Chronic sleep reduction in adolescents - clinical cut-off scores for the Chronic Sleep Reduction Questionnaire (CSRQ)

The Chronic Sleep Reduction Questionnaire is a validated questionnaire that measures symptoms of prolonged insufficient and/or poor sleep and therefore accounts for individuals’ sleep need and sleep debt. This study extends its psychometric properties by providing cut-off scores, using a matched sample of 298 healthy adolescents (15.38 ± 1.63 years, 37.9% male, mean Chronic Sleep Reduction Questionnaire score: 32.98 ± 6.51) and 298 adolescents with insomnia/delayed sleep–wake phase disorder (15.48 ± 1.62 years; 37.9% male, mean Chronic Sleep Reduction Questionnaire score: 42.59 ± 7.06). We found an area under the curve of 0.84 (95% confidence interval: 0.81–0.87). Cut-off scores for optimal sensitivity, optimal specificity and based on Youden's criterion are provided. These cut-off scores are highly relevant for use of the Chronic Sleep Reduction Questionnaire in future studies and clinical practice

Loneliness, Social Isolation and Their Difference: A Cross-Diagnostic Study in Persistent Depressive Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder

Background: Interpersonal difficulties are a key feature of persistent depressive disorder (PDD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD). Caught in a vicious circle of dysfunctional interpersonal transaction, PDD and BPD patients are at great risk of experiencing prolonged loneliness. Loneliness, in turn, has been associated with the development of mental disorders and chronic illness trajectories. Besides, several factors may contribute to the experience of loneliness across the lifespan, such as social network characteristics, a history of childhood maltreatment (CM), and cognitive-affective biases such as rejection sensitivity (RS). This cross-diagnostic study approached the topic of perceived loneliness by comparing PDD and BPD patients with healthy controls (HC) in its interplay with symptom burden, social network characteristics, RS as well as CM. Method: Thirty-four PDD patients (DSM-5; 15 female, Mage = 38.2, SD = 12.3), 36 BPD patients (DSM-5; 19 female, Mage = 28.8, SD = 9.2), and 70 age- and gender-matched HC were assessed cross-sectionally using the following self-report measures: UCLA Loneliness Scale, Social Network Index (SNI; size, diversity, and embeddedness), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), Borderline Symptom List (BSL-23), Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire (RSQ). Results: Both patient groups reported significantly higher levels of perceived loneliness, symptom severity, and smaller social network characteristics compared to HC. Loneliness was significantly correlated with severity of self-reported clinical symptoms in PDD and at trend level in BPD. Besides, loneliness tended to be related to social network characteristics for all groups except PDD patients. Both PDD and BPD patients showed higher RS as well as CTQ scores than HC. A history of emotional abuse and emotional neglect was associated with loneliness, and this association was mediated by RS as demonstrated by an exploratory mediation analysis. Discussion: Loneliness is highly prevalent in PDD and BPD patients and contributes to the overall symptom burden. Interestingly, loneliness showed an association with prior experiences of CM as well as current RS. We therefore propose a comprehensive model on how intra- und interpersonal aspects may interplay in the dynamics of loneliness in light of CM. Finally, this model may have further implications for psychotherapeutic interventions

Chronic sleep reduction is associated with academic achievement and study concentration in higher education students

Inadequate sleep impairs cognitive function and has been associated with worse academic achievement in higher education students; however, studies that control for relevant background factors and include knowledge on sleep hygiene are scarce. This study examined the association of chronic sleep reduction (i.e. symptoms of chronic sleep reduction such as shortness of sleep, sleepiness and irritation), subjective sleep quality and sleep hygiene knowledge with academic achievement (grades and study credits) and study concentration among 1378 higher education students (71% female, mean age 21.73 years, SD = 3.22) in the Netherlands. Demographic, health, lifestyle and study behaviour characteristics were included as covariates in hierarchical regression analyses. After controlling for significant covariates, only chronic sleep reduction remained a significant predictor of lower grades (last exam, average in current academic year). Better sleep quality and sleep hygiene knowledge were associated with better academic achievement, but significance was lost after controlling for covariates, except for a remaining positive association between sleep hygiene beliefs and grades in the current academic year. Moreover, better sleep quality and lower scores on chronic sleep reduction were associated with better study concentration after controlling for significant covariates. To conclude, chronic sleep reduction is associated with academic achievement and study concentration in higher education students. Inadequate sleep hygiene knowledge is moderately associated with worse academic achievement. Future research should investigate whether sleep hygiene interventions improve academic achievement in students of higher education.</p

