Lifestyle factors influencing bone health in young adult women in Saudi Arabia

Aim: To analyze risk factors leading to osteopenia and osteoporosis among young female students.Methods: Quantitative Ultrasonography measurements were performed in the calcaneal region of 101 young Saudi females. Dietary habits, exercising and sun exposure were assessed using questionnaires. The association between the different studied factors was assessed by Pearson test and multiple linear regression model.Results: Participants diagnosed with either osteopenia or osteoporosis (>33%.) showed significant higher soft drinks consumption, reduced exercise, limited intake of milk and dairy products, calcium and vitamin D supplementation compared to the healthy group. Multiple regression analysis showed that T-score and Z-score were negatively associated with soft drink intake and positively associated with exercising, milk and dairy products consumption, and calcium and vitamin D supplementation use (p <0.05)Conclusion: High soft drink intake, lack of exercising and limited calcium and vitamin D supplementation are the combined lifestyle factors leading to osteopenia and osteoporosis among young Saudi females. These findings might serve as a basis of nutrition education intervention to promote healthy bones among this population.Keywords: Lifestyle factors, osteoporosis, osteopenia, young women, Saudi Arab

Lifestyle factors influencing bone health in young adult women in Saudi Arabia.

Aim: To analyze risk factors leading to osteopenia and osteoporosis among young female students. Methods: Quantitative Ultrasonography measurements were performed in the calcaneal region of 101 young Saudi females. Dietary habits, exercising and sun exposure were assessed using questionnaires. The association between the different studied factors was assessed by Pearson test and multiple linear regression model. Results: Participants diagnosed with either osteopenia or osteoporosis (>33%.) showed significant higher soft drinks consumption, reduced exercise, limited intake of milk and dairy products, calcium and vitamin D supplementation compared to the healthy group. Multiple regression analysis showed that T-score and Z-score were negatively associated with soft drink intake and positively associated with exercising, milk and dairy products consumption, and calcium and vitamin D supplementation use (p <0.05) Conclusion: High soft drink intake, lack of exercising and limited calcium and vitamin D supplementation are the combined lifestyle factors leading to osteopenia and osteoporosis among young Saudi females. These findings might serve as a basis of nutrition education intervention to promote healthy bones among this population

Degree-Granting Nutrition Programs in the Republic of Yemen: A Status Report on Postsecondary Education

Yemen is noted as one of the most food-insecure countries in the Arab world coupled with high rates of malnutrition. To address the public health outcomes related to nutrition, trained nutrition professionals are needed. This report provides a snapshot of current nutrition-affiliated programs offered in postsecondary institutions in Yemen. Partnering with or creating independent organizations responsible for defining the scope of practice is warranted. Additionally, ensuring educational quality, program accreditation, and competence of graduating students and readiness to practice will be central to progressively moving Yemen’s dietetics profession forward

Stigmatisation of Obesity and its Relation to the Perception of Controllability in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

Objectives: This study assessed the stigmatisation of obesity among a sample of the general population in Riyadh and its association with the perception of controllability. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during January–February 2021 and included 384 participants who were recruited through a convenience sampling method. The data were collected using a self-administrated online questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using John’s Macintosh Project Version 16.0.0. Results: Most of the participants had a low level of stigma towards obesity (72.8%), and gender and BMI were significantly associated with the level of stigma at (p = .0023) and (p = .0360) respectively. The association between the perception of controllable factors and the level of stigma was also significant (p = 0.0001). Conclusions: The data supported the hypothesis that there would be a significant association between stigmatisation on obesity and perception of controllability among the general population in Riyadh City. Regarding recommendations, the authors suggest that they should be based on joint international consensus statements for ending the stigma of obesity in different settings and categories, and should include the education of healthcare service providers and obese patients on the relationships shown in the findings. Keywords: Obesity, stigmatisation, perceptio

Farm-to-school nutrition programs with special reference to Egypt and Morocco

The United States’ Farm-To-School Program (F2SP) is a competitive grant program that targets participants of the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program with the aim of increasing the quantity and frequency of locally sourced fruits and vegetables offered to children during the school year. This narrative review aims to summarize the outcomes of the F2SP’s interventions on child health and wellness using the research available to date and provide points to consider when implementing the F2SP outside of the United States, particularly in Egypt and Morocco. Analysis of the existing literature showed that both Egypt and Morocco have been beneficiaries of their aid and have seen improvements in the number of children receiving meals at school. With its centralized school meals system, and with support from the World Food Programme (WFP), Egypt has the infrastructure to set up and sustain a long term F2SP that will enrich local communities, grow local economies, and support the health of the next generation. As the WFP continues its work in Morocco, the focus should be maintained on developing a strong school meals system and addressing immediate food insecurity. The viability of such a program being implemented should be reassessed once outcomes from current hunger relief efforts become available. Additional research is needed to continue to study the feasibility, applicability, and impact of this program, especially as it would be applied in areas with no centralized school meals programs across North Africa

A Scoping Review of Breastfeeding Interventions and Programs Conducted Across Spanish-Speaking Countries.

