Effect of interdisciplinary obesity care on metabolic markers and body weight in people with type 2 diabetes in a rural setting: A randomised controlled trial.

Management of type 2 diabetes includes medications that can unintentionally increase obesity and insulin resistance. This unblinded, single-centre, randomised controlled trial focused on rural Australian adults with type 2 diabetes (aged 18-75 and body mass index [BMI] >30 kg/m), measuring the effectiveness of a tailored interdisciplinary obesity care approach compared with usual diabetes care. Led by a nurse practitioner with allied health support (dietitian ± psychologist and physiotherapist), the bariatric treatment involved reducing weight-gaining medications, a 500-calories/day deficit, an unsupervised exercise program emphasising movement/strength and psychotherapy, 3-monthly to 24-months with support phone calls at weeks 2, 4, 8 and 10.

Health System and Individual Barriers to Supporting Healthy Gestational Weight Gain and Nutrition: A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Midwives and Obstetricians in Publicly Funded Antenatal Care in Tasmania, Australia.

Individual and health system barriers can impede clinicians from supporting weight-related behaviour change for pregnant women, particularly in publicly funded antenatal care accessed by women from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. The aim was to understand clinicians' experiences of supporting healthy gestational weight gain for pregnant women in a publicly funded antenatal setting. The work was undertaken to guide the implementation of systems changes, resource development, and workforce capacity building related to nutrition, physical activity, and gestational weight gain in the service.

Evaluation of prescription medication changes following sleeve gastrectomy surgery.

Objective: The increasing global prevalence of obesity, coupled with its association with chronic health conditions and rising healthcare costs, highlights the need for effective interventions; however, despite the availability of treatment options, the ongoing success of primary interventions in maintaining long-term weight loss remains limited. This study examined the prescription medication dispensing changes following sleeve gastrectomy in Australians aged 45 years and over.

Methods: In a retrospective analysis of 847 bariatric surgery patients from the New South Wales 45 and Up Study, the assessment of medication patterns categorizing into three groups: gastrointestinal, metabolic, cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and nervous systems was conducted.

Gonadal hormones in borderline personality disorder: implications for understanding symptoms and supporting treatment.

Objective: To review the literature on the impact of gonadal hormones on features of borderline personality disorder.

Background: Oestrogen flux and absolute sex hormone levels are known to be associated with various mood states in women. We investigated whether this was particularly relevant for borderline symptoms in women with or without borderline personality disorder (BPD).

Modelling the replacement of red and processed meat with plant-based alternatives and the estimated effect on insulin sensitivity in a cohort of Australian adults.

Dietary guidelines are increasingly promoting mostly plant-based diets, limits on red meat consumption, and plant-based sources of protein for health and environmental reasons. It is unclear how the resulting food substitutions associate with insulin resistance, a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. We modelled the replacement of red and processed meat with plant-based alternatives and the estimated effect on insulin sensitivity.

Enhancing Food Literacy and Food Security through School Gardening in Rural and Regional Communities.

A qualitative case study approach with in-depth, semi-structured interviews of key school staff, and student feedback was used to assess a school kitchen and garden program in the regional area of North-West Tasmania, Australia. A detailed program description was produced to conduct a realist evaluation with a Context-Mechanism-Outcome configuration, followed by a program theory evaluation through the construction of a retrospective program logic model. Dedicated kitchen and garden spaces, knowledgeable teachers committed to the program, provision of sufficient materials and consumables, and support from the school and community were found to be the basic requirements to establish a program.

A Healthful Plant-Based Eating Pattern Is Longitudinally Associated with Higher Insulin Sensitivity in Australian Adults.

Background: A healthful plant-based eating pattern is associated with lower type 2 diabetes risk; however, the association with its preceding state, impaired insulin sensitivity, is less well established, particularly in younger populations with repeated measures of diet over time.

Objective: We aimed to examine the longitudinal relationship between a healthful plant-based eating pattern and insulin sensitivity in young to middle-aged adults.

