Ruokatottumukset ja niihin yhteydessä olevat biomarkkerit Pitkärannassa, Venäjällä, ja Pohjois-Karjalassa, Suomessa. Muutokset ja koulutuserot vuosina 1992-2007

The Republic of Karelia in north-western Russia and North Karelia in eastern Finland are situated right next to each other. Part of the Republic of Karelia, including the district of Pitkäranta, was part of Finland until the Second World War, when it was annexed to the Soviet Union. The aim of this study was to explore trends and educational differences in food habits and related biomarkers in Pitkäranta, Russia, and North Karelia, Finland, over a 15-year period, which encompasses the early transition years from a centrally planned economy towards a market economy after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Two population-based repeated cross-sectional datasets from the two areas were used: 1) health behaviour surveys from 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2004 (total n=3599 in Pitkäranta, total n=3652 in North Karelia) and 2) risk factor surveys from 1992, 1997, 2002 and 2007 (total n=2672 in Pitkäranta, total n=5437 in North Karelia). The data were collected by the National Public Health Institute (KTL) (the current National Institute for Health and Welfare, THL) in Finland. In Pitkäranta, the data were collected by the National Public Health Institute in collaboration with the Central Hospital of Pitkäranta and the Ministry of Health and Social Development in the Republic of Karelia. The trends and overall prevalence in food habits were very different between Pitkäranta and North Karelia. Food habits changed remarkably in Pitkäranta between 1992 and 2007. The proportion of those who used butter in cooking plunged from 50% to less than 10%. The proportion of those who used butter on bread decreased as well, although not consistently. The proportion of persons who consumed fat-containing milk fluctuated. The prevalence of daily consumption of fresh vegetables and fruit increased notably. In North Karelia, the changes were smaller. A small decrease in the proportion of those who used butter or consumed fat-containing milk was observed. The prevalence of daily consumption of fresh vegetables and fruit also decreased slightly in North Karelia. The educational differences in food habits were somewhat more notable in North Karelia than in Pitkäranta. In general, food habits were less favourable in the lowest compared to the highest education group in both areas. For example, the use of butter in cooking and the consumption of fat-containing milk were more common among subjects in the lowest education group, whereas the daily consumption of vegetables and fruit was more common among their more highly educated counterparts. The education gradient in the quality of spread used on bread was the opposite in the two areas. In Pitkäranta, using butter on bread tended to be more common among men in the highest education group, whereas in North Karelia, men with a low education used butter on bread more often. The mean serum total cholesterol did not differ by education in Pitkäranta. In North Karelia, it tended to be higher among subjects in the lowest education group. The mean plasma vitamin C concentration was strikingly low in Pitkäranta throughout the study period. In North Karelia, the overall level of plasma vitamin C was higher. The plasma vitamin C concentration tended to be higher among subjects