Barriers to fish consumption and it’s influencing factors: A comprehensive overview of the relevant evidence in Iran and in the world

Background and Aims: WHO suggests for consumption of fish twice a week. However, studies and reports show that fish consumption in some countries is less than its minimum amount. In the present study, barriers and influencing factors as well as related scientific evidence against fish consumption have been examined.Materials and Methods: This paper reviews the recent published papers in English and Farsi concerning fish consumption. Using keywords including “fish consumption”, “influencing factors on fish consumption”, “facilitators and barriers to fish consumption”, 20 relevant articles by search engines and databases such as Google Scholar, Pubmed, ScienceDirect, and SID were identified and extracted. Extracted data were then summarized in predesigned tables and consequently qualitative and simple quantitative data analyses were conducted.Results: The review of these studies resulted in 12 obstacles to fish consumption. Unpleasant taste, expensive price, and lack of knowledge were the most important from the viewpoint of the frequency of reported barriers. Furthermore, gender, age, nutritional culture and habits were the most commonly reported factors affecting fish consumption.Conclusion: Before any planning it is vital to identify the most important factors influencing the consumption of fish and the most prominent barriers to consumption in the population studied. Considering the observed statistically significant correlation between demographic characteristics and fish consumption, various promotional programs for people with demographic differences should be applied.Key words: Barriers to consumption, Factors affecting consumption, Fish consumptio

Perceived Barriers of Mothers in Use of Dental Floss for their 3-6-Year-Old Children:A Qualitative Study

Introduction:Flossing is the best and most common way to clean between teeth where plaque accumulation and gingivitis starts. However, many mothers neglect the flossing of their small children. The purpose of this study was to provide better understanding of perceived barriers of mothers in use of dental floss for their 3-6-year-old children. Method:This qualitative study examined the perceived barriers of 40 mothers of 3-6-year-old childrenutilizing qualitative content analysis approach. Participants were selected using purposeful sampling in Kamyaran, Iran, in 2014. Data were collected through conducting in-depth, semi-structured interviews. The transcriptions of all interviews were analyzed by content analysis technique to extract main themes in regards to research questions. Results:Mothers’ perceived barriers were categorized into two main groups as mother and family member-related barriers (inappropriate attitudes, behaviors and skills, mental and emotional conditions, and knowledge) and child-related barriers (skill). Conclusion:The results of this study highlight the importance of understanding mothers’ barriers to help their children in flossing and emphasized the role of mothers and family members in establishing this oral health behavior in children fromearly years. It is suggested that comprehensive and effective oral health education programs should include modifying wrong, but important, assumptions and beliefs of parents regarding primary teeth and importance of healthy oral health behaviors. Keywords: Mothers’ perceived barriers, Dental floss, 3-6-year-old children, Qualitative researc

Mothers’ perceived barriers in the control of sweets consumption in 3-6 years old children; a qualitative study

Background and Aims: Consumption of sweets (snack foods) is one of the most important risk factors associated with dental decay. Children have a great interest in using snack foods. Most children, however, are disadvantaged of taking appropriate action by their parents to control their nutritional behaviors, because of various reasons. This study aimed to explore mothers’ perceived barriers in the control of sweets consumption by their children. Materials and Methods: The present qualitative study consisting of 40 mothers having 3-6 years old children was performed on Kamyaran residents in 2014 to evaluate their attitudes towards barriers in the control of sweets consumption. Participants were selected based on purposeful sampling and semi-structured interviews were exploited in order to data gathering. Transcriptions of all interviews were analyzed employing content analysis technique to extract main themes according to research questions. Before each interview mothers were informed regarding aim of research, interview style, freedom to leave the interview and the way interview content would be kept private.Results: The data analyzed suggests that it was possible to categorize mothers’ perceived barriers into three main themes including a) mother related barriers (lack of knowledge and inappropriate attitude), b) child related barriers (emotional status and inappropriate behavior) and c) family related barriers (culture and behavior of family members). Conclusion: It is hoped that the present research will broaden our understanding of perceived barriers of mothers which could be utilized for future quantitative researches and dental health educational programs.Key words: Perceived Barriers, Sweets Consumption, Dental Carie

Comparison of tooth brushing related knowledge, attitude and health behavior as well as dental health status among boy and girl students in elementary schools in district 4 of Tehran in 2015

