For whom is a health-promoting intervention effective? Predictive factors for performing activities of daily living independently

BACKGROUND: Health-promoting interventions tailored to support older persons to remain in their homes, so-called "ageing in place" is important for supporting or improving their health. The health-promoting programme "Elderly Persons in the Risk Zone," (EPRZ) was set up for this purpose and has shown positive results for maintaining independence in activities of daily living for older persons 80 years and above at 1- and 2 year follow-ups. The aim of this study was to explore factors for maintaining independence in the EPRZ health-promoting programme.METHODS: Total of 459 participants in the original trial was included in the analysis; 345 in the programme arm and 114 in the control arm. Thirteen variables, including demographic, health, and programme-specific indicators, were chosen as predictors for independence of activities of daily living. Logistic regression was performed separately for participants in the health promotion programme and in the control arm.RESULTS: In the programme arm, being younger, living alone and self-rated lack of tiredness in performing mobility activities predicted a positive effect of independence in activities of daily living at 1-year follow-up (odds ratio [OR] 1.18, 1.73, 3.02) and 2-year, (OR 1.13, 2.01, 2.02). In the control arm, being less frail was the only predictor at 1-year follow up (OR 1.6 1.09, 2.4); no variables predicted the outcome at the 2-year follow-up.CONCLUSIONS: Older persons living alone - as a risk of ill health - should be especially recognized and offered an opportunity to participate in health-promoting programmes such as "Elderly Persons in the Risk Zone". Further, screening for subjective frailty could form an advantageous guiding principle to target the right population when deciding to whom health-promoting intervention should be offered.TRIAL REGISTRATION: The original clinical trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov. Identifier: NCT00877058 , April 6, 2009

An Occupational Perspective on Enculturation and Habitus - a Scoping Review

Increasingly, scientific interest has been focused on the meaningfulness of engaging in occupations of daily life in individual ways, and especially so for people with migration backgrounds. This is because people who migrate to a new country will likely find themselves in a position in which they notice that some occupations are done differently from how they were used to prior to moving. Enculturation, a process in which cultural elements are recognized and internalized, informs the way immigrants engage in occupations. This study aimed to scope the occupational science and occupational therapy literature on the phenomenon in which enculturation leads to adjustments of habitus among immigrants. Descriptions of the phenomenon and its impact on daily occupations were qualitatively synthesized. The included studies entail documentations on how people who migrated enculturate and adjust their habitus regarding social etiquette, social expectations, women and gender perception, feeling of acceptance and belonging, disclosure of values and beliefs, work moral and sense of competency, and occupations involving meals. Despite the findings on the impact of occupations in migration contexts, further rigorous research is needed to investigate the way in which enculturation informs habitus adjustments and strengthen the evidence base on cultural sensitivity in occupational science

An Occupational Perspective on Enculturation and Habitus - a Scoping Review

Increasingly, scientific interest has been focused on the meaningfulness of engaging in occupations of daily life in individual ways, and especially so for people with migration backgrounds. This is because people who migrate to a new country will likely find themselves in a position in which they notice that some occupations are done differently from how they were used to prior to moving. Enculturation, a process in which cultural elements are recognized and internalized, informs the way immigrants engage in occupations. This study aimed to scope the occupational science and occupational therapy literature on the phenomenon in which enculturation leads to adjustments of habitus among immigrants. Descriptions of the phenomenon and its impact on daily occupations were qualitatively synthesized. The included studies entail documentations on how people who migrated enculturate and adjust their habitus regarding social etiquette, social expectations, women and gender perception, feeling of acceptance and belonging, disclosure of values and beliefs, work moral and sense of competency, and occupations involving meals. Despite the findings on the impact of occupations in migration contexts, further rigorous research is needed to investigate the way in which enculturation informs habitus adjustments and strengthen the evidence base on cultural sensitivity in occupational science

Impact of a person-centred group intervention on life satisfaction and engagement in activities among persons aging in the context of migration‡

Background: There is a growing need to support the health and wellbeing of older persons aging in the context of migration. Objectives: We evaluated whether a group-based health promotion program with person-centred approach, maintained or improved life satisfaction and engagement in activities of older immigrants in Sweden. Methods: A randomised controlled trial with post-intervention follow-ups at 6 months and 1 year was conducted with 131 older independently living persons aged ≥70 years from Finland and the Balkan Peninsula. Participants were randomly allocated to an intervention group (4 weeks of group intervention and a follow-up home visit) and a control group (no intervention). Outcome measures were life satisfaction and engagement in activities. Chi-square and odds ratios were calculated. Results: The odds ratios for maintenance or improvement of life satisfaction (for social contact and psychological health) were higher in the person-centred intervention group. More participants in the intervention group maintained or improved their general participation in activities compared with the control group. However, no significant between-group differences were found. Conclusion: Person-centred interventions can support older person’s capability to maintain their health in daily life when aging in migration. Further research is needed with a larger sample and longer intervention period to determine the effectiveness of the intervention