with a higher education in both areas. The study demonstrated that food habits may change quite rapidly if the local circumstances change. In Pitkäranta, the availability and prices of foods are possible underlying factors that are related to the remarkable changes in food habits. In North Karelia, active health policy and the health consciousness of the population are probably more important in directing food choices.Tässä väitöstutkimuksessa tutkittiin ruokatottumusten ja niihin liittyvien biomarkkereiden muutoksia ja koulutuseroja Pitkärannassa piirissä, Karjalan tasavallassa, ja Pohjois-Karjalassa, Suomessa. Tutkimuksen ajanjakso oli 1992 2007, eli aineistonkeruu käynnistyi pian Neuvostoliiton hajottua vuonna 1991. Karjalan tasavalta ja Pohjois-Karjala Suomessa ovat naapurialueita. Aineisto käsitti kaksi väestöpohjaista tutkimusta: 1) terveyskäyttäytymiskyselyt vuosilta 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000 ja 2004 (n=3599 Pitkärannassa, n=3652 Pohjois-Karjalassa) sekä 2) riskitekijätutkimukset vuosilta 1992, 1997, 2002 ja 2007 (n=2672 Pitkärannassa, n=5437 Pohjois-Karjalassa). Ruokatottumukset ja niissä tapahtuneet muutokset olivat hyvin erilaisia Pitkärannassa ja Pohjois-Karjalassa. Ruokatottumukset muuttuivat huomattavan paljon Pitkärannassa vuosien 1992 ja 2007 välillä. Noin joka toinen vastaajista ilmoitti käyttävänsä voita ruoanvalmistuksessa vuonna 1992, kun vuonna 2007 voita ruoanvalmistuksessa käyttävien osuus oli alle 10 %. Myös voita leivällä käyttävien osuus pieneni selvästi Pitkärannassa, joskaan ei johdonmukaisesti. Päivittäin tuoreita kasviksia tai hedelmiä syövien osuudet kasvoivat selvästi. Sen sijaan Pohjois-Karjalassa muutokset olivat pienempiä. Voita käyttävien osuus vastaajista pieneni hieman. Myös tuoreita kasviksia ja hedelmiä päivittäin syövien osuudet pienenivät Pohjois-Karjalassa hieman. Ruokatottumusten koulutuserot olivat hieman selvemmät Pohjois-Karjalassa kuin Pitkärannassa. Ruokatottumukset olivat molemmilla alueilla epäterveellisempiä alimpaan koulutusryhmään kuuluneilla verrattuna korkeimmin koulutettuihin. Esimerkiksi voin käyttö ruoanvalmistuksessa ja rasvaisen maidon juominen oli tavallisempaa alimmassa koulutusryhmässä, kun taas kasvisten ja hedelmien syöminen päivittäin oli tavallisempaa ylimpään koulutusryhmään kuuluneilla. Käytetyn leipärasvan laadun koulutuserojen suunta oli päinvastainen Pitkärannassa ja Pohjois-Karjalassa. Pitkärannassa korkean koulutuksen saaneet miehet käyttivät voita leivällä useammin kuin matalammin koulutetut miehet toisin kuin Pohjois-Karjalassa, jossa voin käyttö leivällä oli tavallisempaa matalammin koulutetuilla miehillä. Pitkärannassa seerumin kokonaiskolesterolissa ei ollut koulutusryhmittäisiä eroja, kun taas Pohjois-Karjalassa kokonaiskolesteroli oli hieman korkeampi alimmin koulutetuilla verrattuna korkeimpaan koulutusryhmään. Plasman keskimääräinen c-vitamiinipitoisuus oli Pitkärannassa äärimmäisen matala koko tutkimusjakson ajan. Korkea koulutus oli yhteydessä korkeampaan plasman c-vitamiinitasoon molemmilla alueilla. Tutkimus osoitti, että ruokatottumukset voivat muuttua nopeasti paikallisten olosuhteiden muuttuessa. Pitkärannassa ruokien saatavuus ja hinta ovat taustatekijöitä, jotka ovat mahdollisesti yhteydessä ruokatottumusten muutoksiin. Pohjois-Karjalassa aktiivinen terveyspolitiikka ja väestön terveystietoisuus ovat todennäköisesti tärkeämpiä tekijöitä ruokavalintojen muutoksissa

