Food-related consumer behaviours in times of crisis: Changes in the wake of the Ukraine war, rising prices and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the COVID-19 pandemic subsided, the war in Ukraine led to further disruptions in consumers' daily behaviours, with rising prices for food and energy. We conducted a survey study on self-reported changes in food-related consumer behaviour in ten European countries and compared the results to a similar study conducted two years ago. A latent class cluster analysis distinguished five clusters and showed that different types of consumers can be distinguished based on how they react to the crisis as regards their eating habits. 19% of survey participants reported no major changes, and 32% reported changes mostly in terms of more price sensitivity. Among those that reported changes beyond reacting to higher prices, there are indications of more mindful eating and more deliberate choices. The changes already found earlier in response to the COVID-19 pandemic therefore seem to have been strengthened and supplemented by reactions to price increases. The results present a challenge to the food industry in terms of supplying healthy and sustainable food at affordable prices.

Early adulthood and current physical activity and their association with symptoms of pelvic floor disorders in middle-aged women: An observational study with retrospective physical activity assessment.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate associations of early and middle adulthood physical activity (PA) with symptoms of pelvic floor disorders (PFDs), i.e. stress urinary incontinence (SUI), urge urinary incontinence (UUI), faecal incontinence (FI), constipation or defecation difficulties (CDDs) and feeling of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) among middle-aged women. DESIGN: A cross-sectional, observational study with retrospective PA assessment. SETTING: University Research Laboratory. SAMPLE: A random population sample of 1098 Finnish women aged 47-55 years. METHODS: Early adulthood PA, current PA, and demographic and gynaecological variables were assessed using self-report questionnaires. Logistic regression analyses were applied to study associations of PA variables with symptoms of PFDs. Potential confounding effects of demographic and gynaecological variables were controlled in multiple logistic regression models. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Structured questionnaire-assessed retrospective PA assessment at the age of 17-29 years, current PA at middle age, and prevalence of symptoms of CDD, FI, POP, SUI and UUI. RESULTS: Current PA was not independently associated with the occurrence of the symptoms of PFDs. Middle-aged women with an early adulthood history of competitive sports were more likely to experience symptoms of UUI (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.10-4.24, p = 0.025) but not symptoms of SUI, FI, CDD or POP, whereas women with a history of regular PA were more likely to experience symptoms of FI (OR 4.41, 95% CI 1.05-18.49, p = 0.043) but no other symptoms of PFDs. CONCLUSIONS: Competitive sports during early adulthood may increase the risk of UUI in middle age. Regular PA during early adulthood may increase the risk of FI.

Characteristics of the old and homeless: identifying distinct service needs.

OBJECTIVES: Research suggests that being older and homeless is associated with unique characteristics and potential barriers to improved living conditions. Additional research is needed to better understand the vulnerabilities associated with this population. The purpose of this study was to identify characteristics related to aging and homelessness. It was hypothesized that older adults would exhibit more vulnerability compared to other age groups related to health, social support proximity, occupational perceptions, and recent living conditions prior to seeking assistance at an emergency shelter. It was also hypothesized that these age-related characteristics would predict the amount of time that individuals resided in the emergency shelter. METHOD: A cross-sectional sample of young, middle-aged, and older homeless adults seeking shelter at two emergency homeless shelters was utilized for this study. Data included information obtained during a structured interview after participants arrived at the shelter and the number of days that were spent at the shelter. RESULTS: Older adults were more likely to exhibit several characteristics (i.e., poorer health, being further from social support, longer durations of homelessness, lack of employment area, prior residence types, and mental health treatment) potentially contributing to and/or recovering from homelessness. Duration of homelessness, reports of having no career area, and age were predictive of the amount of time spent at the shelter. CONCLUSIONS: The various characteristics that differentiate older homeless populations (e.g., health, social support, homelessness duration, and employment) could create potential barriers to overcoming homelessness that should be considered when serving this population.

Dimensional assessment of behavioral changes in the cuprizone short-term exposure model for psychosis.

