Lifestyle E-coaching for physical activity level improvement: short-term and long-term effectivity in low socioeconomic status groups

E-coaching applications can improve people’s lifestyles; however, their impact on people from a lower socioeconomic status (low SES) is unknown. This study investigated the effectiveness of a lifestyle e-coaching application in encouraging people facing low SES disadvantages to engage in a more active lifestyle over a course of 19 weeks. In this bicountry study, 95 people with low activity level (GR: 50, NL: 45) used a mobile application linked to a wearable activity tracker. At the start and after 6 and 19 weeks, self-reported physical activity levels, attitudes, and intention towards increasing activity levels, perceived behavioral control, and wellbeing were measured. Results indicated that participants using the lifestyle e-coaching application reported significantly more often an increase in activity levels than a parallel control group. Additionally, the people using the application also more often reported increased levels of wellbeing and perceived behavioral control. Therefore, lifestyle e-coaching applications could be a cost-effective solution for promoting healthier lifestyles in low-SES population

Lifestyle E-coaching for physical activity level improvement: short-term and long-term effectivity in low socioeconomic status groups

E-coaching applications can improve people’s lifestyles; however, their impact on people from a lower socioeconomic status (low SES) is unknown. This study investigated the effectiveness of a lifestyle e-coaching application in encouraging people facing low SES disadvantages to engage in a more active lifestyle over a course of 19 weeks. In this bicountry study, 95 people with low activity level (GR: 50, NL: 45) used a mobile application linked to a wearable activity tracker. At the start and after 6 and 19 weeks, self-reported physical activity levels, attitudes, and intention towards increasing activity levels, perceived behavioral control, and wellbeing were measured. Results indicated that participants using the lifestyle e-coaching application reported significantly more often an increase in activity levels than a parallel control group. Additionally, the people using the application also more often reported increased levels of wellbeing and perceived behavioral control. Therefore, lifestyle e-coaching applications could be a cost-effective solution for promoting healthier lifestyles in low-SES population

Red and processed meat intake associations with health and guidelines for adults in Greece

Belogianni, Katerina - ORCID 0000-0002-3634-7861 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3634-7861Item not available in this repository.Introduction High intake of red and processed meat has been associated with detrimental effects on health. The level of scientific evidence supporting these associations needs to be investigated in order to formulate dietary guidelines for the general adult population. Material-Method The association between consumption of red and processed meat and incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes mellitus and cancer was investigated and the evidence was graded. Quantitative and qualitative guidelines were subsequently developed after considering several other factors. Results There is general agreement that the highest intake of processed meat compared to the lowest is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer. High intake of red meat compared to lower intake is associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer (general agreement) and type 2 diabetes (majority of the evidence). The final recommendations were set to consume maximum one serving of red meat per week and to avoid processed meat. Conclusions The limitation of red meat consumption to one serving weekly and the avoidance of processed meat for adults living in Greece, is based on sound evidence, is consistent with the traditional Greek dietary pattern and should be encouraged by all health professionals.104pubpub

Vegetable and fruit intake: Associations with health and guidelines for adults in Greece

Katerina Belogianni - ORCID: 0000-0002-3634-7861 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3634-7861Item not available in this repository.Introduction High vegetable and/or fruit intake has been associated with beneficial effects on health. Nevertheless, the level of scientific evidence supporting these associations needs to be investigated in order to formulate dietary guidelines for the general adult population. Material-Method The association between vegetable and fruit intake and incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer was investigated and the level of evidence of these associations was graded. Quantitative and qualitative guidelines were subsequently developed taking into account several other factors. Results There is general agreement of evidence that the highest intake of vegetables and/or fruits compared to the lowest intake is associated with lower risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, colorectal and oral cancer, while the majority of the evidence has shown that is also associated with lower risk of esophageal and stomach cancer. The final recommendations were set to 4 servings of vegetables and 3 servings of fruits daily. Conclusions The recommended daily consumption of 4 servings of vegetables and 3 servings of fruits for adults living in Greece is based on sound evidence, complies with their dietary habits and traditions, is practically feasible and should be encouraged by all health professionals.104pubpub

Promotion of Immunizations for Health Professionals in Europe: A Qualitative Study in Seven European Member States

Health Care Workers (HCWs) are a high-risk group for contracting Vaccine-Preventable Diseases who, despite legislation and guidance, remain undervaccinated. In order to understand their barriers and needs, focus groups were formed with 278 physicians, nurses, infection-control personnel, and policy-makers in 7 EU MS. Several implications for the development of promotional initiatives were identified including the need to overcome organizational barriers, to sensitize HCWs about the importance of immunization and to provide specific up-to-date information about vaccinations covering prevalence of diseases, protection years, side effects, administration times, antibody examinations, costs and immunization settings

Promotion of healthy nutrition among students participating in a school food aid program: a randomized trial

