola community. Objetive: To analyze the cardiovascular risk and health-related factors in the family context of hypertensive Afro-descendants living in an urban Quilombola. Materials and methods: It is a cross-sectional and community-based study carried out from November 2017 to March 2018. The study’s population consisted of 303 hypertensive patients enrolled in the family health unit, with ages ranging from 35 to 79 years old, of both genders; and using antihypertensive drugs. The instruments used for data production were: The Primary Arterial Hypertension Questionnaire and the Framingham Risk Score. Results: There was a significant association between cardiovascular risk and cardiovascular disease (CVD) family history (p<0.011), type II diabetes (p<0.001) and overweight and obesity (p<0.010). Conclusion. Research has shown that hypertensive Quilombola people have consistent cardiovascular risk outcomes, especially with CVD family history, type II diabetes, overweight and obesity, schooling and gender with significant associations.

Blood pressure decrease in elderly after isometric training: does lactate play a role?

This study aimed to investigate the effect of isometric handgrip (IHG) training on the blood pressure (BP) reduction in prehypertensive and hypertensive elderly people, and the possible role of lactate and redox balance. Thirty-three older (75.3±1.3 years old) were allocated to a non-exercise control (CG, n=11), prehypertensive (PHG, n=10), and hypertensive (HG, n=12) groups. PHG and HG performed a total of 8 sets of 1-min bilateral contractions at 30% maximal voluntary isometric contraction, each separated by 1-minute rest-pause. IHG training was performed for 8-week, 3 times a week on non-consecutive days. Systolic BP (SBP) and heart rate (HR) decreased post-training on PHG (-10 mm Hg; -5 bpm) and HG (-16 mm Hg; -9 bpm), respectively. Diastolic BP (DBP) decreased for HG only (-9 mm Hg) (P < 0.05). In addition, the decrease in BP occurred in parallel to a better redox balance and increased bioavailability of nitric oxide in PHG and HG (P < 0.05). Also, the variables that most present association to SBP decrease were capillary blood lactate concentration and muscle strength (P < 0.05). In summary, IHG training may be practical in improving clinical status of prehypertensive and hypertensive patients, by improving BP control, NO- bioavailability and redox balance. Further studies are required to elucidate the pathways of lactate concentration in blood-flow during exercise.

Dynamic, Not Isometric Resistance Training Improves Muscle Inflammation, Oxidative Stress and Hypertrophy in Rats

This study aimed to compare the effects of dynamic (DRT) and isometric (IRT) resistance training on blood glucose, muscle redox capacity, inflammatory state, and muscle strength and hypertrophy. Fifteen 12-week-old male Wistar rats were randomly allocated into three groups: control group (CTL), DRT, and IRT, n = 5 animals per group. The animals were submitted to a maximal weight carried (MWC; every 15 days) and maximum isometric resistance (MIR; pre- and post-training) tests. Both training protocols were performed five times a week during 12 weeks, consisting of one set of eight uninterrupted climbs for 1 min with a 30% overload of MWC. The animals in the IRT group remained under isometry for 1 min. The DRT group experienced greater MWC from pre- to post-training compared to the CTL and IRT groups (p < 0.0001). The DRT and IRT groups displayed similar gains in MIR (p = 0.3658). The DRT group exhibited improved glycemic homeostasis (p = 0.0111), redox (p < 0.0001), and inflammatory (p < 0.0001) balance as compared with CTL and IRT groups. In addition, the improved glycemic profile was associated with an increase in muscle strength and hypertrophy, improvement in redox balance and inflammation status. We conclude that DRT was more effective than IRT on increasing cross-sectional area, but not muscle strength, in parallel to improved blood glucose, inflammatory status, and redox balance.

Heart rate variability in middle-aged sprint and endurance athletes

BACKGROUND

Aging is associated with decreased autonomic balance which could be assessed by Heart Rate Variability (HRV). Exercise training improves autonomic balance, but there is a lack in the literature regarding the heart rate variability (HRV) of master sprinters and endurance athletes.

PURPOSE

The effects of lifelong endurance and sprint training on cardiac autonomic balance were assessed in master athletes and compared with age-matched controls and young untrained controls.

METHODS

Participants (n = 81) were 8 master sprinters (MS; 51.8 ± 11.1 yrs), 8 master endurance athletes (EN, n = 8, 53.6 ± 8.6 yrs), 17 age-matched untrained (CON, 47.47 ± 6.00 yrs) and 48 young controls (YC, 25.40 ± 3.87 yrs). For the acquisition of RR intervals (iRR) (Polar RS800X Heart Rate Monitor®) the participants remained seated for 15-min with the final 10-min being considered for analysis. HRV was measured using Kubios software. A one-way ANOVA with repeated measures was applied.

RESULTS

All studied parameters did not differ between MS and EN {Time Domain [HR (bpm) 59.00 ± 6.13 vs. 58.94 ± 12.75], [R-R (ms) 1030.45 ± 107.45 vs. 1068.77 ± 206.17], [SDNN (ms) 57.35 ± 20.07 vs. 80.66 ± 71.07], [RMSSD (ms) 40.88 ± 20.07 vs. 38.93 ± 20.44]; Non-linear domain [SD1 (ms) 28.93 ± 14.20 vs. 27.56 ± 14.46]}, whose demonstrated a reduced HR and elevated mean R-R intervals in comparison to both YC {[HR (bpm) 69.64 ± 9.81]; [R-R (ms) 883.93 ± 124.11]} and age-matched controls {[HR (bpm) 70.06 ± 6.63]; [R-R (ms) 865.11 ± 78.39]}. It was observed a lower HRV for middle-aged CON {[RMSSD (ms) 20.23 ± 5.87], [SDNN (ms) 37.79 ± 10.15] and [SD1 (ms) 14.31 ± 4.15]} compared to YC {[RMSSD (ms) 43.33 ± 26.41], [SDNN (ms) 67.07 ± 28.77] and [SD1 (ms) 30.66 ± 18.69; p < .05]}. These last age-related differences were not observed for MS and EN.

CONCLUSION

For master athletes, regardless of whether they are trained in endurance or sprinters, both training modes revealed to be equally beneficial in attenuating the effects of aging on the autonomic balance.