Trends in food availability in Portugal in 1966-2003: Comparison with other Mediterranean countries

Background: Dietary intake has changed considerably in South European countries, but whether those changes were similar between countries is currently unknown. Aim of the study: To assess the trends in food availability in Portugal and four other Mediterranean countries from 1966 to 2003. Methods: Food and Agricultural Organization food balance sheets from Portugal, France, Italy, Greece and Spain. Trends were assessed by linear regression. Results: The per capita availability of calories has increased in Portugal, France, Greece, Italy and Spain in the past 40 years. Portugal presented the most rapid growth with an annual increase of 28.5 ± 2.2 kcal (slope ± standard error), or +1000 kcal overall. In animal products, Portugal had an annual increase of 20.7 ± 0.9 kcal, much higher than the other four countries. Conversely, the availabilities of vegetable and fruit only showed a slight growth of 1.0 ± 0.1 kcal/year and 2.5 ± 0.4 kcal/year, respectively, thus increasing the ration of animal to vegetable products. Olive oil availability increased in all countries with the notable exception of Portugal, where a significant decrease was noted. Wine supply decreased in all five countries; in contrast, beer supply started to take up more alcohol share. Percentage of total calories from fat increased from nearly 25% to almost 35% in Portugal during the study period, mainly at the expenses of calories from carbohydrates, whereas the share of protein showed just a slight increase. Furthermore, fat and protein were increasingly provided by animal products. Conclusions: Portugal is gradually moving away from the traditional Mediterranean diet to a more Westernized diet as well as France, Greece, Italy and Spain. Noticeably, the trends of diet transition were observed relatively faster in Portugal than in the other four Mediterranean countrie

The prevalence and management of cardiovascular risk factors in immigrant groups in Switzerland

Objectives: To compare the prevalence and management of cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) between immigrant groups and Swiss nationals. Methods: The Swiss Health Surveys (SHS, N=49,245) and CoLaus study (N=6,710) were used. Immigrant groups from France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, former Yugoslavia, other European and other countries were defined. Results: Immigrants from Italy, France, Portugal, Spain and former Yugoslavia presented a higher prevalence of smoking than Swiss nationals. Immigrants reported less hypertension than Swiss nationals, but the differences were reduced when blood pressure measurements were used. The prevalence of dyslipidaemia was similar between immigrants and Swiss nationals in the SHS. When eligibility for statin treatment was assessed, immigrants from Italy were more frequently eligible than Swiss nationals. Immigrants from former Yugoslavia presented a lower prevalence of diabetes in the SHS, but a higher prevalence in the CoLaus study. Most differences between immigrant groups and Swiss nationals disappeared after adjusting for age, leisure-time physical activity, being overweight/obesity and education. Conclusions: Most CVRFs are unevenly distributed among immigrant groups in Switzerland, but these differences are due to disparities in age, leisure-time physical activity, being overweight/obesity and educatio

Prevalence of overweight and obesity among migrants in Switzerland: association with country of origin

Abstract Objective Migrants tend to present higher overweight and obesity levels, but whether this relationship applies to all nationalities has seldom been studied. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of overweight and obesity according to nationality in adults. Design Cross-sectional population-based samples. Setting Five-year nationwide interview surveys (Swiss Health Surveys - SHS) from 1992 to 2007 (n 63 766) and a local examination survey (CoLaus Study in Lausanne 2004-2006, n 6743). Subjects Participants were separated into Swiss, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish nationals, those from the former Republic of Yugoslavia and from other European and other countries. Results Compared with Swiss nationals, German and French nationals presented a lower prevalence of overweight and obesity, whereas nationals from Italy, Spain, Portugal and the former Republic of Yugoslavia presented higher levels. Adjusting the SHS data for age, gender, education, smoking, leisure-time physical activity and survey year, a lower risk for overweight and obesity was found for German (OR = 0·80, 95 % CI 0·70, 0·92) and French (OR = 0·74, 95 % CI 0·61, 0·89) nationals, whereas higher risks were found for participants from Italy (OR = 1·45, 95 % CI 1·33, 1·58), Spain (OR = 1·36, 95 % CI 1·15, 1·61), Portugal (OR = 1·25, 95 % CI 1·06, 1·47) and the former Republic of Yugoslavia (OR = 1·98, 95 % CI 1·69, 2·32). Similar findings were observed in the CoLaus Study for Italian (OR = 1·63, 95 % CI 1·29, 2·06), Spanish (OR = 1·54, 95 % CI 1·17, 2·04) and Portuguese (OR = 1·49, 95 % CI 1·16, 1·91) participants and for those from the former Republic of Yugoslavia (OR = 5·34, 95 % CI 3·00, 9·50). Conclusions Overweight and obesity are unevenly distributed among migrants in Switzerland. Migrants from Southern Europe and from the former Republic of Yugoslavia present higher prevalence rates. This suggests that preventive messages should be tailored to these specific population

