Understanding the experiences of young, urban, Indigenous mothers-to-be in British Columbia, Canada.

Background: Indigenous Peoples comprise the youngest and fastest growing demographic in Canada, with many living in urban-suburban areas. Given higher fertility rates, younger overall ages and higher adolescent pregnancy rates, perinatal research is needed-to inform policymaking and programming throughout pregnancy and childhood. Yet such data remain scarce in British Columbia (BC), Canada.

Australian parents' attitudes, perceptions and supply of alcohol to adolescents: a national cross-sectional survey.

Parental supply of alcohol to adolescents is associated with increased risk of subsequent adolescent alcohol use and harms, so identifying factors associated with parents' decision-making is critical. This study examined how parental supply is associated with attitudes toward adolescent alcohol use, perceived norms of parental supply, perceived behavioural control and perceived acceptable age to drink alcohol. A total of 1197 Australian parents with children aged 12-17 years completed an online cross-sectional survey assessing their parental supply behaviours, attitudes and perceptions in April 2022.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of visual cues and primes for nudging consumption-related behaviours.

Healthy diets are crucial for maintaining overall well-being and reducing risk of health complications. Visual cues and primes are popular implicit nudging techniques for promoting healthier consumption habits. The present review and meta-analysis was conducted and reported according to PRISMA guidelines.

Impacts of sugar and sweetener warning labels on substitution between sugar- and non-sugar-sweetened beverages in a non-hypothetical selection task.

Background: Front-of-pack (FOP) warning labels have demonstrated effectiveness for reducing sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption and switching to water. However, an unintended consequence is that they may also increase switching to non-sugar-sweetened beverages (NSSBs). A non-hypothetical experimental study examined the effectiveness of combining sugar and sweetener FOP warning labels to reduce sugary drink consumption and prevent NSSB substitution.

Changes in peer belonging, school climate, and the emotional health of immigrant, refugee, and non-immigrant early adolescents.

Introduction: Early adolescents who are new to Canada experience dual challenges of navigating developmental changes and multiple cultures. This study examined how changes in early adolescents' emotional health from ages 9 to 12 differed by immigration background, and to what extent peer belonging and supportive school climate protected or promoted their emotional health.

Methods: This study drew upon linked self-report and administrative data.

Prostate Cancer Related Sexual Dysfunction and Barriers to Help Seeking: A Scoping Review.

Objective: Despite available support, sexuality needs are the most frequently reported unmet need among men with prostate cancer, which may be due to low help-seeking rates. Using the Ecological Systems Framework as a theoretical foundation, we conducted a scoping review of the available literature to understand what factors impact help-seeking behaviour for sexual issues after prostate cancer treatment among men who had received treatment.

Methods: Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic search on Medline, PsychInfo, Embase, Emcare, and Scopus was conducted to identify studies of adult prostate cancer patients post-treatment, which reported barriers and/or facilitators to help-seeking for sexual health issues.

Opportunities to strengthen respiratory virus surveillance systems in Australia: lessons learned from the COVID-19 response.

Disease surveillance data was critical in supporting public health decisions throughout the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. At the same time, the unprecedented circumstances of the pandemic revealed many shortcomings of surveillance systems for viral respiratory pathogens. Strengthening of surveillance systems was identified as a priority for the recently established Australian Centre for Disease Control, which represents a critical opportunity to review pre-pandemic and pandemic surveillance practices, and to decide on future priorities, during both pandemic and inter-pandemic periods.

Temporal trends in medication and service use patterns for mental health issues among men with prostate cancer.

Objective: Prostate cancer can significantly impact mental wellbeing, creating uncertainty and morbidity. This study described patterns of psychotropic medication and mental health service use, as a proxy measure for mental health problems, 5 years before and 5 years after prostate cancer diagnosis.

Methods: Population-based registry data were linked with Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and Medicare Benefits Schedule data for all prostate cancer patients diagnosed in South Australia between 2012 and 2020 (n = 13,693).

Work-Related Fatigue Among Indonesian Offshore Oil and Gas Workers.

Background: Work-related fatigue, combined with shift work and prolonged work hours, has a significant effect, contributing to increasing accident rate by 50-100%.

Aims: To assess the level of work-related fatigue over a 4-week work period among offshore rig oil and gas workers in Indonesia.

Methods: This cohort study evaluated acute fatigue, chronic fatigue, and intershift recovery scores among offshore oil and gas rig workers using the Occupational Fatigue Exhaustion Recovery 15 (OFER15) questionnaire.

Life course predictors of child emotional distress during the COVID-19 pandemic: Findings from a prospective intergenerational cohort study.

Background: We examine precursors of child emotional distress during the COVID-19 pandemic in a prospective intergenerational Australian cohort study.

Methods: Parents (N = 549, 60% mothers) of 934 1-9-year-old children completed a COVID-19 specific module in 2020 and/or 2021. Decades prior, a broad range of individual, relational and contextual factors were assessed during parents' own childhood, adolescence and young adulthood (7-8 to 27-28 years old; 1990-2010) and again when their children were 1 year old (2012-2019).