Health behaviour among Lithuanian adult population, 2006

Book describes data on national 25-64 year lithuanians health behaviour survey starting from 1994 every other year. Book would be useful for people who work in scientific research in social health, medical, social science area, health policy formating and materializing structures. Data presented in this book could be interesting and beneficial for biomedical and social sciences students, social health, family medicine, management specialists for preparing their master‘s and PhD

Comparing data sources in estimating disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for ischemic heart disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in a cross-sectional setting in Finland

Background The disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) summarize the burden of years of life lost (YLL) due to premature mortality and years lost due to disability (YLD). Our aim was to estimate the burden of ischemic heart disease (IHD) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Finland in 2012, and to examine, how much the YLD are affected by the use of different data sources. Methods The YLL were calculated using mortality data for the Finnish 25-74-year-old population in 2012. The YLD were calculated using data from the FINRISK 2012 survey (3041 males, 3383 females aged 25-74 years) and then directly adjusted to the corresponding population. Different administrative registers on 1) hospital inpatient episodes and specialist outpatient visits, 2) entitlement to specially reimbursed medicines, and 3) purchases of prescribed medicines were used for estimation of the YLD in addition to self-reported data. The DALYs were calculated without age-weighting. Results The YLL for IHD were 37.5 for males and 9.1 for females per 1000 population among 25-74-year-old people in Finland in 2012. The YLD for IHD varied markedly depending on which data sources were used. All data sources combined, the YLD per 1000 were 5.3 for males and 2.5 for females resulting in estimated 42.8 and 11.6 DALYs per 1000 due to IHD among males and females, respectively. For COPD, the YLL were 4.7 for males and 2.0 for females per 1000. Also for COPD, the YLD varied markedly depending on data sources used. The YLD per 1000 based on all data sources combined were 2.0 for males and 1.6 for females. As a result, estimated 6.7 and 3.6 DALYs per 1000 were due to COPD among males and females, respectively. Conclusions Especially for COPD, all mild disease cases could probably not be identified from the included registers. Thereby, including survey data improved the coverage of the data. The YLD of IHD and COPD varied markedly between the data sources used in the calculations. However, as YLL constituted a major part of DALYs for these diseases, the variation in YLD did not lead to substantial variation in DALYs.Peer reviewe

Patterns in the skin microbiota differ in children and teenagers between rural and urban environments

The composition of human microbiota is affected by a multitude of factors. Understanding the dynamics of our microbial communities is important for promoting human health because microbiota has a crucial role in the development of inflammatory diseases, such as allergies. We have studied the skin microbiota of both arms in 275 Finnish children of few months old to teenagers living in contrasting environments. We show that while age is a major factor affecting skin microbial composition, the living environment also discriminates the skin microbiota of rural and urban children. The effect of environment is age-specific; it is most prominent in toddlers but weaker for newborns and non-existent for teenagers. Within-individual variation is also related to age and environment. Surprisingly, variation between arms is smaller in rural subjects in all age groups, except in teenagers. We also collected serum samples from children for characterization of allergic sensitization and found a weak, but significant association between allergic sensitization and microbial composition. We suggest that physiological and behavioral changes, related to age and the amount of contact with environmental microbiota, jointly influence the dynamics of the skin microbiota, and explain why the association between the living environment skin microbiota is lost in teenager.Peer reviewe

Ruokavaliomuutosten vaikutukset ravitsemukseen

Ruokavaliolla on keskeinen merkitys terveyden edistämisessä ja ilmastonmuutoksen hillinnässä. Ruokavaliomuutoksilla on useita seurannaisvaikutuksia ruokaturvaan, joka sisältää myös hyvän ravitsemuksen. Oikeudenmukaisuuden kannalta olennainen kysymys on, säilyykö ruokamurroksessa kaikilla ihmisillä mahdollisuus hyvään ravitsemukseen ja missä määrin murrosta tulee tukea eri ohjauskeinoilla tai edistämällä väestön ruokailukäytäntöihin ja ravitsemukseen liittyviä kyvykkyyksiä. Elintarvike-valinnoilla vaikutetaan samaan aikaan niin päästövähennyksiin, ravintoaineiden saantiin, ravintoaineiden hyväksikäytettävyyteen kuin ruokavalioperäiseen haitta-aine-altistukseen. Jo ruokavalion muuttaminen ravitsemussuositusten mukaiseksi tekisi sen selvästi ilmastoystävällisemmäksi. Jos lihaa ja maitovalmisteita korvataan ruoka-suositusten mukaisesti muilla elintarvikkeilla, ruokavalion ravitsemuksellinen kokonais-laatu paranee kaikissa väestöryhmissä ja kasvihuonekaasupäästöt vähenevät mutta haitta-ainealtistus voi kasvaa riippuen elintarvikevalinnoista. Tiettyjen ravintoaineiden saannin riittävyys vaatii edelleen tilannekohtaista arviointia ja seurantaa.Non peer reviewe