Background and aims: Assessment of oral health status is considered as one of the main criteria for evaluating the public health. Knowledge and attitude towards oral health behavior, especially brushing and gender differenceare factors influencing oral health. This study was aimed to compare tooth brushing related knowledge, attitude and health behavior as well as …. (DMFT) among girl and boy students in elementary schools in district 4 of Tehran in2015.Method: The present cross-sectional (descriptive and analytical) study was carried out among 408 girl and boy elementary students from six randomly selected schools in district 4 of Tehran, Iran. Two-stage cluster sampling was selected and employed. A valid and reliable researcher-… questionnaire was used for this study. Dental visits wereperformed on the basis of DMFT index and all students were assured of information confidentiality. The data were analyzed using SPSS (version 16) software.Results: In the current study, comparing female students with males showed that the mean scores of brushing knowledge, attitude and health behavior in girls was higher than boys and the difference was statistically significant (p=0.001). However, the observed mean DMFT difference between the girls and boys in this study was not significant (p>0.05). Furthermore, a strong and statistically significant relationship was noticed between frequency of brushing and DMFT in both sexes (p<0.05).Conclusion: Mean scores of knowledge, attitude and behavior in both sexes were fairly good and also better in female students than males. It was further found that boys and girls in our study can be, respectively, classified as low and very low mean DMFT groups based on World Health Organization classification. Therefore, appropriate educational interventions with more focus on the vulnerable group of boys are highly advocated in order to improve their knowledge and attitude. Key Words: Knowledge, Attitude, DMFT, Health behavior brushin

Comparison of the effects of direct and indirect education of sexually transmitted infections on knowledge and attitude of male nursing and medical students of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran – Iran, 2018

Introduction: It is very important to prevent Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STIs) as they cause many other health problems with serious complications. In fact, prevention is the most effective mean of dealing with STIs. In saying that, the basic requirements of prevention include appropriate health education on the subject. This study compares the effectiveness of two health education programs regarding bacterial STIs among male students at Nursing and Medical Schools of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services in Tehran. Materials and Methods: The quasi-experimental study included 430 male students aged between 18 and 30 who were majoring in nursing and medical field. Two faculties were selected through purposeful non-random sampling.  A valid and reliable researcher-made questionnaire was filled out in two steps (before and one month after the training). The training interventions in direct education group included a lecture along with a session of questions and answers (Q&As) for one and a half hours. On the other hand, the indirect education only included a weblog on the topic of STIs. The statistical tests were employed to analyze the collected data in SPSS 22. Results: Generally, students’ knowledge and attitudes toward this subject were at a moderate level before the intervention, and only %18.4 of them were well-aware of bacterial STIs. In fact, %44 of the respondents had positive attitudes toward those diseases. The research results indicated that the educational intervention managed to increase the awareness and attitudes of the students in relation to STIs in the two case groups in comparison with the control group. However, the different methods of education produced similar results and had no significant differences. Moreover, attitudes increased in the weblog group slightly more than the lecture group. Conclusion: According to the findings of this research, The weblog intervention had more effects on their attitudes than the lecture intervention. Therefore, the modern training method based on the use of the internet (weblog) can be used effectively as an alternative or supplement to traditional training methods

The effect of mobile based education on knowledge and behavior of pregnant mothers regarding risk factors signs in pregnancy

