Body weight misperception and psychological distress among young South Korean adults: the role of physical activity.

BACKGROUND: Emerging evidence suggests that body weight misperception may be associated with psychological distress among people in developed countries. Participating in physical activity (PA) may negate the association between weight misperception and psychological distress given the well-known benefits of PA on psychological health. This study examined the role of PA in associations between body weight misperception and psychological distress among young South Korean adults. METHODS: Data from individuals aged 20 to 39 years who participated in the Fifth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2010-2012 (N = 6055) was included in the logistic regressions. RESULTS: The proportions of the respondents under- and over-perceiving their body weight were 66.9% and 0.8% among men and 16.3% and 15.6% among women respectively. A moderating effect of PA participation was observed on the relationship between body weight over-perception and depressed mood (Odds Ratio [OR] = 0.55; 95% Confidence Intervals [95% CI] = 0.34, 0.89). Among individuals who did not meet the recommended vigorous-intensity PA (≥ 20 min/session and ≥ 3 day/week), body weight over-perception was associated with depressed mood (OR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.19, 2.46) compared to the accurate-perception group. However, no association was observed among those who met the recommended vigorous-intensity PA (OR = 1.52, 95% CI = 0.45, 5.22). Similar patterns were found among physically active versus inactive individuals (recommended walking not met: OR = 2.02, 95% CI = 1.29, 3.15; recommended walking met: OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 0.66, 2.49; muscular strengthening exercises for < 2 day/week: OR = 1.74, 95% CI = 1.21, 2.51; muscular strengthening exercises for ≥ 2 day/week: OR = 1.38, 95% CI = 0.37, 5.14). No relationship existed between body weight over-perception and depressed mood after adjusting for PA. CONCLUSIONS: Participating in regular PA may buffer a potential negative impact of body weight over-perception on depressive mood.

Decomposing socioeconomic inequalities in the use of preventive eye screening services among individuals with diabetes in Korea.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the socioeconomic inequalities in the use of preventive eye screening services among individuals with diabetes in Korea. METHODS: Using nationally representative survey data, the concentration index (CI) and decomposition of the CI were used to capture and quantify income-related inequalities. RESULTS: The results show income-related inequality in the use of eye screening services among individuals with diabetes, suggesting that services were concentrated among individuals with higher incomes. After adjusting for need factors, such as sex, age and self-rated health, the inequality still persisted as observed horizontal inequity in the services, indicating that unequal care was provided for equal need. The decomposition approach revealed that the largest contributions to the observed inequality were higher education and higher income levels. Having private insurance and residing in non-Seoul metro areas also contributed to the observed pro-rich inequality. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that income- and education-related barriers to the use of preventive eye screening services for individuals with diabetes should be targeted for removal at the national level to achieve the goal of equal care for equal need in diabetes management.

Assessment of trends in socioeconomic inequalities in cancer screening services in Korea, 1998-2012.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to examine how income-related inequalities in screening services for gastric and colorectal cancer in Korea have changed over the past decades, along with the implementation of the national cancer screening program, and also to quantify each contribution from various socio-demographic factors income-related inequalities with respect to these cancer screening services. METHODS: Three cycles (1998, 2005, and 2010-2012) of Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) were utilized. To measure income-related inequalities in the use of gastric and colorectal cancer, individuals over the age of 40 and the age of 50 were included respectively, and the Concentration Index (CI) was calculated for each cycle. To identify and quantify contribution from each socio-demographic factor, decomposition of the CIs was conducted. RESULTS: Throughout this study, CIs and horizontal inequity indices (HIs) steadily but consistently decreased, suggesting that inequalities and inequities in participation in gastric and colorectal cancer screening were weakened after the implementation of the national public cancer screening program. Decomposition analyses revealed that whereas decreases in inequalities mostly stemmed from income and educational levels; higher income and better education levels are still major contributors to the observed inequalities that influence participation in cancer screening services in Korea. CONCLUSION: Our empirical findings suggest that, although the policy of reducing out-of-pocket payment for cancer screening may contribute to the observed decreases in inequality, it alone is not likely to completely eliminate inequality. Further research is required to identify barriers that prevent people with lower socioeconomic status from participation in cancer screening, which allows equal access for equal need.