Recent clinical studies have suggested a role for immune/inflammatory responses in the pathophysiology of psychosis. However, a mechanistic understanding of this process and its application for drug discovery is underdeveloped. Here we assessed our recently developed cuprizone short-term exposure (CSE) mouse model across behavioral domains targeting neurocognitive and neuroaffective systems. We propose that the CSE model may be useful for understanding the mechanism associating inflammation and psychosis, with applications for drug discovery in that context.

Food neophobia associates with lower dietary quality and higher BMI in Finnish adults.

OBJECTIVE: Food neophobia has been associated with decreased consumption of vegetables mainly among children. We hypothesized that food neophobia in adults is also associated with lower overall dietary quality and higher BMI. DESIGN: Data for the present cross-sectional analyses were derived from parents in a follow-up family study. SETTING: The STEPS study, a longitudinal study of health and development of a cohort of children born in south-west Finland. SUBJECTS: The parents, 1178 women (age 19-45 years, mean 32·2 years) and 1013 men (age 18-57 years, mean 34·1 years), completed a questionnaire at home when their child was 13 months old. The questionnaire included the Food Neophobia Scale (FNS; range 10-70), the Index of Diet Quality (IDQ; range 0-16) and a measure of fruit and vegetable consumption. At that time the participants' height and weight were also measured by a research nurse to calculate BMI. RESULTS: Compared with the food neophilics (FNS score 10-24), the food neophobics (FNS score 40-70) consumed fewer vegetables (women: 15 v. 10 portions/week; men: 13 v. 7 portions/week), scored lower on the IDQ (women: 9·7 v. 8·5; men: 8·8 v. 7·8) and had higher BMI (women: 24·2 v. 26·0 kg/m²; men: 26·5 v. 27·5 kg/m²) as tested by one-way ANOVA, with all P values <0·001 in women and <0·05 in men. The food neophobics followed a diet lower in nutritional quality than did the food neophilics, especially regarding vegetables. CONCLUSIONS: Food neophobia may complicate adaptation to dietary recommendations and predispose to overweight.

[Assessment of withholding life support and withdrawing life support in a vital emergency department]. / Évaluation des démarches de limitation et d'arrêt de traitement en salle d'accueil des urgences vitales.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the practices of withholding and withdrawing of life sustaining therapies in a vital emergencies department and to confront them with Leonetti law procedures. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, observational study. PATIENT AND METHODS: Collection of data performed by a physician (senior or junior) for all patients for whom a decision of withholding or withdrawing life sustaining treatments was taken. RESULTS: Fifty-two patients were included. A withholding life sustaining treatments as non aggressive resuscitation procedures were instituted for 65% of the patients, of whom 85% were "waiting resuscitation". In 50% of the cases, the decision was taken by a single physician. The approval of the nursing staff was researched in 65% of the cases. The decision was written in the medical file in 94% of the cases. The patient's will was researched in 15% of the cases. The family was consulted about patient's will in 10% of the cases. The family was informed of the decision in 90% of the cases. CONCLUSION: The application of Leonetti law in vital emergencies department is flawed. It appears to be necessary to realize new studies and to release official guidelines or recommendations specifically made for emergencies department to improve the practices of withholding or withdrawing life sustaining treatments.

Microarray and allergenic activity assessment of milk allergens.

BACKGROUND: Cow's milk is one of the most common causes of food allergy affecting approximately 2.5% of infants in the first years of their life. However, only limited information regarding the allergenic activity of individual cow's milk allergens is available. OBJECTIVE: To analyse the frequency of IgE reactivity and to determine the allergenic activity of individual cow's milk allergens. METHODS: A nitrocellulose-based microarray, based on purified natural and recombinant cow's milk allergens was used to determine IgE reactivity profiles using sera from 78 cow's milk-sensitized individuals of varying ages. The allergenic activity of the individual allergens was tested using patients' sera for loading rat basophil leukaemia cells (RBL) expressing the α-chain of the human receptor FcεRI. RESULTS: Using the microarray and the RBL assay, cow's milk allergens were assessed for frequency of IgE recognition and allergenic activity. Moreover, the RBL assay allowed distinguishing individuals without or with mild clinical reactions from those with severe systemic or gastrointestinal symptoms as well as persons who grew out cow's milk allergy from those who did not. CONCLUSIONS: Component-resolved testing using milk allergen microarrays and RBL assays seems to provide useful additional diagnostic information and may represent a basis for future forms of prophylactic and therapeutic strategies for cow's milk allergy.

