Who is Getting the Message? Sociodemographic Factors and Gambling Behavior Associated with Awareness of the Swedish National Self-Exclusion Registry Spelpaus.se.

Awareness and utilization of health interventions can be influenced by sociodemographic factors. These factors play a role in information processing, particularly regarding health messaging. The aim of this study is to analyze how different sociodemographic factors and gambling behaviors are associated with awareness of a (Swedish) gambling self-exclusion register.

Men's Perceptions of Women's Participation in Development Initiatives in Rural Bangladesh.

Without taking masculine issues into account, women's participation in development initiatives does not always guarantee their empowerment, health, and welfare in a male-dominated society. This study aimed to explore men's perceptions of women's participation in development (WPD) in rural Bangladesh. In adopting a qualitative approach, the study examined 48 purposively selected married and unmarried men aged 20-76 years in three northwest villages.

Do Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain Benefit From Early Intervention Regarding Absence From Work?: A Randomized, Controlled, Single-Center Pilot Study.

Study Design: A randomized, controlled, single-center pilot study.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of running a trial to explore if early intervention in individuals with chronic low back pain (CLBP) would lead to an early return to work (RTW) and reduce sick leave during 12 months of follow-up compared with patients on a 3-month waiting list.

Summary Of Background Data: Back pain is the reason for numerous absent days from work.

Gender and Women Development Initiatives in Bangladesh: A Study of Rural Mother Center.

Women-focused development initiatives have become a controversial issue connected with women's health and welfare. Previous studies indicated that development initiatives might increase women's workload, family conflict, and marital violence. This study explored the gendered characteristics of a development initiative Rural Mother Center in Bangladesh.

Serum reactome induced by Bordetella pertussis infection and Pertussis vaccines: qualitative differences in serum antibody recognition patterns revealed by peptide microarray analysis.

Background: Pertussis (whooping cough) remains a public health problem despite extensive vaccination strategies. Better understanding of the host-pathogen interaction and the detailed B. pertussis (Bp) target recognition pattern will help in guided vaccine design.

Psychosocial working conditions: an analysis of emotional symptoms and conduct problems amongst adolescent students.

This study explored how psychosocial features of the schoolwork environment are associated with students' mental health. Data was drawn from 3699 ninth grade (15 year-old) Swedish students participating in the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children survey. Using Structural Equation Modelling, perceived school demands, decision control and social support from teachers, classmates and parents were examined in relation to students' emotional and conduct problems.

Problem Gambling Features and Gendered Gambling Domains Amongst Regular Gamblers in a Swedish Population-Based Study.

This study aimed to investigate, from a gender perspective, how different features of problem gambling present in men and women who gamble regularly in Sweden were distributed in four domains based on gambling type (chance or strategy) and setting (public or domestic). Problem gambling features were based on the nine items in the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI). It was hypothesized that men and women gamble in different domains.

The Swedish national public health policy report 2010.

Background: In 2003, the Swedish Parliament adopted a cross-sectorial national public health policy based on the social determinants of health, with an overarching aim--to create societal conditions that will ensure good health, on equal terms, for the entire population--and eleven objective domains. At that time the policy was globally unique, and serves as guidance for public health practice at the national, regional and local levels. The development of the public health policy and the determinants of health are presented regularly in various reports by the Swedish National Institute of Public Health.

Promoting active living in healthy cities of Europe.

Local governments in Europe have a vital role in promoting physical activity in the daily life of citizens. However, explicit investment in active living has been limited. One of the four core themes for Phase IV (2003-2008) of the World Health Organization (WHO) European Healthy Cities Network (WHO-EHCN) was to encourage local governments and their partners to implement programs in favor of active living.

Public health associations can make a difference: a tribute to the Canadian contributions and some future challenges for public health associations.

This commentary addresses the 25th anniversary of the Canadian Public Health Association's international program 'Strengthening of Public Health Associations' and its importance for the World Federation of Public Health Associations. Furthermore, it points out future challenges for public health associations throughout the world, on social determinants and fair societies, global governance, non-communicable diseases and chronic conditions, harmful use of alcohol, healthy ageing, and millennium development goals post-2015. The suggestions for keys to success are to expand the advocacy role, to improve the collaboration with public health practitioners, and to develop the interface between evidence and policymaking.

A perfect 10: Why Sweden comes out on top in early child development programming.

