Do routinely measured risk factors for obesity explain the sex gap in its prevalence? Observations from Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of adult obesity is higher in women than men in most countries. However, the pathways that link female sex with excess obesity are still not fully understood. We examine whether socioeconomic and behavioural factors may mediate the association between sex and obesity in the Saudi Arabian setting where there is female excess in obesity. METHODS: We performed a mediation analysis using a cross-sectional, national household survey from Saudi Arabia with 4758 participants (51% female). A series of multivariable regression models were fitted to test if socioeconomic position, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, diet, and smoking mediate the association between sex and obesity (BMI >=30). The findings were confirmed using causal mediation analysis. RESULTS: Women in this sample were roughly twice as likely as men to be obese (crude OR 1.9; 95% CI 1.6-2.3). The odds ratio remained significantly higher for women compared to men in models testing for mediation (OR range 1.95-2.06). Our data suggest that indicators of socio-economic position, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, diet, and smoking do not mediate the sex differences in obesity. CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis shows that most commonly measured risk factors for obesity do not explain the sex differences in its prevalence in the Saudi context. Further research is needed to understand what might explain the female excess in obesity prevalence. We discuss how data related to the lived experience of Saudi men and women may tap into underlying mechanisms by which the sex difference in obesity prevalence are produced

Synthesis, Physical, Chemical and DFT Properties of Cobalt(II), Nickel(II), Copper(II), and Zinc(II) Complexes with Polydentate Schiff Base Derived from 1,2,4-Triazole

The work describes the synthesis and spectral investigation of cobalt(II), nickel(II), copper(II), and zinc(II) complexes with (E)-4-((4-nitrobenzylidene)amino)-5-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-4H-1,2,4-triazole-3-thiol (L). The new ligand was synthesized through three steps, first the preparation of 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenylhydrazide salt, the ring closure of potassium hydrazide salt with excess of hydrazine hydrate followed by condensation of the derivative 4-amino-5-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-4H-1,2,4-triazole-3-thiol with 4-nitrobenzaldehyde in glacial acetic acid. The physical and spectroscopic properties of the ligand and its complexes were well investigated and theoretically studied. The experimental results were compatible with their expected compositions. Based on the spectral data, metal complexes with coordination numbers 6 and 4 were proposed, with L functioning as a bidentate ligand. The metal complexes displayed an octahedral geometry around bivalent cobalt, nickel, and zinc tetrahedral environment. Density functional theory calculations (DFT) were conducted to investigate the geometry optimization of the synthesized ligand L and its Co(II) complex and to confirm the structure of the ligand by comparing its experimental vibrational and NMR spectra with the corresponding DFT calculated spectra. The DFT results revealed the participation of nitrogen and sulfur atoms of imine and thione groups in coordination with the metal ions beside the good agreement with the experimental data of elemental analyses and spectroscopic measurements