Obesity in a Rural Population Experiences from The Skaraborg Project

Over the last two decades there has been a striking and continuous increase in the prevalence of obesity both in industrialized and developing countries. Despite this global consistency there is a variation within countries with a higher prevalence of obesity within rural areas. The overall aim was to explore the prevalence of obesity and factors that influence the development of obesity in a rural Swedish population. Random samples of the populations in the rural communities of Vara, Skara, and Skövde stratified by age-groups and sex, were surveyed including physical examina-tions with anthropometric measurements and a self-administrated question-aire about socio-economic factors and lifestyle. In Vara the population was surveyed every fifth year between 1977 and 2002 enrolling a total of 3365 men and women. Similar information was collected from the population in Skara 1993-1994 (n=1109), and in Skövde 2004-2005 (n=1007). Among the participants in Skövde 10 individuals were purposefully selected to be interviewed about their perceptions on their ideal body and obesity. There was a strong secular trend of increasing obesity in both sexes between 1977 and 2002 in the rural community. The development of obesity was influenced by level of education and leisure time physical activity. ? There was an inverse association between mortality and BMI in the elderly population, however statistically significant only in men. ? Self-reported information on body height and weight underestimated the prevalence of obesity considerably. This underestimation diminished with a corrected BMI accounting for self-reported BMI and age. ? The prevalence of obesity has increased significantly in the ages 30-60 years from 14 per cent in both sexes in 1977 to 19 per cent in men and 21 per cent in women in 2002. ? Subjects not responding to questions on body height and weight in health questionnaires are more likely to be obese and thus contribute to the underestimation of the prevalence of obesity. In Vara the estimation of obesity was significantly influenced by age, participation rate, the nature of information on body height and weight, and non-response to self-reported information on body height and weight. These biases in describing the occurrence of obesity must be considered when reporting and comparing the prevalence of obesity between areas and over a time period. Future studies on the interactions between genes, individual factors, and the socio-economic contexts may more specifically contribute to the understanding of obesity in rural areas

Into the realm of social capital for adolescents: a latent profile analysis

Background Recent reports of increasing prevalence of frequent health complaints and mental health problems among adolescents call for directing more attention on determinants of adolescent health. The relationship between health and social capital has gained increased attention since the early 2000’s and research at review level confirms the importance of social capital for health outcomes, despite methodological heterogeneity. The aim of this study was to identify distinct profiles of family, school and peer social capital in a nationally representative sample of adolescents and to explore health outcomes in those profiles. Method Cross-sectional data from the Swedish Health Behaviour of School-aged Children 2013/14 was used for this study. The analytical sample consisted of 7,804 adolescents aged 11-, 13- and 15-years. Items representing sense of belonging and emotional support were assessed in three contexts; family, school and among peers. Latent profile analyses (LPA) were run to determine social capital profiles. Health outcomes included frequent health complaints and life satisfaction, while socioeconomic status and genders were included as predictors. Results The results show that five distinct profiles best represent the data for 11- and 15-year olds, while a four-profile model was optimal for 13-year olds. Some profiles were recurrent between age groups but unique profiles were also found. Health outcomes were significantly different between profiles depending on levels of social capital in the different contexts. Conclusions This study provides novel insight into how social capital co-occurs among adolescents within the contexts of family, school and peers and how this translates into differences in health outcomes. The national representativeness of the sample increases the implications of the results and contributes to meaningful insights that help explain the interactions of social capital in multiple contexts, complementing what is previously known about the relationship with adolescent health. © 2019 Ahlborg et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Self-consumption and self-sufficiency for household solar producers when introducing an electric vehicle

The aim of this study was to analyse how electric vehicles (EVs) affect the levels of electricity self-consumption and self-sufficiency in households that have in-house electricity generation from solar photovoltaics (PV). A model of the household electricity system was developed, in which real-time measurements of household electricity consumption and vehicle driving, together with modelled PV generation were used as inputs. The results show that using an EV for storage of in-house-generated PV electricity has the potential to achieve the same levels of self-consumption and self-sufficiency for households as could be obtained using a stationary battery. As an example, the level of self-sufficiency (21.4%) obtained for the households, with a median installed PV capacity of 8.7 kWp, was the same with an EV as with a stationary battery with a median capacity of 2.9 kWh. However, substantial variations (up to 50% points) were noted between households, primarily reflecting driving profiles

