BACKGROUND: Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) are said to be frequently used by both professional and amateur athletes. In addition to having a negative impact on health, steroids defy the concept of fair play. The aim of the study was to evaluate the scale of the problem related to using anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) by gym athletes and to analyze possible causes. METHODS: The study involved 435 participants aged between 18-66 (mean age 27.49±7.48). Out of them, 61.4% were male and 38.6% were female. The subjects were divided into two groups: Group A included 154 (35.4%) amateur and recreational athletes and group B included 281 (64.6%) professional athletes concerned with fitness, bodybuilding and powerlifting. A survey prepared by the authors was conducted in the study, and it consisted of 23 closed questions about AAS use, body confidence, and exercise dependence. In addition, a stadiometer and a body composition analyzer were utilized to take necessary measurements. RESULTS: Between 1-23% of group A participants admitted to using AAS. For group B, it was between 7-30%. Males were reported to use AAS more frequently than females in both groups. With regard to group A, differences in body confidence and exercise dependence were found between males using and not using AAS. Exercise dependence was reported to be different between group A and group B participants. This was true for both males and females. Also, it was shown that group A and group B females differed in terms of metabolic age, body mass and body composition (fat mass, fat-free mass, muscle mass, and total body water). CONCLUSIONS: Most gym athletes do not use AAS. Amateur athletes tend to use AAS more frequently than professional athletes. Factors that contribute to AAS use are: male gender, low body confidence, young age, and long training.
Anabolic Agents/adverse effects , Doping in Sports/statistics & numerical data , Exercise/psychology , Weight Lifting/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Anabolic Agents/administration & dosage , Athletes/psychology , Body Composition , Doping in Sports/psychology , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Performance-Enhancing Substances/administration & dosage , Performance-Enhancing Substances/adverse effects , Sex Distribution , Surveys and Questionnaires , Young Adult
Endocrinology is a branch of medicine dealing with the functioning of endocrine glands. Theain role of the endocrine glands is to control various functions and to adopt internal environment to changes in the external environment. Glands manage to do this by regulating the metabolism of target cells by hormones. One of the earliest connections with endocrinology is found in theHippocratic humoral hypothesis dating about 400 years BC. The author of the first endocrinological observations was Aristotle, who noticed changes in behavior and appearance in castrated roosters. In the Middle Ages winners of battles ate their enemies organs, such as the heart, brain, or gonads, believing that they were a source of special power.However, the last two centuries were a time of intensive development of the research in this field. Certainly, we can now look to the future awaiting the next breakthroughs that will revolutionize today's perception of endocrinology.
Endocrinology/history , History, 19th Century , History, 20th Century , History, 21st Century , Humans , Poland
OBJECTIVES: The following article presents the relationship between vegetarianism and orthorexia nervosa (ON). Vegetarianism is an ideology and a way of life that aims at minimizing animal exploitation. A vegetarian diet excludes the consumption of meat together with other animal derived products. According to scientists, orthorexia nervosa is considered to be a new, yet unclassified eating disorder. It involves introducing dietary restrictions by individuals who feel a desire to improve their health status by healthy eating. METHODS: The study involved 2,611 participants, namely 1,346 vegetarians and 1,265 non-vegetarians. The research questionnaire consisted of general personal and anthropometric characteristics, the BOT(Bratman Test for Orthorexia) and questions evaluating the participants' attitude towards nutrition. RESULTS: Based on the obtained results, health food fanaticism is more specific to vegetarians than non-vegetarians. The risk for orthorexia nervosa decreases with age and diet duration. The biggest number of health food fanatics was found in the group of lacto-vegetarians, a lower number among ovo-vegetarians and lacto-ovo-vegetarians, and the smallest number was observed in the vegan group. Also, vegetarians were reported to have dietary consultations as frequently as non-vegetarians. CONCLUSIONS: Very few studies can be found on the relationship between orthorexia nervosa and vegetarianism. Some scientists believe that vegetarians are particularly prone to orthorexia nervosa. In addition, it has been suggested by other researchers that vegetarianism can be used to mask eating disorders, as it allows these affected individuals to avoid certain products or situations related to food. The direction of cause and effect cannot be determined.
