The Effects of Lifestyle Modification on Glycemic Levels and Medication Intake: The Rockford CHIP

Introduction: The high prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the past 50 years has led to intense research, resulting in many improvements in treatment. At the same time, type 2 diabetes, with its concomitant increase in vascular complications, has become a serious, exploding and costly public health concern . Diabetes now affects 285 million adults worldwide and 344 million with pre-diabetes. Of these, 25.8 million diabetics and 79 million pre-diabetics are found in the United States alone.The current cost of diabetes in the US is likely to exceed the $174 billion estimate, which includes 2/3 for direct medical costs and 1/3 for indirect costs, such as disability, work loss, and premature death, but omits the social cost of intangibles (e.g. pain, suffering, lower quality of life). The diabetes epidemic has been accompanied by a similarly drastic increase in obesity. Although the relationship between the two developments is a matter of debate, both are presumably caused by changes in dietary habits and an increasingly sedentary modern lifestyle . Compelling evidence has shown that lifestyle changes can effectively prevent or delay the occurrence of type 2 diabetes. Because individuals at risk for this disease can usually be identified during the pre-diabetic phase of impaired glucose tolerance, early intervention and lifestyle change offer a logical approach to preventing this disease and its devastating vascular complications. Additionally, community-based lifestyle interventions for high risk groups and for the general population are a cost-effective way of curbing the growing burden of the disease. Solidifying the scientific basis for the prevention, treatment and control of this disease and its implementation on a national level, however, remains a difficult challenge. Moreresearch is needed to provide comprehensive and more effective strategies for weight-loss,especially over time. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to identify diabetics and those at risk (prediabetics) out of the total cohort of 1,517 who selected themselves into an intensive community-based lifestyle intervention program, and to assess its clinical efficacy ineffecting medication status as determined and managed by their personal physicians

Healthful living : a textbook of personal and community healt

465 p.; 24 cm

Physico-Chemical Characterization of Medical Solid Waste Leachate: Case of the Hospital de l'Amitié of Nouakchott, Mauritania

At the Hospital de l'Amitié, hospital waste corresponds to a mixture of waste assimilated to household waste and the waste from healthcare activities with infectious risks. In the context of hospital hygiene, the conducted study focuses on the impact of this hospital waste on the people of the Hospital de l'Amitié and the environment, and their handling of hospital waste (collection and transport). From an environmental point of view, the physico-chemical characterization of the leachate leaving submerged waste in three media (drinking water, distilled water and alcoholic distilled water) show high concentrations for most of the parameters studied. Physico-chemical characterization of solid waste from Hospital de l'Amitié in Nouakchott (Mauritania) was carried out from September to December 2020. The objective was to determine the value of 14 parameters (pH, temperature, turbidity, electrical conductivity, COD, BOD5, COD/BOD5, BOD5/COD, SS/BOD5, SS, nitrite, nitrate, sulfate and phosphorus), and improve the treatment method for this solid waste by immersing it in three different mediums (drinking water, distilled water and alcoholic distilled water). Among the 14 parameters, seven exceeded the Moroccan and WHO standards for medium 1, 2 and 3 respectively, conductivity (5340.00 μs/cm, 5820.00 μs/cm and 3550.00 μs/cm), BOD5 (122.00 mg/L, 106.00 mg/L and 142.00 mg/L), BOD5/COD (2.30, 1.93 and 2.88), SS (1000.00 mg/L, 600.00 mg/L and 600.00 mg/L), nitrite (0.91 mg/L, 25.00 mg/L and 45.00 mg/L), nitrate (210.00 mg/L, 200.00 mg/L and 110.00 mg/L) and sulfate (1000.00 mg/L, 2000.00 mg/L and 1000.00 mg/L). These results indicate the existence of toxic substances in these leachates that may impact the environment. In addition, the study proposes solid waste treatment from the Hospital de l'Amitié in Nouakchott (Mauritania) before its discharge into the natural environment. This observation is consolidated by the analyses carried out on the leachate of the waste immersed in three aqueous media (drinking water, distilled water and alcoholic distilled water)

Meteorological and dust aerosol conditions over the western Saharan region observed at Fennec Supersite-2 during the intensive observation period in June 2011

The climate of the Sahara is relatively poorly observed and understood, leading to errors in forecast model simulations. We describe observations from the Fennec Supersite-2 (SS2) at Zouerate, Mauritania during the June 2011 Fennec Intensive Observation Period. These provide an improved basis for understanding and evaluating processes, models, and remote sensing. Conditions during June 2011 show a marked distinction between: (i) a "Maritime phase" during the early part of the month when the western sector of the Sahara experienced cool northwesterly maritime flow throughout the lower troposphere with shallow daytime boundary layers, very little dust uplift/transport or cloud cover. (ii) A subsequent "heat low" phase which coincided with a marked and rapid westward shift in the Saharan heat low towards its mid-summer climatological position and advection of a deep hot, dusty air layer from the central Sahara (the "Saharan residual layer"). This transition affected the entire western-central Sahara. Dust advected over SS2 was primarily from episodic low-level jet (LLJ)-generated emission in the northeasterly flow around surface troughs. Unlike Fennec SS1, SS2 does not often experience cold pools from moist convection and associated dust emissions. The diurnal evolution at SS2 is strongly influenced by the Atlantic inflow (AI), a northwesterly flow of shallow, cool and moist air propagating overnight from coastal West Africa to reach SS2 in the early hours. The AI cools and moistens the western Saharan and weakens the nocturnal LLJ, limiting its dust-raising potential. We quantify the ventilation and moistening of the western flank of the Sahara by (i) the large-scale flow and (ii) the regular nocturnal AI and LLJ mesoscale processes. Key Points First detailed observations from western Sahara sector Intraseasonal shift in Saharan heat low drives meteorological/aerosol conditions Atlantic Inflow interaction with low level jet

Contribution of Blastocystishominis subtypes and associated inflammatory factors in development of irritable bowel syndrome

Blastocystis hominis with worldwide distribution is a human intestinal protozoa found in all countries. There have been differences in the severity of the pathogenesis of various Blastocystis spp. and a concomitant variation in the plasma concentration of the cytokines in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. In the present study, we aimed to demonstrate the contribution of B. hominis subtypes in the development of irritable bowel syndrome. Stool samples were collected from patients with gastrointestinal disorders. All samples were evaluated through native-lugol method. Total DNA was extracted. A PCR protocol was developed to amplify a specific region of the SSU ribosomal DNA (rDNA) gene. Serum levels of IL-6 and TNF-alpha were determined by immunoassay methods. The ClustalW algorithm was applied to align and blast the nucleotide sequences of the amplified region of the SSU rDNA gene. To evaluate the phylogenetic and molecular evolutionary of the nucleotide sequences, we used the MEGA software. In this study, we found 26 haplotypes of B. hominis in the studied samples which were collectively belong to five subtypes (ST1, ST2 in patients without irritable bowel syndrome vs. ST3 and two unknown subtypes in patients with irritable bowel syndrome). Result of ELISA showed a high level of IL-6 and TNF-alpha in the serum of patients with irritable bowel syndrome. The genetic heterogeneity of B. hominis and the existence of different subtypes of the protozoan in patients with IBS may shed light to the fact that some subtypes of parasites may involve in the pathogenesis of IBS