Chapter 2 School food approaches in Peru, Colombia and Ecuador

The purpose of this chapter is to compare approaches to school food in Peru, Ecuador and Colombia from an educational perspective, taking into consideration national policy documents, plans and programs. The focus is on the purported social justice aims of school food initiatives, including their intent to improve learning and educational achievement or the social protection of marginalized communities. The authors explore the versions of health and education that are put forth in official texts, and how these versions are supported by equity-oriented mechanisms that are advanced or affirmed in the same texts. Using thematic analysis, the most salient characteristics of food plans and programs in the three countries are synthesized, and recommendations are formulated considering that school food can be aimed at improving health and wellbeing, but not necessarily only due to its nutritional contents. The messages that are woven around food in educational settings may be equally or more important. Lastly, a brief discussion of school food policies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic response is included

Horizontal gene transfer and diverse functional constrains within a common replication-partitioning system in Alphaproteobacteria: the repABC operon

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The <it>repABC </it>plasmid family, which is extensively present within <it>Alphaproteobacteria</it>, and some secondary chromosomes of the <it>Rhizobiales </it>have the particular feature that all the elements involved in replication and partitioning reside within one transcriptional unit, the <it>repABC </it>operon. Given the functional interactions among the elements of the <it>repABC </it>operon, and the fact that they all reside in the same operon, a common evolutionary history would be expected if the entire operon had been horizontally transferred. Here, we tested whether there is a common evolutionary history within the <it>repABC </it>operon. We further examined different incompatibility groups in terms of their differentiation and degree of adaptation to their host.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We did not find a single evolutionary history within the <it>repABC </it>operon. Each protein had a particular phylogeny, horizontal gene transfer events of the individual genes within the operon were detected, and different functional constraints were found within and between the Rep proteins. When different <it>repABC </it>operons coexisted in the same genome, they were well differentiated from one another. Finally, we found different levels of adaptation to the host genome within and between <it>repABC </it>operons coexisting in the same species.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Horizontal gene transfer with conservation of the <it>repABC </it>operon structure provides a highly dynamic operon in which each member of this operon has its own evolutionary dynamics. In addition, it seems that different incompatibility groups present in the same species have different degrees of adaptation to their host genomes, in proportion to the amount of time the incompatibility group has coexisted with the host genome.</p

Understanding health care utilization : a theoretically-based analysis of the Ecuadorian health care system

One in four Ecuadorians do not have access to health services; while more than two-thirds have no health insurance and insufficient resources to pay for the health care services they might require. The following three studies examined utilization of health care services using Andersen’s Health Care Utilization Behavior Theory. Secondary data (in a multilevel multivariate framework) from the 2004 National Demographic and Maternal & Child Health Survey (ENDEMAIN) was the main dataset used. In this context, a better comprehension of people’s perceived needs when it comes to utilizing health care services was crucial in determining equity in the provision of services. For such purpose, the first manuscript focused on analyzing various predisposing, enabling and need factors affecting health care utilization in the Ecuadorian population. Adjusting for various predisposing, enabling, and need factors, economic status and ethnicity were significant predictors of health care utilization. Study 2 analyzed the context in which individual health care utilization behavior occurred, focusing on the provision of services and health outcomes. In addition to the main dataset, province-level data from the Ecuadorian System of Social Indicators (SIISE) and the Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC) were included. Spatial autocorrelation scores revealed no significant spatial clustering of provider measures by province, excepting for public practice health personnel. In multilevel models, public practice health personnel was found to be associated with use of preventive care (positively) and antiparasitic medicines (negatively). The density of public inpatient clinics was positively associated with solution of the second reported health problem. Finally, study 3 assessed the relationship between emigrant remittances and health care utilization in Ecuador. Emigrant predictors were strongly associated with use of antiparasitic medicines, and to a lesser extent to curative visits, even after adjusting for various predisposing, enabling, and need factors. In general, Ecuadorian policymakers need to pay closer attention to inequalities, contextual factors, and the influence of emigrant remittances in advancing health care reform

Is there a link between wealth and cardiovascular disease risk factors among Hispanic/Latinos? Results from the HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study

Objective. To examine the relationship between wealth and cardiovascular disease risk factors among Hispanic/Latinos of diverse backgrounds. Design. This cross-sectional study used data from 4,971 Hispanic/Latinos, 18 to 74 years, who participated in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) baseline exam and the HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study. Three objectively measured cardiovascular disease risk factors (hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and obesity) were included. Wealth was measured using an adapted version of the Home Affluence Scale, which included questions regarding the ownership of a home, cars, computers, and recent vacations. Results. After adjusting for traditional socioeconomic indicators (income, employment, education), and other covariates, we found that wealth was not associated with hypertension, hypercholesterolemia or obesity. Analyses by sex showed that middle-wealth women were less likely to have hypercholesterolemia or obesity. Analyses by Hispanic/Latino background groups showed that while wealthier Central Americans were less likely to have obesity, wealthier Puerto Ricans were more likely to have obesity. Conclusion. This is the first study to explore the relationship between wealth and health among Hispanic/Latinos of diverse backgrounds, finding only partial evidence of this association. Future studies should utilize more robust measures of wealth, and address mechanisms by which wealth may impact health status among Hispanic/Latinos of diverse backgrounds in longitudinal designs

Prevalence and Correlates of Food Insecurity Among Students Attending a Midsize Rural University in Oregon

Objective: To examine the prevalence and identify correlates of food insecurity among students attending a rural university in Oregon. Methods: Cross-sectional non-probability survey of 354 students attending a midsize rural university in Oregon during May 2011. Main outcome was food insecurity measured using the USDA Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form. Socioeconomic and demographic variables were included in multivariate logistic regression models. Results: Over half of students (59%) were food insecure at some point during the previous year. Having fair/poor health (OR: 2.08, 95%CI: 1.07 – 4.63), being employed (OR: 1.73, 95%CI: 1.04 – 2.88) and with incomes below $15,000 per year (OR: 2.23, 95% CI: 1.07 – 4.63) was associated with food insecurity. In turn, good academic performance (GPA 3.1 or higher) was inversely associated with food insecurity. Conclusions: Food insecurity seems to be a significant issue for college students. It is necessary to expand research on different campus settings, and further strengthen support systems to increase access to nutritious foods for this population

Monte Carlo study of detection systems of explosives and illicit substances using a D-D neutron generator

Prompt gamma neutron activation analysis (PGNAA) using a Deuterium-Deuterium (D-D) neutron generator, is one of the most promising method to detect explosives and illicit substances. Using Monte Carlo methods with MCNP6 code, a model of a DD Generator (DD-110 Adelphi Technology [1]) has been built with one or two NaI(Tl) detectors of 1.5" x 1" size in order to determine an optimal configuration. Several calculations have been performed to analyse the detection power for samples of different explosives: RDX, Ammonium Nitrate, land mines, military and homemade explosives, have been selected. Different models have been made varying moderator and shielding thicknesses (polyethylene and lead) and we conclude that the configuration with 10 cm thickness of polyethylene, is the best configuration to obtain a neutron thermal flux appropriate for detection of these simulated samples of explosive

Estimation of Resilience in University Students

The objective of the work is to estimate the resilience level of university students for future resilience interventions. The paper presents a conceptual analysis of the term resilience, based on the criteria of contemporary authors framed in two generations. The methods and techniques used in the work are exposed, where two tools for measuring resilience are highlighted. The importance of the study of resilience in the university environment is discussed and the statistical and graphical results related to the application of the aforementioned instruments are shown in terms of measuring the resilience level in the university students of seven faculties of the Technical University of Manabí