Influencing Food Choice: Effects of Stress and Sleep Deprivation on Dietary Habits of Young Adults

Introduction: Lifelong dietary habits are shaped during young adulthood; hence, preventing poor food choice practices during this period is vital. Stress and sleep deprivation are two important lifestyle elements that affect eating habits. The purpose of this study was to evaluate stress and sleep deprivation as factors contributing to poor dietary choices of college-aged students. Methodology: During finals week, a survey inquiring about sleep duration, perceived stress, and dietary patterns throughout the semester (typical week vs. finals week), was administered to university students (n=83). Fifty-five participants (21 male) provided an ID number, which allowed university-collected demographic and food-purchasing data to be merged with survey data. Survey data was analyzed using all 83 participant responses; questions using demographic variables and food-purchasing data utilized the 55 participant responses with ID. Results: Reported stress levels (on a scale of 1-10) were significantly higher during finals week compared to the rest of the semester (7.84 vs. 4.16,. Conclusion: Despite stress levels and sleep differing between a typical week and finals week, dietary behaviors were generally not impacted (i.e. healthy eating during a typical week remained as such during finals week). The low percentage of overall “more healthy” purchases suggests a disproportionately unhealthy campus food environment; however, the fact that females made significantly healthier choices implies that healthier eating is still an alterable choice. Interventions aimed at improving young adult dietary habits should promote healthy lifestyle behaviors over the course of a semester as opposed to focusing on specific time points during the semester (i.e. finals week)

Social Work Services in Small Animal Private Practice Settings: A Veterinarian’s Perspective

Humans share a strong bond with animals, when a pet becomes sick or dies an owner can feel extreme grief and bereavement. Research studies have shown that some veterinarians feel they are inadequately trained to handle the pet owner’s feelings of grief and loss. Social workers could have a unique fit in assisting bereaved pet owners, since many social workers help bereaved individuals successfully grieve the loss of a human loved one in a healthy way. The purpose of this study is to see what veterinarian’s attitudes are toward social work services in small animal private practice settings. Using a qualitative exploratory research design, six veterinarians were interviewed on their knowledge of social work services, comfort level in dealing with bereaved owners and the roles and challenges using a social worker in small animal private practice settings. The data revealed that veterinarians acknowledge client grief almost daily, use a variety of skills when working with bereaved owners, and have extensive knowledge of social work, social workers and social work services. Participants stated social work services could be utilized in private practice settings by helping clients make difficult decisions, offering support, facilitating communication, providing resources and training and staff support. Participants identified challenges of having social work services at a small animal private practice including fees and cost associated with the services, small clinics with low client demand and integrating social work services in a veterinary setting. These research findings strongly suggest there is a place for social workers and social work services in a veterinary setting; however maybe not in private practice settings. It is up to future social workers to forge a bond with veterinarians to offer unparalleled client centered care by offering support for pet loss and bereavement

Biology Of Exosomes And Their MicroRNA Cargos In Human And Bovine Milk

Exosomes are small, cargo-containing vesicles secreted by cells to facilitate intercellular communication. Of exosome cargos, microRNAs are especially interesting because of their involvement in gene regulation. Recently, our lab has shown that exosomes and their microRNA cargo are absorbed through the diet and elicit effects exogenously. Human and animal milk contain exosomes, which may have implications in infant and adult nutrition. There is evidence that bovine milk exosomes enhance growth of murine C2C12 myotube cell cultures, but whether this translates to muscle in vivo is unknown. The USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference is lacking up-to-date information about human milk constituents, including their exosome and microRNA content. This thesis focuses on two specific aims: 1) the effect of dietary bovine milk exosomes on strength, gene expression and amino acid profiles in murine skeletal muscles and 2) the feasibility and methodological groundwork for studying microRNA in exosomes from small volumes of human milk. Aim 1: Mice were fed exosome-defined diets and variables of feeding behavior, metabolism, grip strength, liver and kidney function, amino acid profiles, and gene expression patterns were assessed. No effects were observed for food and water intake, respiratory exchange rate, physical activity, grip strength, markers of liver and kidney dysfunction, and amino acid profiles in muscle. Only a modest effect on gene expression in skeletal muscle was observed, consistent with recent observations that bovine milk exosomes and their cargos accumulate in tissues other than skeletal muscle. Aim 2: The content of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in human milk was assessed under different storage conditions at timed intervals. Exosomes were purified from 1 mL of fresh human milk and their microRNA content was assessed by microRNA-sequencing analysis and compared to that in three brands of infant formula. Storage conditions were determined a confounder when analyzing microRNAs in human milk exosomes. MicroRNA-sequencing analysis is feasible in exosomes from small volumes of milk and the content of microRNAs in infant formulas was negligible compared to human milk. Advisor: Janos Zemplen

Social Work Services in Small Animal Private Practice Settings: A Veterinarian’s Perspective

Humans share a strong bond with animals, when a pet becomes sick or dies an owner can feel extreme grief and bereavement. Research studies have shown that some veterinarians feel they are inadequately trained to handle the pet owner’s feelings of grief and loss. Social workers could have a unique fit in assisting bereaved pet owners, since many social workers help bereaved individuals successfully grieve the loss of a human loved one in a healthy way. The purpose of this study is to see what veterinarian’s attitudes are toward social work services in small animal private practice settings. Using a qualitative exploratory research design, six veterinarians were interviewed on their knowledge of social work services, comfort level in dealing with bereaved owners and the roles and challenges using a social worker in small animal private practice settings. The data revealed that veterinarians acknowledge client grief almost daily, use a variety of skills when working with bereaved owners, and have extensive knowledge of social work, social workers and social work services. Participants stated social work services could be utilized in private practice settings by helping clients make difficult decisions, offering support, facilitating communication, providing resources and training and staff support. Participants identified challenges of having social work services at a small animal private practice including fees and cost associated with the services, small clinics with low client demand and integrating social work services in a veterinary setting. These research findings strongly suggest there is a place for social workers and social work services in a veterinary setting; however maybe not in private practice settings. It is up to future social workers to forge a bond with veterinarians to offer unparalleled client centered care by offering support for pet loss and bereavement

