Exploration of Gender Portrayals in Marvel Comics

Comic books have been a major part of American pop culture since around the 1930s. These comic books depicted ordinary people who, through some sort of accident or happenstance, gained superpowers. People who could lift cars over their heads or leap over buildings in a single bound. Comic books have a long history. The history of comics is divided into six ages: the Golden Age, the Silver Age, the Bronze Age, the Plastic Age, the Revival Age, and the present. There have been many different comic book companies over the years, but at the forefront of comic book culture, there have been the two major companies: DC Comics and Marvel Comics. Marvel Comics introduced characters like Spider-Man, Ironman, Captain America, the Human Torch, the Incredible Hulk, etc. Over the years, comic book artists have inadvertently fed readers myths about the male and female physique

Racial/Ethnic Differences in Multiple Self-Care Behaviors in Adults with Diabetes

OBJECTIVE: To assess racial/ethnic differences in multiple diabetes self-care behaviors. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. PARTICIPANTS: 21,459 participants with diabetes in the 2003 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance survey. MEASUREMENTS: The study assessed self-care behaviors including physical activity, fruits/vegetables consumption, glucose testing, and foot examination, as well as a composite of the 4 self-care behaviors across racial/ethnic groups. Multiple logistic regression was used to assess the independent association between race/ethnicity, the composite variable, and each self-care behavior controlling for covariates. STATA was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Overall, 6% engaged in all 4 self-care behaviors, with a range of 5% in non-insulin users to 8% in insulin users. Blacks were less likely to exercise (OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.51, 0.79), while Hispanics and “others” were not significantly different from whites. Hispanics (OR 0.64, 95% CI 0.49, 0.82) and others (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.49, 0.96) were less likely to do home glucose testing, while blacks were not significantly different from whites. Blacks (OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.12, 1.80) were more likely to do home foot examinations, while Hispanics and others were not significantly different from whites. Blacks (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.36, 0.87) were less likely to engage in all 4 behaviors, while Hispanics and others were not significantly different from whites. There were no significant racial/ethnic differences in fruit and vegetable consumption. CONCLUSIONS: Few patients engage in multiple self-care behaviors at recommended levels, and there are significant racial/ethnic differences in physical activity, dietary, and foot care behaviors among adults with diabetes