Regional differences in the profile of disabled community-dwelling older adults: a European population-based cross-sectional study

The main objective of this work was to estimate the prevalence of disability in European community-dwelling older adults, as well as to investigate differences in the profile of disabled older adults between European regions (Northern, Central, Eastern and Southern). A cross-sectional study based on wave 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) was conducted. Community-dwelling participants aged 65-84 were selected (n = 33,369). Disability was defined as presenting at least one functional limitation in basic activities of daily living (BADL). Sociodemographic, health services, lifestyle and health-related variables were analyzed. Statistical analysis was carried out through the Chi-square and ANOVA tests for bivariate analysis, and Poisson regression for multivariate analysis. Overall prevalence of disability was 13.8%: 9.4% in the Northern region, 13.1% in the Southern region, 13.6% in the Central region, and 16.6% in the Eastern region. Portugal, Poland, Estonia and Belgium showed the highest prevalence of BADL limitations, while Sweden, Denmark, Greece and Switzerland showed the lowest prevalence. Besides, disabled older adults from East Europe presented the most disadvantaged health profile, followed by the Southern region. On the other hand, disabled older adults living in the Northern region showed the most advantaged characteristics of most variables, except for smoking and polypharmacy

Understanding how alcohol environment influences youth drinking: A concept mapping study among university students

The aim of the study was to identify the environmental factors that influence alcohol consumption, according to university students, and assess the relative importance and the frequency attributed to each factor. A study using Concept Mapping methodology was performed with a sample of nursing students, who participated in two face-to-face data collection sessions. In session 1, a consensus about the environmental aspects that influence their alcohol consumption was obtained. In session 2, the statements obtained were rated according to their relative importance and frequency in alcohol use (1 = minimum; 5 = maximum). Subsequently, all data were analyzed with the RCMAP of the statistical package R 3.6.1. Approximately 60 students participated in each session. Most were women aged 20 to 24. In session 1, a total of 55 statements were obtained and classified into 7 different clusters: Advertising (9 statements); Family environment (4 statements); Social pressure (12 statements); Responsibilities/ norms (4 statements); Holidays and leisure time (7 statements); Emotional situations (8 statements); Accessibility (11 statements). Factors related to social pressure, holidays and leisure time, and alcohol accessibility were considered the most important and frequent in alcohol consumption. In contrast, alcohol advertising was considered the least important (mean 2.6 out of 5) and frequent (mean 2.1 out 5) factor. In conclusion, the factors considered most relevant among nursing students match those having more resources allocated for prevention and health promotion, except for alcohol advertising, which was perceived as less important and frequent compared with the other factors

Alcohol and educational inequalities:Hazardous drinking prevalence and all-cause mortality by hazardous drinking group in people aged 50 and older in Europe

Background: We examined educational inequalities in hazardous drinking prevalence among individuals aged 50 or more in 14 European countries, and explored educational inequalities in mortality in hazardous drinkers in European regions. Methods: We analyzed data from waves 4, 5 and 6 of the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). We estimated age-standardized hazardous drinking prevalence, and prevalence ratios (PR) of hazardous drinking by country and educational level using Poisson regression models with robust variance. We estimated the relative index of inequality (RII) for all-cause mortality among hazardous drinkers and non-hazardous drinkers using Cox proportional hazards regression models and for each region (North, South, East and West). Results: In men, educational inequalities in hazardous drinking were not observed (PRmedium = 1.09 [95%CI: 0.98–1.21] and PRhigh = 0.99 [95%CI: 0.88–1.10], ref. low), while in they were observed in women, having the highest hazardous drinking prevalence in the highest educational levels (PRmedium = 1.28 [95%CI: 1.15–1.42] and PRhigh = 1.53 [95%CI: 1.36–1.72]). Overall, the Relative Index of Inequality (RII) in all-cause mortality among hazardous drinkers was 1.12 [95%CI: 1.03–1.22] among men and 1.10 [95%CI: 0.97–1.25] among women. Educational inequalities among hazardous drinkers were observed in Eastern Europe for both men (RIIhazardous = 1.21 [95%CI: 1.01–1.45]) and women (RIIhazardous = 1.46 [95%CI: 1.13–1.87]). Educational inequalities in mortality among non-hazardous drinkers were observed in Southern, Western and Eastern Europe among men, and in Eastern Europe among women. Conclusions: Higher educational attainment is positively associated with hazardous drinking prevalence among women, but not among men in most of the analyzed European countries. Clear educational inequalities in mortality among hazardous drinkers were only observed in Eastern Europe. Further research on the associations between alcohol use and inequalities in all-cause mortality in different regions is needed

