Trends in population mental health before and after the 2008 recession: a repeat cross-sectional analysis of the 1991-2010 health surveys of England

<p>Objective: To assess short-term differences in population mental health before and after the 2008 recession and explore how and why these changes differ by gender, age and socio-economic position.</p> <p>Design: Repeat cross-sectional analysis of survey data.</p> <p>Setting: England.</p> <p>Participants: Representative samples of the working age (25–64 years) general population participating in the Health Survey for England between 1991 and 2010 inclusive.</p> <p>Main outcome measures: Prevalence of poor mental health (caseness) as measured by the general health questionnaire-12 (GHQ).</p> <p>Results: Age–sex standardised prevalence of GHQ caseness increased from 13.7% (95% CI 12.9% to 14.5%) in 2008 to 16.4% (95% CI 14.9% to 17.9%) in 2009 and 15.5% (95% CI 14.4% to 16.7%) in 2010. Women had a consistently greater prevalence since 1991 until the current recession. However, compared to 2008, men experienced an increase in age-adjusted caseness of 5.1% (95% CI 2.6% to 7.6%, p<0.001) in 2009 and 3% (95% CI 1.2% to 4.9%, p=0.001) in 2010, while no statistically significant changes were seen in women. Adjustment for differences in employment status and education level did not account for the observed increase in men nor did they explain the differential gender patterning. Over the last decade, socio-economic inequalities showed a tendency to increase but no clear evidence for an increase in inequalities associated with the recession was found. Similarly, no evidence was found for a differential effect between age groups.</p> <p>Conclusions: Population mental health in men has deteriorated within 2 years of the onset of the current recession. These changes, and their patterning by gender, could not be accounted for by differences in employment status. Further work is needed to monitor recessionary impacts on health inequalities in response to ongoing labour market and social policy changes.</p&gt

Chapter Poetic Mapping of the Polish Crown at the Turn of the 16th and 17th Centuries and Its Relation to Cartographic Imitation in Renaissance Poetry

The paper is devoted to the problem of imitation of maps in the late Renaissance Polish poetry (between 1580 and 1630). The author first discusses the special interest in cartography that existed among the Polish elite and poets of the period. The main thesis of the paper is that poets widely used map-based techniques in constructing their poems. Imitation (imitatio) played a crucial role in this process. To illustrate this concept, the author analyses the work of five poets: S.F. Klonowic, K. Miaskowski, S. Petrycy, M.K. Sarbiewski and Sz. Szymonowic. Looking at the shared topoi used in poems and maps and investigating how the late Renaissance poets described the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, allows the author to draw a similarity between controlling space in poetry and maps. This suggests the idea of ruling over space might be related to the 16th-century idea of a God-like poet

How does mental health stigma get under the skin? Cross-sectional analysis using the Health Survey for England

Despite increased awareness of mental health problems, stigma persists. Little research has examined potential health and wellbeing outcomes associated with stigma. The aim of this study was to investigate relationships between mental health stigma, metabolic and cardiovascular biomarkers, as well as wellbeing and quality of life among people with no mental disorder, common mental disorders and severe mental illness. Data were taken from adults aged 16 + years participating in the Health Survey for England in 2014 (N = 5491). Mental health stigma was measured using the 12-item Community Attitudes towards the Mentally Ill (CAMI) scale, intended to measure attitudes around prejudice and exclusion, and tolerance and support for community care. Individuals were divided into six groups based on their mental health (no mental disorder, common mental disorder, severe mental illness) and whether they exhibited more (≤25th percentile) or less (>25th percentile) stigmatising attitudes. Metabolic and cardiovascular biomarker outcomes included systolic and diastolic blood pressure; total cholesterol; high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol; glycated haemoglobin, body mass index (BMI), waist-hip ratio and resting pulse rate. Biomarkers were analysed individually and as an allostatic load score. Wellbeing was measured using Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) and quality of life via Euro-QoL-5D (EQ-5D). Linear regression models were calculated adjusted for confounders. Compared to individuals with less stigmatising attitudes, results suggested that those with more negative attitudes exhibited poorer wellbeing and quality of life across all mental disorder/stigma groups, including those with no mental disorder (WEMWBS (range 14–70): b = -1.384, 95% CI: -2.107 to -0.661). People with severe mental illness generally had unhealthier biomarker profiles and allostatic load scores, but results were inconsistent for any additional influence of mental health stigma. Reducing stigma may be beneficial for population wellbeing, but further research is needed to clarify whether stigma contributes to adverse biomarkers amongst people with mental illness