Belogianni, Katerina - ORCID 0000-0002-3634-7861 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3634-7861Item not available in this repository.Objectives To evaluate the potential benefits on students’ eating habits, of incorporating healthy nutrition education as part of a school food aid program. Methods 146 schools participating in the DIATROFI Program in Greece during the 2013–2014 school year were randomly allocated to the environmental intervention (received a healthy daily meal) and the multicomponent intervention (MI) group (in addition to the meal, a healthy nutrition educational program was applied). The analysis, based on 3627 pre–post intervention questionnaire pairs, was stratified for children (ages 4–11 years) and adolescents (ages 12–18 years). Results Children participating in the MI group displayed 25 % higher odds of increasing the weekly consumption of milk/yoghurt and fruits, 61 % higher odds of improving BMI from overweight/obese to normal and 2.5 times higher odds of improving from underweight to normal. For adolescents in the MI group, the odds of increasing the consumption of vegetables were 40 % higher. In both intervention groups, approximately one in four overweight/obese adolescents reached normal weight. Conclusions Educational programs on healthy nutrition might be considered worth implementing in the framework of school food aid programs.The DIATROFI Program was funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and has been approved and runs under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs.http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00038-016-0813-061pubpub

Policy Makers', NGO, and Healthcare Workers' Accounts of Migrants' and Refugees' Healthcare Access Across Europe : Human Rights and Citizenship Based Claims

Freely available healthcare, universally accessible to the population of citizens, is a keyideal for European welfare systems. As labor migration of the twentieth century gave wayto the globalized streams of the twenty-first century, new challenges to fulfilling theseideals have emerged. The principle of freedom of movement, together with large-scaleforced migration have led to large scale movements of people, making new demandson European healthcare systems which had previously been largely focused on meetingsedentary local populations’ needs. Drawing on interviewswith service providers workingfor NGOs and public healthcare systems and with policy makers across 10 Europeancountries, this paper considers how forced migrants’ healthcare needs are addressedby national health systems, with factors hindering access at organizational and individuallevel in particular focus. The ways in which refugees’ and migrants’ healthcare accessis prevented are considered in terms of claims based on citizenship and on the humanright to health and healthcare. Where claims based on citizenship are denied and thereis no means of asserting the human right to health, migrants are caught in a new formof inequality

Migrants' and refugees' health status and healthcare in Europe : a scoping literature review

Background There is increasing attention paid to the arrival of migrants from outwith the EU region to the European countries. Healthcare that is universally and equably accessible needs to be provided for these migrants throughout the range of national contexts and in response to complex and evolving individual needs. It is important to look at the evidence available on provision and access to healthcare for migrants to identify barriers to accessing healthcare and better plan necessary changes. Methods This review scoped 77 papers from nine European countries (Austria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Spain, and Sweden) in English and in country-specific languages in order to provide an overview of migrants’ access to healthcare. The review aims at identifying what is known about access to healthcare as well as healthcare use of migrants and refugees in the EU member states. The evidence included documents from 2011 onwards. Results The literature reviewed confirms that despite the aspiration to ensure equality of access to healthcare, there is evidence of persistent inequalities between migrants and non-migrants in access to healthcare services. The evidence shows unmet healthcare needs, especially when it comes to mental and dental health as well as the existence of legal barriers in accessing healthcare. Language and communication barriers, overuse of emergency services and underuse of primary healthcare services as well as discrimination are described. Conclusions The European situation concerning migrants’ and refugees’ health status and access to healthcare is heterogeneous and it is difficult to compare and draw any firm conclusions due to the scant evidence. Different diseases are prioritised by different countries, although these priorities do not always correspond to the expressed needs or priorities of the migrants. Mental healthcare, preventive care (immunization) and long-term care in the presence of a growing migrant older population are identified as priorities that deserve greater attention. There is a need to improve the existing data on migrants’ health status, needs and access to healthcare to be able to tailor care to the needs of migrants. To conduct research that highlights migrants’ own views on their health and barriers to access to healthcare is key

Physician-patient communication: a qualitative study of perceptions, barriers, and needs in four European member states

Background: Good physician-patient communication is an important aspect of patient-centered care and contributes to positive health outcomes, however, there is a lack of standard European Union (EU) communication training policies for physicians. This study explores the barriers to good communication for both physicians and patients across four EU countries as part of the EU-funded project, Health Communication Training for Health Professionals–H-COM. Method: Focus groups were conducted with 31 patients and 38 physicians from Germany, Greece, Spain, and Cyprus. Two separate discussion guides were constructed for each target group around three themes: perceptions of, barriers to, and needs for health communication. Thematic analysis was used. Results: Commonalities and differences between countries and target groups were identified, with participants discussing attitudinal, emotional, educational, and systemic barriers to good communication. Participants indicated a significant gap in health communication knowledge, skills, and training for physicians, with regional differences. Conclusion: The results imply that there is a need for EU-wide communication training for physicians that would be best addressed by common themes and tailoring to specific regional differences. The results also imply that effective training should encompass a blend of theory and practical methods, and should be delivered via an e-learning platform for maximum accessibility. Training programs that adhere to these suggestions can begin to address the gaps in patient-centered care in the EU