The Potential of Exercise on Lifestyle and Skin Function: Narrative Review

BACKGROUND

The skin is an important organ of the human body and has moisturizing and barrier functions. Factors such as sunlight and lifestyle significantly affect these skin functions, with sunlight being extremely damaging. The effects of lifestyle habits such as smoking, diet, and sleep have been studied extensively. It has been found that smoking increases the risk of wrinkles, while excessive fat and sugar intake leads to skin aging. Lack of sleep and stress are also dangerous for the skin's barrier function. In recent years, the impact of exercise habits on skin function has been a focus of study. Regular exercise is associated with increased blood flow to the skin, elevated skin temperature, and improved skin moisture. Furthermore, it has been shown to improve skin structure and rejuvenate its appearance, possibly through promoting mitochondrial biosynthesis and affecting hormone secretion. Further research is needed to understand the effects of different amounts and content of exercise on the skin.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to briefly summarize the relationship between lifestyle and skin function and the mechanisms that have been elucidated so far and introduce the expected effects of exercise on skin function.

METHODS

We conducted a review of the literature using PubMed and Google Scholar repositories for relevant literature published between 2000 and 2022 with the following keywords: exercise, skin, and life habits.

RESULTS

Exercise augments the total spectrum power density of cutaneous blood perfusion by a factor of approximately 8, and vasodilation demonstrates an enhancement of approximately 1.5-fold. Regular exercise can also mitigate age-related skin changes by promoting mitochondrial biosynthesis. However, not all exercise impacts are positive; for instance, swimming in chlorinated pools may harm the skin barrier function. Hence, the exercise environment should be considered for its potential effects on the skin.

CONCLUSIONS

This review demonstrates that exercise can potentially enhance skin function retention.

The Impact of Narrative Reviews on Patient E-doctor Choice in Online Health Communities

As online health communities (OHCs) continue to proliferate, narrative reviews on doctors have become a vital reference source for patients when choosing online health services. However, the potential value of subjective information reflecting patient experiences in OHCs has not been fully explored. The present study seeks to investigate the impact of narrative reviews on patients' selection of e-doctors and the extent to which such reviews are moderated by doctors' specialties. This paper collected data from 747 doctors and 105 032 reviews from WeDoctor, one of China's most popular OHCs, in 2019. We employed Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling to extract 3 topics and analyzed their effects on patient e-doctor choice using a multiple regression method. Our findings indicate that Topic 1, clinical skills and effects, had a positive impact on patient choice in OHCs (β₁ = .243, P < .001), as did Topic 2, service attitude and trust (β₂ = .130, P < .05). However, the impact of Topic 3, convenience, did not show a significant effect in this study. Moreover, our results suggest that the specialty of Internal Medicine can positively moderate the relationship between Topic 1 (clinical skills and effects) and patient e-doctor choice (β₉ = .087, P < .05). Based on the findings of this study, e-doctors are encouraged to enhance their technical competence to improve treatment effectiveness and adjust their communication methods to increase patient trust and sense of security. OHC platform managers should accurately understand the key factors that influence patient choice and take measures to improve their service quality accordingly.

What Works in Violence Prevention Among Young People?: A Systematic Review of Reviews

Violence prevention programs aim to raise awareness, change attitudes, normative beliefs, motivation, and behavioral responses. Many programs have been developed and evaluated, and optimistic claims about effectiveness made. Yet comprehensive guidance on program design, implementation, and evaluation is limited. The aim of this study was to provide an up-to-date review of evidence on what works for whom. A systematic search of PsycINFO, MEDLINE, ERIC, and Sociology Collection ProQuest identified 40 reviews and meta-analyses reporting on the effectiveness of violence prevention programs among young people (age 15-30) in educational institutions, published before October 2018. These included reviews of programs designed to reduce (i) bullying, (ii) dating and relationship violence, (iii) sexual assault, and (iv) antisocial behavior. Only evaluations that reported on behavioral outcomes such as perpetration, victimization, and bystander behavior were included. The reviewed evaluations reported on programs that were mainly implemented in high-income countries in Europe and North America. The majority found small effects on violence reduction and victimization and increases in self-reported bystander behavior. Our findings expose critical gaps in evaluation research in this area and provide recommendations on how to optimize the effectiveness of future programs.

Peer Education and Peer Counselling for Health and Well-Being: A Review of Reviews

Peer education and peer counselling for health and wellbeing have been recognized as complementary approaches to professional intervention for over 50 years, but it is relatively recently that research into effects has become adequate. Potentially, they have advantages in reaching where professionals cannot, but it has not been clear if that potential is fulfilled, although the measurement of effects is difficult. The present paper examines 58 narrative and systematic reviews and meta-analyses on the topic. In peer education, there were many reviews of sexual health and of HIV/AIDS interventions, followed by reviews of various medical conditions and in the context of prisons. More general reviews covered a wider field. In peer counselling, there were several reviews of breast-feeding and mental health. Many early reviews complained of the lack of evaluation; then, later reviews found knowledge gains but not behavior gains; then, still later reviews found both knowledge and behavior gains. Thus, peer education and counselling appear effective but only if organizational factors are well managed and the cultural context of the country respected. The implications for future practice, policy and research were outlined.