Bet v 1 triggers antiviral-type immune signalling in birch-pollen-allergic individuals

Background In allergic patients, clinical symptoms caused by pollen remind of symptoms triggered by viral respiratory infections, which are also the main cause of asthmatic exacerbations. In patients sensitized to birch pollen, Bet v 1 is the major symptom-causing allergen. Immune mechanisms driving Bet v 1-related responses of human blood cells have not been fully characterized. Objective To characterize the immune response to Bet v 1 in peripheral blood in patients allergic to birch pollen. Methods The peripheral blood mononuclear cells of birch-allergic (n = 24) and non-allergic (n = 47) adolescents were stimulated ex-vivo followed by transcriptomic profiling. Systems-biology approaches were employed to decipher disease-relevant gene networks and deconvolution of associated cell populations. Results Solely in birch-allergic patients, co-expression analysis revealed activation of networks of innate immunity and antiviral signalling as the immediate response to Bet v 1 stimulation. Toll-like receptors and signal transducer transcription were the main drivers of gene expression patterns. Macrophages and dendritic cells were the main cell subsets responding to Bet v 1. Conclusions and clinical relevance In birch-pollen-allergic patients, the activated innate immune networks seem to be, in part, the same as those activated during viral infections. This tendency of the immune system to read pollens as viruses may provide new insight to allergy prevention and treatment.Peer reviewe

Comparison of metabolic syndrome prevalence using four different definitions - a population-based study in Finland

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a public health problem in Europe, affecting all age groups. Several MetS definitions are available. The aim of this study was to compare four different MetS definitions in the Finnish adult population, to assess their agreement and to evaluate the impact of the choice of the definition on the prevalence of MetS. Methods: Data from FinHealth 2017, a cross-sectional national population health survey, focusing on adults aged 25 years or older were used in the analysis (n=5687). Measured data on anthropometrics, blood pressure and biomarkers together with questionnaire data were used to classify the participants into the MetS categories according to the four definitions. The definitions chosen for the comparison were those by the World Health Organization (WHO) (1998), National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III) (2004), International Diabetes Federation (IDF) (2005), and Joint Interim Statement (JIS) (2009). Results: The four MetS definitions resulted in substantially different MetS prevalence: 17.7% by WHO, 33.3% by NCEP-ATP III, 41.5% by IDF, and 43.0% by JIS. Regardless of the definition used, the prevalence of MetS increased with age. The prevalence of the different components varied between the definitions, depending on the different cut-off points adopted. Out of all participants, only 13.6% were identified to have MetS according to all four definitions. Agreement between participants recognised by different MetS definitions, estimated through kappa coefficients, was almost perfect for IDF vs. JIS (0.97), strong for JIS vs. NCEP-ATP III (0.80), moderate for IDF vs. NCEP-ATP III (0.76) and weak for WHO vs. NCEP-ATP III (0.42), WHO vs. IDF (0.41) and WHO vs. JIS (0.40). Conclusions: Differences between observed prevalence of MetS in Finnish men and women using different MetS definitions were large. For cross-country comparisons, as well as for trend analyses within a country, it is essential to use the same MetS definition to avoid discrepancies in classification due to differences in used definitions.This study received funding from EU/GD SANTE Grant Agreement 8015533 InfAct.S

Ruokavaliot ovat osa terveys- ja ympäristöhaasteiden ratkaisua : uudet ravitsemussuositukset tukevat kestävyyssiirtymää

Ruokavalioita tulee muuttaa väestön terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin edistämiseksi sekä maapallon kantokyvyn turvaamiseksi. Uudistuneet pohjoismaiset ravitsemussuositukset huomioivat kestävyyden aiempaa laajemmin. Niiden pohjalta päivitettävät kansalliset ravitsemussuositukset tukevat kestävää ruoka- ja ravitsemuspolitiikkaa, joka nojaa kattavaan ravitsemusseurantaan ja monipuolisiin ruokaympäristön ohjauskeinoihin. Tavoitteena on kestävyyssiirtymä, joka on oikeudenmukainen kaikille väestöryhmille