Diet, Healthy/psychology , Diet, Vegetarian/psychology , Feeding and Eating Disorders/psychology , Health Behavior , Nutritional Status , Adult , Diet, Vegetarian/statistics & numerical data , Female , Health Status , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Surveys and Questionnaires , Young Adult
The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), also known as human herpesvirus 4, is a member of the Herpesviridae virus family. EBV infection can cause infectious mononucleosis (IM) in the lytic phase of EBV's life cycle. Past EBV infection is associated with lymphomas, and may also result in certain allergic and autoimmune diseases. Although potential mechanisms of autoimmune diseases have not been clearly elucidated, both genetic and environmental factors, such as infectious agents, are considered to be responsible for their development. In addition, EBV modifies the host immune response. The worldwide prevalence of autoimmune diseases shows how common this pathogen is. Normally, the virus stays in the body and remains dormant throughout life. However, this is not always the case, and a serious EBV-related illness may develop later in life. This explains the chronic course of autoimmune diseases that is often accompanied by exacerbations of symptoms. Based on the present studies, EBV infection can cause autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), multiple sclerosis (MS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Sjögren's syndrome, and autoimmune hepatitis. The EBV has also been reported in patients with autoimmune thyroid disorders. Although EBV is not the only agent responsible for the development of autoimmune thyroid diseases, it can be considered a contributory factor.
Notch signalling is an evolutionarily conserved signalling pathway, which plays a significant role in a wide array of cellular processes including proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. Nevertheless, it must be noted that Notch is a binary cell fate determinant, and its overexpression has been described as oncogenic in a broad range of human malignancies. This finding led to interest in therapeutically targeting this pathway especially by the use of GSIs, which block the cleavage of Notch at the cell membrane and inhibit release of the transcriptionally active NotchIC subunit. Preclinical cancer models have clearly demonstrated that GSIs suppress the growth of such malignancies as pancreatic, breast, and lung cancer; however, GSI treatment in vivo is associated with side effects, especially those within the gastrointestinal tract. Although intensive studies are associated with the role of γ-secretase in pathological states, it should be pointed out that this complex impacts on proteolytic cleavages of around 55 membrane proteins. Therefore, it is clear that GSIs are highly non-specific and additional drugs must be designed, which will more specifically target components of the Notch signalling.
INTRODUCTION: Orthorexia nervosa is an obsessive-compulsive focus on a "healthy" diet, which manifests as extreme concern about food content. This research was carried out in order to identify highly sensitive behaviours associated with eating a healthy diet. AIM: Assessment of risk of orthorexia nervosa among dietetics students compared to physiotherapy students. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Presented research was conducted among 229 dietetic students and 201 physiotherapy students. It was based on general personal characteristics, the Bratman Test for Orthorexia (BOT) and questions posed by the authors. RESULTS: 26.6% of the dietetics students and only 14.9% of physiotherapy students were recognised as health food fanatics. The students of both dietetics (88.2%) and physiotherapy (52%) declared that they noticed changes in their attitude towards food after they had become students. CONCLUSIONS: It has been observed that these highly sensitive behaviours towards healthy eating are very common in both surveyed groups, however with a stronger tendency among the students of dietetics.
