Different Times In Life Research Articles

Getting to the Fun Home : A Blind Autoethnography of Graphic Narrative and a Call for Co-Reading

The article shares a personal history of a blind reader encountering graphic novels at different times in life. Following a brief review of the low-vision accessible comics and adaptation strategies currently available, it offers a critique of the emphasis placed on high-tech adaptation strategies for idealizing “independent” reading practices. In response to the potentially ableist pitfalls of high-tech adaptation, the article offers “co-reading” as an anti-ableist reading practice which enables access to comics for blind and visually impaired readers while encouraging sighted readers to interrogate ableist assumptions about dis/ability. With reflections on Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home , the author considers why blind readers might be interested in reading a conventionally visual medium; why the privileging of independent reading works to limit accessibility of comics to blind and low vision readers; and last but not least, how the practice of collaborative comics reading—co-reading—offers opportunities to engage in anti-ableist praxis of reading comics.

Individual and contextual factors associated with childhood malnutrition: a multilevel analysis of the double burden of childhood malnutrition in 27 countries

BackgroundMalnutrition is a key global health challenge and a major contributor to childhood morbidity and mortality. In recent times, the contrasting coexistence of undernutrition including micronutrient deficiencies and overweight/obesity called double burden of malnutrition has been noted at individual, household or population level and/or at different times in life. The objective of this study was to examine individual, neighborhood and country level factors that are associated with the double burden of childhood malnutrition.MethodsWe conducted multivariable multilevel logistic regression analyses on the most recent demographic and health datasets from surveys conducted between 2015 and 2020 in low- and middle-income countries. We analyzed data of 138,782 children (level 1) living in 13,788 communities (level 2) from 27 countries (level 3).ResultsThe results of our analysis show variation in childhood malnutrition across the 27 countries from as low as 6.5% in Burundi to as high as 29.5% in Timor Leste. After adjusting for all level factors, we found that those who were wasted/overweight tended to have had an episode of diarrhea or fever in the last two weeks preceding the survey, were part of a multiple birth, were being breastfed at the time of the survey and born to mothers with more than one under 5-child resident in neighborhoods with high illiteracy and unemployment rates. The intra-neighbourhood and intra-country correlation coefficients were estimated using the intercept component variance; 44.3% and 21.0% of variance in odds of double burden of childhood malnutrition are consequent upon neighborhood and country level factors respectively.ConclusionsEvidence of geographical clustering in childhood malnutrition at community and country levels was found in our study with variability due to neighborhood level factors twice that of country level factors. Therefore, strategies in tackling the double burden of malnutrition must consider these shared drivers, contextual barriers and geographical clustering effects.

A lifespan psychological perspective on solitude

Solitude occurs from childhood to old age. In this special issue introduction, we offer a lifespan perspective on matters of solitude with the aim to point to pertinent issues in the field. We propose that solitude serves important functions that may vary across different times in life and that solitude needs to be considered in the context in which it occurs. In applying these lifespan developmental notions, we carve out some open questions that will help extend the current knowledge base including a consideration of issues regarding operational definitions of solitude. We also point to methodological challenges such as capturing processes that unfold on different timescales that need to be addressed to advance the field.

Contributions of common genetic variants to specific languages and to when a language is learned

Research over the past two decades has identified a group of common genetic variants explaining a portion of variance in native language ability. The present study investigates whether the same group of genetic variants are associated with different languages and languages learned at different times in life. We recruited 940 young adults who spoke from childhood Chinese and English as their first (native) (L1) and second (L2) language, respectively, who were learners of a new, third (L3) language. For the variants examined, we found a general decrease of contribution of genes to language functions from native to foreign (L2 and L3) languages, with variance in foreign languages explained largely by non-genetic factors such as musical training and motivation. Furthermore, genetic variants that were found to contribute to traits specific to Chinese and English respectively exerted the strongest effects on L1 and L2. These results seem to speak against the hypothesis of a language- and time-universal genetic core of linguistic functions. Instead, they provide preliminary evidence that genetic contribution to language may depend at least partly on the intricate language-specific features. Future research including a larger sample size, more languages and more genetic variants is required to further explore these hypotheses.

Cystic Kidney Diseases From the Adult Nephrologist's Point of View.