Assessing the association between tourism and the alcohol urban environment in Barcelona: a cross-sectional study

Objectives: Alcohol availability and promotion are not distributed equally in the urban context. Evidence shows that the socioeconomic level seems to influence the amount of alcohol-related elements in an area. Some studies suggest that tourism could also affect the distribution of these elements. We explore with a valid instrument in a large city whether there is an association between high tourism pressure and a greater presence of alcohol-related elements in the urban environment. Design: Observational ecological study. Setting: The study was conducted in Barcelona during 2017-2018. Participants: We assessed urban exposure to alcohol by performing social systematic observation using the OHCITIES Instrument in a stratified random sample of 170 census tracts within the city's 73 neighbourhoods. Primary and secondary outcome measures: For each census tract we calculated the density of alcohol premises, and of promotion in public places per 1000 residents. We estimated tourism pressure using the number of tourist beds per 1000 residents in each neighbourhood and calculated quartiles. To assess the relationship between rate ratios of elements of alcohol urban environment and tourism pressure, we calculated Spearman correlations and fitted Poisson regression models with robust error variance. Results: The median densities obtained were of 8.18 alcohol premises and of 7.59 alcohol advertising and promotion elements visible from the public space per 1000 population. Census tracts with the highest tourism pressure had 2.5 (95% CI: 1.85-3.38) times more outlets and 2.3 (95% CI: 1.64-3.23) times more promotion elements per 1000 residents than those in the lowest tourism pressure quartile. Conclusions: We observed a strong association between tourism pressure and alcohol exposure in the city of Barcelona

Alcohol and educational inequalities : hazardous drinking prevalence and all-cause mortality by hazardous drinking group in people aged 50 and older in Europe

The SHARE data collection has been funded by the European Commission through FP5 [QLK6-CT-2001-00360], FP6 [SHARE-I3: RII-CT-2006-062193, COMPARE: CIT5-CT-2005-028857, SHARELIFE: CIT4-CT-2006-028812], FP7 [SHARE-PREP: GA N°211909, SHARE-LEAP: GA N°227822, SHARE M4: GA N°261982] and Horizon 2020 [SHARE-DEV3: GA N°676536, SERISS: GA N°654221] and by DG Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion. Additional funding from the German Ministry of Education and Research, the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science, the U.S. National Institute on Aging [U01_AG09740-13S2, P01_AG005842, P01_AG08291, P30_AG12815, R21_AG025169, Y1-AG-4553-01, IAG_BSR06-11, OGHA_04-064, HHSN271201300071C] and from various national funding sources is gratefully acknowledged.Background: We examined educational inequalities in hazardous drinking prevalence among individuals aged 50 or more in 14 European countries, and explored educational inequalities in mortality in hazardous drinkers in European regions. Methods: We analyzed data from waves 4, 5 and 6 of the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). We estimated age-standardized hazardous drinking prevalence, and prevalence ratios (PR) of hazardous drinking by country and educational level using Poisson regression models with robust variance. We estimated the relative index of inequality (RII) for all-cause mortality among hazardous drinkers and non-hazardous drinkers using Cox proportional hazards regression models and for each region (North, South, East and West). Results: In men, educational inequalities in hazardous drinking were not observed (PRmedium = 1.09 [95%CI: 0.98-1.21] and PRhigh = 0.99 [95%CI: 0.88-1.10], ref. low), while in they were observed in women, having the highest hazardous drinking prevalence in the highest educational levels (PRmedium = 1.28 [95%CI: 1.15-1.42] and PRhigh = 1.53 [95%CI: 1.36 1.72]). Overall, the Relative Index of Inequality (RII) in all-cause mortality among hazardous drinkers was 1.12 [95%CI: 1.03-1.22] among men and 1.10 [95%CI: 0.97-1.25] among women. Educational inequalities among hazardous drinkers were observed in Eastern Europe for both men (RIIhazardous = 1.21 [95%CI: 1.01-1.45]) and women (RIIhazardous = 1.46 [95%CI: 1.13-1.87]). Educational inequalities in mortality among non-hazardous drinkers were observed in Southern, Western and Eastern Europe among men, and in Eastern Europe among women. Conclusions: Higher educational attainment is positively associated with hazardous drinking prevalence among women, but not among men in most of the analyzed European countries. Clear educational inequalities in mortality among hazardous drinkers were only observed in Eastern Europe. Further research on the associations between alcohol use and inequalities in all-cause mortality in different regions is needed

