Purchasing Behavior, Setting, Pricing, Family: Determinants of School Lunch Participation

Despite growing school lunch availability in Germany, its utilization is still low, and students resort to unhealthy alternatives. We investigated predictors of school lunch participation and reasons for nonparticipation in 1215 schoolchildren. Children reported meal habits, parents provided family-related information (like socioeconomic status), and anthropometry was conducted on-site in schools. Associations between school lunch participation and family-related predictors were estimated using logistic regression controlling for age and gender if necessary. School was added as a random effect. School lunch participation was primarily associated with family factors. While having breakfast on schooldays was positively associated with school lunch participation (ORadj = 2.20, p = 0.002), lower secondary schools (ORadj = 0.52, p < 0.001) and low SES (ORadj = 0.25, p < 0.001) were negatively associated. The main reasons for nonparticipation were school- and lunch-related factors (taste, time constraints, pricing). Parents reported pricing as crucial a reason as an unpleasant taste for nonparticipation. Nonparticipants bought sandwiches and energy drinks significantly more often on school days, whereas participants were less often affected by overweight (OR = 0.66, p = 0.043). Our data stress school- and lunch-related factors as an important opportunity to foster school lunch utilization

And yet Again: Having Breakfast Is Positively Associated with Lower BMI and Healthier General Eating Behavior in Schoolchildren

Given the high prevalence of childhood overweight, school-based programs aiming at nutritional behavior may be a good starting point for community-based interventions. Therefore, we investigated associations between school-related meal patterns and weight status in 1215 schoolchildren. Anthropometry was performed on-site in schools. Children reported their meal habits, and parents provided family-related information via questionnaires. Associations between nutritional behavior and weight status were estimated using hierarchical linear and logistic regression. Analyses were adjusted for age, socio–economic status, school type, migration background, and parental weight status. Having breakfast was associated with a lower BMI-SDS (βadj = −0.51, p = 0.004) and a lower risk of being overweight (ORadj = 0.30, p = 0.009), while having two breakfasts resulting in stronger associations (BMI-SDS: βadj = −0.66, p < 0.001; risk of overweight: ORadj = 0.22, p = 0.001). Likewise, children who regularly skipped breakfast on school days showed stronger associations (BMI-SDS: β = 0.49, p < 0.001; risk of overweight: OR = 3.29, p < 0.001) than children who skipped breakfast only occasionally (BMI-SDS: β = 0.43, p < 0.001; risk of overweight: OR = 2.72, p = 0.032). The associations persisted after controlling for parental SES and weight status. Therefore, our data confirm the school setting as a suitable starting point for community-based interventions and may underline the necessity of national programs providing free breakfast and lunch to children

Fasting indices of glucose-insulin-metabolism across life span and prediction of glycemic deterioration in children with obesity from new diagnostic cut-offs

Background: Fasting indices of glucose-insulin-metabolism are an easy and affordable tool to assess insulin resistance. We aimed to establish reference ranges for fasting insulin indices that reflect age-dependent variation over the entire life span and subsequently test their clinical application regarding the prediction of glycemic deterioration in children. Methods: We calculated age- and puberty-dependent reference values for HOMA-IR, HOMA2-IR, HOMA-β, McAuley index, fasting insulin, and fasting glucose from 6994 observations of 5512 non-obese healthy subjects aged 5–80 years. Applying those references, we determined the prevalence of insulin resistance among 2538 subjects with obesity. Furthermore, we investigated the intraindividual stability and the predictive values for future dysglycemia of these fasting indices in 516 children and adolescents with obesity up to 19 years of follow-up. We validated the results in three independent cohorts. Findings: There was a strong age-dependent variation of all indices throughout the life span, including prolonged recovery of pubertal insulin resistance and a subsequent continuous increase throughout adulthood. Already from age 5 years onwards, &gt;40% of children with obesity presented with elevated parameters of insulin resistance. Applying newly developed reference ranges, insulin resistance among children with obesity doubled the risk for future glycemic deterioration (HOMA-IR HR 1.88 (95% CI 1.1–3.21)), fasting insulin HR 1.89 (95% CI 1.11–3.23). In contrast, fasting glucose alone was not predictive for emerging dysglycemia in children with obesity (HR 1.03 (95% CI 0.62–1.71)). The new insulin-based thresholds were superior to fasting glucose and HbA1c in detecting children eventually manifesting with dysglycemia in prospective analyses. Interpretation: The variation of fasting glucose-insulin-metabolism across the life span necessitates age-specific reference ranges. The improved prediction of future glycemic deterioration by indices based on fasting insulin beyond simple glucose measures alone could help to stratify risk characteristics of children with obesity in order to guide patient-tailored prevention and intervention approaches. Funding: German Research Foundation (DFG)—through SFB 1052, project number 209933838, subproject C5; Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany; European Union– European Regional Development Fund; Free State of Saxony. The German Diabetes Association, the CarbHealth consortium (01EA1908B). EU-IMI2-Consortium SOPHIA (grant agreement No 875534), German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), grant number 82DZD14E03.</p

