Preface

Prefac

Twenty years of the Centre for Physical Anthropology

The article provides an overview of the activities of the Centre for PhysicalAnthropology at the University of Tartu from its foundation in 1993 to thepresent

A short overview of the work of anthropologists of the Old Anatomical Theatre

A short overview of the work of anthropologists of the Old Anatomical Theatr

The factors that influence women to choose and pursue a career in the IT sector: the case of Estonia

Estonia as well as the rest of the EU is struggling to find enough IT specialists. It is estimated that by 2020, the EU will have 500,000 of vacant IT positions which has a hindering effect on the economy that is moving towards more digitalization. Women are under-represented in IT roles and the inclusion of more female IT specialists could offer a solution that is both contributing to the development of the IT sector and the economy as a whole. A larger participation of women in IT roles could also decrease the pay gap that Estonia has and support gender equality. This focus of this thesis was to find out which factors enable women to choose an IT-career. The research question was the following: what are the main influential factors that have encouraged women to choose a career in IT? In order to identify the enablers, eleven women were asked about their journey to IT including which aspects influenced their career choice and when the choice was made. The analysis of the responses was done by identifying the emerging narratives and themes as well as considering other research on the same subject. Gender and IT does not have a strong theorization as an academic discipline, however, some authors have used social constructivism to provide the frame in which to work in. Social constructivism was also used in this thesis and it was complemented with decision theory as well as gender-focused theories. The results of the analysis suggest that the choice that leads to an IT-career is often made young and that it is influenced by many social and internal factors. Practical tasks and positive feedback was mentioned several times by the interviewees as an enabling factor. Social relations were another influencing aspect in finding the way to IT. Curiosity and grit were also enablers that help women working in IT.https://www.ester.ee/record=b5241627*es

The growth charts of Estonian schoolchildren. Comparative analysis

The current growth charts of Estonian children are based on the data collected in 1996. The aim of this article is to study whether children still correspond to these norms. For that purpose, an overview is given of the height, weight and body mass index of Estonian schoolchildren. These measurements have been collected mainly from 2006–2009. These data are compared with the results of 1996 by means of statistical tests.During the interim period, the development of Estonian schoolchildren has changed. Children are significantly taller (boys by 4.84 cm and girls by 3.86 cm on average) and heavier (boys by 5.90 kg and girls by 4.20 kg on average). The mean body mass index has also increased significantly (in boys by 1.30 units and in girls by 0.99 units on average). In conclusion, it can be said that schoolchildren do not correspond well to the current norms, and the growth charts need updating

Noorte naiste tegeliku toitumise seos kehatüüpidega

Töös uuriti 17–23aastaste naisüliõpilaste kehatüüpide seost tarbitud põhitoitainete ja toidu energia hulgaga 24 tunni menüüs. Kehatüüpide klassifitseerimiseks kasutati uuritud kontingendi keskmise pikkuse, kaalu ja keskmiste standardhälvete alusel koostatud 5 SD pikkuse-kaalu klassifikatsiooni. Üliõpilased paigutati klassidesse vastavalt nende individuaalsele pikkusele ja kaalule ning nende ülejäänud andmetest arvutati klasside keskmised näitajad toitumisega oluliselt seotud 29 kehamõõdu ning tarbitud valkude, rasvade, süsivesikute ja toidu energia kohta. Kehamassi indeksi (KMI) keskmised väärtused väikeste ja leptomorfide klassides oluliselt ei erinenud. Kokkuvõttes võib väita, et kehaehituse tüpiseerimine toitumise uurimisel ei saa rajaneda ainult KMI-le, vaid kehaehitus peab olema esindatud vähemalt kahemõõtmelises klassifikatsioonis, kas siis pikkust ja kaalu või pikkust ja KMId kasutades. Eesti Arst 2007; 86 (1): 8–1

Nutritional research and intensive nutritional counselling of the chronic kidney disease patients after kidney transplantation

Background: Dietology treatment is the one of the foundation stones in the complex treatment of the chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients together with all other treatments. The dietary intervention plays an important role to determine the effects to a decrease of metabolic abnormalities.Aim: The aim of the long-term study was to monitor nutritional parameters in the post-transplant period.Subjects and methods: We studied 28 clinically stable consecutive nondiabetic kidney transplant patients: 12 males at the age of 42.8 ± 16.1 years, and 16 females at the age of 47.0 ± 14.9 years. Intensive nutritional counselling and dietary consultation by a dietitian were carried out for all the studied patients during one and a half years after the kidney transplantation. Initial data were compared with the results obtained at the end of the study. During the 3-days dietary records analysis and counselling of CKD patients, giving answers to their questions about their food and portion sizes, the dietitian used the standards portion book with many photographs.Results: The consumption of vegetables and fruit was modest compared to Estonian food and nutrition recommendations. The food frequency questionnaire revealed that the patients consumed different foodstuffs at different frequencies, but there was a tendency to excessive consumption of foodstuffs rich in proteins and carbohydrates. To consumption of fat-rich foodstuffs a tendency of decrease was found.Conclusion: An intensive nutritional counselling and healthy diet, avoiding excessive amounts of alcohol as well as regular exercise can help to reduce the chance of developing of chronic transplant nephropathy

An anthropometric model for nutrition research of Estonian female students

The study is focused on creating an anthropometric model that would enable to associate the body build peculiarities with nutritional variables. Thirty-six body measurements and 12 skinfolds were measured on 131 17–23-year-old female students of the University of Tartu, and 12 body composition characteristics were calculated. The subjects had to submit descriptions of their 24-hour menus. Nutrient intake was determined using the Micro-Nutrica software and the food composition database; the energy (in kcal) and main nutrients (proteins, fats and carbohydrates) content in the subjects’ 24-hour menus were calculated. All body measurements were compared with nutritional variables, and 29 anthropometric variables were found that showed statistically significant correlations with at least one nutrient characteristic. The amount of food consumed correlated positively with body density and negatively with weight, circumferences, skinfolds and all indicators of body fat content (r reached 0.32). To associate body size, shape and composition with the amount of food consumed, a 5 SD height and weight classification was used, which consisted of three classes of concordance between height and weight (small, medium, large) and two classes of disconcordance – pyknomorphs and leptomorphs. All the 29 body measurements and nutrient were distributed systematically between the different classes. The pyknomorphous class with its greater body fat content and smaller density contrasted clearly with the class of leptomorphs. Food consumption in total as well as per 1 kg of body weight was smaller in pyknics than in leptosomes. Protein consumption did not reveal statistically significant differences. One should not overestimate the significance of BMI in nutritional studies. BMI characterises only obesity and cannot replace the characterisation of different body types. In our study, BMI of the small and the leptosomic class was almost equal, although these body types differ greatly from each other