Yoga practice in the UK: a cross- sectional survey of motivation, health benefits and behaviours

Objectives Despite the popularity of yoga and evidence of its positive effects on physical and mental health, little is known about yoga practice in the UK. This study investigated the characteristics of people who practise yoga, reasons for initiating and maintaining practice, and perceived impact of yoga on health and well-being. Design, setting and participants A cross-sectional online anonymous survey distributed through UK-based yoga organisations, studios and events, through email invites and flyers. 2434 yoga practitioners completed the survey, including 903 yoga teachers: 87% were women, 91% white and 71% degree educated; mean age was 48.7 years. Main outcome measures Perceived impact of yoga on health conditions, health outcomes and injuries. Relationships between yoga practice and measures of health, lifestyle, stress and well-being. Results In comparison with national population norms, participants reported significantly higher well-being but also higher anxiety; lower perceived stress, body mass index and incidence of obesity, and higher rates of positive health behaviours. 47% reported changing their motivations to practise yoga, with general wellness and fitness key to initial uptake, and stress management and spirituality important to current practice. 16% of participants reported starting yoga to manage a physical or mental health condition. Respondents reported the value of yoga for a wide range of health conditions, most notably for musculoskeletal and mental health conditions. 20.7% reported at least one yoga-related injury over their lifetime. Controlling for demographic factors, frequency of yoga practice accounted for small but significant variance in health-related regression models (p<0.001). Conclusion The findings of this first detailed UK survey were consistent with surveys in other Western countries. Yoga was perceived to have a positive impact on physical and mental health conditions and was linked to positive health behaviours. Further investigation of yoga’s role in self-care could inform health-related challenges faced by many countries

A homotopy double groupoid of a Hausdorff space II: a van Kampen theorem

This paper is the second in a series exploring the properties of a functor which assigns a homotopy double groupoid with connections to a Hausdorff space. We show that this functor satisfies a version of the van Kampen theorem, and so is a suitable tool for nonabelian, 2-dimensional, local-to-global problems. The methods are analogous to those developed by Brown and Higgins for similar theorems for other higher homotopy groupoids. An integral part of the proof is a detailed discussion of commutative cubes in a double category with connections, and a proof of the key result that any composition of commutative cubes is commutative. These results have recently been generalised to all dimensions by Philip Higgins.Comment: 19 pages, uses picte

Bayesian Semiparametric Hierarchical Empirical Likelihood Spatial Models

We introduce a general hierarchical Bayesian framework that incorporates a flexible nonparametric data model specification through the use of empirical likelihood methodology, which we term semiparametric hierarchical empirical likelihood (SHEL) models. Although general dependence structures can be readily accommodated, we focus on spatial modeling, a relatively underdeveloped area in the empirical likelihood literature. Importantly, the models we develop naturally accommodate spatial association on irregular lattices and irregularly spaced point-referenced data. We illustrate our proposed framework by means of a simulation study and through three real data examples. First, we develop a spatial Fay-Herriot model in the SHEL framework and apply it to the problem of small area estimation in the American Community Survey. Next, we illustrate the SHEL model in the context of areal data (on an irregular lattice) through the North Carolina sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) dataset. Finally, we analyze a point-referenced dataset from the North American Breeding Bird survey that considers dove counts for the state of Missouri. In all cases, we demonstrate superior performance of our model, in terms of mean squared prediction error, over standard parametric analyses.Comment: 29 pages, 3 figue

Reasons for female neonaticide in India

Invited commentary on ‘Neonaticide in India and the stigma of female gender: report of two cases’, Mishra et al

Routine surveillance data on AIDS and HIV infections in the UK: a description of the data available and their use for short-term planning

