Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine最新文献

{"title":"Inhaled hinoki cypress essential oil improves saliva secretion and swallowing function in older adults with dysphagia: a randomized crossover study.","authors":"Yoichiro Aoyagi, Ryo Furuya, Masaki Kawasaki, Masako Takenouchi, Miho Ohashi, Qing Li","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00319","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00319","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Olfactory stimulation with hinoki cypress essential oil reportedly reduces stress hormones and enhances parasympathetic activity, which may in turn increase salivary secretion and facilitate swallowing. However, its effects on swallowing in older adults with dysphagia remain unclear.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In this placebo-controlled, single-blind, randomized crossover study, older adults with dysphagia (Food Intake Level Scale ≤9) underwent 5-minute olfactory stimulation with hinoki cypress essential oil or rice oil (placebo) in two sessions one week apart. Repetitive saliva swallowing test (RSST), 3 mL modified water swallowing test (MWST), 30 mL water swallowing test (WST), saliva secretion for 5 minutes, blood pressure, and heart rate were measured before and after each stimulation. Changes from pre- to post-stimulation were compared within each condition and between conditions using Wilcoxon's signed-rank test.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Thirty-four participants (47% women; 80 ± 10 years) were included. Hinoki cypress essential oil significantly improved RSST (median difference 0.5, 95% CI 0.0-1.0; p = 0.004), MWST (0.5, 95% CI 0.0-1.0; p = 0.003), and saliva secretion (1.0 mL, 95% CI 0.5-2.0; p = 0.002), whereas placebo produced no significant change (all p > 0.05). Improvements in swallowing function were greater with hinoki than with placebo. The increase in saliva secretion following hinoki stimulation was not associated with changes in RSST or MWST scores.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Brief olfactory stimulation with hinoki cypress essential oil improved swallowing function and increased saliva secretion in older adults with dysphagia compared with placebo in a randomized crossover design. Hinoki cypress essential oil inhalation may represent a simple, noninvasive adjunctive strategy for dysphagia management, warranting confirmation in larger and longer trials.</p><p><strong>Trial registration: </strong>This study was registered in the UMIN Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN-CTR) under registration number UMIN000053271.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"4"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12834643/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145997661","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Association of adverse childhood experiences with health service use and catastrophic health expenditures in China: evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study.","authors":"Shiyu Xie, Siying Yu, Yue Ma, Jing Luo, Yonghui Zhang, Rui Wang, Yafei Wang, Yuling Wang, Xueqiang Wang","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00012","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Backgrounds: </strong>Associations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and catastrophic health expenditures (CHEs) among middle-aged or older Chinese individuals remain inadequately documented. In addition, the role of chronic diseases is not entirely clear. This study used data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) to investigate the association of ACEs with hospital visits and medical expenditures and the mediating effect of chronic diseases.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data were collected from CHARLS in 2014 and 2015 (N = 11,072). Zero-inflated negative binomial regression was used to assess associations of the ACEs with the number of outpatient visits and inpatient hospital days. Logistic regression was used to assess associations between the ACEs and CHEs. The influence of chronic diseases was examined through mediation analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The prevalence of each ACE indicator ranges from 0.27% (incarcerated household member) to 31.5% (emotional neglect). Our analysis revealed a significant dose-response relationship between cumulative ACE score and CHEs (P for trend < 0.001), but not for the number of outpatient visits and inpatient hospital days. The average causal mediation effects (ACME) and average direct effects (ADE) are presented. Chronic diseases served as a mediating factor between ACEs and CHE (ACME = 0.000904, P = 0.03; ADE = 0.00813, P < 0.001).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>ACE has the capacity to predict CHE, and the findings of this study reinforce the potential pathway through which ACE may exert its influence on CHE via the burden of chronic diseases. Measures should be implemented to prevent ACEs and mitigate the risk of chronic diseases to lessen the economic burden on individuals and families as well as the adverse impact of national financial risk.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"1"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12783321/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145899332","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Parent and child experiences of research participation and retention intentions in a Japanese birth cohort: insights from the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS).","authors":"Tomoko Okabe, Yoshimitsu Takahashi, Mayumi Toyama, Yoshitaka Nishikawa, Kyoko Hirabayashi, Kumiko Kanatani, Fusako Niwa, Takeo Nakayama","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00355","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00355","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Long-term birth cohort studies depend on sustained participant engagement. In such studies, children are not only observed over time but also increasingly become participants who experience, interpret, and evaluate their own involvement in research. However, research on continued participation has focused mainly on parental perspectives, with limited attention to children's own views or to similarities and differences between parents and children. Against the growing recognition that people in medical research should be understood as participants rather than passive subjects, this study examined research participation experiences and retention intentions in both parents and children within a Japanese birth cohort.