Prevalence of binge drinking among high school students and urban contextual factors

[spa] Fundamentos: Muchos adolescentes experimentan con sustancias adictivas como el alcohol. El objetivo de este estudio fue estimar la prevalencia del consumo intensivo episódico de alcohol (binge drinking o atracón de bebida) en estudiantes de secundaria y su relación con el género, el curso y el tipo de escuela, así como con factores urbanos contextuales del barrio de escolarización: nivel socioeconómico, densidad de locales de venta de alcohol y presión turística. Métodos: Se trató de un estudio observacional transversal. La población estudiada fue el alumnado de 2º y 4º de Enseñanza Secundaria Obligatoria (ESO) de la ciudad de Barcelona en 2016. El consumo de alcohol, el sexo, el curso, el tipo de escuela y el barrio de escolarización se extrajeron de la encuesta FRESC. La riqueza del barrio y la presión turística se extrajeron de las estadísticas municipales. La densidad de establecimientos de venta de alcohol se obtuvo por observación directa mediante el instrumento OHCITIES. Se estimó la prevalencia de episodios de consumo intensivo de alcohol (cinco o más unidades en una ocasión), estratificando por edad, sexo y titularidad de la escuela. Se calcu- laron modelos de regresión de Poisson con varianza robusta para estimar las variables relacionadas con una mayor prevalencia de consumo intensivo. Resultados: La frecuencia autodeclarada de episodios de consumo intensivo en los últimos 30 días fue del 6,1% en esta muestra de 2.329 estudiantes, 2,2% en 2º curso y 10,3% en 4º curso. Fue mayor en los chicos (7%) que en las chicas (5,1%), y ligeramente mayor en las escuelas privadas subvencionadas (6,4%) que en las escuelas públicas (5,5%). En los modelos de regresión de Poisson, ni los coeficientes de las tres variables de contexto ni el tipo de escuela alcanzaron significación estadística, a dife- rencia de los obtenidos con las variables individuales de sexo y curso. La prevalencia ajustada de episodios de consumo intensivo en los barrios osciló entre 0 y el 18,2%. Al comparar las variables contextuales de los ocho barrios con menor prevalencia de consu- mo intensivo con los demás, tanto una mayor densidad de locales de venta de alcohol como una mayor presión turística se asociaron a una mayor prevalencia de episodios de consumo intensivo, mientras que para la riqueza no hubo diferencias estadísticamente significativas. Conclusiones: El consumo de alcohol en la adolescencia temprana está asociado con variables individuales como el sexo y la edad. Factores urbanos contextuales como una mayor presión turística y la densidad de los locales que venden alcohol podrían ejercer también cierta influencia. [eng] Background: Many teenagers experiment with addictive substances such as alcohol. The objective of this study was to estimate the frequency of binge drinking among secondary school students and its relationship with sex, grade, and type of school, as well as with urban contextual factors of the school neighborhood: socioeconomic level, density of alcohol outlet premises, and tourist pressure. Methods: This was an observational cross-sectional study. The study population were the students of 8th and 10th grade (2nd and 4th year of ESO) in the city of Barcelona in 2016. Alcohol use, sex, grade, type of school and school neighborhood were taken from the FRESC survey. The wealth of the neighborhood and tourist pressure were extracted from municipal statistics. The density of alcohol outlets was obtained by direct observation with the OHCITIES instrument. We estimated the prevalence of binge drinking (consumption of five or more units on one occasion) stratifying by age, sex and ownership of the school. We calculated a robust Poisson regression model with the individual and contex- tual variables and analyzed the situation of those neighborhoods with the highest prevalence of binge. Results: The self-declared frequency of binge drinking in the last 30 days was 6.1% in this sample of 2,329 students, 2.2% in 8th grade and 10.3% in 10th grade. It was higher in boys (7%) than in girls (5.1%), and slightly higher in private subsidized schools (6.4%) than in public schools (5.5%). In the Poisson regression models, neither the coefficients of the three contextual variables nor the type of school reached statistical significance, contrary to those obtained with the individual variables of sex and year. The adjusted prevalence of binge in the 36 neighborhoods ranged from 0 to 18.2%. Comparing the contextual variables of the 8 neighborhoods with the lowest prevalence of binge with the others, both a greater density of local alcohol sales and higher tourism pressure were associated with a higher prevalence of binge drinking, while for wealth there were no significant differences. Conclusions: The use of alcohol in early adolescence is related to individual variables such as sex and age. Urban contextual factors such as a higher tourist pressure and the density of premises that sell alcohol may exert also some influence