Methods: We included 667 participants from the Childhood Determinants of Adult Health (CDAH) study, a population-based cohort in Australia.

Assessment and Management of Obesity and Self-Maintenance (AMOS): An Evaluation of a Rural, Regional Multidisciplinary Program.

Obesity is common in rural areas, and reduced specialist healthcare access impedes its management. A pilot nurse-practitioner-led Assessment and Management of Obesity and Self-Maintenance (AMOS) Clinic focused on individualised obesity care in people living with type 2 diabetes delivered in a rural setting. This study aimed to explore participant and staff experiences of the multidisciplinary obesity clinic to identify barriers and facilitators to self-care, health, and well-being.

Eimeria infections in domestic and wild ruminants with reference to control options in domestic ruminants.

Eimeria infections are commonly seen in a variety of mammalian hosts. This genus of unicellular sporozoan parasites causes significant disease (coccidiosis) in different livestock species leading to economic losses for agricultural producers. Especially the production of cattle, sheep, and goat is strongly dependent on efficient coccidiosis control.

Physical Activity and Food Environments in and around Schools: A Case Study in Regional North-West Tasmania.

A better understanding of the physical activity (PA) infrastructure in schools, the walkability of neighborhoods close to schools, and the food environments around schools, particularly in rural, socioeconomically challenged areas such as the North-West (NW) of Tasmania, could be important in the wider effort to improve the health of school-age children. Accordingly, this research aimed to assess PA resources, walkability, and food environments in and around schools in three socioeconomically disadvantaged, regional/rural Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Tasmania, Australia. A census of schools (including assessment of the PA infrastructure quality within school grounds), a walkability assessment, and a census of food outlets surrounding schools (through geospatial mapping) were executed.

Effects of a Mindfulness App on Employee Stress in an Australian Public Sector Workforce: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Workplace-based mindfulness programs have good evidence for improving employee stress and mental health outcomes, but less is known about their effects on productivity and citizenship behaviors. Most of the available evidence is derived from studies of mindfulness programs that use class-based approaches. Mindfulness apps can increase access to training, but whether self-directed app use is sufficient to realize benefits equivalent to class-based mindfulness programs is unknown.

A Spatial Analysis of Access to Physical Activity Infrastructure and Healthy Food in Regional Tasmania.

Prevalence of physical inactivity and obesity continues to increase in regional areas such as North-West (NW) Tasmania and show no signs of abating. It is possible that limited access to physical activity infrastructure (PAI) and healthier food options are exacerbating the low levels of habitual physical activity and obesity prevalence in these communities. Despite a burgeoning research base, concomitant exploration of both physical activity and food environments in rural and regional areas remain scarce.

The role of midwives and obstetrical nurses in the promotion of healthy lifestyle during pregnancy.

Women with maternal obesity, an unhealthy lifestyle before and during pregnancy and excess gestational weight gain have an increased risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes that can also increase the risk of long-term poor health for them and their children. Pregnant women have frequent medical appointments and are highly receptive to health advice. Healthcare professionals who interact with women during pregnancy are in a privileged position to support women to make lasting healthy lifestyle changes that can improve gestational weight gain and pregnancy outcomes and halt the intergenerational nature of obesity.

Retrospectively Estimating Energy Intake and Misreporting From a Qualitative Food Frequency Questionnaire: An Example Using Australian Cohort and National Survey Data.

Qualitative food frequency questionnaires (Q-FFQ) omit portion size information from dietary assessment. This restricts researchers to consumption frequency data, limiting investigations of dietary composition (i.e.

Maternal obesity prevention: The Health in Preconception, Pregnancy, and Postpartum Early- and Mid-Career Researcher Collective.

There is a clear impetus for researchers to facilitate cross-sector and interdisciplinary collaboration to achieve collective action for maternal obesity prevention. Building early- and mid-career researchers' capacity to sustainably develop collective action into the future is key. Therefore, the national Health in Preconception, Pregnancy, and Postpartum Early- and Mid-career Researcher Collective (HiPPP EMR-C) was formed.

