ABSTRACT
With an index for dietary salt use designed to provide a semiquantitative estimate of salt intake, we have found that in a sample representative of the 2.1 million adults in Connecticut, the mean BP of those at the 90th percentile or higher of salt intake differs by a quantitatively insignificant amount from the mean BP of those at the tenth percentile or lower of salt intake. When we examined the obese (body mass index, 90th percentile or higher) separately, similar results were obtained. These findings indicate that it is unlikely dietary salt intake has a clinically significant effect on BP in the majority of individuals in a large defined population, but do not exclude the possibility of a clinically significant effect in a small subgroup of salt-sensitive individuals.
Subject(s)
Blood Pressure/drug effects , Sodium Chloride/administration & dosage , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Blood Pressure Determination , Connecticut , Diet , Diet, Sodium-Restricted , Female , Humans , Hypertension/etiology , Interview, Psychological , Male , Middle Aged , Obesity/complications , Retrospective Studies , Sodium Chloride/pharmacologyABSTRACT
The mortality and cancer incidence experience of 4,106 employees in a nuclear fuels fabrication plant was evaluated in this retrospective cohort study. Standardized mortality (SMR) and incidence ratios were calculated for groups of employees holding different jobs in the company associated with various types of industrial exposures and with low levels of radiation. Connecticut population mortality rates and Connecticut Tumor Registry incidence rates, specific for age-sex, calendar year and cause of death or cancer site, were used for the calculation of expected rates. Results showed the SMR for all male employees to be significantly lower than expected for all causes and what would be expected for all cancer deaths. More deaths were observed than expected from diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system and from obstructive pulmonary disease. The overall cancer incidence experience of the male employees was significantly lower than expected; cancer of the brain was found to be significantly higher than expected among the industrial employees. These was no risk associated with any particular job exposure group. Log linear models analysis showed no significant effect from industrial and radiation exposures or from their combined influence.
Subject(s)
Brain Neoplasms/epidemiology , Neoplasms/mortality , Nuclear Energy , Occupational Medicine/methods , Adult , Aged , Connecticut , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Neoplasms/epidemiology , Radiation Effects , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
The results of the first Connecticut Blood Pressure Survey are reported. It was found that sharp differences exist in the prevalence of hypertension by age and sex but that race differences are much less than previously reported for United States populations. Differences were also found between men and women with respect to the patterns of treatment and control. Age differences in treatment and control are noted. The findings reported are based on a statewide probability sample for which the target population exceeded 2 million persons. Because of the complexity of sampling such a population an extensive discussion of the survey method is given.
Subject(s)
Hypertension/epidemiology , Black or African American , Age Factors , Blood Pressure , Connecticut , Female , Humans , Hypertension/therapy , Male , Sex FactorsABSTRACT
The relationship between change in mode of housing and corresponding blood pressure (BP) change was investigated among 568 male prisoners as an analogue to animal studies which have shown that crowding elevates BP. The transfer from single occupancy cells to multiple occupancy dormitories was associated with a statistically significant mean increase in systolic blood pressure (SBP). In contrast, men who remained in single cells had little mean change in SBP over time. Inmates who were retransferred to cells after a short stay in dormitories experienced a mean decline in SBP, which suggests that crowding may be reversible in its early stages. SBP also decreased after continued stay in the dormitories, indicating that adaptation may occur. The implications of these findings for crowding theory and their contribution to an understanding of response to the prison environment are discussed.
Subject(s)
Blood Pressure , Crowding , Prisons , Adult , Humans , Male , Social EnvironmentSubject(s)
Health Education , Hypertension/prevention & control , Mass Screening , Adult , Age Factors , Aged , Connecticut , Female , Humans , Hypertension/diagnosis , Hypertension/therapy , Male , Middle Aged , Patient Compliance , Referral and ConsultationSubject(s)
Hypertension/prevention & control , Mass Screening , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Child , Connecticut , Evaluation Studies as Topic , Health Education , Humans , Middle Aged , Referral and ConsultationSubject(s)
Blood Pressure , Crowding , Prisons , Age Factors , Attitude , Body Height , Body Weight , Humans , Male , Prisoners , Pulse , Racial GroupsABSTRACT
The relationship of urbanization to bodily changes and chronic disease is examined. Urban stress, as defined principally by one of its components, crowding, is examined in its role in the development of high blood pressure as well as in the modification of behavior and bodily function. Several sources of data are presented including those from animal studies, observations in man and some new data collected by the authors. The concept of information overload, the effects of noise on performance and on chronic disease, the psychophysiological effects of driving in traffic and the behavioral and bodily effects of crowding in man and animals are all presented. This paper intends to give the reader an overview of the complexity of the relationship of urban stress to behavioral changes and chronic disease. This relationship is described, and its multiple components, both in the environment and the nervous system, are enumerated.
