[Work environment that support workers with diseases to maintain a work-treatment balance in Ishikawa prefecture: relationship with company scale and type of industry].

Objectives: We investigated the support environments in companies in Ishikawa prefecture that aim to maintain a balance between work and treatment of their employees' diseases. The relationships between these strategies, company size, and type of industry were examined.

Methods: In 2016, as a part of a survey, questionnaires were sent to 1,491 companies with ≥ 50 employees.

Health status of workers approximately 60 years of age and the risk of early death after compulsory retirement: A cohort study.

Objectives: The increasing number of working elderly people has enhanced the importance of workplace health promotion activities. We investigated the association between the health status of workers approximately 60 years of age and the risk of all-cause mortality after compulsory retirement in Japan.

Methods: The 2026 participants (1299 males and 727 females) had retired from a metal-products factory at ≥60 years of age.

Serum Ferritin, Insulin Resistance, and β-cell Dysfunction: A Prospective Study in Normoglycemic Japanese Men.

The present cohort study investigated the relationship between serum ferritin levels and indices of insulin resistance and β-cell dysfunction in a normoglycemic population without iron overload disorders. The study participants included 575 normoglycemic Japanese men aged 35-57 years with serum ferritin levels of 400 μg/L or less. Insulin resistance and β-cell dysfunction were estimated at baseline and after 3 years by the homeostasis model assessments of insulin resistance and β-cell function (HOMA-IR and HOMA-β, respectively).

Dietary carbohydrate intake, presence of obesity and the incident risk of type 2 diabetes in Japanese men.

Aims/introduction: The present cohort study assessed the risk among Japanese men for developing type 2 diabetes, based on the percentage of energy intake from carbohydrates and degree of obesity.

Participants And Methods: The participants were 2,006 male factory employees, and the macronutrient intake of each patient was measured using a self-administered diet history questionnaire. The incidence of diabetes was determined in annual blood examinations over a 10-year period.

Associations between rice, noodle, and bread intake and sleep quality in Japanese men and women.

Background: Previous studies have shown that a diet with a high-glycemic index is associated with good sleep quality. Therefore, we investigated the association of sleep quality with the intake of 3 common starchy foods with different glycemic indexes-rice, bread, and noodles-as well as the dietary glycemic index in a Japanese population.

Methods: The participants were 1,848 men and women between 20 and 60 years of age.

HOMA-IR and the risk of hyperuricemia: a prospective study in non-diabetic Japanese men.

Aims: To examine the relation of insulin resistant status determined by homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) with the risk of incident hyperuricemia.

Methods: The study participants included 2071 Japanese men without hyperuricemia and diabetes, aged 35-54 years. The participants had undergone annual heath examinations for 6 years to compare incident hyperuricemia (serum uric acid >416.

Overall sleep status and high sensitivity C-reactive protein: a prospective study in Japanese factory workers.

We investigated the relation between overall sleep status based on the modified Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) global score and subsequent changes in serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) in a population of Japanese factory workers, who were predominantly female. A total of 991 Japanese with inflammation classified as low cardiovascular risk (baseline hsCRP < 1.0 mg L(-1) ) were grouped according to the presence or absence of unfavourable sleep, defined as a modified PSQI global score > 5.

Association between a serum thyroid-stimulating hormone concentration within the normal range and indices of obesity in Japanese men and women.

Objective: This cross-sectional study investigated the associations between the serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration and indices of obesity in middle-aged Japanese men and women.

Methods: The participants were 2,037 employees (1,044 men and 993 women; age, 36-55 yr) of a metal products factory in Japan. Clinical examinations were conducted in 2009.

Mortality and causes of deaths of inhabitants with renal dysfunction induced by cadmium exposure of the polluted Jinzu River basin, Toyama, Japan; a 26-year follow-up.

Background: We aimed to investigate the mortality and causes of deaths of inhabitants with renal dysfunction induced by cadmium (Cd) exposure caused by heavy environmental contamination.

Methods: We conducted a 26-year follow-up survey targeting 7529 inhabitants of the Cd-polluted Jinzu River basin and 2149 controls from non-polluted areas who participated in urinary examinations for proteinuria and glucosuria conducted in 1979 to 1984. When the residents were divided into 4 groups, no finding group, glucosuria group, proteinuria group, glucoproteinuria group, mortality risk ratios for all and specific causes of these groups in the polluted area were compared with that of controls without glucosuria and/or proteinuria after adjustments for age at baseline, smoking status, and history of hypertension using Cox's proportional hazard model.

The effect of age on the relationships between work-related factors and heavy drinking.

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate age-related differences in the relationship between work-related factors and heavy drinking.

Methods: This study in 3,398 male workers at a factory in Japan examined data on heavy drinking, defined as an alcohol consumption >40 g/day, and work-related factors including occupation, shift work, and job stress evaluated using the Japanese version of the Karasek's Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). In the present cross-sectional study, alcohol consumption was assessed using a self-administered diet history questionnaire (DHQ).

Dietary glycemic index, glycemic load and blood lipid levels in middle-aged Japanese men and women.

Aims: This study investigated the association between dietary glycemic index (GI)/glycemic load (GL) and serum lipids in middle-aged Japanese men and women.

Methods: The study participants were employees of a metal products factory in Japan: 2,257 men and 1,598 women aged 35 years or older. Dietary GI and GL were assessed using a self-administered diet history questionnaire.

Association between long working hours and sleep problems in white-collar workers.

The purpose of this study is to examine the association between long work hours and sleep disturbance among white-collar workers. We evaluated 1510 male white-collar full-time employees, between the ages of 18 and 59 years, using a comprehensive sleep quality questionnaire, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). All subjects worked in a light metal products factory in Japan.

[Effect of smoke-free medical school on smoking behavior of medical students].

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of designating a medical school environment as smoke-free on the smoking behavior of medical students.

Methods: The total environment of a medical school in Japan was designated as smoke-free in 2004. Smoking behavior was surveyed among approximately 640 students in each year during the period 2001-2007 (response rate 91.

[Effectiveness of lifestyle modification programs for control of blood pressure: a non-randomized controlled trial in Komatsu, Japan].

Purpose: A non-randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of three lifestyle modification programs to reduce blood pressure: individual counseling only; counseling using group dynamics; and individual support using mail.

Methods: We enrolled men and women ages 20-69 with a systolic blood pressure (SBP) of 130-159 mmHg and/or a diastolic blood pressure of 85-99 mmHg (high-normal or mild hypertension). Participants were assigned to one of 4 groups: individual counseling (n = 134); group counseling (n = 79); mailing support (n = 127); and controls (with usual care) (n = 178).