زمینه و اهداف: بارداری دارای عوارض خاص خود است، لذا اطلاع رسانی به زنان در مورد علائم خطر امری حیاتی است. این مطالعه با هدف بررسی اثر بخشی آموزش از طریق موبایل در زمینه علائم خطر بارداری طراحی شده است. مواد و روش‌ها: مطالعه مداخله‌ای از نوع تجربی بوده و تعداد 120 نفر از مادران باردار، به روش نمونه‌گیری خوشه‌ای انتخاب شدند. زنان به طور تصادفی به دو گروه مداخله و شاهد تقسیم شدند. در گروه مداخله، 21 پیام متنی روزانه در رابطه با علائم خطر و شکایات شایع ارسال گردید و پس از آن مجددا در طی دو هفته نکات مهم پیام‌ها به عنوان پیام یادآور ارسال شد. اطلاعات توسط پرسشنامه جمع‌آوری گردید. تجزیه و تحلیل داده‌ها با استفاده از نرم افزار SPSS نسخة 22 و آزمونهای آماری آنالیز واریانس با تکرار مشاهدات، فریدمن و کوکران انجام شده و سطح معناداری آماری 05/0 لحاظ گردید. تمامی مراحل مطالعه حاضر، طبق موازین اخلاقی اجرا گردید. یافته‌ها: پس از اعمال مداخله، نمره  آگاهی در گروه مداخله، بهبود یافته (p<0.001) و تغییرات مشاهده شده در گروه مداخله بیشتر از گروه شاهد بوده است (p<0.001). نمره رفتار در هر دو گروه بهبود یافته (p<0.001)؛ ولی تغییرات مشاهده شده در گروه مداخله بیشتر از گروه شاهد بوده است (p<0.001). نتیجه‌گیری: آموزش با استفاده از موبایل می‌تواند به بهبود  آگاهی و رفتار زنان در زمینه علائم خطر کمک نماید؛ لذا انجام آن در بهبود كيفي و كمي مراقبت هاي بارداري موثر است.Background and Aims: Pregnancy has its own side effects and thus it is vital for women to be informed about the risk symptoms.  The present study has been designed to investigate the effectiveness of mobile based education regarding signs of pregnancy risks. Materials and Methods: An experimental intervention study was conducted on 120 pregnant mothers by cluster sampling method. The study population was then randomly divided into control and intervention groups. Twenty one educational text messages regarding risk symptoms and common complaints were sent to the intervention group on a daily basis. During two weeks thereafter, the important points were resent as remembering message. A questionnaire was used for collecting data. For data analysis, SPSS software version 22 was used for statistical analysis, using variance analysis, Friedman, and Cochrane. The significance level was considered as 0.05. Results: In this study, the knowledge score of both groups improved after intervention, but the changes observed in the intervention group were not statistically significant. The behavioral pattern was better in the two groups after the intervention, but the observed changes in the intervention group were higher than the control group. Conclusion: Despite the specific features of the educational model, the plan can be effective in improving the quality and quantity of pregnancy care as a continuous intervention in all health care centers

Assessment of female students’ knowledge and attitude towards sexually transmitted infections in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, 2015

زمينه و اهداف: بيماري‌هاي مقاربتي از علل عمده بسياري از بيماريها با عواقب جدي مي‌باشند که تاثير عميقي بر سلامت جنسي و باروري افراد در سراسر جهان مي‌گذارند؛ لذا پيشگيري مهمترين راه مقابله با آن شناخته مي‌شود. اين پژوهش با هدف تعيين آگاهي و نگرش دانشجويان دختر خوابگاهي دانشگاه علوم پزشکي شهيد بهشتي در مورد بيماري‌هاي مقاربتي باکتريايي در سال تحصيلي 1394 انجام گرفت. مواد و روش‌ها: مطالعه حاضر توصيفي تحليلي از نوع مقطعي است. 430 نفر از دانشجويان در رشته‌هاي پيراپزشکي بين سن 18 تا 30 سال به روش نمونه گيري خوشه اي وارد مطالعه شدند. به دانشجويان، اطمينان از محرمانه بودن اطلاعات داده شد. براي جمع آوري داده‌ها از پرسشنامه محقق ساخته استفاده شد. يافته‌ها: سطح آگاهي و نگرش دانشجويان اين پژوهش در سطح متوسط بود و فقط 11/4 درصد آنها در رابطه با سه بيماري مقاربتي باکتريايي آگاهي خوبي داشتند و 14/65درصد از پاسخ دهندگان نگرش مناسب به اين بيمارها داشتند. نتايج نشان داد بين رشته تحصيلي و مقطع تحصيلي و ميزان آگاهي و نگرش دانشجويان اختلاف معناداري وجود نداشت. نتيجه‌گيري: با توجه به ميزان آگاهي و نگرش نامطلوب دانشجويان نسبت به بيماريهاي مقاربتي، مسئولان بايد با توجه به شرايط فرهنگي و اجتماعي جامعه و تاکيد بر آموزش و اطلاع رساني در اين زمينه به جوانان و در دانشگاه‌ها و مراکز آموزشي، برنامه‌هاي مورد نياز را طراحي و اجرا کنند.Background and Aims: Sexually transmitted infections (STI) are among major causes of several diseases with serious consequences including a profound effect on sexual and reproductive health around theworld. Prevention is the most important strategy to deal with STIs. This study aims to determine the knowledge and attitude of female students regarding bacterial sexually transmitted diseases at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was performed on 430 female students enrolled in Paramedical courses at SBUM. A Cluster sampling method was employed to select participants. All students were assured of information confidentiality. Data were collected using a valid questionnairedeveloped by the research team.Results: Students aged 18 to 30 years with an average age of 22.29±3.042. The general level of knowledge and attitude was at a moderate level. Only 11.4% of students had good knowledge and about 14.65 percent of the respondents had appropriate attitude regarding the three bacterial STIs. The results showed that there was not a statistically significant difference between students, level of education or their course ofstudy with the score of their knowledge and attitude towards the studied STI (P > 0.05).Conclusion: Considering inadequate level of knowledge and attitudes of students regarding STI, authoritiesshould pay more attention to provide educational programs for university students