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a questionnaire survey from September to October 2024 within the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS). The primary outcome was retention intention. Factors associated with retention intention were analyzed separately for parents and children using ordinal logistic regression. Parent-child concordance in retention intention was assessed descriptively using weighted Cohen's kappa.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among 1,008 eligible parents of fifth-grade children, 485 responded (response rate, 44%). A large majority of parents (92%) and children (79%) reported willingness to continue participation. Parent-child responses showed moderate agreement (κ = 0.46). In separate adjusted ordinal logistic regression models, stronger parental retention intention was associated with lower perceived questionnaire burden (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 5.58, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.40-9.17), fewer concerns about possible disagreement with their child (aOR: 5.75, 95% CI: 3.51-9.42), and less difficulty scheduling study activities (aOR: 5.80, 95% CI: 3.50-9.63). In children, stronger retention intention was associated with anticipated gifts (aOR: 7.38, 95% CI: 2.93-18.56), talking with friends about the study (aOR: 6.02, 95% CI: 2.25-16.09), and a desire for peer interaction (aOR: 6.72, 95% CI: 3.39-13.29).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Parents and children both showed generally positive retention intentions, but disagreement was not negligible. Their retention intentions were associated with different participation-related experiences, suggesting that long-term birth cohort studies should attend to participants' perspectives in age-specific ways. Understanding research participation through both parental and child experiences may help inform more participant-centered engagement strategies and support the quality of long-term cohort research.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"50"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13413661/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148618862","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Occurrence of antibacterials, antivirals, and anti-inflammatory pharmaceuticals for COVID-19 treatment as emerging contaminants in the Chinese freshwater environment before, during and after the pandemic: the need for dynamic eco-pharmacovigilance.","authors":"Sijia Ma, Hongxia Chen, Jun Wang","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00395","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00395","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Global epidemic diseases such as COVID-19 have driven both the excessive use of pharmaceuticals and shifts in their usage spectrum. Consequently, the profile of pharmaceuticals in the environment (PiE) may undergo dynamic temporal changes, posing a significant challenge to eco-pharmacovigilance (EPV), a specialized branch of pharmacovigilance focused on detecting, evaluating, understanding, and preventing the adverse environmental effects of pharmaceuticals.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Based on data extracted from 89 studies published between 2014 and 2025, this review conducts a focused comparison of the occurrence patterns of 43 selected typical anti-COVID-19 drugs (20 antibacterials, 11 antivirals, and 12 anti-inflammatory pharmaceuticals) as contaminants in distinct regions across China's seven major river basins before, during, and after the pandemic. The need of dynamic EPV was then analyzed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Before the COVID-19 outbreak, erythromycin, ampicillin, roxithromycin, and acetaminophen dominated the PiE profile in terms of reported maximum residual concentrations; during the pandemic lockdown, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, azithromycin, and ketoprofen were identified as the top-priority anti-COVID-19 PiE; after the pandemic, azithromycin, norfloxacin, ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, and roxithromycin remained the dominant PiE. Residual levels of individual PiE at the same location varied noticeably across the three periods.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Results revealed highly distinct regional and temporal variations in surface freshwater pollution by these COVID-19-associated PiE across the three periods, with no consistent regularity observed, thereby further highlighting the necessity of implementing EPV in a \"dynamic\" manner. Drawing on the framework of dynamic pharmacovigilance, the implementation of dynamic EPV can be promoted by establishing a dynamic watch-list mechanism, clarifying stakeholder roles, and advancing supportive policies and technological platforms, so as to enable adaptive interventions for the timely management of event-driven pharmaceutical pollution.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"44"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13366171/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148390159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exercising alone in men and group exercise in women are cross-sectionally associated with positive mental health among older Japanese.","authors":"Kimiko Tomioka, Midori Shima, Keigo Saeki","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00118","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00118","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Although previous studies have reported that exercising with others has a more beneficial effect on the health of older adults than exercising alone, gender differences in the association between exercise patterns and health are unknown. We investigated the cross-sectional association between exercise patterns and physical and mental health by gender.