Effectiveness of visual nudges for encouraging healthier beverage choices from vending machines.

Issues Addressed: Research suggests visual nudging techniques can subtly encourage healthier consumption. Two experiments explored the effect of four visual primes for nudging drink choices from a vending machine display.

Methods: Participants (17-25 years) were randomly assigned to view vending machine advertising posters containing pictorial nudges of water, soft drink, general health (runner), or a text-only control, for nudging vending machine choices.

Warning labels for sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice: evaluation of 27 different labels on health effects, sugar content, energy and exercise equivalency.

Objectives: Front-of-pack warning labels may reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, potentially mitigating negative health outcomes. Comparisons between different warning label types to inform future research and policy directions are lacking. This study compared 27 warning labels across six message types for their potential to reduce sugar-sweetened beverage consumption.

Achieving universal social protection for people with tuberculosis.

As we mark World TB Day 2024, we take this opportunity to reflect on the 2023 UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting (HLM) on the fight against tuberculosis-a milestone in the commitment towards a more coordinated, comprehensive approach to end tuberculosis globally. The UN HLM declaration on the fight against tuberculosis includes a specific pledge that all people with tuberculosis should receive a social benefits package to mitigate financial hardship. However, it is not known how this specific pledge will be realised and through which concrete actions.

Clinical and functional outcomes for risk-appropriate treatments for prostate cancer.

Objectives: To describe real-world clinical and functional outcomes in an Australian cohort of men with localised prostate cancer according to treatment type and risk category.

Subjects And Methods: Men diagnosed from 2008 to 2018 who were enrolled in South Australian Prostate Cancer Clinical Outcomes Collaborative registry-a multi-institutional prospective clinical registry-were studied. The main outcome measures were overall survival, cancer-specific survival, decline in functional outcomes, biochemical recurrence and transition to active treatment following active surveillance.

Which parents provide zero-alcohol beverages to adolescents? A survey of Australian parents' practices and intentions.

Objective: Zero-alcohol beverages (<0.5% alcohol by volume) appear and taste similar to alcoholic beverages but are regulated similarly to soft drinks in many countries, blurring the distinction between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. How parents view provision of zero-alcohol beverages to adolescents is likely a key determinant of adolescent consumption.

Validation of the Consumer Health Activation Index (CHAI) in general population samples of older Australians.

Objective: To validate the 10-item Consumer Health Activation Index (CHAI), developed in the United States, as an activation measure for interventions targeted at the Australian older general population.

Methods: The study was a cross sectional design. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted on survey data from a community sample of participants ( = 250), aged 55-75 years.

Parent psychological distress and parent-child relationships two years into the COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a Canadian cross-sectional study.

Background: Mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have not been felt equally within populations. Parents with children living at home were early on identified as a population at heightened mental health risk, with concerns about the potential long-term impacts of the pandemic on parents' mental health, family functioning, and children's well-being. This study investigates impacts of the pandemic on parents' psychological distress, contextual sources of distress, and associations with family functioning nearly two years into the pandemic.

Connections matter: Adolescent social connectedness profiles and mental well-being over time.

Introduction: This study examined profiles of social connectedness among early adolescents in grade 7 before the COVID-19 pandemic was declared (Winter 2020), and in grade 8 during the second Wave of the pandemic (Winter 2021).

Method: Linked data from 1753 early adolescents (49% female) from British Columbia, Canada who completed the Middle Years Development Instrument survey in grades 7 and 8 were used. Participants reported on life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and connectedness with peers and adults at home, school and in the community.

Is it time to increase the cost of tobacco licences after 10 years of stagnation?

Objective: Reducing tobacco licences is one potential lever to reduce tobacco-related harms. A 15-fold increase in annual tobacco retailer licence fees in 2007 led to a 24% decline in the number of licences in 2009. This study investigates the changes in tobacco licences over a subsequent decade in the absence of real fee increases.

Factors impacting on sexual function among men on active surveillance for prostate cancer.

Background: Active surveillance (AS) aims to reduce overtreatment and minimize the negative side effects of radical therapies (i.e., prostatectomy or radiotherapy) while preserving quality of life.

School lunchboxes as an opportunity for health and environmental considerations: a scoping review.

Very little research has focussed on children's school lunchboxes from both a health and environment standpoint. This scoping review explores studies that considered children's lunchbox food consumption trends at school and the environmental impacts of lunchbox contents. We conducted a scoping review of peer-reviewed literature with a focus on lunchboxes of children in preschool or primary school settings that contained food packed from home, through the lens of food and nutrition in combination with environmental outcomes-particularly food and/or packaging waste.

Measuring the association between behavioural services and outcomes in young children with autism spectrum disorder.

Background: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) receive a wide range of services.

Aims: To examine the association between behavioural services received by children with ASD between ages 2 and 5 years and outcomes during primary school years.

Methods: A total of 414 preschool-aged children diagnosed with ASD were enrolled at five Canadian sites and were assessed within four months of diagnosis (T1), six months later (T2), 12 months later (T3), at school entry (T4), and then annually (T5-T8) to 11 years of age.