Health-related quality of life in migrant preschool children

BACKGROUND: Minority groups have a lower health-related quality of life (HRQOL), but there is little information if this finding also applies to children. In this study, we compared HRQOL between young children with and without migrant parents. METHODS: Two cross-sectional studies of culturally diverse preschool populations in Switzerland: Ballabeina (40 preschools, 258 girls and 232 boys aged 4 to 6 years) and Youp'la Bouge (58 child care centers, 453 girls and 522 boys aged 2 to 4 years). Most children were born in Switzerland (Ballabeina: 92.3%; Youp'la Bouge: 93.7%). Number of migrant parents was considered as the main exposure. HRQOL was measured using the 23-item Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory. RESULTS: Children of migrant parents had a significantly lower HRQOL total score (mean +/- SD, Ballabeina: 84.2 +/- 9.1; 82.7 +/- 9.6 and 81.7 +/- 11.7 for children with none, one or two migrant parents, respectively; Youp'la Bouge: 83.8 +/- 8.6; 82.9 +/- 9.5; 80.7 +/- 11.7, all p > 0.05). Similar results were found in Ballabeina and Youp'la Bouge for social, school and physical functioning (all p > 0.05), but not for emotional functioning. The differences in HRQOL measures were partly mediated by children's place of birth, parental education, paternal occupational level, children's BMI, screen time and physical activity in one study (Ballabeina), but not in the other (Youp'la Bouge). CONCLUSION: In preschoolers, children of migrant parents have lower HRQOL than children of non-migrant parents. These differences are only partly mediated by other sociocultural characteristics or lifestyle behavior. These families may need assistance to prevent further inequalities

Trends of physical fitness related to weight status: An analysis including over 412,000 Swiss young male conscripts from 2007 to 2022.

OBJECTIVE The high prevalence of obesity among young adults in the civilian population pose challenges in recruiting physically fit soldiers. We assessed the trend of physical fitness related to weight status among Swiss male conscripts. METHODS Cross-sectional data of medical examination data during mandatory conscription for the Swiss Armed Forces, 2007-2022 (N = 412,186). The conscription physical test (CPT) assessed five aspects of physical fitness, each aspect scoring 0-25, one component being an endurance test (ET). CPT and ET categories were defined as per military guidelines: "Insufficient", "Sufficient", "Good", "Very Good" and "Excellent". Weight status was based on body mass index (BMI). RESULTS Conscripts with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) and overweight (BMI 25-29.99) had significantly (p < 0.001) lower CPT and ET scores compared to normal weight [multivariable-adjusted mean: 54.7 ± 0.1 and 66.5 ± 0.1, vs. 73.6 ± 0.1 for CPT; 8.8 ± 0.1 and 12.5 ± 0.1, vs. 15.3 ± 0.1 for ET] and a higher likelihood to be categorized as "Insufficient" [weighted relative-risk ratio and (95 %CI): 70.4 (63.7-77.7) and 2.35 (2.16-2.55) for CPT; 77.1 (71.0-83.7) and 3.05 (2.91-3.20) for ET] or "Sufficient" [7.67 (7.38-7.97) and 2.02 (1.99-2.06) for CPT; 8.93 (8.37-9.52) and 2.02 (1.98-2.06) for ET]. Compared to normal weight conscripts, the CPT and ET scores decreased over the conscription years for conscripts with obesity (multivariable-adjusted mean yearly change: -0.11 ± 0.02 for CPT; -0.032 ± 0.007 for ET) and overweight (-0.16 ± 0.01 for CPT and -0.044 ± 0.004 for ET). CONCLUSION Male Swiss conscripts with overweight and obesity have lower physical fitness than normal weight conscripts, and this condition tends to worsen over the conscription years

Trends in food availability in Portugal in 1966-2003: comparison with other Mediterranean countries

BACKGROUND: Dietary intake has changed considerably in South European countries, but whether those changes were similar between countries is currently unknown. AIM OF THE STUDY: To assess the trends in food availability in Portugal and four other Mediterranean countries from 1966 to 2003. METHODS: Food and Agricultural Organization food balance sheets from Portugal, France, Italy, Greece and Spain. Trends were assessed by linear regression. RESULTS: The per capita availability of calories has increased in Portugal, France, Greece, Italy and Spain in the past 40 years. Portugal presented the most rapid growth with an annual increase of 28.5 +/- 2.2 kcal (slope +/- standard error), or +1000 kcal overall. In animal products, Portugal had an annual increase of 20.7 +/- 0.9 kcal, much higher than the other four countries. Conversely, the availabilities of vegetable and fruit only showed a slight growth of 1.0 +/- 0.1 kcal/year and 2.5 +/- 0.4 kcal/year, respectively, thus increasing the ration of animal to vegetable products. Olive oil availability increased in all countries with the notable exception of Portugal, where a significant decrease was noted. Wine supply decreased in all five countries; in contrast, beer supply started to take up more alcohol share. Percentage of total calories from fat increased from nearly 25% to almost 35% in Portugal during the study period, mainly at the expenses of calories from carbohydrates, whereas the share of protein showed just a slight increase. Furthermore, fat and protein were increasingly provided by animal products. CONCLUSIONS: Portugal is gradually moving away from the traditional Mediterranean diet to a more Westernized diet as well as France, Greece, Italy and Spain. Noticeably, the trends of diet transition were observed relatively faster in Portugal than in the other four Mediterranean countries