Association of blood pressure with estimates of 24-h urinary sodium and potassium excretion from repeated single-spot urine samples.

While the association between 24-h urinary sodium and potassium excretion with blood pressure is well established, the relationships of these ions to spot urine measurements are unclear. Our purpose is to assess the association between blood pressure and the estimated 24-h sodium and potassium excretion from repeated single-spot urine samples. Spot urine and blood pressure were collected annually during a 5-year period from 4360 Japanese workers with ages ranging from 19 to 55 years.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy and rapid weight gain from birth to early infancy.

Background: Although several studies have focused on the association between maternal smoking during pregnancy and rapid weight gain (RWG) during infancy, the dose-response relationship has not yet been confirmed, and very few studies have included Asian populations. Using a record-linkage method, we examined the association between maternal smoking during pregnancy and RWG in infants at around 4 months of age to clarify the dose-response relationship.

Methods: Two databases were used: maternal check-ups during pregnancy and early infancy check-ups (between April 1, 2013 and March 31, 2014 in Okinawa, Japan) were linked via IDs and provided to us after unlinkable anonymizing.

Association between Maternal Smoking during Pregnancy and Low Birthweight: Effects by Maternal Age.

Background: Maternal smoking during pregnancy has been consistently related to low birthweight. However, older mothers, who are already at risk of giving birth to low birthweight infants, might be even more susceptible to the effects of maternal smoking. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the modified association between maternal smoking and low birthweight by maternal age.

Metabolomic profiling reveals novel biomarkers of alcohol intake and alcohol-induced liver injury in community-dwelling men.

Objective: Metabolomics is a promising approach to the identification of biomarkers in plasma. Here, we performed a population-based, cross-sectional study to identify potential biomarkers of alcohol intake and alcohol-induced liver injury by metabolomic profiling using capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry (CE-MS).

Methods: Fasting plasma samples were collected from 896 Japanese men who participated in the baseline survey of the Tsuruoka Metabolomics Cohort Study, and 115 polar metabolites were identified and absolutely quantified by CE-MS.

Macrosomic Neonates Carry Increased Risk of Dental Caries in Early Childhood: Findings from a Cohort Study, the Okinawa Child Health Study, Japan.

Background: Although many studies have discussed health risks in neonates with a low birth weight, few studies have focused on the risks in neonates with a high birth weight. The objective of this study was to determine whether differences in the incidence of dental caries in early childhood are associated with birth weight status.

Methods: A total of 117,175 children born in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan from 1997 to 2007 were included in this study.

Relationship of type of work with health-related quality of life.

Purpose: To examine the relation of work type with health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in healthy workers.

Methods: We cross-sectionally examined 4427 (3605 men and 822 women) healthy workers in Japan, aged 19-69 years. We assessed HRQoL based on scores for five scales of the SF-36.

[Effects of a long-term intervention in a work cafeteria on employee vegetable intake].

Objectives: We examined the effects on employee vegetable intake of a long-term intervention in an employee work cafeteria.

Methods: The subjects were approximately 1,200 employees (aged 19-61 years) of an industrial company in Fukui prefecture. We promoted the intake of typical Japanese style meals that combined three elements (staple foods, main dishes and vegetable dishes) to increase vegetables intake.

Worksite wellness for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in Japan: the current delivery system and future directions.

In the Japanese workplace, employers are required to provide annual health checkups for workers in accordance with the "Industrial Safety and Health Law," which also mandates that an occupational physician be assigned to companies employing at least 50 workers. The annual medical examination includes testing for the early detection of cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and the metabolic syndrome. This approach has successfully contributed to the extremely low incidence of coronary artery disease among Japanese workers.

Relationship between shift work and clustering of the metabolic syndrome diagnostic components.

Aim: To examine the relationship between the type of work and the number of metabolic syndrome diagnostic components(MetS-DC), as well as the risk of MetS, with adjustment for lifestyle habits in Japanese workers.

Methods: We examined the baseline data from 4,427 participants(81.4% male) aged 19 to 69 years old.

Changes in Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes in the nasopharynx of Japanese children after inoculation with a heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

In this study, we prospectively investigated changes in Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes among Japanese children after heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) inoculation. We acquired nasopharyngeal swabs from the children at each routine PCV7 inoculation and again at least 2 months after the last PCV7 inoculation. We defined 2 periods with regard to each culture: the inoculation period as "the period of pre- or incomplete vaccination" and post-inoculation as "the period of post- or completed vaccination.

Postpartum smoking relapse among women who quit during pregnancy: cross-sectional study in Japan.

Aim: To determine the postpartum smoking relapse rate among women in Japan who quit smoking during pregnancy and to clarify factors related to smoking relapse.

Methods: A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted as a cross-sectional study of all mothers of children who underwent health checkups after birth in randomly selected municipalities in Japan from May to July 2009. Using valid data of 20,601 mothers, smoking rate was calculated.

[Development of a monitor for quantifying personal eye exposure to visible and ultraviolet radiation and its application in epidemiology].

Objective: Eye diseases including cataract, keratitis and pterygium have been reported to be sun-exposure-related. The association between macular degeneration and blue light has also been discussed. Moreover, it is hypothesized that retinal exposure to blue light may influence the human circadian rhythm.

Prevalence and risk factors of nasopharyngeal carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae in healthy children in Japan.