Household Waste Sorting and Engagement in Everyday Life Occupations After Migration—A Scoping Review

The aim of this scoping review was to gain an overview of the current state of the literature on the engagement in waste sorting post migration from an occupational perspective, in the light of two aspects sustainability efforts currently face: Increased human migration and environmental degradation. Both the resource recovery and occupational science literature were reviewed and analyzed. However, despite the current lack on studies on how migrants’ transition into waste sorting schemes at the household level, this scoping review was able to provide a broad picture of the engagement in daily activities that support sustainability, such as household waste sorting. Given the current initiatives to develop efficient resource recovery from waste, such knowledge contributes to efforts to engage households with different cultures and experiences in waste sorting. The results highlight the importance of future research to better understand how people who are new to waste management schemes experience these, and study the way that engagement in waste sorting shifts and transforms. This is because providing such knowledge can contribute to raising awareness of the environmental impact of waste sorting, and inform policies aimed at sustainable waste management

Glocal and ecoethical perceptions of engagement with fungi-based food

Fungal fermentation is a promising strategy to secure affordable, nutritious and sustainable food. Encouraging engagement with fungi-based food is crucial to contribute to social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Reflections can trigger a sense of meaning in engaging in activities and with resources. The aim of this mixed methods study was to explore perceptions of whether participants think their own engagement with fungi-based food is consequential. To do so, the study explored ecoethical reflections relating to whether participants thought engaging with fungi-based food is beneficial or not beneficial for the environment. This study also explored glocal reflections of whether participants thought their own engagement with this kind of food is beneficial or not beneficial in ways that extend to people around them (i.e., local population) or people in other parts of the world (i.e., global population). N = 160 participants completed questionnaires. Most participants expressed a positive outlook, believing that embracing fungi-based food could promote increased sustainability and overall well-being for humans and the environment in numerous different ways. The perceptions that participants shared can affect and trigger conscious engagement with fungi-based food locally with awareness of its global impact which, in turn, can promote well-being for individuals and extend to the population level and thereby contribute to efforts at archiving sustainable development. Nevertheless, the findings highlight a necessity for more information to enable individuals to engage in knowledgeable reflections and, ultimately, act upon their values and what is meaningful to them. The results are important for future development and conceptualization of not only fungi-based food but also other food that is expected to contribute to sustainable development.Funding: European Cooperation in Science and Technology 10.13039/501100000921</p

Aspects that Affect Tasting Studies of Emerging Food : A Review

Providing food security to the growing global population, and the resource depletion associated with current food systems, let to calls for more sustainable food sources. Food that can be produced in a sustainable way (taking all three aspects of sustainable development into consideration) is currently emerging in Western societies. Through tastings, insight can be gathered not only into sensory characteristics but also other aspects that aid innovation and development of food. The current study identified aspects that can affect tastings of emerging food by reviewing relevant literature. General aspects; meat alternatives; ingredients or processing technologies; information, prior knowledge and (un)familiarity; taste and liking; emotional factors; and willingness to engage with emerging food can affect tastings of emerging food. Awareness of the effect that these aspects can have on methodological considerations and results can be constructive in future research that use tastings as a platform to develop new and emerging food. The findings are significant for food science in terms of cornerstones towards potential industrial applications. These include innovating new types of food, assessing most effective technologies in the context of such food, developing new products, and understanding engagement with emerging food products

Household fermentation of leftover bread to nutritious food

Resource dependency of food production is aggravated when food is wasted. In Sweden, it is estimated that 37% of the total bread waste is generated at the household level. This work aimed to assess whether fermentation using edible filamentous fungi at households can provide a solution to valorize leftover bread in the production of fungi-based food for consumption. Bread was fermented in household and laboratory conditions with Neurospora intermedia and Rhizopus oligosporus. The results show that bread can be successfully and easily fermented at households, without signs of microbial contamination even though the conditions were not sterile. Fermentation at the household resulted in higher protein, fat and fiber content as well as greater starch reduction compared to the samples fermented under laboratory conditions. Household engagement in bread fermentation will likely depend on values that motivate reusing leftover bread. Perceived values that are expected to motivate engagement vary across individuals, but may include improved nutritional benefits, food waste prevention, convenience, responsibilities, and being part of sustainable societies and actions