A Longitudinal Study on Body Image Perception and Size among Italian Early Adolescents: Changes over Time and Discrepancies between Genders.

Background/objectives: The discrepancy between the current perceived body image (BI) and beauty ideals leads to dissatisfaction, which is believed to be common among adolescents. This study aimed to investigate the stability in BI perceptions and dissatisfaction during early adolescence. Another aim was to highlight differences in dissatisfaction according to Body Mass Index (BMI) and inconsistencies in weight status perception.

Assessing the Relationship between Body Image Satisfaction and Physical Activity in Italian Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Investigation.

Background: Body image perception can significantly influence various aspects of adolescent lives. The study analyzed the relationship between body image satisfaction and sports participation in adolescents, examining various factors that contribute to body image concerns and their implications for sports engagement.

Methods: A total of 237 schoolchildren were recruited from lower secondary Italian schools.

Cranial Surgery in Antiquity: The Size of Trepanations During the Neolithic Period in France.

The trepanation, a surgical procedure performed on the skull, finds its roots in prehistoric times. This investigation delves into the analysis of the trepanned skulls housed at the Musée de l'Homme in Paris, focusing on those found in France, a region abundant in archaeological evidence of early neurosurgical techniques. With the opportunity to scrutinize these human remains, our study aimed to analyze the dimensions of Neolithic trepanations across 41 skulls.

The COVID-19 Experience in Adolescents: Emotional and Behavioral Recall at the End of the Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown countermeasure may have significantly affected adolescents' physical and mental health. This study aims to assess adolescents' recollections of this period, also analyzing their current weight status along with factors they traced back to the epidemic phase and their current sports practice. A survey among 233 Italian adolescents aged 12.

COVID-19 Vaccination and Predictive Factors in Immigrants to Europe: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Vaccination plays a pivotal role in the control of infectious disease outbreaks. Hesitancy/refusal of the vaccine by immigrants poses a serious threat to their and society's health. We reviewed studies regarding COVID-19 vaccine uptake in Europe by first-generation immigrants.

Sports Practice, Body Image Perception, and Factors Involved in Sporting Activity in Italian Schoolchildren.

Regular physical activity is generally deemed to positively affect health, but studies on children are scarce. Among the kinds of physical activity, sports practice is the most common and easiest to quantify and report by children. This cross-sectional study aimed to compare the two genders and evaluate the association between organized sports practice and body dissatisfaction in a sample of 214 Italian schoolchildren (55.

A Pilot Study on the Association of Internet Use with Sports Practice and Sex in Italian Adolescents.

The use of the Internet has several positive functions, but at the same time it also represents a health risk, especially for adolescents. The increased use of the Internet in recent decades has also been linked to an increase in problematic Internet use, which has now become a global social issue. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Internet use increased even more and influenced adolescents' habits, leading to an increase in sedentary behaviors.

"Heal the sick": Health status and caregiving during the 17th-18th century in Northern Italy (St. Biagio cemetery, Ravenna).

Objective: The study of health-related care provision in archeology gives important indications on the culture and community organization of past populations. This study aims to assess the health status of the skeletal assemblage recovered from the burial site of St. Biagio (Ravenna, 17th-18th Centuries); next, we identified likely instances of need for and receipt of caregiving in response to the condition, to examine evidence of community attitudes toward disease and disability.

Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 Prevention Measures on Adolescent Growth in Italy.

COVID-19 infection has caused increased morbidity and mortality worldwide. Several strategies have been adopted around the world to prevent its spread. Italy underwent a long lockdown for face-to-face educational activities, which were replaced with online classes.

The Impact of Sports Involvement on Body Image Perception and Ideals: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Concerns about body image may affect athletes, mainly because of specific sports models to achieve successful performance. This systematic review reports on body image dissatisfaction (BID) in athletes following the guidelines for systematic reviews and meta-analyses. From a total of 887 articles identified through a systematic search of electronic databases, 15 articles conducted on 2412 athletes were included in this review.

Technical note: Application and potentiality of quantitative ultrasonometry for the evaluation of bone mineral density status.

The evaluation of bone mineral density (BMD) is an important task in paleopathology. Techniques commonly applied in bone quantity assessment, such as DXA or radiogrammetry (XR), suffer from several limitations when applied to skeletal remains. In recently published research, we developed a new methodology and new reference curves for the evaluation of BMD on human skeletal remains, applying for the first time Quantitative Ultrasonometry (QUS), a user-friendly, portable, and reliable clinical technique.

Age at Menarche, Growth Velocity, and Adiposity Indices in Italian Girls Aged 10 to 14.

Age at menarche (AAM) is an effective marker of puberty timing but its onset could be influenced by several intrinsic and extrinsic factors. This study aimed to assess the AAM in a sample of Italian adolescents and to investigate its association with anthropometric variables. Considering the rise in overweight/obesity worldwide, special attention was paid to a possible decrease in AAM as adiposity indices increase.