Cystic kidney diseases affect patients of all age groups with the onset spanning from prenatal disease to late adulthood. Autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is by far the most common renal cystic disease. However, there are various cystic kidney diseases, the onset of which occurs at different times in life and depends on the type of the disease and the causative genes involved. When genetic kidney diseases are discussed in the adult setting this view is usually limited on autosomal-dominant kidney disease, the most frequent genetic disorder causing adult onset ESRD. Other diseases—such as autosomal-recessive polycystic kidney disease—are often being viewed as a disorder only important in pediatric nephrology. However, more recent data has revealed that, despite clear age peaks of onset for each disorder, all of them can also show highly variable phenotypes with classical adult onset genetic diseases being of importance in pediatrics and vice versa. Furthermore, the affected children need to be seen by adult nephrologists in the long term after transition, requiring knowledge on the underlying pediatric disease, potential extrarenal manifestations, and genetic counseling. Consequently, the view on these diseases should be widened on both ends. Close interaction between pediatric and adult nephrology is key to appropriate care of patients suffering from genetic kidney disease to profit from each other’s experience.

Church attendance and childbearing: Evidence from a Dutch panel study, 1987–2005

While researchers have often found that Europeans who report faith-based beliefs or practices have larger families than those who do not, there is a lack of evidence on the reasons for these links. This study investigated whether having a first child affects parents' level of church attendance and whether the frequency of church attendance at different times in life predicts a person's (almost) completed fertility. Drawing on five waves of a large-scale Dutch panel survey, the study used data that cover a substantial part of the respondents' reproductive period (1987–2005). In contrast to findings from the USA, the results suggest a one-way influence: having a first child does not predict a change in church attendance, but church attendance is a strong predictor of future childbearing.

Effects of pet exposure in the first year of life on respiratory and allergic symptoms in 7-yr-old children. The SIDRIA-2 study

The effects of pet exposure on the development of respiratory symptoms have recently been the matter of vivid discussion. Our objective was to determine the effects of exposure to cat or dog in the first year of life on subsequent respiratory/allergic symptoms in children in a large Italian multicentre study. As part of the SIDRIA-2 Study (Studi Italiani sui Disturbi Respiratori dell'Infanzia e l'Ambiente 2002), the parents of 20016 children (median age 7 yr) provided information on indoor exposures at different times in life and respiratory/allergic symptoms through questionnaires. Logistic regression analyses were performed taking into account cat or dog exposure at different times in life and adjusting for the presence of the other pet, mould exposure, gender, age, parental education, maternal smoking during the first year of life, current passive smoking, family history of asthma/rhinitis/eczema and other potential confounders. Neither significant effects of dog exposure in the first year of life nor in other periods were found on respiratory/allergic symptoms after adjusting for the other covariates. Cat exposure in the first year of life was significantly and independently associated with current wheezing [OR (95% CI) 1.88 (1.33-2.68), p < 0.001] and current asthma [1.74 (1.10-2.78), p < 0.05] and border-line associated with current rhinoconjunctivitis [1.43 (0.97-2.11), p = 0.07]. No other effects of cat exposure were found on respiratory/allergic symptoms. Cat, but not dog, exposure in the first year of life is an independent risk factor for current wheezing, current asthma and current rhinoconjunctivitis at the age of 7.

Overweight and Obesity at Different Times in Life as Risk Factors for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma: The Multiethnic Cohort

Obesity may increase the risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) through an inflammatory pathway. We explored the relation of NHL with body size at different times in life within the Multiethnic Cohort that includes African Americans, Caucasians, Japanese, Latinos, and Native Hawaiians. Participants were 45 to 75 years old at recruitment in 1993 to 1996. This analysis included 87,079 men and 105,972 women with 461 male and 378 female NHL cases. We used Cox regression to model NHL risk with age as the time metric while adjusting for age at baseline, ethnicity, education, alcohol intake, and age at first live birth. Body weight and body mass index at age 21 were stronger predictors of NHL risk than anthropometric characteristics at baseline. For men, being in the highest quartile of body mass index and body weight at age 21 conferred a nonsignificant 86% and 41% higher NHL risk, respectively, whereas there was no association at baseline. For women, the risk associated with the highest quartile of weight at age 21 was 1.6 (P(trend) = 0.04), whereas women in the highest quartile at baseline had a nonsignificant risk of 27%. Height was positively related to NHL in men and women. Despite the small numbers, there was some consistency for risk estimates across ethnic groups and weak evidence for an association with NHL subtypes. These findings indicate that weight at age 21 may represent lifetime adiposity better than body weight at cohort entry. Alternatively, weight at age 21 may be more relevant for the etiology of NHL.

Methuselah life history in a variety of conditions, implications for the use of mutants in longevity research

The laboratory has yielded many long-lived mutants of several model-organisms in the past few years. Many of the resulting claims for extended longevity have been nuanced or shown to be restricted to specific conditions, including environments and genetic backgrounds. Here, we test whether the long-lived mutant fruit fly methuselah ( mth 1) displays its apparent superiority in longevity and stress resistance in different environments, at different ages and in correlated traits. The results demonstrate that stress resistance at different times in life is not consistently higher in the mutant relative to its progenitor strain ( w 1118). Furthermore, the mth 1 genotype only leads to an increase in longevity in an environment where reproduction is not stimulated. Also, virgin and mated life span were compared and showed that mating negatively affects life span, especially in the mth 1 individuals. This reduced the life span enhancing effect of the mutation to zero. This apparent environment and mating dependent trade-off between longevity and reproduction supports the disposable soma theory of ageing. We conclude that these data can only provide limited information on natural variation. The data show the need to uncover the full complexity of variation in such traits in natural environments.