Dietary fibre intake and its associations with depressive symptoms in a prospective adolescent cohort.

Depression is a major cause of disability in adolescents. Higher dietary fibre intake has been associated with lower depressive symptoms in adults, but there is a lack of research in adolescents. We examined the association between dietary fibre intake (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) FFQ) and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory for Youth) in adolescents with prospective data from the Raine Study Gen2 14- and 17-year follow-ups (n 1260 and 653).

Protecting the Mental Health of Small-to-Medium Enterprise Owners: A Randomized Control Trial Evaluating a Self-Administered Versus Telephone Supported Intervention.

Objective: Small-medium enterprises (SMEs) are under-represented in occupational health research. Owner/managers face mental ill-health risks/exacerbating factors including financial stress and long working hours. This study assessed the effectiveness of a workplace mental health and wellbeing intervention specifically for SME owner/managers.

Dietary fibre intake and its association with inflammatory markers in adolescents.

A high dietary fibre intake has been associated with improvements in inflammatory conditions in adults. However, little is known on whether associations between dietary fibre and inflammation are evident during adolescence. We examined the relationship between dietary fibre intake measured by FFQ and the inflammatory marker high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and the adipokines leptin and adiponectin cross-sectionally in 17-year-olds participating in the Raine Study (n 621).

Differences in dietary fibre intake and associated familial factors in a longitudinal study at two time points across adolescence.

Objective: Dietary fibre is essential for a healthy diet; however, intake is often inadequate. Understanding of sources of dietary fibre and familial factors associated with intake in adolescents is limited, hampering efforts to increase intake. We aimed to determine adequacy of dietary fibre intake in adolescents, examine how intake changes from mid to late adolescence, identify major food sources and explore associations with familial factors.

Dietary fiber and its associations with depression and inflammation.

Dietary fiber is a crucial component of a healthy diet, with benefits that can be attributed to processes in the gut microbiota and the resulting by-products. Observational studies support associations between dietary fiber intake and depression and inflammation, but the potential mechanisms are poorly understood. This review examines evidence of the effects of dietary fiber on depression and inflammation and considers plausible mechanisms linking dietary fiber and depression, including microbiota-driven modification of gene expression and increased production of neurotransmitters.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of workplace mindfulness training randomized controlled trials.

This meta-analytic review responds to promises in the research literature and public domain about the benefits of workplace mindfulness training. It synthesizes randomized controlled trial evidence from workplace-delivered training for changes in mindfulness, stress, mental health, well-being, and work performance outcomes. Going beyond extant reviews, this article explores the influence of variability in workforce and intervention characteristics for reducing perceived stress.

Who discusses reaching a healthy weight with a general practitioner? Findings from the 2014-15 Australian National Health Survey.

Objective: General practitioners (GPs) can positively impact upon patient intentions to lose weight and weight management, and are important in the referral pathway to specialist weight-loss programs and surgical interventions. The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics and proportions of Australians who report talking to a GP about weight management.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from 15,329 participants aged 15 years and over in the 2014-15 Australian National Health Survey were used.

Reasons for Engagement: SME Owner-Manager Motivations for Engaging in a Workplace Mental Health and Wellbeing Intervention.

Objective: Small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) require specialized attention regarding workplace mental health (WMH), but can be challenging to engage in WMH promotion interventions. This cross-sectional study analyzed self-reported motivations of SME owner/managers who engaged in a WMH promotion intervention specifically designed for SMEs.

Methods: Data from 297 SME owner/managers was thematically coded before conducting multinominal logistical regression analyses to determine reasons for engagement based on a series of predictors, including owner/manager psychological distress, recent experience of a stressful work event, and business confidence.

The Associations of Multimorbidity With Health-Related Productivity Loss in a Large and Diverse Public Sector Setting: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Objective: To evaluate absenteeism, presenteeism, and total lost productive time (LPT) associated with multimorbidity.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from 3228 state-government employees from Tasmania were collected in 2013. The validated measures of absenteeism, presenteeism, and LPT were obtained from employees' self-reported data over a 28-day period.