Breastfeeding is vital to a child's lifelong health and has significant positive benefits to mother's health. World Health Organization recommends beginning exclusively breastfeeding within the first hour after birth and continuing during the first 6 months of infant's life. The purpose of this review is to identify and examine breastfeeding interventions conducted across the Spanish-speaking countries. A scoping review of the literature was conducted across 14 databases for relevant publications published through April 2023 to find studies in Spanish-speaking countries that involved breastfeeding as an intervention component. A total of 46 peer-reviewed articles were included in this review, across 12 Spanish-speaking countries. Participants ranged from pregnant women, mothers, mother-infant pair, and health care professionals. Intervention at the individual level in combination with support from trained health care professionals or peer counselors seemed to have higher improvements in breastfeeding rates. The greatest improvement in exclusively breastfeeding for 6 months was seen in interventions that included prenatal and postnatal intensive lactation education, for a period of 12 months. The most effective interventions that improved rates of any breastfeeding included promotional activities, educations workshop, and training of health care staff along with changes in hospital care. Breastfeeding promotion is an economical and effective intervention to increase breastfeeding behavior and thereby improving breastfeeding adherence across Spanish-speaking countries

Video clips of the Mediterranean Diet on YouTube TM: A social Media Content Analysis

Purpose The present study conducted a social media content analysis on videos describing the Mediterranean Diet (MedDiet) posted onYouTube. Setting YouTube TM online video sharing and social media platform. Method Three independent content experts evaluated 141 YouTube videos on the MedDiet in August 2020 utilizing standard rubric and protocol. Data abstracted include media source(s) of posted videos, and viewer exposure/engagement metrics. Information quality was measured by each content expert independently through use of the DISCERN instrument, a 16-item tool designed to assess reliability, dependability, and trustworthiness of an online source, scores were then aggregated for analysis. Results A majority of videos (n = 102, 72.3%) were educational in nature. A third of videos were less clear and less credible on information presented (n = 46, 32.6%). Most videos were posted by an individual (n = 79, 56%), and the majority of videos were rated as medium quality (n = 88, 62.4%). Overall level of user engagement as measured by number of “likes,” “dislikes,” and user comments varied widely across all sources of media. Exploratory correlation analysis suggests that the number of a video’s views, comments, likes, and dislikes are not correlated with quality. Conclusion Study findings suggest that MedDiet health promotion and education via YouTube has the potential to reach and inform clients; however, existing video content and quality varies significantly. Future intervention research focused on MedDiet should further examine possible predictors of high quality MedDiet content utilizing diverse online video sharing platforms

Nutrition Programs of Higher Education in the Occupied Palestinian Territories: A Descriptive Snapshot

This report stresses the importance of promoting capacity building and training of nutritionists and dietitians as vital strategies in addressing nutrition-related health problems and improving health outcomes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). Higher education institutions play a vital role in this process. The report identifies degree-granting nutrition programs available in OPT in both Arabic and English by carrying out an electronic review of universities and college websites, department web links, and academic program home pages. Out of the 52 accredited institutions in the OPT, 10 offered nutrition degree programs of which four are located in the Gaza Strip and six in the West Bank. Nutrition-affiliated programs included bachelor’s degrees in nutrition sciences and public health, health nutrition, nutrition and food technology, nutrition and dietetics, therapeutic nutrition, and nutrition and food processing. Two universities offered a master’s degree in clinical nutrition in addition to a bachelor’s program. None of the selected educational institutions offered a doctoral degree program. The number of universities in OPT offering bachelor’s degree in nutrition affiliated programs is relatively high as compared to neighboring Arab countries. Additional development of graduate programs to strengthen the dietetics/nutrition profession in OPT is warranted. </jats:p

Peer-reviewed Nutrition-Affiliated Journals from Sub-Saharan Africa: A Regional Snapshot.

BACKGROUND: Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries face the multipart burden of nutrition-related disease characterized by a high incidence of undernutrition, overweight, obesity, and associated non-communicable disease. Local and regional research to support a robust public health response is necessary. No evaluation of the availability and scope of nutrition-related journals within SSA has been published. METHODS: An electronic search for peer-reviewed journals was conducted using seven publicly accessible databases. RESULTS: Ten journals were identified including journals from Kenya (4 journals), Nigeria (3 journals), South Africa (2 journals), and Ghana (1 journal) with eight journals in active production. All actively publishing journals are available only as English publications. CONCLUSION: An increased focus on evidence-based research through local and regional journal publications is necessary to develop and maintain public health nutrition programs. Active journals related to nutrition and food sciences are very limited in this comparatively large area and require more support at local, regional, and legislative levels

Mosques and Public Health Promotion: A Scoping Review of Faith-Driven Health Interventions.

BACKGROUND: Religious institutions play a crucial role in health promotion and hold significant influence in the public health field. AIM: The aim of this review is to examine outcomes of health-promoting interventions involving the use of mosques as the intervention venue, its role in promoting health behavior change, and the role of theory in each intervention. METHODS: A scoping review was conducted across 17 databases for relevant publications published up to and including August 2023 that involved the use of mosques as the intervention venue. Fourteen articles met inclusion criteria and were reviewed. RESULTS: The studies featured a wide range of interventions. However, only eight of these studies integrated theoretical frameworks into their approaches, indicating a need for more structured guidance in this field. These theoretical frameworks included Participatory Action Research (PAR), the theory of planned behavior, behavior-change constructs, the patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR) framework, and prolonged exposure techniques within Islamic principles. The review identified three main health-focused intervention categories: mental health, prevention, and communication, each providing valuable insights into initiatives within Muslim communities. CONCLUSIONS: This review underscores the significance of inclusive and culturally sensitive health interventions, emphasizing the effectiveness of faith-based approaches in improving health outcomes, promoting positive health behaviors, and addressing communication and cultural barriers. The reviews findings stress the need for further research that incorporates theoretical frameworks and tailored interventions to meet the specific cultural needs of these communities, ultimately contributing to enhanced well-being within them