Japanese Journal of Hygiene最新文献

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship of the annual transition of implementation of nonsmoking at eating and drinking establishments with indices of population/household and economy/labor by prefecture.

Methods: The prefectural rates of eating and drinking establishments implementing nonsmoking (hereafter, nonsmoking rate) were computed in a year using the data from "Tabelog^®". Forty-seven prefectures were classified by hierarchical cluster analysis into "prefecture clusters" 1 to 5 in descending order of the median of nonsmoking rates. The indices of population/household (e.g., percentage of the population aged 65 years and over and percentage of nuclear family household) and economy/labor (e.g., prefectural income per capita and percentage of construction and mining workers) were classified by hierarchical cluster analysis into 11 "index clusters", and the representative index in each index cluster was extracted from the results of the Jonckheere-Terpstra test. An ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed using the numbers 1 to 5 of prefecture clusters as dependent variables and the indices representing the index clusters as independent variables.

Results: The percentage of the population aged 65 years and over and the percentage of construction and mining workers were positively related to the order of prefectural clusters.

Conclusions: To promote implementation of nonsmoking in eating and drinking establishments in prefectures especially in those with larger numbers of elderly people and construction and mining workers, it is important to inform the persons in charge that implementation of nonsmoking does not affect the number of customers.

Objectives: To identify the complex factors associated with anemia and overweight/obesity in pregnant Nepali women.

Methods: This study was conducted with 609 pregnant women who visited the Western Regional Hospital in Pokhara, Nepal, for maternal health checkups. We assessed their nutritional status on the basis of their responses to a questionnaire (socio-economic, demographic and health information using the Nepali version of the 14-item Health Literacy Scale), hemoglobin levels and body mass index (BMI). Data were analyzed and adjusted for confounding factors by binomial logistic regression analysis; this aided in identifying factors associated with anemia and overweight/obesity.

Results: The significant factor contributing to anemia is a low BMI (p=0.005, aOR=7.930, 95% CI=1.857, 33.870), followed by maternal age in the teens (p=0.000, aOR=3.018, 95% CI=1.852, 4.919). The significant factors contributing to overweight/obesity are household income, excluding the poorest (p=0.004, aOR=2.975, 95% CI=1.404, 6.303), followed by the presence of a nuclear family (p=0.000, aOR =2.156, 95% CI=1.493, 3.112). Functional literacy (p=0.005, aOR=1.045, 95% CI=1.013, 1.077) increases the risk of overweight/obesity, but critical literacy (p=0.009, aOR=0.819, 95% CI=0.705, 0.951) is a factor that buffers its onset.

Conclusions: The association of malnutrition with anemia and overweight/obesity has been confirmed in pregnant Nepali women, indicating the urgent need for new supports and improvements to nutrition. Nutrition education should be designed to take into consideration reproductive generation, as well as families with low health literacy.

Objectives: Traffic noise exposure is associated with adverse health effects such as environmental sleep disorder, ischaemic heart disease (IHD), stroke and diabetes. The health risks posed by traffic noise were estimated to be quite high in European countries. However, in Japan, no estimation has ever been conducted. In the present study, we estimated the health risk posed by road traffic noise in Japan.

Methods: We estimated the risks of environmental sleep disorder (high sleep disturbance) and IHD caused by road traffic noise in Japan as of 2015 on the basis of existing noise-exposure estimates, vital statistics of deaths, and patient survey with exposure-response relationships proposed by the Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region issued in 2018. We employed old information on noise exposure in 1994 because it is the only information currently available in Japan. We also estimated the health risks of noise exposure levels that were equivalent to the Japanese environmental quality standards.

Results: The estimated numbers of patients with environmental sleep disorder and IHD caused by road traffic noise were approximately 1,200,000 and 9,000, respectively. The estimated number of mortalities from IHD was approximately 1,700. The noise exposure level equivalent to the Japanese noise standards caused a lifetime mortality rate of more than 10^-2, which was extremely high as an environmental health risk.

Conclusions: As in European countries, road traffic noise was one of the most important environmental risk factors in Japan. However, the current Japanese noise standards are insufficient for the protection of public health.

Environmental problems are closely related to human activities, especially economic activities. Nevertheless, on a personal level, we do not face these problems and seem to avoid them. Why are environmental problems not taken seriously despite their urgency? As economic activities for self-profit, including money, are the essence of human behavior, we have hypothesized that, "selfishness and endless desire are the essence of human beings' instinct for survival, and as a result, environmental destruction occurs". In this paper, first, we describe through the prism of evolution how the "selfish gene" affects the survival of cells, individuals, and human society. At the same time, we detail how humans have developed the cerebrum, acquired intelligence, and developed science. Second, we describe the mechanism of modern capitalism and the global environmental situation at present. Third, we consider the relationship between human selfishness and environmental problems from three viewpoints: game theory, behavioral economics, and sociology. Finally, we propose countermeasures to environmental problems from three perspectives: social psychology, social system, and new technologies.

Objectives: Recently, attention has been paid to the impact of cigarette smoking on skeletal muscles, as its underlying pathophysiological mechanism has been gradually elucidated. In this study, we aimed to examine whether cigarette smoking is associated with muscle mass reduction and low muscle strength in elderly men.

Methods: The study participants comprised 417 community-dwelling elderly men (aged 73±6 years) without severe glucose intolerance, chronic kidney disease, or liver disease. Bioelectrical impedance analysis was performed to estimate appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM), which was normalized for height (ASM index, kg/m²). Handgrip strength (HGS) was measured using a Smedley grip dynamometer. Cumulative smoking exposure level during a lifetime was expressed in pack-years, which is a product of the average number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day and smoking duration in years.

