The effects of the Friendship Online Intervention Program on physical activity, substance abuse, psychosomatic symptoms, and well-being among at-risk youth.

INTRODUCTION: At-risk youth are those who are currently or potentially exposed to physical, mental, or emotional danger. The Friendship Online Intervention Program (FOIP) was created to encourage physical activity (PA) and reduce risky behavior among vocational secondary-school youth in Israel. We wanted to evaluate the effect of FOIP on PA, substance abuse, and psychological factors, including psychosomatic symptoms and well-being. METHODS: From October 2021 to June 2022, nonrandom sampling was employed to select at-risk youth from vocational secondary schools for participation in the FOIP. Before and after the intervention, questionnaires were administered to the intervention and control groups. The effects of FOIP were evaluated by univariate and multivariable analyses. RESULTS: The intervention (n = 103) and control (n = 77) groups showed similar levels of PA, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption at the beginning of the study. At follow-up, the intervention group showed a 57% increase in PA versus no change for the control group and decreased levels of smoking compared to the control group (p < .001). Similarly, in the intervention group, the number of psychosomatic symptoms decreased (effect size = 1.68) and life satisfaction increased (effect size = 0.86). Group assignment (intervention or control group) significantly predicted PA level, cigarette smoking, psychosomatic symptoms, and life satisfaction (adjusted R2 = .46, .20, .08, and .28, respectively) with participants in the intervention group showing more favorable results compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS: FOIP was effective in increasing PA and decreasing risky behaviors among youth. FOIP may help at-risk youth build resilience and promote their physical and mental health.

Cardiovascular risk profiles clusters among children and adolescents with disabilities.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are a precursor for disabilities and death worldwide. Being overweight or obese in combination with physical inactivity and smoking habits may increase the risk for CVD and other health problems such as lower limb osteoarthritis, diabetes, stroke, and various cancer types among children and adolescents. The literature emphasizes the need to follow such groups and evaluate the risk of individuals developing CVD diseases. Therefore, the current study explores the variety of cardiovascular risks in children and adolescents' profiles clusters with and without disabilities. METHODS: Data from 42 countries including Israel, was collected with the support of the world health organization (WHO, Europe) through a questionnaire from 11-19 years old school-aged. RESULTS: The study finding shows that children and adolescents with disabilities demonstrated a higher prevalence of overweight than those who completed the HBSC youth behavior survey. Moreover, the prevalence of tobacco smoking and alcohol use was statisticaly significantly higher among the disabled group than the non-disabled group. In addition, socioeconomic status of responders who presented a very high CVD risk was found as significantly lower than those from the first and second low risk groups. CONCLUSION: This led to the conclusion that children and adolescents with disability were at a higher risk of developing CVDs than their non-disabled peers. In addition, intervention programs tailored to the needs of adolescents with disability should consider lifestyle habit change and promoting healthy living thus improving their quality of life as well as reducing their risk of being exposed to severe CVD diseases.

Risk Behaviors, Family Support, and Emotional Health among Adolescents during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel.

We investigated the prevalence of risk behaviors among Israeli adolescents (tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, drug use) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Associations between different risk behaviors were examined and so was whether specific characteristics could predict risk behaviors in adolescents. The study consisted of 1020 Israeli adolescents aged 15-18. Study subjects completed an online survey between the first and second lockdowns in Israel (April 2020 to September 2020). Participants reported the frequency at which they engaged in four different risky behaviors: general risky behavior, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption (binge drinking), and cannabis use. The most prevalent risky behavior in the sample was binge drinking (33.8%). The four measured risky behaviors were significantly correlated. Among participants who had previously engaged in a risky behavior assessed, most did not change the behavior frequency during the pandemic. All independent variables (sociodemographic characteristics, family support, and emotional, health excluding friends' support, physical activity volume, and coronavirus restrictions) were significantly different between participants engaging vs. not engaging in risky behaviors. Our findings suggest that family support is one of the most influential factors in preventing risky behavior during the pandemic, and they emphasize the importance of family-based interventions with children and adolescents from elementary to high school.

Identifying Cardiovascular Risk Profiles Clusters among Mediterranean Adolescents across Seven Countries.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the number one cause of death globally and are partially due to the inability to control modifiable lifestyle risk factors. The aim of this study was to analyze the profiles of adolescents from seven Mediterranean countries (Greece, Israel, Italy, Macedonia, Malta, Portugal, Spain) according to their modifiable lifestyle risk factors for CVD (overweight/obesity, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption). The sample consisted of 26,110 adolescents (52.3% girls) aged 11, 13, and 15 years who participated in the Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey in 2018 across the seven countries. Sociodemographic characteristics (sex, age, country of residence, socioeconomic status) and CVD modifiable lifestyle risk factors (overweight/obesity, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption) were recorded. A two-step cluster analysis, one-way analysis of variance, and chi-square test were performed. Four different cluster groups were identified: two low-risk groups (64.46%), with risk among those with low physical activity levels; moderate-risk group (14.83%), with two risk factors (unhealthy weight and low physical activity level); and a high-risk group (20.7%), which presented risk in all modifiable lifestyle risk factors. Older adolescents reported a higher likelihood of being in the high-risk group. Given that the adolescence period constitutes an important time for interventions aimed at CVD prevention, identifying profiles of moderate- and high-risk adolescents is crucial.