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed 4,211 men and 4,944 women aged ≥65 years without disabilities. Physical and mental health was assessed using the SF-8 Health Survey. Exercise patterns were measured based on three types: participation in exercise groups, non-group-based exercise with others, and exercising alone. Each exercise pattern was classified into five groups according to frequency and continuity: maintained frequent (i.e., daily or weekly), increase in frequency, maintained moderate (i.e., monthly or yearly), decrease in frequency, and continuing non-exercise. Modified Poisson regression with generalized estimating equations was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratio (APR) for poor physical/mental health. Covariates included age, marital status, education, economic status, body mass index, chronic medical conditions, smoking, dietary variety, cognition, working status, and social participation.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>For physical health, among both genders, all exercise patterns had a significant dose-response relationship between lower levels of exercise frequency and continuity and a higher prevalence of poor physical health, after adjustment for covariates and mutual adjustment for other exercise patterns (all P for trend <0.036). For mental health, among men, only exercising alone had a significant dose-response relationship (P for trend <0.001) [APR: 1.22 (95% CI: 1.07-1.39) for continuing non-exercise, 1.32 (1.11-1.57) for decrease in frequency, compared to maintained frequent]. Among women, the cross-sectional association with mental health was limited to participation in exercise groups (P for trend: 0.006) [APR: 1.24 (95% CI: 1.09-1.40) for continuing non-exercise, 1.26 (1.09-1.47) for decrease in frequency, and 1.37 (1.13-1.66) for maintained moderate, compared to maintained frequent].</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>All exercise patterns were cross-sectionally associated with physical health across genders. However, mental health outcomes varied: Cross-sectional associations with mental health were observed for men when exercising alone, and for women when exercising in groups. These results highlight the importance of gender-sensitive public health strategies, such as tailored community exercise programs. Due to the cross-sectional design, causality cannot be determined. However, the results do suggest that future longitudinal research is needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"19"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13014103/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147431648","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"CeRNA plays a key role in the induction of cardiovascular diseases by environmental endocrine disruptor exposure.","authors":"Yingxi Zeng, Jie Xu, Jie Yu","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00165","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00165","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) represent a novel mechanism involving interactions among different RNAs, playing a crucial role in the gene regulatory networks throughout the life cycle. CeRNAs are implicated in cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) caused by environmental endocrine disruptors (EDCs); however, existing studies are not yet systematic, and the mechanisms underlying their effects remain unclear.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>This study aimed to systematically elucidate the role of ceRNAs in EDC-induced CVDs and provide valuable insights regarding disease mechanisms and developing new therapeutic strategies.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Comprehensive searches for research related to EDC-induced cardiovascular diseases were conducted across PubMed, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect databases. Eligible studies were screened, and those containing information on the regulatory mechanisms of ceRNAs were extracted and analyzed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Notably, ceRNA-mediated effects of EDC exposure on CVDs mainly occurred through four pathways. First, upon exposure to EDCs, micro RNAs, messenger RNAs (mRNAs), long-chain non-coding RNAs, circular RNAs are differentially regulated, activating signaling pathways such as nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase/nuclear factor-κB, which lead to atherosclerosis. Second, EDC exposure alters mRNAs and proteins involved in ceRNA networks, activating the PTEN-induced kinase 1/Parkin and transforming growth factor-β1/LIM domain kinase 1 signaling pathways, leading to cardiomyopathy. Third, EDCs increase ceRNA-related mRNA levels, thereby raising the risk of CVDs. Lastly, ceRNAs participate in EDC exposure to upregulate nitric oxide or reactive oxygen species, ultimately causing vascular diseases.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Altogether, the findings of this study show that ceRNAs hold significant potential for identifying target genes and signaling pathways associated with CVDs, which may facilitate deeper studies into CVD management.