Symptoms of Asthma and the Home Environment. The ISAAC I and III Cross-Sectional Surveys in Münster, Germany

Background: The indoor home environment has been shown to be associated with the presence of respiratory symptoms and atopic disease. Methods: Two cross-sectional surveys (1995–2000) were conducted, using data from the ISAAC phase I and III surveys, collected in Münster, Germany (n = 6,996, response 81.8%). We analyzed the prevalence ratio (PR) for several indoor exposures and asthma-related outcomes in 6- to 7-year-old children, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: Positive associations were observed regarding exposure to molds, environmental tobacco smoke, cooking with gas and space heating with fossil fuels, but most associations were not statistically significant. Surprisingly, presence of a carpet was negatively associated with most respiratory conditions. When restricting the analysis to participants without avoidance of a carpet due to a history of atopic disease, the protective associations disappeared. Mostly, present pet ownership did not show positive associations with respiratory symptoms. However, ownership at different times in life revealed positive associations, particularly in regard to birds owned in the first year of life (PR 1.51, 95% CI 1.11–2.06, for sleep disturbance due to wheeze and PR 1.28, 95% CI 1.01–1.63, for wheeze during the last 12 months, respectively). Conclusions: Only few indoor factors were positively associated with the studied outcomes. The change of associations in participants that reported allergy-related avoidance of carpets suggests that the observed effects are a result of asthmatics’ changed behavior. The effect of allergy-related change in behavior and the results observed concerning the ownership of pets at different ages underline the need of establishing a precise temporal relationship between disease and exposure.

Physical activity and breast cancer risk in a cohort of young women.

Increased physical activity has been hypothesized to be a means of breast cancer prevention. We examined the associations between physical activity at two different times in life and breast cancer risk. We analyzed data from the Nurses' Health Study II, a prospective study of women aged 25-42 years in 1989. On the baseline survey, women were asked, "While in high school and between the ages 18 and 22 years, how often did you participate in strenuous physical activity at least twice a week?" We averaged answers to these two questions to develop a measure of late adolescent activity. Women were also asked at baseline to report the number of hours per week they currently spent in different nonoccupational activities. During 6 years of follow-up, we identified 372 cases of invasive breast cancer. Data were analyzed by use of multivariate pooled logistic regression to produce relative risk (RR) and confidence intervals (CIs) of being diagnosed with the disease. Women who were more active in late adolescence were not at reduced risk of breast cancer compared with less active women. For those women who reported engaging in strenuous activity at least twice per week for 10-12 months per year in late adolescence, the RR of cancer, compared with those who never engaged in such activity, was 1.1 (95% CI = 0.8-1.6). Similarly, higher levels of recent nonoccupational physical activity were not associated with reduced risk of breast cancer (RR for > or = 7 hours of activity/week relative to < 1 hour/week = 1.1; 95% CI = 0.8-1.5). Our findings do not support a link between physical activity, in late adolescence or in the recent past, and breast cancer risk among young adult women.

Dietary fat and breast cancer risks an epidemiologic perspective

Breast cancer is one of the most important public health problems facing women in the United States and similar populations today. No readily modifiable risk factors for the disease have been conclusively identified, hence establishment of a positive association between fat intake and risk is of major public health importance. An evaluation of the strengths and limitations of epidemiologic studies addressing the postulated association between fat intake and breast cancer risk is presented. In light of this assessment, an evaluation of the results of ecologic and case-control studies has been conducted. Of the three types of epidemiologic studies considered, ecologic studies provide the weakest evidence. Although case-control studies are more prone to bias than cohort studies, there is conflicting evidence as to the existence and magnitude of bias in previously conducted case-control studies. Ecologic studies and case-control studies support the existence of a positive association, particularly for saturated fat intake in postmenopausal women. However, given the methodologic limitations of these types of study and the more equivocal nature of evidence from cohort studies, it would be imprudent to interpret these associations as representing causality. The totality of the epidemiologic evidence does not support the existence of a strong association between fat intake and breast cancer risk; however, the possibility of a weak association cannot be excluded. Even a weak association could be important in terms of public health. The most fruitful area for future research is likely to be the establishment of new cohort studies and the continued follow-up of existing cohorts, particularly if these could address diet at different times in life, for example, during adolescence.