Antenatal Physical Activity Counseling Among Healthcare Providers

Objective: Pregnant women often report a lack of knowledge concerning the safety of exercising during pregnancy. Healthcare providers play an integral role in providing pregnant women with the necessary knowledge to promote antenatal physical activity. Thus, the objective of this study was to assess healthcare providers’ beliefs, attitudes, knowledge and practices related to antenatal physical activity counseling. Study Design: 188 Providers (i.e. obstetricians, midwives, and family medicine physicians) completed a 39 closed-item survey. Characteristics among healthcare providers’ physical activity counseling practices as well as belief, attitudes and knowledge were explored. Results: The majority of all providers agreed that physical activity during pregnancy will result in numerous improved health outcomes for mother and baby. Approximately half of the providers (48%, n = 89) were not familiar with the current national guides recommending that women free of obstetric complications should engage in at least 150 minutes of exercise per week. Only 43% of providers believed their patients followed the advice they are given about physical activity. Over half of the providers reported that they provide in-office physical activity counseling, and FMs provide individualized counseling less often than OBs and CNMs (i.e. 33%, 60%, and 65%, respectively; p = 0.0014). Importantly, 17% (n = 31) of providers reported that they never received professional training in antenatal physical activity counseling and of those that did receive training, 69% (n = 107) claimed their training was fair or poor . Conclusion: Findings from the pre- sent study demonstrate a need for further continuing education opportunities on the current national guide- lines on antenatal physical activity

Recognition and management of perinatal depression and anxiety by general practitioners: a systematic review

Background. Perinatal anxiety and depression are widespread, with up to 20% of women affected during pregnancy and after birth. In the UK, management of perinatal mental health falls under the remit of general practitioners (GPs). We reviewed the literature on GPs’ routine recognition, diagnosis and management of anxiety and depression in the perinatal period. Method. A systematic search of Embase, Medline, PsycInfo, Pubmed, Scopus and Web of Science was conducted. Studies were eligible if they reported quantitative measures of GPs’ or Family Physicians’ assessment, recognition and management of anxiety or depression in pregnancy or post-partum. Results. Thirteen papers, reporting 10 studies, were identified from the United States, Australia, UK, Netherlands and Canada. All reported on depression; two included anxiety disorders. Reported awareness and ability to diagnose perinatal depression among GPs was high. GPs knew about and used screening tools in the UK but less so in US settings. Antidepressants were the first line of treatment, with various SSRIs considered safest. Counseling by GPs and referrals to specialists were common in the post-natal period, less so in pregnancy. Treatment choices were determined by resources, attitudes, knowledge and training. Conclusions. Data on GPs’ awareness and management of perinatal depression were sparse and unlikely to be generalizable. Future directions for research are proposed; such as exploring the management of anxiety disorders which are largely missing from the literature, and understanding more about barriers to disclosure and recognition in primary care. More standardized training could help to improve recognition and management practices

Temporal Specificity in Exercise Training

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of training at a particular time of day on anaerobic capacity in the morning and in the afternoon

Diet, physical activity and mental health status are associated with dysglycaemia in pregnancy: the Healthy Start Study

Prenatal dysglycaemia is associated with adverse maternal and offspring outcomes. This study examined the association between dysglycaemia and multiple modifiable factors measured during pregnancy

Bullying in America\u27s middle schools : identifying factors that affect school environment

The purpose of this literature review is to explore bullying, and to examine how school environment can affect it. Bullying can (a) place a student at harm or fear of harm, (b) have a detrimental effect on a student\u27s physical or mental health, (c) interfere with a student\u27s academic performance, and/or (d) interfere in the student\u27s ability to participate or benefit from activities at school. Many experts think that a positive school environment can reduce the incidences of bullying at school

The Course and Interrelationship of Maternal and Paternal perinatal Depression

The aims of the study were to describe course of depression in both mothers and fathers from the third trimester of pregnancy through 6 months postpartum and to examine the relationship between maternal and paternal depression. Hypotheses were as follows: (a) Depressive symptoms would be correlated between parents and (b) earlier depressive symptoms in one parent would predict later increases in depression in the other. Eighty cohabitating primiparous couples were recruited from prenatal OBGYN visits and community agencies and enrolled during pregnancy, between 28-week gestation and delivery. Participants completed measures of depression on four occasions: baseline and 1, 3, and 6 months postpartum. Ninety-eight percent of the enrolled couples (78; 156 individuals) completed the study. For both mothers and fathers, symptom severity ratings and classification as a probable case were stable across time, with prenatal depression persisting through 6 months in 75 % of mothers and 86 % of fathers. Prenatal depression in fathers predicted worsening depressive symptom severity in mothers across the first six postpartum months but not vice versa. In both expecting/new mothers and fathers, depression demonstrates a stable pattern of occurrence and symptom severity between 28-month gestation and 6 months postpartum. Although prenatal maternal depression is not predictive of symptom change in fathers, mothers with prenatally depressed partners showed significant worsening in overall symptom severity during the first six postpartum months