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"14"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12981975/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147325002","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ambient particulate-phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon mixtures and gastrointestinal disease prevalence in China: a population-based cross-sectional study.","authors":"Linwei Yao, Xi Wang, Yong Shen, Haobo Zhong","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.26-00006","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.26-00006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Evidence regarding the association between ambient polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) mixtures and non-neoplastic gastrointestinal diseases in general populations remains limited. This study examined whether provincial ambient particulate-phase PAH burden was associated with prevalent gastrointestinal disease among middle-aged and older adults in China.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Provincial annual mean concentrations of particulate-phase PAHs for 2015 were compiled from published monitoring studies across 12 Chinese provinces and linked to participants in the 2015 wave of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. Gastrointestinal disease was defined as a self-reported physician diagnosis and/or current treatment, excluding tumors and cancer. Using multivariable logistic regression, we estimated odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for prevalent gastrointestinal disease per doubling (log2) of total PAHs and of 17 individual PAHs, adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related covariates. The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure controlled the false discovery rate. Likelihood ratio tests for interaction were used to assess effect modification.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 3,671 adults aged 45 years or older, 1,056 (28.8%) reported a gastrointestinal disease. In fully adjusted models, each doubling of total PAH concentration was associated with increased odds of gastrointestinal disease (odds ratio 1.07, 95% confidence interval 1.02-1.12; false discovery rate-adjusted q = 0.014). Following multiple-comparison correction, naphthalene, fluorene, phenanthrene, and pyrene each demonstrated consistent positive associations. The association for total PAHs was more pronounced among non-drinkers (odds ratio 1.43, 95% confidence interval 1.19-1.71; P for interaction = 0.015) and rural residents (odds ratio 1.37, 95% confidence interval 1.15-1.65; P for interaction = 0.035).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Higher provincial ambient particulate-phase PAH burden was associated with a greater prevalence of self-reported non-neoplastic gastrointestinal disease among middle-aged and older Chinese adults, with potential heterogeneity by residence and alcohol consumption. Given the cross-sectional design and province-level exposure assignment, longitudinal studies with individual-level exposure assessment and validated outcomes are needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"25"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13057908/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147590971","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"COVID-19-related anxiety and sense of coherence associated with psychological distress among rural residents in Japan during the pandemic late phase.","authors":"Kaori Taniguchi, Atsuko Sadakane, Shunsuke Yamashina, Shinya Matsumoto, Kiwamu Nagoshi","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00457","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00457","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has imposed significant psychological stress worldwide. Although many studies have examined the mental health impacts during the pandemic's early phase, evidence from the late phase remains limited. This study investigated the associations between COVID-19-related anxiety and sense of coherence (SOC) with psychological distress among rural residents during the pandemic late phase in Japan.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2022 to March 2023, the late phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants were residents of rural communities in the Shimane Prefecture, Japan. They were recruited through a health check-up program arranged by a cooperative organization for farmers. Psychological distress was assessed using the Kessler 6-item Psychological Distress Scale (K6); COVID-19-related anxiety and SOC were assessed using self-administered questionnaires. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the associations between pandemic-related anxiety, SOC, and psychological distress after adjusting for age, sex, subjective health status, and communicative health literacy.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the 1,310 individuals who underwent health checkups, 743 agreed to participate in the study, and 664 who completed all questionnaires were included in the final analyses. Psychological distress (K6 ≥ 5) was observed in 29.2% of participants and was more prevalent among younger adults. Fear of infection (OR = 1.32, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.68), stress related to mask wearing (OR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.10-1.68), and concern about reduced income (OR = 1.32, 95% CI: 1.08-1.61) were associated with higher odds of psychological distress. Higher SOC was inversely associated with psychological distress.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>During the late phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, several COVID-19-related anxiety factors, particularly fear of infection, stress related to mask wearing, and concern about reduced income, were associated with psychological distress among rural residents. Higher SOC was associated with lower psychological distress, suggesting that strengthening individual and community resilience may be important for mitigating the mental health impact of prolonged pandemic conditions in rural settings.