The findings of this study revealed a 22% prevalence of Streptococcus pneumoniae among healthy children in Japan; the prevalence tended to increase with age. We identified attendance at day-care facilities and the presence of older siblings as the major risk factors associated with pneumococcal carriage. A significant decrease in pneumococcal colonization was observed among children during the summer; however, a seasonal variation was independent of various factors.

Spinal posture in the sagittal plane is associated with future dependence in activities of daily living: a community-based cohort study of older adults in Japan.

Background: Accumulated evidence shows how important spinal posture is for aged populations in maintaining independence in everyday life. However, the cross-sectional designs of most previous studies prevent elucidation of the relationship between spinal posture and future dependence in activities of daily living (ADL). We tried to clarify the association by measuring spinal posture noninvasively in a community-based prospective cohort study of older adults, paying particular attention to thoracic curvature, lumbar curvature, sacral hip angle, and inclination to determine which parameter is most strongly associated with dependence in ADL.

Developmental trajectories of body mass index among Japanese children and impact of maternal factors during pregnancy.

Background: The aims of this study were to 1) determine the distinct patterns of body mass index (BMI) trajectories in Japanese children, and 2) elucidate the maternal factors during pregnancy, which contribute to the determination of those patterns.

Methodology/principal Findings: All of the children (1,644 individuals) born in Koshu City, Japan, between 1991 and 1998 were followed in a longitudinal study exploring the subjects' BMI. The BMI was calculated 11 times for each child between birth and 12 years of age.

Blood cholesterol level and risk of stroke in community-based or worksite cohort studies: a review of Japanese cohort studies in the past 20 years.

Evidence of the causal relationship between hypercholesterolemia and coronary artery disease (CAD) has been established worldwide. However, little attention has been paid to the relationship between hypercholesterolemia and stroke, despite stroke being the most common cardiovascular disease in Japan. We therefore reviewed cohort studies that investigated this relationship in the Japanese population over the past 20 years, and compared their findings with clinical trials and cohort studies in Western countries.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy and childhood growth trajectory: a random effects regression analysis.

Background: Although maternal smoking during pregnancy has been reported to have an effect on childhood overweight/obesity, the impact of maternal smoking on the trajectory of the body mass of their offspring is not very clear. Previously, we investigated this effect by using a fixed-effect model. However, this analysis was limited because it rounded and categorized the age of the children.

Relationship between Dietary and Other Lifestyle Habits and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Men.

Background: Prevalence of men with cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRF) is increasing in Japan. Few studies have comprehensively examined the relation between lifestyles and CMRF.

Methods: We examined the baseline data from 3,498 male workers ages 19 to 69 years who participated in the high-risk and population strategy for occupational health promotion (HIPOP-OHP) study at 12 large-scale companies throughout Japan.

Relationship between health-related quality of life and clustering of metabolic syndrome diagnostic components.

Purpose: To examine the association of the number of metabolic syndrome diagnostic components (MetS-DC) with health-related quality of life (HR-QOL).

Methods: We examined the baseline data from 4,480 healthy workers in Japan (3,668 men and 812 women) aged 19-69 years. We assessed HR-QOL based on scores for five scales of the SF-36.

Association of short sleep duration with impaired glucose tolerance or diabetes mellitus.

Unlabelled: Aims/Introduction:  To examine the cross-sectional relationship between sleep duration and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), including diabetes mellitus (DM), we analyzed a large-scale healthy workers database in Japan.

Materials And Methods:   We examined the baseline database of 4143 participants (3415 men and 728 women) aged 19-69 years. Sleep duration of participants was categorized into four groups: <6, 6 to <7, 7 to <8 and ≥8 h.

Maternal psychosocial factors determining the concentrations of transforming growth factor-beta in breast milk.

Background: Cytokines in breast milk may play crucial roles in the beneficial effects of breastfeeding in protecting against allergic and infectious diseases in infants. In particular, breast milk-borne transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) has an important potential role in developing the mucosal immune system in infants. However, little is known about what factors influence TGF-β expression in human milk.

Relationship between sleep duration and clustering of metabolic syndrome diagnostic components.

Objective: To examine the relation between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Methods: We examined the baseline data from 4356 healthy workers (3556 men and 800 women) aged 19-69 years. The physical activity of each participant was classified according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).

Recent trends in the prevalence of and factors associated with maternal smoking during pregnancy in Japan.

Aim: To compare the prevalence of maternal smoking during pregnancy and the correlations between maternal smoking and other maternal lifestyle or pregnancy factors between the years 1996-2001 and 2001-2006.

Methods: The participants were pregnant women who responded to questionnaires while registering their pregnancies between 1 April 1996 and 31 March 2001 (Group 1), and between 1 April 2001 and 31 March 2006 (Group 2). The odds ratios were calculated with a 95% confidence interval for maternal smoking during early pregnancy by using a logistic multivariate regression analysis based on maternal factors.

Relationship among physical activity, smoking, drinking and clustering of the metabolic syndrome diagnostic components.

Aim: To examine the relation between lifestyle and the number of metabolic syndrome (MetS) diagnostic components in a general population, and to find a means of preventing the development of MetS components.

Methods: We examined baseline data from 3,365 participants (2,714 men and 651 women) aged 19 to 69 years who underwent a physical examination, lifestyle survey, and blood chemical examination. The physical activity of each participant was classified according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).