Quality of life and associated factors among Norwegian public health nurse students during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study.

The main objective of this study was to investigate the association between quality of life (QOL) and civil status, self-efficacy, loneliness, and physical and mental health among public health nurse (PHN) students during the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020. PHN students were recruited from eight universities and university colleges in Norway. A range of potential predictive factors were entered into a model using a stepwise linear regression approach. In general, the PHN students reported a high level of QOL during the first month of the pandemic. The students' civil status, perceived physical health, self-efficacy and loneliness were all significantly correlated with QOL. Among these, the strongest predictive factors for QOL were found to be perceived loneliness and self-efficacy. Our results provide insight into the QOL of PHN students, which managers in the higher education sector can use to outline specific coping strategies that can help students during a pandemic.

The InnvaDiab-DE-PLAN study: a randomised controlled trial with a culturally adapted education programme improved the risk profile for type 2 diabetes in Pakistani immigrant women.

The objective of the present study was to explore whether a culturally adapted lifestyle education programme would improve the risk factor profile for type 2 diabetes (T2D) and the metabolic syndrome (MetS) among Pakistani immigrant women in Oslo, Norway. The randomised controlled trial (the InnvaDiab study), lasting 7 ± 1 months, comprised six educational sessions about blood glucose, physical activity and diet. Participants (age 25-62 years) were randomised into either a control (n 97) or an intervention (n 101) group. Primary outcome variables were fasting and 2 h blood glucose, and secondary outcome variables were fasting levels of insulin, C-peptide, lipids, glycated Hb, BMI, waist circumference and blood pressure, measured 1-3 weeks before and after the intervention. During the intervention period, the mean fasting blood glucose decreased by 0·16 (95 % CI -0·27, -0·05) mmol/l in the intervention group, and remained unchanged in the control group (difference between the groups, P=0·022). Glucose concentration 2 h after the oral glucose tolerance test decreased by 0·53 (95 % CI -0·84, -0·21) mmol/l in the intervention group, but not significantly more than in the control group. A larger reduction in fasting insulin was observed in the intervention group than in the control group (between-group difference, P= 0·036). Among the individuals who attended four or more of the educational sessions (n 59), we found a more pronounced decrease in serum TAG (-0·1 (95 % CI -0·24, 0·07) mmol/l) and BMI (-0·48 (95 % CI -0·78, -0·18) kg/m²) compared with the control group. During the intervention period, there was a significant increase in participants having the MetS in the control group (from 41 to 57 %), which was not seen in the intervention group (from 44 to 42 %). Participation in a culturally adapted education programme may improve risk factors for T2D and prevent the development of the MetS in Pakistani immigrant women.

Barriers to healthy eating among Norwegian-Pakistani women participating in a culturally adapted intervention.

AIMS: To explore barriers to healthy dietary changes experienced by Pakistani immigrant women participating in a culturally adapted intervention, and whether these barriers were associated with intentions to change dietary behaviours. METHODS: Participants were randomly assigned to control and intervention group. The 7-month intervention consisted of six educational group sessions on diet and physical activity, based on knowledge about Pakistani lifestyle and focusing on blood glucose control. Data on barriers for and intentions to healthy dietary changes were collected through an interview with help of a questionnaire. The article is based on data from follow-up assessments in the intervention group, comprising 82 women, aged 28-62 years, without a history of type 2 diabetes. RESULTS: The most important barriers to healthy dietary changes were preferences of children and other family members and perceived expectations during social gatherings. The perceived pressure from other family members was especially strong when the women were trying to change to more vegetables, lentils, and fish and to use less oil in food preparation. The barriers were inversely related to intentions to change. CONCLUSIONS: The women encountered various types of barriers when trying to change to healthier food habits, the most prominent being those related to the social dimensions of food consumption, as well as to awareness of the amount of oil used for cooking.