Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in behavioural non-communicable disease risk factors: analysis of repeated cross-sectional health surveys in England between 2003 and 2019

Background: Previous studies have shown that those in lower socioeconomic positions (SEPs) generally have higher levels of behavioural non-communicable disease (NCD) risk factors. However, there are limited studies examining recent trends in inequalities. This study examined trends in socioeconomic inequalities in NCD behavioural risk factors and their co-occurrence in England from 2003–19. Methods: This time-trend analysis of repeated cross-sectional data from the Health Survey for England examined the relative index of inequalities (RII) and slope index of inequalities (SII) in four NCD behavioural risk factors: smoking; drinking above recommended limits; insufficient fruit and vegetables consumption; and physical inactivity. Findings: Prevalence of risk factors has reduced over time, however, this has not been consistent across SEPs. Absolute and relative inequalities increased for physical inactivity; relative inequalities also increased for smoking; for insufficient fruit and vegetable consumption, the trends in inequalities depended on SEPs measure. Those in lower SEPs experienced persistent socioeconomic inequalities and clustering of behavioural risk factors. In contrast, those in higher SEPs had higher prevalence of excessive alcohol consumption; this inequality widened over the study period. Interpretation: Inequalities in smoking and physical inactivity are persisting or widening. The pattern of higher drinking in higher SEPs obscure the fact that the greatest burden of alcohol-related harm falls on lower SEPs. Policy attention is required to tackle increasing inequalities in smoking prevalence, low fruit and vegetable consumption and physical inactivity, and to reduce alcohol harm

Impact of national COVID-19 restrictions on incidence of notifiable communicable diseases in England: an interrupted time series analysis

Background Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), such as travel restrictions, social distancing and isolation policies, aimed at controlling the spread of COVID-19 may have reduced transmission of other endemic communicable diseases, such as measles, mumps and meningitis in England. Methods An interrupted time series analysis was conducted to examine whether NPIs was associated with trends in endemic communicable diseases, using weekly reported cases of seven notifiable communicable diseases (food poisoning, measles, meningitis, mumps, scarlet fever and pertussis) between 02/01/2017 to 02/01/2021 for England. Results Following the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions, there was an 81.1% (95% CI; 77.2–84.4) adjusted percentage reduction in the total number of notifiable diseases recorded per week in England. The greatest decrease was observed for measles, with a 90.5% percentage reduction (95% CI; 86.8–93.1) from 42 to 5 cases per week. The smallest decrease was observed for food poisoning, with a 56.4% (95%CI; 42.5–54.2) decrease from 191 to 83 cases per week. Conclusions A total reduction in the incidence of endemic notifiable diseases was observed in England following the implementation of public health measures aimed at reducing transmission of SARS-COV-2 on March 23, 2020. The greatest reductions were observed in diseases most frequently observed during childhood that are transmitted via close human-to-human contact, such as measles and pertussis. A less substantive reduction was observed in reported cases of food poisoning, likely due to dining services (i.e., home deliveries and takeaways) remaining open and providing a potential route of transmission. This study provides further evidence of the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical public health interventions in reducing the transmission of both respiratory and food-borne communicable diseases

Knowledge of reproductive and sexual rights among University students in Ethiopia: institution-based cross-sectional

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>People have the right to make choices regarding their own sexuality, as far as they respect the rights of others. The knowledge of those rights is critical to youth’s ability to protect themselves from unwanted reproductive outcomes. Reproductive health targeted Millennium Development Goals will not be achieved without improving access to reproductive health. This study was aimed to assess knowledge of reproductive and sexual rights as well as associated factors among Wolaita Sodo University students.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>An institution-based cross-sectional survey was conducted among 642 regular undergraduate Wolaita Sodo University students selected by simple random sampling. A pretested and structured self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Data were entered using EPI info version 3.5.3 statistical software and analyzed using SPSS version 20 statistical package. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the study population in relation to relevant variables. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression was also carried out to see the effect of each independent variable on the dependent variable.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>More than half (54.5%) of the respondents were found to be knowledgeable about reproductive and sexual rights. Attending elementary and high school in private schools [AOR: 2.08, 95% CI: 1.08, 3.99], coming from urban areas [AOR: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.00, 2.12], being student of faculty of health sciences [AOR: 2.98, 95% CI: 1.22, 7.30], participation in reproductive health clubs [AOR: 3.11, 95% CI: 2.08, 4.65], utilization of reproductive health services [AOR: 2.34, 95% CI: 1.49, 3.69] and discussing sexual issues with someone else [AOR: 2.31, 95% CI: 1.48, 3.62], were positively associated with knowledge of reproductive and sexual rights.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The level of knowledge of students about reproductive and sexual rights was found to be low. The Ministry of Education has to incorporate reproductive and sexual rights in the curricula of high schools and institutions of higher learning.</p