Publications by authors named "Rie Akamatsu"

To achieve 'Sustainable Healthy Diets', it is critical to address the observed gender discrepancy in meal preparation time allocation. Japanese fathers spend significantly less time on food-related housework (foodwork) than mothers. This study aimed to investigate the association between fathers' childhood meal preparation experiences and their current cooking skills in preparing healthy meals for their children, as well as their involvement in foodwork in Japan.

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Objectives: This study aimed to prospectively investigate the association between work environment improvements and multiple mental health outcomes in a large sample of Japanese employees.

Methods: A web-based longitudinal study surveyed 20 000 Japanese employees, 7970 of whom completed a follow-up after 1 year. Various types of work environment improvements experienced by workers were assessed using a 24-item checklist.

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Objective: To evaluate the conditional effect of time spent in the kitchen on the association between frailty status and healthy diet among older women.

Design: Secondary analysis of an online cross-sectional survey conducted in January 2023.

Participants: Six hundred Japanese women (aged ≥ 65 years).

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Daily rest period (DRP) refers to the interval between the end of one workday and the start of the next. This study examined the joint association of DRP and sleep duration with subsequent sick leave among Japanese daytime employees. Participants (n=5,593) were measured for DRP and sleep duration at baseline and for sick leave at 1-year follow-up.

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Gratitude for food is a concept associated with various aspects of healthy and sustainable diet and originates from Buddhism and Shintoism in Japan. Against this background, a scale specifically targeting adults is essential for boosting studies concerning gratitude for food. This study aimed to adapt the Gratitude for Food Scale (GFS), originally developed for Japanese children, to Japanese adults and to examine the reliability and validity of GFS for adults (GFS-A).

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Article Synopsis
  • Research shows that stem cell therapy relies on their ability to grow and differentiate, but the exact mechanisms behind their healing effects are unclear.
  • A study discovered that umbilical cord blood cells, even after being damaged by X-irradiation, can still promote recovery in a mouse stroke model by rapidly transferring small metabolites to help repair tissue.
  • These findings suggest that instead of relying solely on the growth of stem cells, the therapeutic benefits might come from stimulating new blood vessel and neuron formation through the metabolites released by X-irradiated cells.
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Objectives Interviewing people about their health behaviour in specific health checkups (SHCs) is thought to promote awareness of and help improve such behaviour. The standard questionnaire (SQ) for SHCs consists of 22 items presented in the guidelines of the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. However, using items other than those necessary for stratification for specific health guidance (SHG) is optional.

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Purpose: Exercise is considered a strategy to promote mental health among workers. However, the optimal exercise conditions that promote mental health benefits for workers are still unclear. This study examined the cross-sectional associations of weekly exercise time duration, social context of exercise, and exercise motivation levels with the mental health among Japanese workers.

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Mental health problems are prevalent among the working population and must be resolved. We conducted a web-based large-scale study of workers, including a baseline survey and two follow-up surveys, to investigate the associations between self-care behaviors in daily life (e.g.

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Picky eaters are at risk of an unbalanced diet, which is critical for women of reproductive age. A sensory profile, which is a potential factor in picky eating, has not been well researched. This study assessed the differences in sensory profile and dietary intake according to the picky eating status among female Japanese undergraduate college students.

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Certain types of community-based social activities improve the health issues of older adults; however, the present patterns of participation in community activities remain unknown. This study aims 1) to identify community-dwelling older adults' patterns of participation in community-based activities and 2) to evaluate the relationships between social support, self-efficacy, self-rated health, and the patterns of participation in community activities. This cross-sectional study used data collected from 146 older adults aged ≥65 years who participated in community events in Japan in 2018.

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We have previously demonstrated that small molecular transfer, such as glucose, between hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) or mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and vascular endothelial cells via gap junctions constitutes an important mechanism of stem cell therapy. Cell metabolites are high-potential small-molecule candidates that can be transferred to small molecules between stem cells and vascular endothelial cells. Here, we investigated the differences in metabolite levels between stem cells (HSCs and MSCs), vascular endothelial cells, and the levels of circulating non-hematopoietic white blood cells (WBCs).

