Effect of fast-food environments on children's eating behaviour:A random effect within between analysis within the Generation R Study

Background:Focussing on appetitive traits associated with obesity, this study aimed to estimate the association between the fast-food environment and satiety responsiveness, enjoyment of food and food responsiveness.Methods:We used data from the Generation R Study. We included 2008 children with repeated measurements at the age of 4-10 years old. Three eating behaviour subscales from the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ) were used as outcomes. Geographical Information System data were used to map individual-level exposure to fast-food outlets within 400 m from home. Random Effect Within Between (REWB) models were used to derive estimates. We tested for moderation of the associations with parental restriction at baseline using the parent-reported Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ).Results:We did not find evidence of between-associations of fast-food exposure and eating behaviour subscales. Considering within-associations, an increase in absolute fast-food exposure was associated with a significant marginal increase in satiety responsiveness (beta: 0.02 [95% confidence interval: 0.00-0.03]). No moderation by parental restriction was found.Conclusions:In environments with ubiquitous fast-food outlets, an increased exposure to fast-food outlets does not seem to have a substantial impact on eating behaviour. Further research is needed to better understand how fast-food exposure contributes to overweight

Systematic Development of the YouRAction program, a computer-tailored Physical Activity promotion intervention for Dutch adolescents, targeting personal motivations and environmental opportunities

Background. Increasing physical activity (PA) among adolescents is an important health promotion goal. PA has numerous positive health effects, but the majority of Dutch adolescents do not meet PA requirements. The present paper describes the systematic development of a theory-based computer-tailored intervention, YouRAction, which targets individual and environmental factors determining PA among adolescents. Design. The intervention development was guided by the Intervention Mapping protocol, in order to define clear program objectives, theoretical methods and practical strategies, ensure systematic program planning and pilot-testing, and anticipate on implementation and evaluation. Two versions of YouRAction were developed: one that targets individual determinants and an extended version that also provides feedback on opportunities to be active in the neighbourhood. Key determinants that were targeted included: knowledge and awareness, attitudes, self-efficacy and subjective norms. The extended version also addressed perceived availability of neighbourhood PA facilities. Both versions aimed to increase levels of moderate-to-vigorous PA among adolescents. The intervention structure was based on self-regulation theory, comprising of five steps in the process of successful goal pursuit. Monitoring of PA behaviour and behavioural and normative feedback were used to increase awareness of PA behaviour; motivation was enhanced by targeting self-efficacy and attitudes, by means of various interactive strategies, such as web movies; the perceived environment was targeted by visualizing opportunities to be active in an interactive geographical map of the home environment; in the goal setting phase, the adolescents were guided in setting a goal and developing an action plan to achieve this goal; in the phase of active goal pursuit adolescents try to achieve their goal and in the evaluation phase the achievements are evaluated. Based on the results of the evaluation adolescents could revise their goal or choose another behaviour to focus on. The intervention is delivered in a classroom setting in three lessons. YouRAction will be evaluated in a cluster-randomized trial, with classes as unit of randomization. Evaluation will focus on PA outcomes, cognitive mediators/moderators and process measures. Discussion. The planned development of YouRAction resulted in two computer-tailored interventions aimed at the promotion of PA in a Dutch secondary school setting. Trial registration. NTR1923

Childhood socioeconomic position and adult leisure-time physical activity: A systematic review

Regular leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) benefits health and is thought to be less prevalent in lower socioeconomic groups. Evidence suggests that childhood socioeconomic circumstances can impact on adult health and behaviour however, it is unclear if this includes an influence on adult LTPA. This review tested the hypothesis that a lower childhood socioeconomic position (SEP) is associated with less frequent LTPA during adulthood. Studies were located through a systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL and SPORTDiscus and by searching reference lists. Eligible studies were English-language publications testing the association between any indicator of childhood SEP and an LTPA outcome measured during adulthood. Forty-five papers from 36 studies, most of which were European, were included. In most samples, childhood SEP and LTPA were self-reported in midlife. Twenty-two studies found evidence to support the review’s hypothesis and thirteen studies found no association. Accounting for own adult SEP partly attenuated associations. There was more evidence of an association in British compared with Scandinavian cohorts and in women compared with men. Results did not vary by childhood SEP indicator or age at assessment of LTPA. This review found evidence of an association between less advantaged childhood SEP and less frequent LTPA during adulthood. Understanding how associations vary by gender and place could provide insights into underlying pathways

Gas-Liquid Solubilities of Carbon Monoxide, Carbon Dioxide,Hydrogen, Water, 1-Alcohols (1 .ltoreq. n .ltoreq. 6), and n-Paraffins (2 .ltoreq. n .ltoreq. 6) in Hexadecane, Octacosane, 1-Hexadecanol, Phenanthrene, and Tetraethylene Glycol at Pressures up to 5.5 MPa and Temperatures from 293 to 553 K

The gas-liquid solubilities of the solutes carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, water, ethane, propane, pentane, hexane, methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, 1-butanol, 1-pentanol, and 1-hexanol in the solvents tetraethylene glycol, hexadecane, octacosane, 1-hexadecanol, and phenanthrene were measured as a function of temperature. The solutes are all reactants or products relevant for synthesis gas conversion into alcohols and/or hydrocarbons. The solvents are seen as potentially attractive for synthesis gas conversion via gas-slurry processes. Experimental conditions varied between 293 and 553 K and 0.06 and 5.5 MPa, covering typical process conditions for synthesis gas conversion. The total set of experimental results consists of 1533 gas-liquid solubilities divided over 60 binary systems. As far as we know hardly any of the gas-liquid solubilities from this set have been reported previously in the literature. Where literature data are available, a comparison is made with our data. This comparison always shows an agreement within the calculated experimental errors with an average deviation of 7.6% and a maximal deviation of 15.0%

Aerobic cometabolic degradation of chlorinated ethenes in a two step system

Many of the chlorinated ethenes (CEs) can aerobically only be converted by cometabolism, a process in which the organism converts the contaminant that it cannot use for growth as a result of the nonspecificity of one of its enzymes. For bioremediation systems, the methanotroph Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b seems to be the best choice. Based on both experimental data on the toxicity of the cometabolic conversion products and engineering considerations, it is concluded that a two step system in which growth is separated from CE conversion is practically the most feasible. Reactor choice is considered and modelling studies are performed. If for the main design parameters (influent biomass concentration, residence time, temperature and mixing properties of the conversion reactor) optimal values are chosen, good performance is obtainable