Families’ Worries during the First and Second COVID-19 Wave in Germany: Longitudinal Study in Two Population-Based Cohorts

This study aimed to compare worries related to the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in families with young children in two regions in Germany differently affected by the pandemic (Regensburg in Southeast Germany, Leipzig in Eastern Germany) during the first and the second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. 720 parents participating in the KUNO Kids health study in Regensburg (n = 507) or the LIFE Child study in Leipzig (n = 213) answered questions regarding COVID-19-related worries and trust in anti-pandemic policy measures during the first wave (spring 2020) and during the second wave (winter 2020/2021) of the pandemic. Ordinal mixed-effects models were performed to assess differences depending on region and time, adjusting for education and migration background. Participants worried most about the general economic situation and their family and least about their own health or financial situation. Worries about oneself, family, friends, hometown, and country were stronger during the second than during the first wave. In regional comparisons, worries about family, friends, and hometown increased more pronouncedly from wave 1 to wave 2 in Leipzig (OR ranging from 2.67 (95% CI 1.71–4.19) to 3.01 (95% CI 1.93–4.71), all p < 0.001) than in Regensburg (OR ranging from to 1.38 (95% CI 1.08–1.78) to 1.72 (95% CI 1.33–2.21), all p < 0.05), running parallel with the increase in SARS-CoV-2 infections. Trust in anti-pandemic policy measures, in contrast, decreased significantly between wave 1 and wave 2, with a stronger decrease in Regensburg (OR = 0.30 (95% CI 0.22–0.39), p < 0.001) than in Leipzig (OR = 0.91 (95% CI 0.59–1.41), n.s.). The degree of families’ COVID-19-related worries differs by region and time, which might be related to differences in infection rates and public interest. Regional differences should be taken into account when developing communication strategies and policy measures during the COVID-19 pandemic

Der lange Weg zum Laborbuch: Einführung von elabFTW an der Medizinischen Fakultät der Universität Leipzig

&lt;p&gt;Ein elektronisches Laborbuch unterstützt bei der Dokumentation von Experimenten und der Organisation von Arbeitsabläufen insbesondere in Nasslaboren. Die strukturierte Erfassung und revisionssichere Archivierung von Ergebnissen ist Voraussetzung für effektive Arbeit nach guter wissenschaftlicher Praxis. Die Einführung einer Software, die so eng mit der Durchführung täglicher Arbeiten verbunden ist, stellt besondere organisatorische Herausforderungen an IT-Personal, Leiter:innen und Mitarbeiter:innen.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Die Medizinische Fakultät der Universität Leipzig ist mit über 100 Professor:innen und 50 Instituten eine große Einrichtung mit vielfältigen Forschungsschwerpunkten. Auf dem Poster wird über die mehrjährigen Erfahrungen mit der Einführung von elabFTW als gemeinsamer Plattform für ein elektronisches Laborbuch berichtet. Diese verlief in verschiedenen Einrichtungen mit verschiedenem Erfolg, so dass ein breites Spektrum an technischen, organisatorischen und menschlichen Einflüssen identifiziert werden kann, die die Implementierung und den effektiven Einsatz eines solchen FDM-Tools in der Praxis befördern oder erschweren.&lt;/p&gt