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"32"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13222742/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147962671","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Gender disparities in the association between marital status and intention to leave research careers among medical researchers.","authors":"Yuki Kawai, Keisuke Kuwahara, Akira Minoura, Yuhei Shimada, Makoto Kondo, Hiroko Fukushima, Hiroaki Komatsu, Takehiro Sugiyama","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00407","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.25-00407","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Gender disparities in the intention to leave research careers after marriage have not been investigated. This study aimed to clarify the gender-specific associations of marital status and nurturing children with the intention to leave research careers among medical researchers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2022 to January 2023. The study was based on a web-based survey targeting medical researchers affiliated with 141 Japanese academic societies. Participants who disagreed with continuing their research careers were classified as intending to leave. Multivariable-adjusted logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the gender-specific association of marital status and having children with the intention to leave research careers.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among 3,009 participants, 812 (27.0%) were women, and 342 (11.4%) expressed an intention to leave. A total of 2,481 participants (82.5%) were married, and 2,267 (75.3%) had children. Marital status was associated with intention to leave research careers in opposite directions for men and women, with significant interactions on both multiplicative (P = 0.015) and additive (P = 0.001) scales. Specifically, married men had a significantly lower intention to leave compared with unmarried men (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.63, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.40-0.97). In contrast, among women, marriage was associated with a higher intention to leave compared with being unmarried (aOR 1.41, 95% CI: 0.86-2.32), although this increase was not significant. In post hoc subgroup analyses by medical license status, the gender-specific association between marital status and intention to leave research careers was more evident among medical doctors (MDs) than non-MDs, among whom the proportion reporting intention to leave was lower (4% to 6% across groups). However, estimates among non-MD researchers were imprecise due to the small number of events. Similar gender disparities were observed for having children, although the interaction did not reach statistical significance (P for additive interaction = 0.083).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The present results suggest that marital status showed opposite associations with intention to leave research careers between men and women, a pattern primarily observed among MD researchers. Our finding highlights the need to consider gender difference when developing strategies to support retention of medical researchers.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"30"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13171253/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147867169","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Repeated Specific Health Guidance and improvement of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged working men: a longitudinal observational study using modified Poisson regression.","authors":"Hiromi Yoshida, Atsuko Taguchi, Tomonori Okamura, Daisuke Sugiyama","doi":"10.1265/ehpm.26-00113","DOIUrl":"10.1265/ehpm.26-00113","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a growing global health concern, and lifestyle interventions are important for preventing MetS and its progression to chronic diseases. Although short-term lifestyle interventions (typically within 12 months) have shown some improvements, clinically meaningful improvements in MetS and cardiovascular disease are achieved only in a subset of participants, indicating that many participants derive insufficient benefit. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of repeated interventions for individuals who do not achieve sufficient weight loss with a short-term lifestyle intervention, using real-world data from Japan's health screening system, Specific Health Checkup (SHC) and Specific Health Guidance (SHG), by comparing outcomes between individuals who did not achieve sufficient improvement after the initial intervention and received and did not receive health guidance again in the following year.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This longitudinal observational study used 2018-2020 individual-level data of men aged 40-65 years from a Japanese health insurance database. Modified Poisson regression was used to investigate whether repeated SHG interventions for individuals who did not achieve sufficient improvement despite receiving SHG in fiscal year 2018 increased the probability of achieving ≥3% weight loss between 2019 and 2020.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The repeated and single intervention groups comprised 952 and 1,373 participants, respectively. No significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of ≥3% weight loss between 2019 and 2020 (16.0% vs. 13.5%; risk ratio [RR] = 1.18; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.97-1.44, adjusted). Analyses stratified by stage of change showed a significant difference in the contemplation stage between the two groups (≥3% weight loss 2019-2020, 19.7% vs. 13.7%; RR = 1.47; 95% CI, 1.04-2.08).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>No significant association was observed between repeated interventions and achieving ≥3% weight loss overall. An exploratory subgroup analysis suggested a possible benefit among individuals in the contemplation stage. These findings should be interpreted cautiously and confirmed in future studies.</p>","PeriodicalId":11707,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine","volume":"31 ","pages":"61"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13617185/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148982314","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}