Behavior and weight correlates of weight-control efforts in Australian women living in disadvantage : the READI study

BackgroundWith increasing obesity rates worldwide, more and more people are actively attempting to lose weight or avoid weight gain, but relatively little is known about what specific behaviors comprise these efforts and which, if any, are associated with better weight control over time.MethodsThis paper reports relationships between body weight, weight-control efforts and related behaviors over a three-year period in 1,634 Australian women. The women were purposefully recruited from 80 disadvantaged neighborhoods in Victoria, Australia. Weight loss efforts were categorized as trying to lose weight, trying to prevent weight gain and no weight-control efforts. Behavioral correlates examined included different kinds of physical activity and consumption of a number of specific foods types.Results and discussionSelf-reported body weight at baseline was higher in women trying to lose weight. Frequency of consumption of low energy density foods was positively associated with reported weight-control efforts, as was frequency of reported total and leisure-time physical activity. Longitudinal associations between changes in weight-control efforts and changes in behaviors were consistent with the cross-sectional findings. At three-year follow up, however, weight-control efforts were not associated with change in body weight. More detailed analyses of specific food choices suggested that part of the explanation of no effect of reported weight-control efforts and weight over time might be that people are not as well-informed as they should be about the energy density of some common foods. In particular, those reporting engagement in weight-control efforts reported reducing consumption of carbohydrate-containing foods such as bread and potatoes more than is justified by their energy content, while they reported increasing consumption of some high energy density foods (e.g., cheese and nuts).ConclusionIt is tentatively concluded that women living in disadvantaged neighborhoods understand messages about weight-control (more activity and foods with lower fat and lower energy density) but that some foods eaten more by women engaged in weight control may reduce the effectiveness of these efforts.<br /

Associations between psychological stress, eating, physical activity, sedentary behaviours and body weight among women: a longitudinal study

Background:&nbsp;There is an increased risk of obesity amongst socioeconomically disadvantaged populations and emerging evidence suggests that psychological stress may be a key factor in this relationship. This paper reports the results of cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of relationships between perceived stress, weight and weight-related behaviours in a cohort of socioeconomically disadvantaged women. Methods. This study used baseline and follow-up self-report survey data from the Resilience for Eating and Activity Despite Inequality study, comprising a cohort of 1382 women aged 18 to 46 years from 80 of the most socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Victoria, Australia. Women reported their height (baseline only), weight, sociodemographic characteristics, perceived stress, leisure-time physical activity, sedentary and dietary behaviours at baseline and three-year follow-up. Linear and multinomial logistic regression were used to examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between stress (predictor) and weight, and weight-related behaviours. Results: Higher perceived stress in women was associated with a higher BMI, and to increased odds of being obese in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Cross-sectional and longitudinal associations were found between stress and both less leisure-time physical activity, and more frequent fast food consumption. Longitudinal associations were also found between stress and increased television viewing time. Conclusion: The present study contributes to the literature related to the effects of stress on weight and weight-related behaviours. The findings suggest that higher stress levels could contribute to obesity risk in women. Further research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms underlying these associations. However, interventions that incorporate stress management techniques might help to prevent rising obesity rates among socioeconomically disadvantaged women.</div

Personal, social and environmental correlates of healthy weight status amongst mothers from socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods: findings from the READI study

BackgroundSocioeconomically disadvantaged mothers are at high risk of obesity, yet the aetiology of obesity in this group remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to examine the perceived personal, social and physical environmental factors associated with resilience to obesity among mothers from socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods.MethodsSurvey data were provided by a cohort of 1840 women aged 18-46 years with dependent children (aged 0-18 years) from 40 urban and 40 rural socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods across Victoria, Australia. Mothers responded to a number of questions relating to personal, social and environmental influences on their physical activity and eating habits. Mothers\u27 weight status was classified as healthy weight (BMI: 18.5-24.99), overweight (BMI: 25-29.99) or obese (BMI: 30+).ResultsMothers\u27 weight status was bivariably associated with factors from all three domains (personal, social and physical environmental). In a multivariable model, mothers\u27 perceived ability to make time for healthy eating (OR = 1.34) and physical activity (OR = 1.11) despite family commitments, and the frequency with which families ate healthy low-fat foods with mothers (OR = 1.28) remained significantly positively associated with healthy weight status. The frequency with which families encouraged eating healthy low-fat foods remained negatively associated (OR = 0.81) with weight status; ie greater encouragement was associated with less healthy weight status.ConclusionsDrawing on the characteristics of mothers resilient to obesity might assist in developing intervention strategies to help other mothers in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighbourhoods to manage their weight. Such strategies might focus on planning for and prioritising time for healthy eating and physical activity behaviours, and including family members in and encouraging family mealtimes.<br /

Is park visitation associated with leisure-time and transportation physical activity?

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to examine whether frequency of park visitation was associated with time spent in various domains of physical activity among adults living in a disadvantaged neighbourhood of Victoria, Australia.MethodsIn 2009, participants (n = 319) self-reported park visitation and physical activity including: walking and cycling for transport, leisure-time walking, leisure-time moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity, and total physical activity.ResultsThe mean number of park visits per week was 3.3 (SD = 3.8). Park visitation was associated with greater odds of engaging in high (as compared to low) amounts of transportation physical activity, leisure-time walking, leisure-time moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) and total physical activity. Each additional park visit per week was associated with 23% greater odds of being in the high category for transportation physical activity, 26% greater odds of engaging in high amounts of leisure-time walking, 11% greater odds of engaging in MVPA, and 40% greater odds of high total physical activity.ConclusionsAcknowledging the cross-sectional study design, the findings suggest that park visitation may be an important predictor and/or destination for transportation and leisure-time walking and physical activity. Findings highlight the potentially important role of parks for physical activity