Phase Variation in Child and Adolescent Growth

Child growth is characterised by increases in height, and increases in maturational status. Functional data analysis provides a tool to separate these two sources of variation (registration) and differentiates between the variation in maturational tempo (temporal, or phase variation) and the variation in height (amplitude variation). We extended this concept by combining Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and the Maximum Likelihood Principle. Longitudinal data on height were obtained from two large growth studies from Lublin, Poland, and Zurich, Switzerland, with altogether 361 children. Variation in amplitude monotonically rises with age; variation in phase peaks during puberty. During mid-puberty, phase variation is large and explains up to 40 percent of total height variance in girls, and up to 50 percent in boys. Eight amplitude and 4 phase components appeared biologically significant. The largest amplitude component explained 91% of the amplitude variance and is characterised by an almost horizontal pattern. The largest phase component explained 66% (boys) and 63% (girls) of phase variance, rises throughout childhood and reaches up to 0.85 years in adolescent boys, and up to 0.75 years in adolescent girls. Phase components significantly correlated with the clinical signs of puberty. The combination of PCA and the Maximum Likelihood Principle provides a new, powerful and automatic tool for growth modelling that includes estimates of future growth, adult stature and developmental tempo. Preliminary results indicate that this approach can be used for automatised screening purposes.

A Simple Parallel Algorithm for the Stepwise Approximate Computation of Voronoi Diagrams of Line Segments

Abstract: We present a PRAM algorithm to approximate the Voronoi diagram of line segments for a grid of points in the plane. The algorithm combines ideas from computer graphics and from hierarchical approximation algorithms. We analyze the complexity and report on experimental results of an implementation on a PRAM simulator. The algorithm can be extended to other types of objects and distance metrics. We sketch how to extend the algorithm for message-passing machines.

An online survey carried out in 2022 showed that COVID-19 was associated with negative changes in children's lives

The COVID-19 pandemic has had adverse effects on the well-being, health and behaviour of children and adolescents, probably due to social restrictions.1–3 A lot of studies were conducted during the particularly challenging first year of the pandemic, when there were lockdowns and day care, schools and leisure facilities were closed. Our online survey in February 2022 investigated parents' perceptions of the long-term consequences of the pandemic on child development. We also explored associations between these consequences and the children's age and sex, the family's socioeconomic status (SES) and the children's fear of COVID-19

An online survey carried out in 2022 showed that COVID-19 was associated with negative changes in children's lives

The COVID-19 pandemic has had adverse effects on the well-being, health and behaviour of children and adolescents, probably due to social restrictions.1–3 A lot of studies were conducted during the particularly challenging first year of the pandemic, when there were lockdowns and day care, schools and leisure facilities were closed. Our online survey in February 2022 investigated parents' perceptions of the long-term consequences of the pandemic on child development. We also explored associations between these consequences and the children's age and sex, the family's socioeconomic status (SES) and the children's fear of COVID-19

Sleep-related difficulties in healthy children and adolescents

Background!#!As sleep-related difficulties are a growing public health concern, it is important to gain an overview of the specific difficulty areas of the most vulnerable individuals: children. The current descriptive study presents the prevalence of sleep-related difficulties in two large samples of healthy children and adolescents and outlines the effects of age, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) on various sleep-related difficulties.!##!Methods!#!Participants were 855 4-9 year-old children (child sample) and 1,047 10-17 year-old adolescents (adolescent sample) participating 2011-2015 in the LIFE Child study, a population-based cohort study in Germany. Parents of the child participants completed the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), whereas adolescents self-administered the Sleep Self Report (SSR). Familial SES was determined by a composite score considering parental education, occupational status, and income. Multiple regression analyses were carried out to address the research question.!##!Results!#!Among 4-9 year-old children, the mean bedtime was reported to be 8 p.m., the mean wake-up time 7 a.m., and sleep duration decreased by 14 min/year of age. 22.6 % of the children and 20.0 % of the adolescents showed problematic amounts of sleep-related difficulties. In the child sample, bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, sleep-related anxiety, night waking, and parasomnia were more frequent in younger than older children. In the adolescent sample, difficulties at bedtime were more frequent among the younger adolescents, whereas daytime sleepiness was more prominent in the older than the younger adolescents. Considering gender differences, sleep-related difficulties were more frequent among boys in the child sample and among girls in the adolescent sample. Lower SES was associated with increased sleep-related difficulties in the adolescent, but not the child sample.!##!Conclusions!#!The present results report sleep-related difficulties throughout both childhood and adolescence. Gender differences can already be observed in early childhood, while effects of SES emerge only later in adolescence. The awareness for this circumstance is of great importance for pediatric clinicians who ought to early identify sleep-related difficulties in particularly vulnerable individuals