A Survey of Influences on Nonsmoking Behavior Among Traditional Age College Students

This study was designed to describe the influence of selected factors on nonsmoking behavior among traditional age college students. Specifically, eight potential sources of influence were examined: family, peer, media, admired role model, health, physician, education, and aesthetic factors. A questionnaire was designed and delivered to students in general education Personal Wellness classes at the University of Northern Iowa. Subjects (N=169) were asked to identify the degree to which various factors influenced their decision not to smoke cigarettes including: smoking/nonsmoking behavior by others, and specific selected factors. In addition, the subjects ranked the top-five influences from one (1) to five (5) with one being the most influential in their decision not to smoke. Five of the selected factors surfaced as a top influence. Consistently, family and health were rated as the top-two throughout the survey. To a lesser degree, yet indicated in at least one area of the survey as a strong influence, were aesthetic factors, education, and peers. The least influential factors on the subjects\u27 decisions not to smoke cigarettes include admired role model, media, and physician

The incremental prognostic importance of body fat adjusted peak oxygen consumption in chronic heart failure

AbstractOBJECTIVESWe sought to assess whether the adjustment of peak oxygen consumption (PkVO2) to lean body mass would yield a more accurate discriminator of outcomes in the chronic heart failure population.BACKGROUNDPeak oxygen consumption is traditionally used to risk stratify patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) and to time cardiac transplantation. There is, however, considerable variability in body fat content, which represents metabolically inactive mass.METHODSIn 225 consecutive patients with CHF, the percentage of body fat was determined by the sum of skinfolds technique. All underwent CPX using a ramping treadmill protocol. Mean follow-up duration was 18.9 ± 11.3 months.RESULTSThere were 14 cardiovascular deaths and 15 transplants. Peak oxygen consumption lean, both as a continuous variable and using a cutoff of ≤19 ml/kg/min, was a better predictor of outcome than unadjusted PkVO2 (p = 0.003 vs. 0.027 for the continuous variables and p = 0.0006 vs. 0.055 for ≤19 ml/kg/min and ≤14 ml/kg/min unadjusted body weight, respectively). Using partial correlation index R statistics, the Cox model using PkVO2 lean ≤19 ml/kg/min, in addition to age and etiology of CHF as covariates, yielded the strongest predictive relationship to the combined end point (chi-square value 24.32). Especially in the obese patients and in women, there was considerably better correlation of PkVO2 lean with outcome than the unadjusted PkVO2.CONCLUSIONSThe adjustment of PkVO2 to lean body mass increases the prognostic value of cardiopulmonary stress testing in the evaluation of patients with chronic heart failure. The use of <19 ml O2/kg of lean body mass/min as a cutoff in PkVO2 should be used for timing transplantation, particularly in women and the obese