Allometric versus traditional body-shape indices and risk of colorectal cancer: a Mendelian randomization analysis.

BACKGROUND: Traditional body-shape indices such as Waist Circumference (WC), Hip Circumference (HC), and Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR) are associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) risk, but are correlated with Body Mass Index (BMI), and adjustment for BMI introduces a strong correlation with height. Thus, new allometric indices have been developed, namely A Body Shape Index (ABSI), Hip Index (HI), and Waist-to-Hip Index (WHI), which are uncorrelated with weight and height; these have also been associated with CRC risk in observational studies, but information from Mendelian randomization (MR) studies is missing. METHODS: We used two-sample MR to examine potential causal cancer site- and sex-specific associations of the genetically-predicted allometric body-shape indices with CRC risk, and compared them with BMI-adjusted traditional body-shape indices, and BMI. Data were obtained from UK Biobank and the GIANT consortium, and from GECCO, CORECT and CCFR consortia. RESULTS: WHI was positively associated with CRC in men (OR per SD: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.03-1.39) and in women (1.15, 1.06-1.24), and similarly for colon and rectal cancer. ABSI was positively associated with colon and rectal cancer in men (1.27, 1.03-1.57; and 1.40, 1.10-1.77, respectively), and with colon cancer in women (1.20, 1.07-1.35). There was little evidence for association between HI and colon or rectal cancer. The BMI-adjusted WHR and HC showed similar associations to WHI and HI, whereas WC showed similar associations to ABSI only in women. CONCLUSIONS: This large MR study provides strong evidence for a potential causal positive association of the allometric indices ABSI and WHI with CRC in both sexes, thus establishing the association between abdominal fat and CRC without the limitations of the traditional waist size indices and independently of BMI. Among the BMI-adjusted traditional indices, WHR and HC provided equivalent associations with WHI and HI, while differences were observed between WC and ABSI.

Parental Hesitancy towards the Established Childhood Vaccination Programmes in the COVID-19 Era: Assessing the Drivers of a Challenging Public Health Concern.

(1) Background: Vaccine hesitancy remains a major public health concern. The reasons behind this attitude are complex and warrant careful consideration, especially in the context of the COVID-19 era. The purpose of this study was to estimate vaccine hesitancy towards the established childhood immunization programmes in a non-random sample of Greek parents and explore possible links with important drivers of this phenomenon. (2) Methods: An online self-administered questionnaire was used from October 2020 to April 2021 to collect socio-demographic, lifestyle, and health status data and evaluate knowledge, views, and attitudes of the Greek population on COVID-19 pandemic-related issues. Parents were further asked to complete the Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines (PACV) questionnaire. (3) Results: A total of 1095 parents participated in the study with a mean age of 50 years (SD 9.5 years). The hesitancy against the established childhood vaccinations was estimated at 8.9% (95% CI, 7.3-10.8%). Married status and higher education and income were negatively correlated with hesitancy, whereas positive correlations were found for stress and depressive symptoms and current smoking. Variables related to proper awareness, sound knowledge, and trust toward authorities regarding the COVID-19 pandemic were strongly associated with being less hesitant against the established childhood vaccination programmes. (4) Conclusion: The estimated parental hesitancy against the established childhood vaccination programmes is worrisome. Variables related to good awareness and knowledge of the COVID-19 pandemic were strongly associated with being less hesitant against childhood vaccinations. Since controversy surrounding COVID-19 vaccinations may decrease parents' confidence in routine childhood vaccinations, appreciating the complex reasons behind vaccine hesitancy may inform public health policies to overcome barriers and increase vaccine acceptance.

Prevalence and Determinants of Sex-Specific Dietary Supplement Use in a Greek Cohort.

We describe the profile of dietary supplement use and its correlates in the Epirus Health Study cohort, which consists of 1237 adults (60.5% women) residing in urban north-west Greece. The association between dietary supplement use and demographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors, personal medical history and clinical measurements was assessed using logistic regression models, separately for women and men. The overall prevalence of dietary supplement use was 31.4%, and it was higher in women (37.3%) compared to men (22.4%; p-value = 4.2-08). Based on multivariable logistic regression models, dietary supplement use in women was associated with age (positively until middle-age and slightly negatively afterwards), the presence of a chronic health condition (OR = 1.71; 95% CI, 1.18-2.46), lost/removed teeth (OR = 0.52; 95% CI, 0.35-0.78) and diastolic blood pressure (OR per 5 mmHg increase =0.84; 95% CI, 0.73-0.96); body mass index and worse general health status were borderline inversely associated. In men, dietary supplement use was positively associated with being employed (OR = 2.53; 95% CI, 1.21-5.29). A considerable proportion of our sample used dietary supplements, and the associated factors differed between women and men.