Socioeconomic factors associated with visual impairment and ophthalmic care utilization in patients with type II diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between socioeconomic factors and ophthalmic care services/visual impairment among patients with diabetes. DESIGN: Data from the Survey on Living with Chronic Disease in Canada (SLCDC)-Diabetes Component 2011 were used. PARTICIPANTS: A cross-sectional, nationally representative sample of patients with diabetes weighted to represent the civilian, noninstitutionalized Canadian population with self-reported type II diabetes. METHODS: Socioeconomic factors were classified into predictive factors, need, and non-need factors. Factors associated with the ophthalmic care utilization and visual impairment were assessed using logistic regression models, weighted for the SLCDC sampling strategy. RESULTS: Among all patients with type II diabetes, factors associated with increased eye screening were: (i) discussion of diabetic complications with health professionals (odds ratio [OR] 2.02, 95% CI 1.28-3.19); (ii) having private insurance (OR 3.23, 95% CI 2.21-4.73); and (iii) duration of diabetes longer than 10 years (OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04-2.25). Among asymptomatic patients (those who reported having no visual impairment), patients with lower income had 40% decreased odds of having eye screening services compared with those with higher income (OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.37-0.98). Among all patients with type II diabetes, visual impairment was more likely in females (OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.12-2.09), older patients (OR 18.12, 95% CI 6.63-49.51), and those with poor self-rated health (OR 3.10, 95% CI 1.62-5.96). CONCLUSIONS: Our study found that interactions between health professionals and patients, as well as having private health insurance, were the main factors associated with ophthalmic resource utilization, whereas age, sex, duration of diabetes, and self-rated health were associated with visual impairment in patients with type II diabetes.

Relationship between duration of type 2 diabetes and self-reported participation in diabetes education in Korea.

The increasing prevalence of diabetes is a pressing issue in Korea. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between duration of diabetes and self-reported participation in diabetes education among diabetic patients in Korea. This study used data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2005. A total of 1405 respondents older than 19 years and having diabetes were included in the analyses. The relationship between these variables was assessed using logistic regression after adjusting for age, sex, and socioeconomic status. The authors observed that duration of diabetes was associated with having never attended diabetes education programs (odds ratio = 0.95; 95% confidence interval = 0.93-0.96; P < .001), with the greatest risk of not attending seen in recently diagnosed patients. In addition, having lower educational attainment and living in non-Metro Seoul regions were independent factors for never attending diabetes education programs among diabetic patients in Korea. This finding suggests the need for developing effective education programs to encourage diabetic patients, particularly recently diagnosed patients, to participate. Such programs could help deliver appropriate information for diabetes management to all diabetic patients in Korea.

Relationship between socioeconomic status and type 2 diabetes: results from Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2010-2012.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and type 2 diabetes using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2010-2012. DESIGN: A pooled sample cross-sectional study. SETTING: A nationally representative population survey data. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 14,330 individuals who participated in the KNHANES 2010-2012 were included in our analysis. PRIMARY OUTCOME: Prevalence of type 2 diabetes. RESULTS: The relationship between SES and type 2 diabetes was assessed using logistic regression after adjusting for covariates including age, gender, marital status, region, body mass index, physical activity, smoking and high-risk drinking behaviour. After adjustment for covariates, our results indicated that individuals with the lowest income were more likely to have type 2 diabetes than those with the highest income (OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.08 to 1.72). In addition, lower educational attainment was an independent factor for a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Korea. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest the need for developing a health policy to ameliorate socioeconomic inequalities, in particular income and education-related disparities in type 2 diabetes, along with risk factors at the individual level. In addition, future investigations of type 2 diabetes among Koreans should pay more attention to the social determinants of diabetes in order to understand the various causes of the condition.