Early impact of a new food store intervention on health-related outcomes

Neighbourhood food environments influence what people choose to eat and consequently affect their health. Literature suggests that having supermarkets/grocery stores with healthier food options in a neighbourhood supports intake of healthy food as opposed to having abundance of fast food and convenience stores. This thesis systematically reviewed published literature on new food store interventions on health-related outcomes (manuscript 1), and examined early health-related impact of a community-based food intervention in Saskatoon (manuscript 2). The systematic review addressed the question ‘How do new food store (supermarket/grocery store) interventions influence health-related outcomes in adults?’ The review followed the guidelines recommended by the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) and identified 11 records representing 7 interventions. The methodological quality rating found that 6 studies were of ‘weak’ methodological quality, one was of ‘moderate’ and two studies had ‘strong’ methodological quality. Relevant outcomes reported by these studies were fruit and vegetable consumption, self-rated health, psychological health, BMI, perceptions of food access, and household food availability. Of these outcomes, perceptions of food access and psychological health showed significant improvement; however, other outcomes showed mixed results. A prospective longitudinal study was conducted to investigate the health-related impact of a new food store in a former food desert in Saskatoon. One hundred and fifty-six shoppers of the new food store were followed-up repeatedly and their health-related outcomes were assessed using a questionnaire. A generalized estimating equations approach was used for data analysis. Study participants were mainly female, Aboriginal, of low income, and had high school and some post-secondary education. They showed dose-response associations between the frequency of use of the new grocery store and the odds of reporting household food security, mental health, and BMI over time, and these associations were significantly modified by participants’ level of education, household income, and pre-existing chronic conditions, respectively. Further, having multiple disadvantaged conditions (Aboriginal ethnicity, seniors, low-income and low-education) significantly modified the effect of the new grocery store use on participants’ mental health. Although the systematic review suggested that previous studies yielded conflicting findings, this thesis research revealed convincing results. In contrast to the limited body of literature, this study found that when the shopping frequency is taken into account, the new grocery store did have a positive effect on mitigating household food security, mental health, and BMI. Further, socioeconomic status, multiple disadvantage, and previous chronic diseases moderate these effects. The results are valuable to advance the knowledge in food environment interventions research

Study on Differences Among Online Consumer Groups based on Factors Affecting Online Purchase Intention

An online purchase intention and behaviour model was empirically tested in this study among both online buyers and online non buyers in the context of search goods and experience goods. The focus of this exploratory research was to have an understanding regarding consumers’ online purchasing intentions and behaviours against existing attitudes towards online purchasing, demographic factors and existing ‘technology use’ and ‘access’. Data for the survey was collected through an online questionnaire to a purposive sample. Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze data. Findings of the study revealed that the consumer factor and the marketing factor remained significant between the three groups namely online store visitors, online store browsers, and online buyers. In addition to that among the online buyers marketing factor failed to remain significant against the type of goods purchased whether ‘experience goods’ or ‘search goods’

Enhanced Thermoelectric Power and Electronic Correlations in RuSe2_2

We report the electronic structure, electric and thermal transport properties of Ru$_{1-x}$Ir$_{x}$Se$_2$ ($x \leq 0.2$). RuSe$_2$ is a semiconductor that crystallizes in a cubic pyrite unit cell. The Seebeck coefficient of RuSe$_2$ exceeds -200 $\mu$V/K around 730 K. Ir substitution results in the suppression of the resistivity and the Seebeck coefficient, suggesting the removal of the peaks in density of states near the Fermi level. Ru$_{0.8}$Ir$_{0.2}$Se$_{2}$ shows a semiconductor-metal crossover at about 30 K. The magnetic field restores the semiconducting behavior. Our results indicate the importance of the electronic correlations in enhanced thermoelectricity of RuSb$_{2}$.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Giant spontaneous magnetostriction in MnTe driven by a novel magnetostructural coupling mechanism

We present a comprehensive x-ray scattering study of spontaneous magnetostriction in hexagonal MnTe, an antiferromagnetic semiconductor with a Neel temperature of $T_{\mathrm{N}} = 307$ K. We observe the largest spontaneous magnetovolume effect known for an antiferromagnet, reaching a volume contraction of $|\Delta V/V| > 7 \times 10^{-3}$. This can be justified semiquantitatively by considering bulk material properties, the spatial dependence of the superexchange interaction, and the geometrical arrangement of magnetic moments in MnTe. The highly unusual linear scaling of the magnetovolume effect with the short-range magnetic correlations, beginning in the paramagnetic state well above $T_{\mathrm{N}}$, points to a novel physical mechanism, which we explain in terms of a trilinear coupling of the elastic strain with superposed distinct domains of the antiferromagnetic order parameter. This novel mechanism for coupling lattice strain to robust short-range magnetic order casts new light on magnetostrictive phenomena and also provides a template by which the exceptional magnetostrictive properties of MnTe might be realized in a wide range of other functional materials.Comment: Submitted May 11, 202