Suffering of Life after Religious Disaffiliation: A Caring Science Study

Background and aim: There are many circumstances where an individual, either voluntarily or involuntarily, may leave part of their life behind. Religious disaffiliation, the focus in this study, has become increasingly common and may under certain circumstances have a profound impact on a human being’s life, health and wellbeing. The aim of this caring science study was to gain a deeper understanding of the suffering that human beings may endure after religious disaffiliation. Participants and methods: In-depth interviews were conducted with 18 participants who had left various religious communities in Finland. The data material was analyzed through a qualitative thematic analysis according to Clarke and Braun. Results and conclusion: The results show that life after religious disaffiliation entails different forms of suffering of life. Suffering of life was expressed as: Pain and sorrow over being rejected, Overwhelmed by guilt and shame, Living in constant fear of both life and death and Humiliated as a human being. Eriksson’s concept suffering of life is relevant and valuable in understanding the results of this study. Ultimately, suffering of life refers to the violation of a human being’s dignity. Further research is needed on what constitutes caring and how suffering can be alleviated in this context.publishedVersio

Learning and teaching sustainable business in the digital era : a connectivism theory approach

Higher education institutions may adopt various approaches to the pedagogic principles and methods used in teaching sustainable development in business and marketing courses. These methods can include the utilisation of digital technologies and online communication to facilitate distance learning and fast access to relevant information. Changes towards the digitalisation of the learning environment especially gained popularity during the Covid-19 pandemic. In the post-pandemic period, digitalisation continues to facilitate the learning and teaching processes. However, the implementation of digital technologies, besides technological expertise, requires appropriate theoretical frameworks for understanding how learning is developed. This study explores connectivism theory applied to the pedagogic practices of knowledge dissemination concerning sustainable development in the fields of business and marketing. Connectivism embraces knowledge as a network where the learner, with the help of digital technologies, develops mental connections between pieces of information during interaction with various information sources. This qualitative research empirically explores the principles of connectivism embedded in the learning and teaching of a university course conducted online. The research findings indicate that connectivism may be a suitable conceptual framework that motivates learners to develop knowledge through digital enablers, discussions and social networking and to make connections to sustainability concepts. The principles of connectivism may help instructors to develop a learning environment where learners add understandings to their previous knowledge on sustainability through online interactions and by accessing digital knowledge sources. This study makes several interdisciplinary contributions by deepening the insights into digital pedagogic methods and approaches for the facilitation of learning, which may be of interest to academic and other pedagogic practitioners.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Circular economy models implementation in textile industry : An emerging business network perspective

In an attempt to implement sustainability, various industries introduce premises of circular economy models (CEM) to their business processes. Reasons behind it can be, for instance, demand from consumer markets development of innovation technologies that enable sustainable production, or changing business activities towards more sustainable ones in order to access resources. The principles of circular economy include the implementation of closed loop production to preserve and re-use resources, minimize waste, and promote sustainability in the environmental and social spheres. Innovative technologies aimed at sustainable business processes have caused changes in various industries including the textile industry which is conventionally listed among the most sustainability-challenging ones. Innovative solutions for the recycling of textile have already been introduced across the European Union but this industry is still in a state of emergence. The facilitation of recycling of textile as an industrial system can require the development of appropriate infrastructure, resources and capabilities, supported by policy makers and various business actors. A company possessing a sustainable innovative technology may experience challenges if not connected to other cross-sector actors providing the infrastructure. Therefore, strategic networking of business firms is needed in order to facilitate an uninterrupted supply of resources, knowledge, innovation etc., as well as further redistribution of the recycled materials. The emerging business networks, that facilitate the recycling processes and the associated business activities, may play a key role in the development of new business fields or industries. This study addresses the issue of change in the textile industry through the implementation of CEM. Specifically, this study aims to develop an understanding of the role of emerging business networks for CEM implementation referring to the strategic interaction of business firms within the context of the textile industry. This study seeks to answer the following research question: What business processes and actors are of strategic importance for emerging business networks aimed at CEM implementation in the textile industry? Conceptually, this research refers to the concept of emerging business networks, which embraces networking of business firms through which innovations, business concepts or business fields are being developed, to explore the current practices of textile recycling. Empirically, this study explores the recycling textile industry in Finland grounded on the premises of CEM and relying on business-to-business interaction in its business processes. While Finnish companies are frequently included in the top of various sustainability rankings, the Finnish textile industry still requires development in that regard and faces renewal in order to “strengthen its global reputation as a leader in circular economy” by 2035. This study contributes to the industrial marketing literature by adopting the circular economy logic for the way in which the companies manage their business activities, and it hence extends the rather scarce conceptual and empirical research on sustainability in business networks. The study also contributes to the growing field of CEM literature by illustrating how business firms implement changes in their business activities and networking to address sustainability issues.acceptedVersio

