Mindful self-care and mental well-being of university health educators and professionals in Hail Region, Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: Psychological stress is a familiar occurrence as it is linked with a sense of lack of control when up fronted with uncertainty. The study examines the mindful self-care practices of health educators and professionals in various domains and determines their relationship to the self-perceived level of mental well-being. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study employs the quantitative descriptive approach. It was conducted in the Hail region in the academic year 2020-2021 and was participated by 91 respondents from various colleges. Self-care practices and mental well-being of health educators and professionals were determined using the Mindful Self-Care Scale and the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale. Pearson correlation (2-tailed) was performed to assess the significant relationship between self-care behavior and mental well-being. Post-hoc test for correlation was conducted between the mean rating for each variable for self-care behavior and the mean rating for mental well-being. This was tested at an appropriate probability value of 0.01 and 0.05. RESULTS: The overall mean for self-care behaviors of the respondents was 3.96 (SD 0.81) while the overall mental well-being score was 51.90 (SD 8.0). This was considered as average mental well-being, not indicative of possible/clinical depression. A significant relationship exists between the overall rating for self-care behavior and the overall rating for mental well-being (r = 0.661, P value < 0.001). Furthermore, with a correlation score of 0.661, the two variables have a moderately strong and significant positive relationship. CONCLUSIONS: The study affirmed the relationship between mindful self-care behaviors and mental well-being. Engaging in self-care practices regularly and frequently can develop one's well-being.

Development and Characterization of Novel Biopolymer Derived from Abelmoschus esculentus L. Extract and Its Antidiabetic Potential.

Abelmoschus esculentus (Okra) is an important vegetable crop, widely cultivated around the world due to its high nutritional significance along with several health benefits. Different parts of okra including its mucilage have been currently studied for its role in various therapeutic applications. Therefore, we aimed to develop and characterize the okra mucilage biopolymer (OMB) for its physicochemical properties as well as to evaluate its in vitro antidiabetic activity. The characterization of OMB using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) revealed that okra mucilage containing polysaccharides lies in the bandwidth of 3279 and 1030 cm-1, which constitutes the fingerprint region of the spectrum. In addition, physicochemical parameters such as percentage yield, percentage solubility, and swelling index were found to be 2.66%, 96.9%, and 5, respectively. A mineral analysis of newly developed biopolymers showed a substantial amount of calcium (412 mg/100 g), potassium (418 mg/100 g), phosphorus (60 mg/100 g), iron (47 mg/100 g), zinc (16 mg/100 g), and sodium (9 mg/100 g). The significant antidiabetic potential of OMB was demonstrated using α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzyme inhibitory assay. Further investigations are required to explore the newly developed biopolymer for its toxicity, efficacy, and its possible utilization in food, nutraceutical, as well as pharmaceutical industries.

Okra (Abelmoschus Esculentus) as a Potential Dietary Medicine with Nutraceutical Importance for Sustainable Health Applications.

Recently, there has been a paradigm shift from conventional therapies to relatively safer phytotherapies. This divergence is crucial for the management of various chronic diseases. Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.) is a popular vegetable crop with good nutritional significance, along with certain therapeutic values, which makes it a potential candidate in the use of a variety of nutraceuticals. Different parts of the okra fruit (mucilage, seed, and pods) contain certain important bioactive components, which confer its medicinal properties. The phytochemicals of okra have been studied for their potential therapeutic activities on various chronic diseases, such as type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular, and digestive diseases, as well as the antifatigue effect, liver detoxification, antibacterial, and chemo-preventive activities. Moreover, okra mucilage has been widely used in medicinal applications such as a plasma replacement or blood volume expanders. Overall, okra is considered to be an easily available, low-cost vegetable crop with various nutritional values and potential health benefits. Despite several reports about its therapeutic benefits and potential nutraceutical significance, there is a dearth of research on the pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of okra, which has hampered its widespread use in the nutraceutical industry. This review summarizes the available literature on the bioactive composition of okra and its potential nutraceutical significance. It will also provide a platform for further research on the pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of okra for its possible commercial production as a therapeutic agent against various chronic diseases.