Israeli Males Research Articles

1143-P: Lifetime Risk, Life Expectancy, and Years of Life Lost to Type 2 Diabetes in a Global Modelling Study of Six Countries

Lifetime risk, life expectancy and years of life lost provide a meaningful perspective on the burden of type 2 diabetes to guide public health interventions. We estimated these metrics using population datasets from six high income countries, for two time-points five years apart per country in the period 2009-2019. We included 96,718,000 person-years and 448,1incident diabetes cases in life-table models. Each life-table simulated progression of a cohort of 20-year-olds free of diabetes, followed until death or age 100. Poisson regression was used to estimate incidence and mortality rates for each single year of age in males and females. Using microsimulation, 95% uncertainty intervals around lifetime risk, life expectancy and years of life lost were produced. Lifetime risk of diabetes decreased for both sexes in all countries (Table) , most notably in Israeli females from 58.1% (57.0 - 59.1) in 2010-to 45.9% (44.7 - 47.1) in 2015-16. Life expectancy for people with diabetes increased for both sexes in all countries, generally in line with the increase seen in those without diabetes. Years of life lost to diabetes at age 20 varied from 2.4 (1.4 - 3.4) in Latvian males in 2015-16 to 8.6 (8.3 - 8.9) in Israeli males in 2015-16. These findings show declining lifetime risk of type 2 diabetes in many countries, however, years of life lost to the disease remains substantial for the average person with diabetes. Disclosure D.Tomic: None. S.Pildava: None. J.E.Shaw: Advisory Panel; Abbott Diagnostics, AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly and Company, Pfizer Inc., Roche Diagnostics, Research Support; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, Speaker's Bureau; AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly and Company, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi. D.J.Magliano: None. L.Chen: None. J.I.Morton: None. E.W.Gregg: None. M.E.Pavkov: None. M.Arffman: None. Y.J.Cheng: None. K.Ha: None. D.Kim: None.

The cause and effect problem: Is there mutual obesity among Arab Israeli couples?

The influence of the health-related behavior of one spouse on that of the other is an important research question with public policy reprecussions. Yet, we are unaware of any previous study, which considered endogeneity problems between couples. Moreover, only a few studies considered ethnic origin differences among couples. Based on the 2016 wave of the Israeli longitudinal survey, we observe the cross-sectional correlation between the married couples' BMI, age, and accumulated wealth. The BMI (= ) is a conventional measure of obesity, where BMI≥25 is considered overweight. Using a 3SLS methodology (in an effort to correct the endogeneity problem associated with BMI couples), the analysis tests the mutual obesity hypothesis among married couples. This hypothesis states that the BMI of the male influences that of a female and vice versa. Results indicate that on the one hand, a one-percent BMI increase among Arab Israeli males is associated with a projected 0.969 percent BMI increase among Arab Israeli females (p = 0.017); and in the case that an Arab Israeli male suffers from overweight, the projected probability of his Arab Israeli female counterpart to suffer from overweight as well rises (p = 0.050). On the other hand, one cannot reject the null hypothesis that projected BMI of the Arab Israeli male is unaffected by that of his Arab Israeli female counterpart (p = 0.907 and p = 0.853). As for the Jewish Israeli population, in the case that the 3SLS methodology is employed, so that the endogeneity problem among couples is considered, a one-percent BMI increase among Jewish Israeli females is associated with a projected 0.639 percent BMI increase among Jewish Israeli males (p = 0.091). Unlike Arab Israeli couples, no support is found to indicate the influence in the other direction, namely, the BMI of the male influences that of the female spouse. Research findings may thus be of relevance to public health and policy planners. Two limitations of this research lie in: 1) the self-reported BMI (which might be different from the measured BMI); and 2) missing confounders, such as regional dummies, which are not available in the dataset.

