Investigation on the perception of risk level of heat wave and its related factors in Guangdong province / 中华预防医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the risk perception of heat wave, and further explore its related factors in Guangdong province.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 2183 adults were selected by a multi-stage sampling method in Guangdong province. Each subject was interviewed in their home with a structured questionnaire by a well trained investigator from September to November, 2010. The questionnaire contained socio-demographic characteristics, heat wave related knowledge, risk perception of heat wave, etc. Chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were employed in this study.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The average age of total 2183 participants was (39.31 ± 14.16) years, among which 53.37% (1165/2183) were males, and 48.74% (1064/2183) were selected from urban. About 38.11% (832/2183) of participants heard about heat wave, and 38.52% (841/2183) of subjects thought the heat wave had higher impact on their health (risk perception score of heat wave ≥ 5 points). About 81.91% (1788/2183) of all participants thought the weather in most recent years was hotter than several years ago. Among these people, 30.48% (545/1788) thought the main reason of weather becoming hotter was due to emission of carbon dioxide, and 26.51% (474/1788) thought it was due to air pollution. Results from the multivariate logistic regression showed that the risk perception score of heat wave were higher in subjects with higher education (OR = 2.16, 95%CI: 1.41 - 3.30), from urban(OR = 1.37, 95%CI: 1.10 - 1.72), with higher score of trust(OR = 1.08, 95%CI: 1.01 - 1.14) and participants with higher score of heat wave related knowledge (OR = 1.39, 95%CI: 1.27 - 1.52). Furthermore, compared to hierarchist, egalitarian (OR = 1.73, 95%CI: 1.30 - 2.29), individualist (OR = 1.93, 95%CI: 1.41 - 2.65) and fatalist (OR = 1.80, 95%CI: 1.41 - 2.29) also had higher risk perception score of heat wave.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>There is a lack of knowledge and risk perception to heat wave among the residents in Guangdong province. Risk perception of heat wave was higher in people who were from urban, had higher level of trust on government, experts and media, had higher health-related knowledge score, and non-hierarchists.</p>

Association between distorted weight perception and suicide ideation among normal weight adolescents / 中华预防医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the relationship between distorted weight perception and suicide ideation among normal weight adolescents in Guangdong province.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study used the data of Guangdong Provincial Youth Health Risk Behavior Survey in 2004 and 2007. To identify the association between distorted weight perception and suicide ideation, a logistic regression analysis was performed. The effects of age, economic status, mother's education, mental health, and depression were also adjusted.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A total of 12 729 people participated in this study, 6096 males and 6633 females. The prevalence of suicide ideation among normal weight adolescents was 13.58% (1729/12 729) in the past 12 months, with higher prevalence in girls (16.15%, 1071/6633) than that in boys (10.79%, 658/6096) (χ(2) = 77.71, P = 0.00). It was common that the adolescents misperceived their weight. Only 44.93% (5719/12 729) of normal weight students correctly perceived their body weight while 43.52% (5540/12 729) of them overestimated their weight and 11.43% (1455/12 729) underestimated their weight. The distorted weight perception in girls (65.58%, 4350/6633) was higher than that in boys (43.39%, 2645/6096) (χ(2) = 993.91, P = 0.00). Distorted weight perception was significantly associated with suicide ideation after controlling for factors age, economic status, mother's education, mental health, and depression. The students who overestimate their body weight were more likely to have suicide ideation than that who correctly perceived their weight (OR = 1.43, 95%CI: 1.27 - 1.61).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The prevalence of distorted weight perception was high and it significantly associated with suicide ideation.</p>

Study on health-related behaviors among males in rural and urban residents from Guangdong province / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective To compare the magnitude of inequities in health-related behaviors among males in Guangdong province, and to investigate the extent of the disparities. Methods Data sets available from the Guangdong Chronic Diseases and Risk Factors Survey 2007 are used.Concentration index (C) and concentration curve are employed to measure the differential of males'health-related behaviors across urban and rural areas in Guangdong. Odds ratios of 6 health-related behaviors among different areas are derived from 4 logistic models, after adjusting for age, married state, educational status, occupation and income. Results Results from Cs reveal that the inequality gradients disadvantageous to men in rural areas are: smoking(C=-0.075, P=0.000), alcohol intake (C=-0.023, P=0.002), blood pressure (C=0.106, P=0.000), blood sugar(C=0.114, P=0.000)and weight (C= 0.107, P= 0.000 ), while lack of physical activity (C= 0.044, P= 0.000) concentrates in the more affluent areas. The magnitudes of these inequalities appear to be higher on health-seeking behaviors than on health-risk behaviors. After adjusting for age and marital status, there is still strong evidence showing the rural-urban differences in the health related behaviors among males in Guangdong province. When educational status, occupation and income are added to the logistic model as control factors, the results have led to a loss of statistical significance on such rural-urban inequalities, indicating that socioeconomic factors play an important role on these health-related behaviors which leads to the inequalities among males in Guangdong province. Conclusion To reduce the gaps in health-related behaviors seen in the rural and urban areas, effective policies should be developed to change the social determinants of rural-urban differences in health and to strengthen the implementation of health-related programs on those vulnerable groups.