Probing Electrochemical Potential Differences over the Solid/Liquid Interface in Li-Ion Battery Model Systems

The electrochemical potential difference (Δμ̅) is the driving force for the transfer of a charged species from one phase to another in a redox reaction. In Li-ion batteries (LIBs), Δμ̅ values for both electrons and Li-ions play an important role in the charge-transfer kinetics at the electrode/electrolyte interfaces. Because of the lack of suitable measurement techniques, little is known about how Δμ̅ affects the redox reactions occurring at the solid/liquid interfaces during LIB operation. Herein, we outline the relations between different potentials and show how ambient pressure photoelectron spectroscopy (APPES) can be used to follow changes in Δμ̅e over the solid/liquid interfaces operando by measuring the kinetic energy (KE) shifts of the electrolyte core levels. The KE shift versus applied voltage shows a linear dependence of ∼1 eV/V during charging of the electrical double layer and during solid electrolyte interphase formation. This agrees with the expected results for an ideally polarizable interface. During lithiation, the slope changes drastically. We propose a model to explain this based on charge transfer over the solid/liquid interface

Nurmisäilörehun sulamattoman kuidun mittaaminen NIRS –menetelmällä

ei saatavill

Evolving Up-regulation of Biliary Fibrosis-Related Extracellular Matrix Molecules After Successful Portoenterostomy

Successful portoenterostomy (SPE) improves the short-term outcome of patients with biliary atresia (BA) by relieving cholestasis and extending survival with native liver. Despite SPE, hepatic fibrosis progresses in most patients, leading to cirrhosis and a deterioration of liver function. The goal of this study was to characterize the effects of SPE on the BA liver transcriptome. We used messenger RNA sequencing to analyze global gene-expression patterns in liver biopsies obtained at the time of portoenterostomy (n = 13) and 1 year after SPE (n = 8). Biopsies from pediatric (n = 2) and adult (n = 2) organ donors and other neonatal cholestatic conditions (n = 5) served as controls. SPE was accompanied by attenuation of inflammation and concomitant up-regulation of key extracellular matrix (ECM) genes. Highly overexpressed genes promoting biliary fibrosis and bile duct integrity, such as integrin subunit beta 6 and previously unreported laminin subunit alpha 3, emerged as candidates to control liver fibrosis after SPE. At a cellular level, the relative abundance of activated hepatic stellate cells and liver macrophages decreased following SPE, whereas portal fibroblasts (PFs) and cholangiocytes persisted. Conclusion: The attenuation of inflammation following SPE coincides with emergence of an ECM molecular fingerprint, a set of profibrotic molecules mechanistically connected to biliary fibrosis. The persistence of activated PFs and cholangiocytes after SPE suggests a central role for these cell types in the progression of biliary fibrosis.Peer reviewe

Liver secretin receptor predicts portoenterostomy outcomes and liver injury in biliary atresia

Biliary atresia (BA) is a chronic neonatal cholangiopathy characterized by fibroinflammatory bile duct damage. Reliable biomarkers for predicting native liver survival (NLS) following portoenterostomy (PE) surgery are lacking. Herein we explore the utility of 22 preidentified profibrotic molecules closely connected to ductular reaction (DR) and prevailing after successful PE (SPE), in predicting PE outcomes and liver injury. We used qPCR and immunohistochemistry in a BA cohort including liver samples obtained at PE (n = 53) and during postoperative follow-up after SPE (n = 25). Of the 13 genes over-expressed in relation to cholestatic age-matched controls at PE, only secretin receptor (SCTR) expression predicted cumulative 5-year NLS and clearance of jaundice. Patients in the highest SCTR expression tertile showed 34-55% lower NLS than other groups at 1-5 years after PE (P = 0.006-0.04 for each year). SCTR expression was also significantly lower [42 (24-63) vs 75 (39-107) fold, P = 0.015] among those who normalized their serum bilirubin after PE. Liver SCTR expression localized in cholangiocytes and correlated positively with liver fibrosis, DR, and transcriptional markers of fibrosis (ACTA2) and cholangiocytes (KRT7, KRT19) both at PE and after SPE. SCTR is a promising prognostic marker for PE outcomes and associates with liver injury in BA.Peer reviewe