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The consumers' Sustainable and Healthy Dietary Behaviors (SHDBs) links sustainable behaviors related to eating (e.g., choosing, cooking, eating, and disposing of foods) with the level of "dietary behavior.

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Background & Aims: This study aimed to describe the association of healthy eating literacy (HEL) with energy, nutrients, and food consumption in young women who had normal and lean weight at a Japanese university, considering their resident status.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from the Ochanomizu Health Study were used in this study. Participants answered a self-administered, two-part, anonymous survey in 2018 and 2019.

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A daily rest period (DRP) is a daily inter-work interval that contains sleep opportunity. This study investigates the joint association of DRP and sleep duration with worker health and productivity. A total of 13,306 Japanese daytime workers participated in this web-based cross-sectional survey.

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Objective The interim evaluation of Health Japan 21(second term), a national health promotion plan, suggested that improvements in the food environment did not lead to improvements in individual dietary habits. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the dietary behavior targets of Health Japan 21 (second term) and perceived food environment and health literacy.Method We conducted an online cross-sectional survey in March 2019 among adults aged 20-64 years.

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Objectives In Japanese nutrition policy, emphasis is placed on healthy food environment improvement through restaurants and other settings by prefectures and cities of cabinet order (cities). This study aimed to clarify the actual status of management implementation by prefectures and cities.Methods A mail survey of 47 prefectures and 106 cities throughout Japan was conducted in October 2020.

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Objective: During the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, social isolation and impaired social interaction could be the factors that cause mental health problems. This study investigated the association between conversation time in daily life and mental health among Japanese employees.

Methods: In August 2021, a web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted with 1000 Japanese employees.

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Japanese parents and educators teach children to refrain from leaving food in their plates. Their teachings have direct (advising children to refrain from leaving food uneaten) and indirect (meal-related rituals before and after mealtimes) influence in enhancing gratitude for food in daily life. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine 1) the interaction of direct and indirect approaches to avoiding food waste behaviors and 2) the mediation of gratitude for food by preventing such behaviors.

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Background: People who consume high amounts of ready-to-eat meals have a higher body mass index than those who do not. However, if customers adhere to eating proper amounts without restaurants reducing the portions, plate waste may occur. It is therefore incumbent upon restaurants to serve suitable meal portions to customers in the interests of their health and the environment.

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Circulating white blood cells (WBC) contribute toward maintenance of cerebral metabolism and brain function. Recently, we showed that during aging, transcription of metabolism related genes, including energy source transports, in the brain significantly decreased at the hippocampus resulting in impaired neurological functions. In this article, we investigated the changes in RNA transcription of metabolism related genes (glucose transporter 1 [Glut1], Glut3, monocarboxylate transporter 4 [MCT4], hypoxia inducible factor 1-α [Hif1-α], prolyl hydroxylase 3 [PHD3] and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 [PDK1]) in circulating WBC and correlated these with brain function in mice.

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The lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has caused several lifestyle changes. This scoping review aimed to report the present status of studies conducted on changes and factors related to food and drink consumption worldwide. Searches were performed in PubMed and EBSCO between August 6 and August 22, 2020 using the following criteria: (1) studies reporting changes in the current individual consumption of specific foods and snacks compared to that before the COVID-19 pandemic; (2) participants aged 18 years or older and without any diagnosable disease; and (3) articles that are peer-reviewed publications available in English.

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Objectives: Public health institutions have alerted consumers about advertising for dietary supplements with false claims of preventing or treating COVID-19. We quantitatively and qualitatively examined newspaper advertisements for dietary supplements before and after the COVID-19 spread.

Design: Content analysis.

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In Japan, dietary habits have greatly changed since the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak; we examined factors related to dietary changes. An online cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted in November 2020 among 6000 Japanese adults (aged 20-64 years) registered with a research company and gathered data on demographics, socioeconomic factors, medical history, COVID-19 status of the respondent's family and neighbors, fear of COVID-19, and changes in lifestyle and dietary habits since the COVID-19 outbreak. To the question "Have you made healthier changes to your dietary habits compared with the dietary habits before the spread of COVID-19 (1 year ago, November 2019)?", 1215 (20.

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