The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on socially marginalised women: Material and mental health outcomes.

There is little knowledge about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted people who are socially marginalised, including individuals who face barriers when attempting to access services such as social safety nets, the labour market, or housing. There is even less understanding about women living under these circumstances. The aims of this study are therefore to examine the material and mental impacts of COVID-19 among socially marginalised women (compared with socially marginalised men) as well as influencing factors.

Socio-economic outcomes of COVID-19 on the marginalised: Who have taken the hardest hit?

This article aims to examine the socioeconomic outcomes of COVID-19 for socially marginalised people who are clients of social care organisations (e.g. people experiencing homelessness), and the factors influencing these outcomes.

Self-imposed social isolation among clients of social care organisations in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although self-imposed social isolation is an important way of reducing the risk of COVID-19 infection, previous research indicates that this behaviour varies substantially between different groups and individuals. Socially marginalized people are generally less involved in protective health behaviours, but there are few studies of their COVID-19 protective behaviours. The aims of the paper are therefore to: 1) compare self-imposed social isolation to avoid COVID-19 among socially marginalized groups, and to 2) examine factors influencing this, focusing especially on the role of social capital, risk awareness and sources of information about COVID-19.

Perinatal Health Inequalities in the Industrial Region of Estonia: A Birth Registry-Based Study.

Despite the increasing number of studies on industrially contaminated sites (ICS) and their health effects, there are very few studies on perinatal health outcomes in ICSs. In the present study, we examined the perinatal health inequalities by comparing adverse birth outcomes (ABOs) in the oil shale industry region of Ida-Viru County in Estonia with national-level figures and investigated the effects of maternal environmental and sociodemographic factors. Based on the 208,313 birth records from 2004-2018, Ida-Viru ICS has a birth weight 124.

Industrial Air Pollution Leads to Adverse Birth Outcomes: A Systematized Review of Different Exposure Metrics and Health Effects in Newborns.

To review the evidence of associations between adverse birth outcomes (ABO) and industrial air pollution. Searches were conducted in PubMed, and Scopus databases, and additional articles were found from snowball search techniques. The included studies feature a study population of mothers with live-born babies exposed to industrial air pollutants, and they examine the effects of industrial pollutants on adverse birth outcomes-namely, low birth weight, term low birth weight, preterm birth, and small for gestational age.

Exposures, Symptoms and Risk Perception among Office Workers in Relation to Nanoparticles in the Work Environment.

Submicroscopic nanoparticles (NPs) in air have received much attention due to their possible effects on health and wellbeing. Adverse health impacts of air pollution may not only be associated with level of exposure, but also mediated by the perception of the pollution and by beliefs of the exposure being hazardous. The aim of this study was to test a model that describes interrelations between NP pollution, perceived air quality, health risk perception, stress, and sick building syndrome.

Resilience in care organisations: challenges in maintaining support for vulnerable people in Europe during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Covid-19 pandemic has challenged the resilience of care organisations (and those dependent on them), especially when services are stopped or restricted. This study focuses on the experiences of care organisations that offer services to individuals in highly precarious situations in 10 European countries. It is based on 32 qualitative interviews and three workshops with managers and staff.

Cardiovascular Disease and Mental Distress Among Ethnic Groups in Kyrgyzstan.

The purpose of this study was to characterize different ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan regarding cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mental distress, and to investigate the association between CVD and mental distress. The mental distress was measured in terms of sleep disturbance, burnout, and stress. A cross-sectional study was carried out among six ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan, aged 18 years and above.

Approaches to 'vulnerability' in eight European disaster management systems.

While social vulnerability in the face of disasters has received increasing academic attention, relatively little is known about the extent to which that knowledge is reflected in practice by institutions involved in disaster management. This study charts the practitioners' approaches to disaster vulnerability in eight European countries: Belgium; Estonia; Finland; Germany; Hungary; Italy; Norway; and Sweden. It draws on a comparative document analysis and 95 interviews with disaster managers and reveals significant differences across countries in terms of the ontology of vulnerability, its sources, reduction strategies, and the allocation of related duties.

The role of perceived air pollution and health risk perception in health symptoms and disease: a population-based study combined with modelled levels of PM.

Purpose: Adverse health impact of air pollution on health may not only be associated with the level of exposure, but rather mediated by perception of the pollution and by top-down processing (e.g. beliefs of the exposure being hazardous), especially in areas with relatively low levels of pollutants.

Residents' Self-Reported Health Effects and Annoyance in Relation to Air Pollution Exposure in an Industrial Area in Eastern-Estonia.

Eastern Estonia has large oil shale mines and industrial facilities mainly focused on electricity generation from oil shale and shale oil extraction, which produce high air pollution emissions. The "Study of the health impact of the oil shale sector-SOHOS" was aimed at identifying the impacts on residents' health and annoyance due to the industrial processing. First, a population-wide survey about health effects and annoyance was carried out.

Well-being and environmental quality: Does pollution affect life satisfaction?

Purpose: We aimed to explore the effect of ambient air pollution on individual persons' levels of subjective well-being. Our research question was: to what extent is an individual's life satisfaction shaped by exposure to PM10?

Methods: We used regression models to analyse data on subjective well-being indicators from the last two waves of the European social survey (ESS) and detailed information on local levels of the air pollutant PM10.

Results: An increase in PM10 annual concentrations by 1 μg/m(3) was associated with a significant reduction in life satisfaction of .