Results: When the participants were stratified on the basis of cumulative smoking exposure (<10 pack-years, 10-39 pack-years, ≥40 pack-years), the ASM index and HGS progressively decreased with increasing exposure level (P for trend <0.01). In multiple regression analysis, heavy smoking (defined as ≥40 pack-years) was found to be a significant determinant of the ASM index and HGS, independent of potential confounding factors. Among former smokers, the subgroup that quit smoking for ≥20 years had a significantly higher ASM index and HGS than the subgroup that quit smoking for <10 years. The duration of smoking cessation was significantly associated with the ASM index and HGS, even after adjusting for cumulative smoking exposure.

Conclusions: These findings suggest that cigarette smoking contributes to the loss of muscle mass and function in elderly men and that smoking cessation could reverse the impact of cigarette smoking on skeletal muscles.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to clarify the factors related to attitudes toward responses to a stress survey in the Stress Check Program, which is used to screen for workers with high psychosocial stress at the workplace.

Methods: An anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted on 1,800 regular staff member of a financial industry (valid response rate: 72.0%). The questionnaire items were the brief job stress questionnaire (BJSQ), the sense of coherence (SOC-13), the Japanese version of the Utrecht work engagement scale (UWES-J), attitudes toward responses to the stress survey, and the concerns of subjects regarding the stress check program.

Results: The stress in interpersonal relationships at the workplace in the BJSQ, "concerns about leaking results to the company", "concerns about receiving persistent calls for an interview", and "concerns about a disadvantageous treatment by the company" were positively related to 'writing general truths', whereas the support from the boss in the BJSQ and the subscales of SOC-13 were negatively related to 'writing general truths'. The stress in interpersonal relationships at the workplace and "concerns about receiving persistent calls for an interview" were positively related to 'writing falsehoods', but the "dedication" in UWES-J was negatively related to 'writing falsehoods'.

Conclusions: To obtain authentic answers in the stress survey, it is important (1) to smooth relationships at the workplace, (2) to devise operation systems such as an interview guidance, and (3) to provide support that enhances the ability of workers to cope with stress and work engagement.

Objectives: We investigated the quality of life (QOL) of patients using the Free/Low-Cost Medical Care Program, which is a system that enables people in financial difficulities to receive treatment free of charge or at a low cost. We also investigated the background charateristics and lifestyle of the patients.

Methods: The subjects were 226 outpatients who used the Free/Low-Cost Medical Care Program (use group) and 226 outpatients who did not use the program (non-use group). The method was an anonymous cross-sectional servey by mail. The survey items included basic attributes, health-related QOL (HRQOL), feeling of being poor, lifestyle diseases, lifestyle, and connection with the community.

Results: The number of respondants with valid responses was 97 in the use group and 85 in the non-use group. Among the basic attributes, there were a significant differense between the use group and the non-use group in the family structure, type of work, household income, and educational background. The HRQOL scores of the physical and social summary components were significantly lower in the use group than in the non-use group. The HRQOL scores of mental summary component were higher than the national standard HRQOL score in both the use and non-use groups.

Conclusions: In this study, it was considered that old age affected the HRQOL scores of the physical and social components. It was considered from the HRQOL scores of the mental aspect that the use of the Free/Low-Cost Medical Care Program might have contributed to mental stability a certain to extent.

Objectives: In Japan, the vaccination for mumps has been on a voluntary basis since 1993 because of safety concerns arising from the high incidence of aseptic meningitis associated with Japanese mumps vaccine strains. However, recent reports on the voluntary mumps vaccination have described the decreased incidence of postvaccination aseptic meningitis for unknown reasons. To explore the underlying reason for this decrease, we analyzed the influence of echoviruses, the most common causative viruses for community-acquired aseptic meningitis, on the previously reported incidence of aseptic meningitis following mumps vaccination.

Methods: We used available data on the yearly number of cases of echovirus detection from the Infectious Agents Surveillance Reports issued by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases as well as previously reported nationwide data on the incidence of postvaccination aseptic meningitis.

Results: The incidence of postvaccination aseptic meningitis tended to be higher during the period of an echovirus epidemic and lower during the period without such as epidemic.

Conclusions: The present ecological trend analysis suggests the influence of echovirus epidemics on the previous reported incidence of aseptic meningitis following mumps vaccination. It is necessary to carry out a differential diagnosis of echovirus infection to identify the true causative viruses in aseptic meningitis following mumps vaccination.

Objectives: In this study, we aim to establish supportive measures for sustaining a healthy diet in students and young adults after graduating from high school by examining possible factors leading to changes in their daily nutrient consumption.

Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted among university, college, and vocational school students throughout the main island of Japan (total numbers of respondents with valid responses, 1,256) to evaluate their diets using a five-point scale. Two groups were selected based on the status of daily nutrient consumption. One group comprised 258 students who had maintained high nutrition scores (scored ≥ 4 points in all six primary food groups) since their third year in high school (maintained high-score group) and the other group comprised 250 students whose nutrition scores declined after high school (decreased-score group: scored high in the third year of high school but the scores decreased after admission to universities, colleges, and other institutes). By comparing these two groups, we investigated the possible factors affecting the decrease in nutrition scores.

Results: As the number of students in "the period of solitary living" and with the behavior of "skipping breakfast" increased, the proportion of students in the decreased-score group was found to increase. The eating behaviors that significantly differed between the students in the third year and those after graduating from high school were "skipping breakfast", "eating out", and "instant food intake" in the decreased-score group in both genders.

Conclusion: Results of this study indicate that we must promote measures that address the factors affecting nutrition intake after high school graduation.