Employment status and income as potential mediators of educational inequalities in population mental health

We assessed whether educational inequalities in mental health may be mediated by employment status and household income. Poor mental health was assessed using General Health Questionnaire ‘caseness’ in working age adult participants (N = 48 654) of the Health Survey for England (2001–10). Relative indices of inequality by education level were calculated. Substantial inequalities were apparent, with adjustment for employment status and household income markedly reducing their magnitude. Educational inequalities in mental health were attenuated by employment status. Policy responses to economic recession (such as active labour market interventions) might reduce mental health inequalities but longitudinal research is needed to exclude reverse causation

Gegenüberstellung von mathematisch-physikalischer Modellierung und Messungen an geschleppten fischereitechnischen Systemen

When drafting a new model of a towed technical system for fisheries (trawl, towed TV gear or similar), and also when measuring an existing and already tested system it is not easy to foresee of practical behaviour, which depends of various parameters. The measuring programme for recording all data needs a lot of time and money, and also has some limitations. Therefore we developed for such systems mathematical-physical models, which allow a complex calculation. Their real value, however, results only from practical verification. During the cruise no. 222 of “Walther Herwig III” in November 2000 comparative investigations for 2concrete systems were carried out. This was done in cooperation with the University in Rostock, where such models are being developed and computerized. One of the systems mesasured was a pelagic herring trawl and the other one the towed TV gear for underwater observations of the Institute for Fishery Technology and Fish Quality. The correspondence between model calculation and measurements was very high for both systems

Socioeconomic inequalities in the quality of life of older Europeans in different welfare regimes

Background: Whether socioeconomic inequalities in health and well-being persist into old age and are narrower in more generous welfare states is debated. We investigated the magnitude of socioeconomic inequality in the quality of life of Europeans in early old age and the influence of the welfare regime type on these relationships.<p></p> Methods: Data from individuals aged 50–75 years (n = 16 074) residing in 13 European countries were derived from Waves 2 and 3 of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. Slope indices of inequality (SIIs) were calculated for the association between socioeconomic position and CASP-12, a measure of positive quality of life. Multilevel linear regression was used to assess the overall relationship between socioeconomic position and quality of life, using interaction terms to investigate the influence of the type of welfare regime (Southern, Scandinavian, Post-communist or Bismarckian).<p></p> Results: Socioeconomic inequalities in quality of life were narrowest in the Scandinavian and Bismarckian regimes, and were largest by measures of current wealth. Compared with the Scandinavian welfare regime, where narrow inequalities in quality of life by education level were found in both men (SII = 0.02, 95% CI: −1.09 to 1.13) and women (SII = 1.11, 95% CI: 0.05–2.17), the difference in quality of life between the least and most educated was particularly wide in Southern and Post-communist regimes.<p></p> Conclusion: Individuals in more generous welfare regimes experienced higher levels of quality of life, as well as narrower socioeconomic inequalities in quality of life.<p></p&gt

Visualization of DNA Replication in the Vertebrate Model System DT40 using the DNA Fiber Technique

Maintenance of replication fork stability is of utmost importance for dividing cells to preserve viability and prevent disease. The processes involved not only ensure faithful genome duplication in the face of endogenous and exogenous DNA damage but also prevent genomic instability, a recognized causative factor in tumor development

Les comptes de la forêt française : Un outil d'évaluation intégré des biens et services (marchands et non marchands) fournis par la forêt

L'importance de la forêt pour la société rend nécessaire l’évaluation du patrimoine forestier qu’elle représente, des biens et services qu’elle produit et du fonctionnement de la filière. Une comptabilité économique et environnementale régulière reposant sur une méthodologie spécifique permet de structurer l'information en un outil d'analyse unique, facilitant l'aide à la décision et l'évaluation des politiques publiques. Les évaluations réalisées pour la France montrent que la production de bois est loin d'être la seule source de bénéfice liée à la forêt. La séquestration du carbone, les activités récréatives ou les fonctions écologiques sont des exemples de services que l’on parvient à intégrer aux comptes usuels. La prise en compte des fonctions non marchandes des espaces forestiers français contribuerait, dans l’hypothèse la plus haute, à quintupler la valeur de la forêt restreinte à sa fonction d’approvisionnement en bois.