In the UK surveillance of AIDS and HIV infection is based on routine reporting systems. Whilst attempts are made to ensure that AIDS data are as complete as possible, numbers of reports fluctuate from month to month for reasons which are described. In 1986 there was an increase in death certificates naming AIDS as a cause of death in patients who were not identifiable in the surveillance data. More active surveillance is now undertaken in order to minimize this and other possible discrepancies. It is probable that most cases of AIDS are reported and therefore these data can be used to describe trends in the epidemic by 'risk group'. Laboratory reports of HIV antibody-positive tests could give an earlier indication of trends because of the long incubation period of AIDS. But these laboratory data are difficult to interpret because they represent an incomplete and biased sample of all positive persons. AIDS cases are still being reported at a rate which is increasing approximately exponentially. Short-term predictions are presented showing a growth in the epidemic which is consistent with previously published predictions. Most cases are in the homosexual risk group. New asymptomatic homosexual patients with HIV antibody are still being identified. The epidemic of AIDS in haemophilia patients should be of finite size although new cases of AIDS are likely to continue to be diagnosed for several years. AIDS due to blood transfusion given in the UK before donor screening appears to be a much smaller epidemic. The epidemic in drug abusers is increasing. Heterosexually acquired AIDS and HIV infections are being reported in small but increasing numbers

Qualitative research within trials: developing a standard operating procedure for a clinical trials unit

&lt;p&gt;BACKGROUND: Qualitative research methods are increasingly used within clinical trials to address broader research questions than can be addressed by quantitative methods alone. These methods enable health professionals, service users, and other stakeholders to contribute their views and experiences to evaluation of healthcare treatments, interventions, or policies, and influence the design of trials. Qualitative data often contribute information that is better able to reform policy or influence design.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;METHODS: Health services researchers, including trialists, clinicians, and qualitative researchers, worked collaboratively to develop a comprehensive portfolio of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the West Wales Organisation for Rigorous Trials in Health (WWORTH), a clinical trials unit (CTU) at Swansea University, which has recently achieved registration with the UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC). Although the UKCRC requires a total of 25 SOPs from registered CTUs, WWORTH chose to add an additional qualitative-methods SOP (QM-SOP).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;RESULTS: The qualitative methods SOP (QM-SOP) defines good practice in designing and implementing qualitative components of trials, while allowing flexibility of approach and method. Its basic principles are that: qualitative researchers should be contributors from the start of trials with qualitative potential; the qualitative component should have clear aims; and the main study publication should report on the qualitative component.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;CONCLUSIONS: We recommend that CTUs consider developing a QM-SOP to enhance the conduct of quantitative trials by adding qualitative data and analysis. We judge that this improves the value of quantitative trials, and contributes to the future development of multi-method trials.&lt;/p&gt

Computational Resources to Filter Gravitational Wave Data with P-approximant Templates

The prior knowledge of the gravitational waveform from compact binary systems makes matched filtering an attractive detection strategy. This detection method involves the filtering of the detector output with a set of theoretical waveforms or templates. One of the most important factors in this strategy is knowing how many templates are needed in order to reduce the loss of possible signals. In this study we calculate the number of templates and computational power needed for a one-step search for gravitational waves from inspiralling binary systems. We build on previous works by firstly expanding the post-Newtonian waveforms to 2.5-PN order and secondly, for the first time, calculating the number of templates needed when using P-approximant waveforms. The analysis is carried out for the four main first-generation interferometers, LIGO, GEO600, VIRGO and TAMA. As well as template number, we also calculate the computational cost of generating banks of templates for filtering GW data. We carry out the calculations for two initial conditions. In the first case we assume a minimum individual mass of $1 M_{\odot}$ and in the second, we assume a minimum individual mass of $5 M_{\odot}$. We find that, in general, we need more P-approximant templates to carry out a search than if we use standard PN templates. This increase varies according to the order of PN-approximation, but can be as high as a factor of 3 and is explained by the smaller span of the P-approximant templates as we go to higher masses. The promising outcome is that for 2-PN templates the increase is small and is outweighed by the known robustness of the 2-PN P-approximant templates.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, Submitted to Class.Quant.Gra