Adverse Childhood Experiences and Use of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco Products

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been linked to increased use of tobacco products later in life. However, studies to date have ignored smokeless tobacco products. To address this, data from the 2011 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which interviewed adults 18 years and over (N = 102,716) were analyzed. Logistic regression models were fit to estimate odds ratios of ever smoking, current smoking and current smokeless tobacco use in relation to ACEs. Results showed that less than 4 % of respondents currently used smokeless tobacco products, while 44.95 and 18.57 % reported ever and current smoking, respectively. Physical abuse (OR 1.40; 95 % CI 1.14, 1.72), emotional abuse (OR 1.41; 95 % CI 1.19, 1.67), sexual abuse (OR 0.70; 95 % CI 0.51, 0.95), living with a drug user (OR 1.50; 95 % CI 1.17, 1.93), living with someone who was jailed (OR 1.50; 95 % CI 1.11, 2.02) and having parents who were separated or divorced (OR 1.31; 95 % CI 1.09, 1.57) were associated with smokeless tobacco use in unadjusted models. After accounting for confounders, physical abuse (OR 1.43; 95 % CI 1.16, 1.78), emotional abuse (OR 1.32; 95 % CI 1.10, 1.57), living with a problem drinker (OR 1.30; 95 % CI 1.08, 1.58), living with a drug user (OR 1.31; 95 % CI 1.00, 1.72) and living with adults who treated each other violently (OR 1.30; 95 % CI 1.05, 1.62) were associated with smokeless tobacco use. Living with someone who was mentally ill (OR 0.70; 95 % CI 0.53, 0.92) was associated with smokeless tobacco use after accounting for confounders and all ACEs. Results indicated that some childhood adversities are associated with use of smokeless tobacco products. Special attention is needed to prevent tobacco use of different types among those experiencing ACEs

Consequences of bullying on adolescents’ mental health in Germany : comparing face-to-face bullying and cyberbullying

The present study explored whether face-to-face bullying (physical as well as relational), cyberbullying, and teachers’ bullying have a negative impact on adolescent’s mental health and whether there are gender differences. Analyses are based on a representative cross-sectional standardised survey of 10,638 students of the nineth grade of one federal state of Germany. Findings show that psychological cyberbullying is most strongly associated with poor mental health for both boys and girls. Relational bullying by classmates as well as by teachers also show a significant correlation with poor mental health. For girls, there appears to be an additional relationship between sexual cyberbullying and mental health. Physical forms of bullying were not found to be associated with mental health. Implications for research are discussed

Understanding the Cyber-Victimisation of People with Long Term Conditions and the Need for Collaborative Forensics-Enabled Disease Management Programmes

Research shows that people with long term conditions and disabilities are frequently labelled as vulnerable, and commonly victimised online. They require instrumental support to understand their conditions and empower them to manage their own treatment in everyday life. However, additional short and long term consequences related to cyber-victimisation could intensify existing psychological and health complications. For instance, ‘distress’ as a commonly reported impact of cyber-victimisation could theoretically lead to neurohormonal changes in the blood, increasing cortisol, catecholamine and insulin secretion resulting in increased blood glucose, heartbeat, blood pressure, urination and other changes. Therefore, in this study we demonstrate the need and explain the means towards extending support and risk assessment systems and procedures to cover the collection and preservation of incidents reported by individuals. This can be used to support third-party interventions such as taking a legal action in cases where the impact of cyber-victimisation is seen to escalate and worsen. As such, we first define vulnerable groups with long term conditions and provide a review of the impact of various types of cyber-victimisation on their health management. Then, we discuss how Disease Management Programmes (DMP) developed over time to include web-based applications as an example of existing cost-effective approaches to improve the quality of healthcare provided to people with long term conditions. We then demonstrate the added value of incorporating forensics readiness to enable Police intervention, support the victim’s eligibility for extended instrumental support from national health services. Finally, this level of documentation offers an opportunity to implement more accurate methods to assess risk associated with victimisation