The Ottoman Hammam Al-Ward in Saida, Lebanon

Hammam Al-Ward is an Ottoman monument in Saida. Siada (or Sidon) is a coastal city in Lebanon and a hidden treasure with numerous Mamluk and Ottoman monuments. These monuments are of various types, from mosques to hammams to palaces and khans. They remain unstudied and at times undocumented. This is an architectural monograph of Hammam Al-Ward placed within the urban history of the city and the social practices of its inhabitants. Through documentation and comparative analysis, the paper argues that the hammam was built during the early eighteenth century but carries within it an old tradition of building that dates back to the Mamluk period and an old socio-spatial practice that dates back to Roman times. The article investigates and presents the urban condition that unfolds through the hammam patronage, style and location, the architectural interpretation of the hammam type of the Mediterranean Arab World and the socio-spatial practices of bathing and leisure that continue till modern times

Prevalence of Energy Drinks Consumption among Adolescents and Young Adults in Makkah, KSA

Energy drinks are a carbonated beverage containing high amount of caffeine and sugar as well as added vitamins and other substances. Objective: to estimate the prevalence of energy drink consumption among adolescents and young adults in Makkah, KSA. Methods: cross sectional study was conducted during the academic year 1437 H. The study included 1190 participants. A convenience sample of 1190 participants (521 female – 669 male) were recruited of the study. They were categorized into two groups based on their age; group 1: 575adolescents (12-19 year) and group 2: 615young adults, aged (˃19-25 year). Self-administered questionnaire was used to assess the prevalence of energy drink consumption. Questionnaire included five items: a) Demographic characteristics; b) Anthropometric measurements; c) Food Habits; d)Knowledge and believes; and E) Medical history. All analyses were conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) program, Version 20.0.Differences between males and females in respect of frequency of energy drinks intake were assessed by conducting a Chi-Square test. P- Value of less than 0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance. Results: nearly half of the participants (46.73%) were consume energy drink. About (33.33%) from young adults male were consumed energy drinks while driving. Among young adult male who consumed energy drink, about 27.2% were drank more than 2 cans per day. 43.88% of young adult male were drank energy drink in the exam period. The most favorite energy drink was Code Red. Conclusion: energy drinks consumption is common practice among adolescents and young adults in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. We recommend further studies to evaluate the side effects of energy drinks consumption and factors that increase the consumption between adolescents and young adults. Also we recommend that handling of energy drinks to be under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. Keywords: Energy drinks, Adolescents, Young adult

The adiponectin gene, ADIPOQ, and genetic susceptibility to colon cancer

In order to evaluate the contribution of polymorphisms of the adiponectin gene, ADIPOQ, to the risk of colon cancer, we conducted a case-control study of 60 colon cancer patients and 60 age, gender and ethnicity-matched controls in the Saudi population. We tested the hypothesis by analyzing the genotypes for two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs1501299 (G276T) and rs2241766 (T45G), in the ADIPOQ gene. In addition, the study was also designed to assess whether the two SNPs contribute to circulating adiponectin levels. We observed an increased risk of colon cancer associated with the 276T allele. The odds ratio (OR) was 2.64 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.49–14.6]. The G allele at the T45G polymorphism was associated with a lower risk of colon cancer (OR=0.41; 95% CI, 0.19–0.86). Our results suggest that the risk of developing colon cancer may be partially explained by genetic polymorphisms in the ADIPOQ gene