An examination of the relationship between life course socioeconomic position and quality of life among Europeans in early old age and the influence of the welfare regime

Background: Low socioeconomic position throughout the life course is associated with a number of adverse health outcomes in older people. However, whether life course socioeconomic position influences subjective outcomes in early old age, such as quality of life, is not well known. There is a lack of life course research that considers the wider structural determinants of health. In particular, it is not well understood if the association between life course socioeconomic position and quality of life is the same across European societies that have differing welfare state arrangements. This thesis addressed two key aims: (1) Investigate whether, and how, life course socioeconomic position influences the quality of life of Europeans in early old age. (2) Examine differences in this relationship by welfare regime. Methods: Two methodological approaches were taken to address the research objectives: (1) A systematic review of quantitative studies examining the influence of life course socioeconomic position on quality of life was conducted, with a narrative synthesis. (2) An empirical analysis was carried out examining the influence of life course socioeconomic position on the quality of life of individuals in early old age, as measured by CASP-12 and life satisfaction. This used secondary data from 13 European countries (representing Southern, Scandinavian, Post-communist, and Bismarckian welfare regimes) that were part of Wave 2 of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and SHARELIFE, which collected retrospective life histories of respondents. Two statistical techniques were used to analyse the data: multilevel modelling and path analysis. Slope indices of inequality were calculated to enable measures of socioeconomic position to be compared. Results: The systematic review identified 12 relevant studies, which varied in terms of the outcomes examined, study quality, and populations. No studies were identified from Bismarckian or Post-communist welfare regimes, with most containing populations from the Scandinavian or Liberal regime types. Some supportive evidence was found for a latent effect of low childhood socioeconomic position on quality of life among women. Social mobility models were generally not supported. High quality studies addressing inter-generational mobility were lacking and few studies examined cumulative and pathway effects. Results from the analysis using SHARE suggested that the most proximal measures of socioeconomic position were the strongest predictors of quality of life. In most welfare regimes, inequalities in quality of life were largest by current wealth, but among women in the Southern and Post-communist regimes inequalities by education level were particularly large. In the Scandinavian regime there were very small differences in quality of life between the least and most educated. Generally, there was little difference in the magnitude of socioeconomic inequalities in quality of life between Scandinavian and Bismarckian regimes. Support for a latent effect on quality of life was lacking, using most measures of childhood socioeconomic position. The findings from both the multilevel models and path analysis supported the pathway theory whereby childhood socioeconomic position chiefly influenced quality of life through later socioeconomic experiences. However, the number of books in childhood exhibited a weak association with quality of life even when taking into account current measures of socioeconomic position, suggesting a small latent effect for this measure. When stratifying by welfare regime, the potential direct effect from the number of books in childhood was specific to particular welfare regimes and genders. A greater number of socioeconomically advantaged positions over the life course was associated with higher quality of life in early old age, but the results suggested this was mainly due to the influence of socioeconomic advantage during adulthood. The association between life course socioeconomic position (as measured by a cumulative socioeconomic advantage score) and quality of life was weaker in the Scandinavian regime and stronger in Southern and Post-communist regimes. Including a measure of current financial distress greatly attenuated these associations. There was generally a lack of supportive evidence for an effect of social mobility on quality of life. Conclusions: Socioeconomic inequalities in quality of life were apparent in all welfare regimes and were largest by more proximal measures of socioeconomic position. Overall, Scandinavian and Bismarckian welfare regimes exhibited both higher quality of life and narrower inequalities in quality of life, compared to Southern and Post-communist regimes. Interventions to reduce socioeconomic inequalities across the life course are needed, but those which buffer the effect of financial distress in early old age may be particularly beneficial for improving quality of life and producing a more equitable distribution

Trends in gender and socioeconomic inequalities in mental health following the Great Recession and subsequent austerity policies: a repeat cross-sectional analysis of the Health Surveys for England

No abstract available