Assessment of risk factors for suicidal behavior: results from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences Employees' Cohort study

IntroductionSuicide is a major issue of concern for public health. It is estimated that suicide accounts for 700,000 deaths every year. A personal history of one or more suicide attempts is the most important determinant of suicide among the general population. This study aimed to assess the major risk factors associated with suicidal behaviors among Iranian employees in a medical setting.MethodsIn this study, 3,913 employees of Tehran University of Medical Sciences who participated in the employees' cohort study conducted by the university were recruited. Suicidal behaviors (SBs) and their associated risk factors were evaluated using the World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) Version 3.0. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to identify the determinants of SBs among the participants, and crude and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated.ResultsOverall, 49.6% of respondents (n = 1,939) reported that they were tired of life and thinking about death. The lifetime prevalence rate of suicidal ideation (SI) was 8.1% (n = 317), that of suicide planning (SP) was 7.3% (n = 287), and that of suicide attempts (SA) was 3.1% (n = 122). Being female (OR: 1.87, CI: 1.64–2.12), being divorced (OR: 3.13, CI: 1.88–5.22), having a low level of education (OR: 1.57, CI: 1.15–2.14), and working in clinical and medical services (OR: 1.25, CI: 1.09–1.43) were associated with being tired of life and thinking about death. These factors were also associated with SI, SP, and SA.DiscussionThese findings highlight the need to prioritize mental health for suicide prevention, especially for high-risk groups, in workplace mental health promotion programs and policies

Factors Associated With Unhealthy Snacks Consumption Among Adolescents in Iran’s Schools

Background: Well-informed interventions are needed if school-based health promotion is to be effective. Among other aims, the Iranian Health Promoting School (IHPS) program that was launched in 2011, has an important aim of promoting dietary behaviors of adolescents. The present study, therefore, aimed to investigate the factors affecting unhealthy snacking of adolescents and provide evidence for a more effective IHPS program. Methods: In a cross-sectional study design, 1320 students from 40 schools in Kerman city were selected using a proportional stratified random sampling method. A modified qualitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) was used to gather data about unhealthy snacking behavior. Data about intrapersonal and environmental factors were obtained using a validated and reliable questionnaire. A mixed-effects negative-binomial regression model was used to analyze the data. Results: Taste and sensory perception (prevalence rate ratio [PRR]=1.18; 95% CI: 1.09-1.27), being a male (PRR=1.20; 95% CI: 1.05-1.38) and lower nutritional knowledge (PRR=0.96; 95% CI: 0.91-0.99) were associated with higher weekly unhealthy snaking. Perceived self-efficacy (PRR=0.95; 95% CI: 0.91-1.00) negatively influenced the frequency of unhealthy snaking, with this approaching significance (P<.06). In case of environmental factors, high socio-economic status (SES) level (PRR=1.45; 95% CI: 1.26-1.67), single-parent family (PRR=1.14; 95% CI: 1.01-1.30), more social norms pressure (PRR=1.08; 95% CI: 1.01-1.17), pocket money allowance (PRR=1.21; 95% CI: 1.09-1.34), easy accessibility (PRR=1.06; 95% CI:1.01-1.11), and less perceived parental control (PRR=0.96; 95% CI: 0.92-0.99) all had a role in higher consumption of unhealthy snacks. Interestingly, larger school size was associated with less unhealthy snacking (PRR=0.79; 95% CI: 0.68-0.92). Conclusion: Unhealthy snacking behavior is influenced by individual, socio-cultural and physical-environmental influences, namely by factors relating to poor parenting practices, high SES level, family characteristics, improper social norms pressure, and less knowledge and self-efficacy of students. This evidence can be used to inform a more evidencebased IHPS program through focusing on supportive strategies at the home, school, and local community level