Physical Activity and Body Image Perception in Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

Adolescence represents a vulnerable phase of life for psychological health. The practice of physical activity (PA) appears to have a positive influence on adolescents, increasing self-esteem and producing a more positive body image. A systematic review of published articles over the past 10 years until June 2022 was conducted according to the PRISMA statement employing the electronic databases MEDLINE and Web of Science (639 records) to summarize the literature on the relationship between body image dissatisfaction (BID) and assessed by figural scales and practice of structured and unstructured PA in adolescents (10-18 years), taking into account BMI and/or weight status.

Physical Activity Behavior, Motivation and Active Commuting: Relationships with the Use of Green Spaces in Italy.

Many benefits of physical activity (PA) are observed with weekly average volumes of 150-300 min at moderate intensity. Public parks may be an attraction for many people living in the city and could help to achieve the recommended dose of PA. The present study aims to understand the motivation that drives people to a park and evaluate the amount of PA practiced by park-goers.

Anthropometric Assessment of General and Central Obesity in Urban Moroccan Women.

In the last few decades, North African countries have faced the nutrition transition, leading to an increase in obesity, exacerbated by an extremely low rate of physical activity (PA). Particular attention must be paid to abdominal obesity (one of the metabolic syndrome criteria), which has been linked to several health problems. The present study aims to investigate the prevalence of overweight/obesity, particularly abdominal obesity, in a sample of urban Moroccan women and to analyze the anthropometric indicators of metabolic syndrome risk among subsamples with different PA and socio-demographic characteristics.

Age estimation using tooth cementum annulations: bias and sources of inaccuracy.

Background: Counting the tooth cementum annulations (TCA) is a method for estimating the age at death of adults by sections of their tooth root. The objective of this study was to assess the precision of counting the cementum incremental lines and the congruence between known age and age estimates. Possible factors affecting the accuracy of the estimate were also analyzed.

Tooth Cementum Thickness as a Method of Age Estimation in the Forensic Context.

Estimating age at death is a key element in the process of human identification of skeletal remains. The interest in dental cementum stems from its increase in thickness throughout life and, at the same time, from the fact it should not be affected by remodeling processes. Since the age assessment is particularly difficult in adults when using traditional anthropological methods on the skeleton, we tested a dental method based on maximum cementum thickness and developed new regression equations.

Sex Differences in Body Image Perception and Ideals: Analysis of Possible Determinants.

The study analyzed the differences between sexes in body image perception and body ideals to assess possible dissatisfaction and misinterpretation in the body image considered attractive for the other sex. Moreover, the influence of anthropometric traits and sports practice on body dissatisfaction and misjudgment was evaluated. Using a cross-sectional design, 960 Italian university students were investigated.

Bioarchaeological insights into the last plague of Imola (1630-1632).

The plague of 1630-1632 was one of the deadliest plague epidemics to ever hit Northern Italy, and for many of the affected regions, it was also the last. While accounts on plague during the early 1630s in Florence and Milan are frequent, much less is known about the city of Imola. We analyzed the full skeletal assemblage of four mass graves (n = 133 individuals) at the Lazaretto dell'Osservanza, which date back to the outbreak of 1630-1632 in Imola and evaluated our results by integrating new archival sources.

Cranial Surgery in Italy During the Bronze Age.

Skull vault trepanation is a surgical practice that has been found in prehistoric human remains. We carried out a review of the literature on cranial trepanations performed during the Bronze Age in Italy. In total, 19 individuals, most of whom were adult males, with 33 trepanations have been reported, including a new specimen from the Italian Middle Bronze Age (1700-1400 BCE), found at Grotta della Monaca (Calabria).

Psychosocial health and quality of life among North African women.

Studies on relationships between psychosocial factors and health among North African (NA) women are scarce. This research investigated the self-perceived psychosocial well-being of NA women by a structured questionnaire and anthropometric survey examining the possible explanatory variables of their mental health in comparison to a sample of NA migrants. The association of endogenous stress, psychological well-being, discomfort, and quality of life with migrant/non-migrant status, demographic characteristics, and adiposity indices was examined.

The biological index of frailty: A new index for the assessment of frailty in human skeletal remains.

Objective: Frailty is the physiological stress that individuals suffer during their life. In past populations, frailty is conventionally assessed through the occurrence of different biomarkers of biological stress. Some efforts have been made to propose indexes that combine all biomarkers.

Physical Activity for Health and Wellness.

Regular physical activity (PA) is both a preventive measure and a cure for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) [...

First Bronze Age Human Mitogenomes from Calabria (Grotta Della Monaca, Southern Italy).

The Italian peninsula was host to a strong history of migration processes that shaped its genomic variability since prehistoric times. During the Metal Age, Sicily and Southern Italy were the protagonists of intense trade networks and settlements along the Mediterranean. Nonetheless, ancient DNA studies in Southern Italy are, at present, still limited to prehistoric and Roman Apulia.

Influence of Size and Maturity on Injury in Young Elite Soccer Players.

The involvement of pre-adolescents in soccer is becoming more and more frequent, and this growing participation generates some concerns about the potential factors for sports injuries. The purpose of this study was to investigate sports injuries in younger (U9-U11) and older (U12-U13) children playing soccer at an elite level, analyzing potential anthropometric and maturity risk factors. A total of 88 elite soccer players aged 9-13 years were investigated.