Alimentação saudável na educação infantil : projeto de intervenção

Orientadora: Profª MSc. Shirley BollerMonografia (especialização) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curso de Especialização em Saúde para Professores do Ensino Fundamental e MédioInclui referênciasResumo : O presente trabalho é resultado do projeto de intervenção que visou orientar os alunos do pré I e pré II do Centro Municipal de Educação infantil acerca da alimentação saudável. O objetivo foi orientar os alunos do pré I e pré II do Centro Municipal de Educação infantil acerca da alimentação saudável através de atividades interdisciplinares, direcionadas e participativas. Dentre elas, revitalizar na escola a área verde produtiva para que as crianças pudessem plantar e acompanhar o desenvolvimento das hortaliças, leguminosas e plantas medicinais no meio ambiente, utilizando recursos sustentáveis. Construir cartaz coletivo e gráficos interativos onde os alunos possam reconhecer preferências, distinguir os alimentos saudáveis dos evitáveis e os que se deve consumir com moderação. Também foi utilizado material concreto, recursos lúdicos, vídeos, e histórias infantis, avental representando alguns alimentos saudáveis. O projeto foi realizado durante o período de 6 (seis) meses do segundo semestre do ano letivo de 2015, no CMEI Jardim Lindóia e toda ação foi embasada no respeito à faixa etária das crianças envolvidas. Os resultados obtidos foram registrados em mídias, cartazes, fotografias, gráficos entre outros. Foram organizadas ações dentro e fora da sala de aula, ações estas em comum acordo com a instituição escolar. Os participantes deste projeto foram os alunos, professores, funcionários, empresas e comunidade local. Ao final do projeto de intervenção constatou-se a evolução do projeto a cada ação em que os alunos apresentaram cada vez mais com maior nível de envolvimento, entusiasmo e de conscientização quanto a alimentação e a melhoria na saúde dos envolvidos

Savings and Consumption When Children Move Out

Based on the Italian Survey on Household Income and Wealth (SHIW) and the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP), we show that household consumption drops after a child moves out of a household, while at the same time, per capita consumption increases significantly. Parents approximately upgrade their personal lifestyle up to the level of childless peers after all children are gone and save only a small proportion of the freed-up resources. Since parents had fewer resources to save while they were young, retirement preparedness among them is a more serious concern than among childless individuals

Sleep characteristics across the lifespan in 1.1 million people from the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States: a systematic review and meta-analysis

How long does the average person sleep? Here, Kocevska et al. conducted a meta-analysis including over 1.1 million people to produce age- and sex-specific population reference charts for sleep duration and efficiency.We aimed to obtain reliable reference charts for sleep duration, estimate the prevalence of sleep complaints across the lifespan and identify risk indicators of poor sleep. Studies were identified through systematic literature search in Embase, Medline and Web of Science (9 August 2019) and through personal contacts. Eligible studies had to be published between 2000 and 2017 with data on sleep assessed with questionnaires including >= 100 participants from the general population. We assembled individual participant data from 200,358 people (aged 1-100 years, 55% female) from 36 studies from the Netherlands, 471,759 people (40-69 years, 55.5% female) from the United Kingdom and 409,617 people (>= 18 years, 55.8% female) from the United States. One in four people slept less than age-specific recommendations, but only 5.8% slept outside of the 'acceptable' sleep duration. Among teenagers, 51.5% reported total sleep times (TST) of less than the recommended 8-10 h and 18% report daytime sleepiness. In adults (>= 18 years), poor sleep quality (13.3%) and insomnia symptoms (9.6-19.4%) were more prevalent than short sleep duration (6.5% with TST = 9 h in bed, whereas poor sleep quality was more frequent in those spending = 41 years) reported sleeping shorter times or slightly less efficiently than men, whereas with actigraphy they were estimated to sleep longer and more efficiently than man. This study provides age- and sex-specific population reference charts for sleep duration and efficiency which can help guide personalized advice on sleep length and preventive practices.Pathophysiology, epidemiology and therapy of agein

Annual Research Review: Sleep problems in childhood psychiatric disorders – a review of the latest science

Background Hippocrates flagged the value of sleep for good health. Nonetheless, historically, researchers with an interest in developmental psychopathology have largely ignored a possible role for atypical sleep. Recently, however, there has been a surge of interest in this area, perhaps reflecting increased evidence that disturbed or insufficient sleep can result in poor functioning in numerous domains. This review outlines what is known about sleep in the psychiatric diagnoses most relevant to children and for which associations with sleep are beginning to be understood. While based on a comprehensive survey of the literature, the focus of the current review is on the latest science (largely from 2010). There is a description of both concurrent and longitudinal links as well as possible mechanisms underlying associations. Preliminary treatment research is also considered which suggests that treating sleep difficulties may result in improvements in behavioural areas beyond sleep quality. Findings To maximise progress in this field, there now needs to be: (a) greater attention to the assessment of sleep in children; (b) sleep research on a wider range of psychiatric disorders; (c) a greater focus on and examination of mechanisms underlying associations; (d) a clearer consideration ofdevelopmental questions and (e) large-scale well-designed treatment studies. Conclusions While sleep problems may sometimes be missed by parents and healthcare providers; hence constituting a hidden risk for other psychopathologies – knowing about these difficulties creates unique opportunities. The current excitement in this field from experts in diverse areas including developmental psychology, clinical psychology, genetics and neuropsychology should make these opportunities a reality