Explorant els determinants socials en el consum de substàncies en joves i adults a Espanya : un enfocament al consum d'alcohol

El consum de substàncies psicoactives té importants conseqüències sanitàries, socials, econòmiques i laborals. Tot i així, el seu consum i les seves conseqüències no es distribueixen homogèniament en tota la població, sinó que diferents factors determinen que hi hagi col·lectius més vulnerables. L’objectiu de la tesi és analitzar els factors socials individuals i contextuals relacionats amb el consum de substàncies psicoactives en persones joves i adultes a Espanya, posant un èmfasi especial en l’alcohol. S’han dissenyat tres estudis diferents, i cada un d’ells se centra en un grup d’edat: adolescents, joves adults i població adulta econòmicament activa. Dos d’aquests estudis ja han estat publicats en revistes científiques amb peer-review. Els resultats suggereixen que: 1) Variables individuals com la permissivitat i el control dels progenitors o la disponibilitat de diners per despeses personals, s’associen al “binge drinking” en la població adolescent, independentment de les variables contextuals; 2) La població adulta jove considera que hi ha diferents aspectes del seu entorn, com la pressió social o l’accés a l’alcohol, que influeixen en el seu consum d’alcohol; 3) La situació laboral i el nivell d’estudis s’associen al consum de risc d’alcohol, de cànnabis i al consum d’hipnosedants en la població econòmicament activa, haventhi diferències entre dones i homes

Impact of COVID-19 inequalities on children : An intersectional analysis

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MSocietal concerns about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have largely focussed on the social groups most directly affected, such as the elderly and health workers. However, less focus has been placed on understanding the effects on other collectives, such as children. While children's physical health appears to be less affected than the adult population, their mental health, learning and wellbeing is likely to have been significantly negatively affected during the pandemic due to the varying policy restrictions, such as withdrawal from face to face schooling, limited peer-to-peer interactions and mobility and increased exposure to the digital world amongst other things. Children from vulnerable social backgrounds, and especially girls, will be most negatively affected by the impact of COVID-19, given their different intersecting realities and the power structures already negatively affecting them. To strengthen the understanding of the social determinants of the COVID-19 crisis that unequally influence children's health and wellbeing, this article presents a conceptual framework that considers the multiple axes of inequalities and power relations. This understanding can then be used to inform analyses and impact assessments, and in turn inform the development of effective and equitable mitigation strategies as well as assist to be better prepared for future pandemics

Impact of COVID-19 inequalities on children: an intersectional analysis

Societal concerns about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have largely focussed on the social groups most directly affected, such as the elderly and health workers. However, less focus has been placed on understanding the effects on other collectives, such as children. While children’s physical health appears to be less affected than the adult population, their mental health, learning and wellbeing is likely to have been significantly negatively affected during the pandemic due to the varying policy restrictions, such as withdrawal from face to face schooling, limited peer-to-peer interactions and mobility and increased exposure to the digital world amongst other things. Children from vulnerable social backgrounds, and especially girls, will be most negatively affected by the impact of COVID-19, given their different intersecting realities and the power structures already negatively affecting them. To strengthen the understanding of the social determinants of the COVID-19 crisis that unequally influence children’s health and wellbeing, this article presents a conceptual framework that considers the multiple axes of inequalities and power relations. This understanding can then be used to inform analyses and impact assessments, and in turn inform the development of effective and equitable mitigation strategies as well as assist to be better prepared for future pandemics.The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support by ICREA under the ICREA Academia programme and of European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 872104. However, ICREA and Horizon 2020 did not provide direct financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article. We also acknowledge “La Caixa” Foundation under the project code SR20-00386