Cisplatin preparation error; patient management and morbidity.

INTRODUCTION: Antineoplastic drug therapy errors represent a high iatrogenic potential due to antineoplastic drugs narrow therapeutic ranges and the complexity of chemotherapy regimens that may increase the risk of morbidity and mortality for oncology patients. SETTING: We report a 57-year-old man with head and neck cancer who mistakenly received 180 mg/ m(2) of cisplatin overdose despite the safety measures and validations carried out during preparation. The patient developed moderate nausea and vomiting, acute renal failure, hearing difficulty (tinnitus), and severe myelodepression. PATIENT MANAGEMENT: Prophylactic and symptomatic treatments were applied in order to prevent and correct toxicity during the 9 days stay at hospital. RESULT: He recovered with mild tinnitus and mild renal impairment as the only sequelae. This case presents a hospital stay and treatment quite different to others used to reverse all cisplatin overdose toxicity and it shows the benefits of prompt management.

Beta-cell function assessment from modelling of oral tests: an effective approach.

The quantitative study of beta-cell function has relied on mathematical models for almost 40 years. During the last decades, the initial elaborate models have been simplified with the aim of obtaining mathematical methods suitable for the assessment of beta-cell function in an individual from an intravenous test. In more recent times, modelling methods have been proposed for analysing oral glucose tolerance tests or meal tests. In this review, we describe these methods with particular emphasis on an approach we have developed. We discuss the relevance of potentiation of insulin secretion in an oral glucose test, which our model has reintroduced after the historical models. We provide evidence on the validity of the method and illustrate significant applications. We emphasize the importance of quantifying beta-cell function through multiple indices and highlight how our approach has provided new insight on the relationships between beta-cell function and insulin sensitivity and on the role of beta-cell function in glucose intolerance and diabetes.

Financial, family, and social factors impacting on cardiac rehabilitation attendance.

BACKGROUND: Attendance in phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation program after acute myocardial infarction is poor. OBJECTIVE: To identify and explore the demographic factors that influence peoples' decisions to attend cardiac rehabilitation programs. METHODS: A descriptive-interpretive design was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 people post infarction in Victoria, Australia after their first scheduled appointment to attend outpatient cardiac rehabilitation. The interview transcripts were thematically analysed. RESULTS: The perceived relevance of cardiac rehabilitation related to the context of people's lives, namely their financial, family and social situation, and how important program outcomes were seen to be relevant to this context. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that there are a proportion of people unlikely to attend outpatient cardiac rehabilitation programs following an AMI despite encouragement to attend. It may be unrealistic to aim for 100% referral and uptake into cardiac rehabilitation programs and therefore an inappropriate endpoint by which to evaluate such programs.

The political economy of urban homicide: assessing the relative impact of gender inequality on sex-specific victimization.

This research examines the ways in which the changing political economy of urban areas has contributed differently to the homicide victimization rates of females and males across US cities. Recent research, while relatively limited, has presented disparate results regarding the effect of gender inequality on urban sex-specific victimization. Our work further explores this relationship by taking into account relative gender disparities in income, education, labor market opportunities, and politics in an examination of sex-specific homicide victimization in 1990. Key to this current investigation is the evaluation of feminist and lifestyle arguments that suggest that structural gender inequality has a unique effect on female victimization. Overall, our findings reveal gender inequality to be a significant predictor of both male and female urban homicide. While these findings suggest mixed support for theoretical arguments regarding gender inequality, further analyses reveal significant differences in specific types of gender inequality on victimization patterns across genders. These additional results highlight the need for greater attention toward both methodological and theoretical issues when examining the interconnections between gender, political economy, and violence in research.

