Gender differences in the relationships between housework and metabolic markers: a longitudinal cohort study in China.

BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome has become a major health threat throughout the world, but there are few studies that focus on the effects of housework on human metabolism. This study explores the association between housework and metabolic markers and examines whether there are gender differences in the relationship of housework intensity on these markers. METHODS: We obtained data for 2,624 participants from the China Health and Nutrition Survey and used binary logistic regression to analyze the association between housework and metabolic markers (triglycerides, high- and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hemoglobin, blood glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure). RESULTS: We observed no association between housework and metabolic markers for men. However, we find that women who engaged in housework had a higher risk of triglycerides than those who did not (OR=1.16, 95% CI: 1.16, 4.25). Compared with low-intensity, we also find that women who performed moderate- and high-housework intensity had a higher risk of triglycerides (moderate-intensity: OR=1.78, 95% CI: 1.14, 2.78; high-intensity: OR=1.91, 95% CI: 1.22, 2.98), MetS (OR=1.54, 95% CI: 0.98, 2.43; OR=1.68, 95% CI: 1.07, 2.66), pre-hypertension (OR=1.68, 95% CI: 1.08, 2.62; OR=1.63, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.55), and obesity (OR=1.65, 95% CI: 1.01, 2.70; OR=1.66, 95% CI: 1.01, 2.72). CONCLUSION: In women, we find that housework is positively associated with the metabolic markers, triglycerides, MetS, and pre-hypertension. However, we did not find evidence that this relationship exists in men, f or any biomarkers we considered. One possible explanation is that people who engage in high-intensity housework are more stressed and sleep less, which could be a mechanism by which housework becomes associated with metabolic disease.

Association between interleukin-21 gene rs907715 polymorphism and gastric precancerous lesions in a Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: The single nucleotide polymorphisms of interleukin-21 (IL-21) gene were confirmed to be related to various diseases, but no studies have examined the possible role of IL-21 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs907715, rs2221903, and rs12508721) in gastric precancerous lesions. AIM: To explore the associations between SNPs of IL-21 gene (rs907715, rs2221903, and rs12508721) and gastric precancerous lesions in a Chinese population. METHODS: Three SNPs of IL-21 were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction-ligase detection reaction in 588 cases and 290 healthy controls from May 2013 to December 2016 in northwestern China. Gastric precancerous lesions were confirmed by endoscopic examination and categorized as non-atrophic gastritis, atrophic gastritis, and intestinal metaplasia. Descriptive statistic and logistic regression were used for data analyses. RESULTS: IL-21 rs907715 genotype CC and C frequencies were higher in in patients with gastric precancerous lesions than in the controls (OR = 1.59, 95%CI: 1.06-2.38, P = 0.013; OR = 1.28, 95%CI: 1.01-2.22, P = 0.044, respectively) after adjusting for confounding factors. For SNP rs907715 in intestinal metaplasia patients, significant differences between cases and controls were observed in the frequencies of genotype CC and C (OR = 1.92, 95%CI: 1.24-2.98, P = 0.004; OR = 1.53, 95%CI: 1.04-2.24, P = 0.028, respectively); for non-atrophic gastritis and atrophic gastritis patients, the CC and C genotypes showed no significant association with risk in all models. No association between either rs2221903 or rs12508721 and gastric precancerous lesions was found in the present study. In the haplotype analysis, the TC haplotype (rs907715 and rs12508721) and TT haplotype (rs2221903 and rs907715) were more frequent in the case group than control group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that SNP rs907715 of IL-21 gene is associated with gastric precancerous lesions. The TC haplotype (rs907715 and rs12508721) and TT haplotype (rs2221903 and rs907715) increased the risk of gastric precancerous lesions. If confirmed, these findings will shed light on the etiology of precancerous lesions.