Diet, Healthy/psychology , Dietetics , Feeding and Eating Disorders/diagnosis , Feeding and Eating Disorders/therapy , Health Behavior , Physical Therapy Modalities , Students/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Attitude to Health , Feeding and Eating Disorders/psychology , Female , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Humans , Male , Poland , Risk Assessment , Surveys and Questionnaires , Young Adult
Snail1 is a zinc-finger transcription factor, which plays a role in colorectal cancer development by silencing E-cadherin expression and inducing epithelialmesenchymal transition (EMT). During EMT tumour cells acquire a mesenchymal phenotype that is responsible for their invasive activities. Consequently, Snail1 expression in colorectal cancer is usually associated with progression and metastasis. Some studies revealed that about 77% of colon cancer samples display Snail1 immunoreactivity both in activated fibroblasts and in carcinoma cells that have undergone EMT. Therefore, expression of this factor in the stroma may indicate how many cells possess the abilities to escape from the primary tumour mass, invade the basal lamina and colonise distant target organs. Blocking snail proteins activity has the potential to avert cancer cell metastasis by interfering with such cellular processes as remodelling of the actin cytoskeleton, migration and invasion, which are clearly associated with the aggressive phenotype of the disease. Moreover, the link between factors from the snail family and cancer stem cells suggests that inhibitory agents may also prove their potency as inhibitors of cancer recurrence.
The problem of obesity affects all age groups. It is also observed among menopausal women. Menopause is the time in a woman's life when, as a consequence of hormonal changes occurring in the body, the risk of overweight and obesity increases significantly and, therefore, so does the risk of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. Excess body weight in menopausal women may also be of social and psychological importance since the occurring symptoms may considerably decrease quality of life and sexual activity of these women. Reduction of body weight in obese menopausal women should play a vital role in treatment of this group of patients. Therefore, adequate management seems to be essential, and it should involve dietary, pharmacological and/or surgical treatment, depending on the patient's needs. Following a rational weight loss plan provided by a dietician under medical supervision may contribute to improvement of the health condition and quality of life. It is recommended to observe the guidelines on dietary management described in this article by adjusting a diet plan individually. The following work constitutes a review of articles from 2004-2014 which are available in the PubMed medical knowledge base and the Polish Medical Bibliography (Polska Bibliografia Lekarska). For this purpose, the following controlled vocabulary has been used: menopausal woman, menopausal diet, menopausal weight gain, menopausal weight loss, dietary management in menopause.
Menopause is a turning point in a woman's life. Decreasing of secretion of estrogens can cause appearing of many health problems, which make that life is becoming harder in each partof life. Hormonal ReplacementTherapy (HRT) is using for relieving the symptoms of menopause, however, because of the possibility of adverse reactions cannot be used by all women. Alternative for HTC are phytoestrogens--compounds naturally occurring in plants, structurally similar to endogenous estrogen, so that they have an affinity for estrogen receptors, and in this way they can modulate functions of endocrine system. Phytoestrogens can play an important role in symptoms of menopause, but their positive impacts are being described for cardiovascular system, especially for lipid metabolism, bone metabolism. Moreover consumption of phytoestrogens could relieve as symptoms as: fatigue, insomnia, problems with concentrations and depression symptoms. Phytoestrogens are acting as antioxidants against free radicals, and reactive oxygen forms which are known as carcinogenic factors. Article is a review of the most important information about phitoestrogens and their influence on women organism during menopausal period.
Hormone Replacement Therapy , Menopause/drug effects , Phytoestrogens/therapeutic use , Bone Density/drug effects , Female , Humans , Lipid Metabolism/drug effects , Postmenopause/drug effects
INTRODUCTION: Obesity is not just a cosmetic problem. Pathological accumulation of body fat can cause many health problems: insulin resistance, impaired glucose tolerance, and diabetes mellitus type 2. It may also increase morbidity and mortality. Adipose tissue plays an important role in body homeostasis by producing and secreting several bioactive proteins known as adipokines: adiponectin, leptin, resistin, visfatin, and apelin, which are involved in the regulation of food intake, glucose and lipid metabolism, and insulin action. There can be observed nutritional deficiencies, despite increased food intake, in morbidly obese people. Data concerning concentrations of serum 25(OH)D3 presented an inverse correlation with obesity parameters like: BMI (body mass index), waist circumference, fat mass or percentage of body fat. Also, higher insulin sensitivity was associated with higher concentrations of vitamin D. CONCLUSIONS: Studies published up to now suggest that vitamin D plays an important role in adipose tissue function and could be involved in the synthesis and modulation of adipokine production. This article is a review of the literature on fatty tissue function and the role of vitamin D in obesity.