Assessment of insulin sensitivity and secretion with the labelled intravenous glucose tolerance test: improved modelling analysis.

A new modelling analysis was developed to assess insulin sensitivity with a tracer-modified intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT). IVGTTs were performed in 5 normal (NGT) and 7 non-insulin-dependent diabetic (NIDDM) subjects. A 300 mg/kg glucose bolus containing [6,6-(2)H2]glucose was given at time 0. After 20 min, insulin was infused for 5 min (NGT, 0.03; NIDDM, 0.05 U/kg). Concentrations of tracer, glucose, insulin and C-peptide were measured for 240 min. A circulatory model for glucose kinetics was used. Glucose clearance was assumed to depend linearly on plasma insulin concentration delayed. Model parameters were: basal glucose clearance (Cl(b)), glucose clearance at 600 pmol/l insulin concentration (Cl600), basal glucose production (Pb), basal insulin sensitivity index (BSI = Cl(b)/basal insulin concentration); incremental insulin sensitivity index (ISI = slope of the relationship between insulin concentration and glucose clearance). Insulin secretion was calculated by deconvolution of C-peptide data. Indices of basal pancreatic sensitivity (PSIb) and first (PSI1) and second-phase (PSI2) sensitivity were calculated by normalizing insulin secretion to the prevailing glucose levels. Diabetic subjects were found to be insulin resistant (BSI: 2.3 +/- 0.6 vs 0.76 +/- 0.18 ml x min(-1) x m(-2) x pmol/l(-1), p < 0.02; ISI: 0.40 +/- 0.06 vs 0.13 +/- 0.05 ml x min(-1) x m(-2) x pmol/l(-1), p < 0.02; Cl600: 333 +/- 47 vs 137 +/- 26 ml x min(-1) x m(-2), p < 0.01; NGT vs NIDDM). Pb was not elevated in NIDDM (588 +/- 169 vs 606 +/- 123 micromol x min(-1) x m(-2), NGT vs NIDDM). Hepatic insulin resistance was however present as basal glucose and insulin were higher. PSI1 was impaired in NIDDM (67 +/- 15 vs 12 +/- 7 pmol x min x m(-2) x mmol/l(-1), p < 0.02; NGT vs NIDDM). In NGT and in a subset of NIDDM subjects (n = 4), PSIb was inversely correlated with BSI (r = 0.95, p < 0.0001, log transformation). This suggests the existence of a compensatory mechanism that increases pancreatic sensitivity in the presence of insulin resistance, which is normal in some NIDDM subjects and impaired in others. In conclusion, using a simple test the present analysis provides a rich set of parameters characterizing glucose metabolism and insulin secretion, agrees with the literature, and provides some new information on the relationship between insulin sensitivity and secretion.

Assessment of insulin action on glucose uptake and production during a euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp in dog: a new kinetic analysis.

We evaluated the validity of the traditional method of assessment of the speed of insulin action during a euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp. We first estimated the error of Steele's model on glucose uptake in these experimental conditions. We tested the appropriateness of estimating the half-time of insulin action by expressing the glucose flux changes as a percent of the maximal change (normalization on a 0% to 100% scale). For this purpose, we performed a 390-minute euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic (2 mU.min-1.kg-1) clamp in five chronically catheterized conscious dogs. We used [3-3H]glucose to assess glucose kinetics. We used a novel analysis based on a circulatory model, which allowed us to overcome the limitations of compartmental analysis. We found that the primary effect of insulin (increased from 12.3 +/- 1.6 to 104 +/- 15 microU/mL) was to increase the whole-body fractional extraction of glucose (3.0% +/- 0.3% to 18% +/- 2%). Insulin did not alter the mean whole-body artery-vein transit time (3.1 +/- 0.2 v 2.9 +/- 0.4 minutes). In contrast to the assumptions of the Steele model, which assumes that glucose uptake and rate of appearance (Ra) are equal during the clamp, during the initial 30 minutes of the clamp the increase in glucose uptake preceded (by approximately 4 minutes) the increase in Ra. Thus, during this period uptake exceeded Ra by about 15%. The maximal difference between Ra and uptake (1 to 1.5 mg.min-1.kg-1) occurred approximately 15 minutes after insulin infusion. Finally, to estimate the half-time of the insulin signal that controls glucose uptake and production, we accounted for the nonlinear relationship between insulin concentration and glucose uptake and production. We found that the traditional normalization of the glucose flux changes on a 0% to 100% scale underestimated the half-time of onset of the insulin signal that controls glucose uptake (half-time, 20 v 54 minutes) and glucose production (half-time, 25 v 39 minutes). Accounting for the nonlinearity of the dose-response curves may thus be of crucial importance in the evaluation of the onset and offset of insulin action.