Sweden ranked first in the United Nations Children's Fund 2008 league table of early childhood education and care. In a book published 74 years previously, Crisis in the Population Question, Alva and Gunnar Myrdal outlined many of the features that were later assessed by the United Nations Children's Fund. Three aspects may have affected the implementation of Myrdal's ideas.

Can the Millennium Development Goals database be used to measure the effects of globalisation on women's health in Sub-Saharan Africa? A critical analysis.

Background: Africa has had poor returns from integration with world markets in globalisation, has experienced worsening poverty and malnutrition and has high burdens of HIV and communicable disease, with particular burdens on women. It is therefore essential to describe the impact of globalisation on women's health. Indicators such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are presented as having a major role in measuring this impact, but an assessment of the adequacy of aggregate national indicators used in monitoring the MDGs for this purpose is lacking.

Review article: health impact assessment developments in Sweden.

Aims: The contextual prerequisites in a country are crucial to the implementation and effectiveness of health impact assessment (HIA). This article aims to show how the Swedish government has been working to create supportive contextual prerequisites for HIA. These prerequisites are described based on the following factors: stewardship, including public health policy, party politics and legal preconditions; organization, including resources and funding; and delivery, which is dependent on the public health culture.

Experiences from the Swedish determinants-based public health policy.

A comprehensive Swedish public health policy was adopted by the Swedish Parliament, the Riksdag, in April 2003. It pushes health up on the political agenda and affords equity in health high priority. The first phase of implementation of the policy, 2003-5, is described in the 2005 Public Health Policy Report published by the Swedish National Institute of Public Health (SNIPH).

Institutional trust and alcohol consumption in Sweden: the Swedish National Public Health Survey 2006.

Background: Trust as a measure of social capital has been documented to be associated with health. Mediating factors for this association are not well investigated. Harmful alcohol consumption is believed to be one of the mediating factors.

Experiences from the Swedish determinants-based public health policy.

A comprehensive Swedish public health policy was adopted by the Swedish Parliament, the Riksdag, in April 2003. It pushes health up on the political agenda and affords equity in health high priority. The first phase of implementation of the policy, 2003-5, is described in the 2005 Public Health Policy Report published by the Swedish National Institute of Public Health (SNIPH).

The significance of policy documents in municipal child health promotion.

Aims: To investigate municipal utilization of policy documents in child health-promoting activities with reference to document types, substance in the documents and timing in the policy process.

Methods: Fifty semi-structured interviews were performed using the snowball method, and content analyses of written documentation were made. Data were categorized by means of a policy process matrix, and nine case studies were written.

Assessment of the physical activity level with two questions: validation with doubly labeled water.

Objective: To validate a two-question questionnaire on physical activity with the doubly labeled water (DLW) method.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Subjects: Nine volunteers, age 33-75 years, with a mean body mass index (BMI) (kg m(-2)) of 27.

Transforming Ottawa Charter health promotion concepts into Swedish public health policy.

Swedish public health policy clearly illustrates how the concept of the Ottawa Charter for health promotion can be utilized at a national level. The impact has been more implicit than explicit. Public health has a long history in Sweden and much of the present and future is, and will be, linked to traditional values and structures.

A six-community prevention trial to reduce alcohol and drug use-related problems in Sweden: planning and early findings.

The objective of this study was to evaluate a research and development project to reduce alcohol and drug use-related problems, conducted during 2003-2005, in six urban and rural municipalities in Sweden, Umeå, Kramfors, Solna, Kalmar, Laholm, and Lund. The development of alcohol and drug use trends and patterns will be followed through 2008 in the six targeted intervention communities and in the six matched control communities. The evaluation includes archival data, survey data, observational data, as well as process measures.

Does a short-term intervention promote mental and general health among young adults? - An evaluation of counselling.

Background: Since 1988, self-reported mental health problems in Sweden have increased more among young people than in any other age group. Young adults aged 18 - 29 with minor mental health problems were welcomed to four (at most) counselling sessions led by psychotherapists. The present study aimed to evaluate the method's appropriateness and usefulness.

Self-rated pain and perceived health in relation to stress and physical activity among school-students: a 3-year follow-up.

The aim of this longitudinal study was to assess changes with age regarding prevalence of pain and perceived health in a student population, as well as change over time at grade level. Pain included frequency of headache, abdominal, and musculoskeletal pain and perceived health included problems sleeping and/or if they often felt tired, lonely, and sad. If gender, age (grade level), stress, physically activity were related to pain and health complaints were tested with multivariate logistic regression analysis.