Evaluating the performance of past climate model projections

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2020. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Research Letters 47(1), (2020): e2019GL085378, doi:10.1029/2019GL085378.Retrospectively comparing future model projections to observations provides a robust and independent test of model skill. Here we analyze the performance of climate models published between 1970 and 2007 in projecting future global mean surface temperature (GMST) changes. Models are compared to observations based on both the change in GMST over time and the change in GMST over the change in external forcing. The latter approach accounts for mismatches in model forcings, a potential source of error in model projections independent of the accuracy of model physics. We find that climate models published over the past five decades were skillful in predicting subsequent GMST changes, with most models examined showing warming consistent with observations, particularly when mismatches between model‐projected and observationally estimated forcings were taken into account.Z. H. conceived the project, Z. H. and H. F. D. created the figures, and Z. H., H. F. D., T. A., and G. S. helped gather data and wrote the article text. A public GitHub repository with code used to analyze the data and generate figures and csv files containing the data shown in the figures is available online (https://github.com/hausfath/OldModels). Additional information on the code and data used in the analysis can be found in the supporting information. We would like to thank Piers Forster for providing the ensemble of observationally‐informed radiative forcing estimates. No dedicated funding from any of the authors supported this project.2020-06-0

The effect of Shamanic-like stimulus conditions and the cognitive-perceptual factor of schizotypy on phenomenology

Shamanism has remained an integral part of indigenous healing rituals since ancient times and is currently attracting interest as a complementary therapeutic technique in psychology. Recently, shamanic-like techniques have been used to facilitate changes in the phenomenology of nonshamans. However, such research has largely been delimited to a single shamanic-like technique (i.e., drumming), and the role of personality traits with regards to receptivity to this technique has been neglected. The purpose of the present study was to investigate experimentally the effect of different shamanic-like techniques and the cognitive-perceptual factor of the schizotypy construct on phenomenology. One hundred and four non-shamans were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: Drumming, Ganzfeld, or Sitting Quietly with Eyes Open. Participants\u27 phenomenology was assessed using the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory, Phenomenology associated with shamanic-like techniques appeared to be statistically significantly different from phenomenology associated with sitting quietly with eyes open. Furthermore, high cognitive-perceptual participants reported significant alterations in phenomenology compared to their low cognitive-perceptual counterparts. Methodological shortcomings of the present study are discussed and suggestions for future research are advanced.<br /

Work-related physical activity and psychological distress among women in different occupations : a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Recent evidence suggests that work-related physical activity may not have the same mental health benefits as leisure-time physical activity. Further, work-related physical activity is likely to include a variety of different behaviours for people with different occupations. As such, the aim of this study was to determine if occupation type moderated the association between work-related physical activity and psychological distress. METHODS: A randomly selected sample of 1080 women from Melbourne, Australia completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30), and reported their current occupation. RESULTS: Linear regression analyses indicated that occupation significantly moderated the association between work-related walking and psychological distress (F [8, 55] = 2.26, p = .036). Given evidence of moderation, we fitted linear regression models to test the associations between work-related physical activity and psychological distress for three separate groups; professionals, sales and services workers, and tradespersons. Female tradespersons who engaged in a low (B = - 3.81, p = .006) or high amount of work-related walking (B = - 3.23, p = .029), had significantly lower psychological distress symptoms than those who engaged in no work-related walking. There were no significant associations between work-related physical activity of any intensity and psychological distress for professionals, or sales and service workers. CONCLUSIONS: Given the relationship does not exist across all occupations, work-related physical activity should not be promoted above and beyond leisure-time physical activity. However, walking at work may be important in reducing psychological distress for some people and should therefore, not be discounted

Is healthy behavior contagious: associations of social norms with physical activity and healthy eating

BackgroundSocial norms are theoretically hypothesized to influence health-related behaviors such as physical activity and eating behaviors. However, empirical evidence relating social norms to these behaviors, independently of other more commonly-investigated social constructs such as social support, is scarce and findings equivocal, perhaps due to limitations in the ways in which social norms have been conceptualized and assessed. This study investigated associations between clearly-defined social norms and a range of physical activity and eating behaviors amongst women, adjusting for the effects of social support. MethodsSelf-report survey data about particular physical activity (leisure-time moderate-vigorous activity; volitional walking; cycling for transport) and eating behaviors (fast food, soft drink and fruit and vegetable consumption), and social norms and support for these, were provided by 3,610 women aged 18-46 years living in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods in Victoria, Australia. ResultsResults of regression analyses showed that social norms for physical activity and eating behaviors predicted these respective behaviors relatively consistently; these associations generally remained significant after adjustment for social support. ConclusionsAcknowledging the cross-sectional study design, these data confirm theoretical accounts of the importance of social norms for physical activity and eating behaviors, and suggest that this is independent from social support. Intervention strategies aimed at promoting physical activity and healthy eating could incorporate strategies aimed at modifying social norms relating to these behaviors.<br /

Prevalence and stability of active play, restricted movement and television viewing in infants

This study describes engagement in and stability of physical activity and sedentary behaviours in early life, and assesses associations with sex, maternal education and developmental stage. Maternal-report data at child age 4, 9 and 20 months were collected from 542 families in the Melbourne Infant Feeding Activity and Nutrition Trial Program. Parents estimated average time per day their child spent in active pursuits or pursuits that restricted movement. With increasing age, children generally spent more time in active pursuits and watching television, and less time in situations that restrict movement. Associations were found with age of developmental milestone attainment but not sex or maternal education. Stability over time was strongest for television viewing (&beta; = 0.34&ndash;0.38) and time spent outdoors (&beta; = 0.27&ndash;0.33). Contrary to guidelines, television viewing increased and showed stability, suggesting a need to target this behaviour very early in life to achieve optimal longer term outcomes