Assessment of insulin sensitivity with minimal model: role of model assumptions.

Insulin sensitivity is frequently assessed with the minimal model (MM) and the insulin-modified intravenous glucose tolerance test (MIVGTT). To ascertain the validity of this approach, the mechanisms by which the MM estimates glucose effectiveness and insulin sensitivity (SG and SI, respectively) from the data are analyzed theoretically. Published data and new labeled MIVGTTs in normal and non-insulin-dependent diabetic (NIDDM) subjects are used as reference data. One reason for the reported difficulty in estimating SI in NIDDM is the inadequacy of the MM to describe the data. SG is a biased estimate of the fractional glucose clearance (FGC) at basal insulin, and SI is a biased estimate of the average slope of the insulin concentration-FGC curve. The monocompartmental assumption and the role of glucose production in the MM are causes of bias. The bias is fairly constant across the spectrum of glucose tolerance (SG: approximately 150% overestimate; SI: approximately 30% underestimate). Also, SI is not expected to account satisfactorily for hepatic insulin sensitivity. Finally, by the use of SG and SI, FGC at a target insulin level (FGCMM) can be estimated. FGCMM agrees well with the analogous clamp index (difference 10%; correlation: r = 0.88, P < 0.002) and, in NIDDM, has a lower coefficient of variation than SI (57 vs. 82%). In conclusion, this analysis indicates that the MM is a sufficiently reliable method for the assessment of insulin sensitivity if it is used cautiously.

Assessment of skin prick test and serum specific IgE detection in the diagnosis of Cupressaceae pollinosis.

BACKGROUND: There is increasing evidence for the relevance of Cupressaceae pollinosis among persons living in geographic areas where these species are native or imported. OBJECTIVE: Previously reported problems in obtaining valid allergenic extracts to be used in the diagnosis of this winter pollinosis prompted us to assess the value of available Cupressaceae pollen extracts for in vivo and in vitro diagnosis. METHODS: Commercial and in-house allergenic extracts from Cupressaceae and Taxodiaceae families were used for skin prick testing and specific IgE detection in six groups of subjects exposed to a high concentration of Cupressaceae pollen. RESULTS: Four commercial and two in-house Cupressus sempervirens pollen extracts showed low cutaneous reactivity. Positive test results were recorded in 26% of the 713 subjects tested. C. arizonica in-house pollen extracts gave rise to larger cutaneous reactions. Furthermore, the skin prick test response was positive in a greater number of subjects (38%) of the same group. Six commercial immunoassays were able to detect specific IgE to C. sempervirens in rates ranging from 8.1% to 81.1%. Specific IgE to C. arizonica was detected by means of an in-house immunoenzymatic method in 70.3% of 54 patients with suspected "cypress" allergy, and specific IgE to C. sempervirens was detected in 75.9% of these patients by using a commercial system. High rates of cross-reactivity within the Cupressaceae family and with species of the Taxodiaceae family were recorded with both in vivo and in vitro tests. CONCLUSIONS: The use fo C. sempervirens in vivo diagnostics should be carefully evaluated until better characterized extracts are developed. In-house-characterized extracts of C. arizonica seem to be more reliable in the diagnosis of Cupressaceae allergy by means of skin prick testing. the sensitivity of commercially available in vitro methods to detect specific IgE to C. sempervirens should be carefully evaluated; nevertheless, valid results can be obtained with some already available immunoassays.