Adolescent obesity and adult male breast cancer in a cohort of 1,382,093 men

Male breast cancer (MBC) accounts for 1% of all breast cancer. Adult obesity and tallness are risk factors for MBC, but the role of adolescent fatness is largely unknown. We aimed to assess the association between body mass index (BMI) in adolescence and the incidence of MBC in a large cohort of 16- to 19-year-old Israeli males. 1,382,093 Jewish Israeli males aged 16-19 who underwent anthropometric measurements, a general intelligence test (GIT) and other examinations during 1967-2011, were followed up to December 31, 2012 for MBC incidence. Cox proportional hazards models assessed the association between adolescent BMI (as WHO BMI categories and as age-specific CDC percentiles) and time to MBC diagnosis, adjusting for sociodemographic covariates. Of 100 MBC cases diagnosed during 29,386,233 person-years of follow-up, 97 were included in multivariable analyses. Compared to "healthy" BMI (18.5-24.9 kg/m2 ) and adjusted for year of birth, country of origin and GIT score, higher adolescent BMI was associated with higher MBC risk: hazard ratio (HR) = 2.01 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.14-3.55, p = 0.015) in overweight (25.0 ≤ BMI < 30.0 kg/m2 ) adolescents; and HR = 4.97 (95%CI 2.14-11.53, p = 0.0002) in obese (BMI ≥ 30.0 kg/m2 ) adolescents. When CDC age-specific BMI percentiles were assessed results were similar and statistically significant for obesity. In addition, low (vs. high) GIT score (HR = 4.76, 95%CI 1.96-12.50, p = 0.001) and European (vs. west-Asian) origin (HR = 1.99, 95%CI 1.19-3.34, p = 0.009) were independent predictors of MBC. Measured adolescent overweight and obesity are associated with increased risk of MBC, suggesting a modifiable risk factor potentially allowing for early intervention. The novel association with cognitive function should be further explored.

Functioning Decreases Before Symptoms Start in Schizophrenia

Clinicians and patients would benefit from the identification of early schizophrenia symptoms. To learn more about early symptoms, researchers cross-referenced a national hospitalization database in Israel with data from mandatory psychological and functional assessments of draft eligibility in 723,316 Israeli males aged 16 to 17 (mean follow-up, 10 years). The data provided pre-illness information about functioning in 3929 individuals who were eventually hospitalized …

Increasing trend of HIV/AIDS among Arab and Jewish male persons in Israel, 1986–2010

The aim of the study was to compare the HIV/AIDS burdens in Jewish and Arab Israeli males, as HIV/AIDS affects different population groups disproportionally. The National HIV/AIDS Registry (NHAR) was used as the source of HIV/AIDS infection records, while the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics was used to determine group-specific disease rates. Between 1986 and 2010, 3499 HIV/AIDS-infected male Israelis were reported to the NHAR: 3369 (96.3%) Jews and 130 (3.7%) Arabs, with an average annual incidence of 5.5 and 0.8 per 100 000 of the population, respectively (P = 0.05). Of the Jews, 1018 (29.9%) were born in Ethiopia, while 2389 were Jews who were not Ethiopian-born (JNE). Most of the Arabs (n = 99; 74.8%) were Muslims, followed by Christians (21; 16.2%) and Druze (13; 10%). AIDS rather than HIV infection at the time of reporting was diagnosed in 568 (23.8%) of the JNE and 31 (23.8%) of the Arabs (p = 1). The most affected age group was those aged 25-34 years among the JNE and those aged 20-24 years among the Arabs, and the respective cumulative death rates were 24.9% (n = 594) and 32.5% (n = 40) (P = 0.1). The point prevalences in 2010 were 58.4 and 11.4 per 100 000 for JNE and Arabs, and in adults aged 15-59 years they were 71.5 and 26.3 per 100 000, respectively. In Muslims, Christians and Druze, the point prevalences were 4.2, 11.2 and 7.1 per 100 000, and in adults aged 15-59 years they were 22.6, 42.9 and 29.4, respectively. The most common risk group among JNE was men who have sex with men (MSM; n = 1223; 51.2%), followed by injecting drug users (n = 661; 27.7%), while among Arabs it was MSM (n = 63; 48.1%), followed by heterosexuals (n = 36; 27.3%). The HIV/AIDS burden in Israeli Arab males was significantly lower than that in Jews, and in both populations the most common risk group was MSM, with the proportion of MSM increasing with time.

Risk of germ cell testicular cancer according to origin: A migrant cohort study in 1,100,000 Israeli men

Testicular cancer incidence is highest among men of northern European ancestry and lowest among men of Asian/African descent. We conducted a large-scale migrant cohort study to assess origin and migrant generation as predictors of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs), controlling for possible confounders. Data on 1,092,373 Jewish Israeli males, who underwent a general health examination prior to compulsory military service at ages 16-19 between the years 1967-2005, were linked to Israel National Cancer Registry to obtain incident TGCTs up to 2006. Cox proportional hazards was used to model time to event. Overall, 1,001 incident cases (534 seminoma and 467 nonseminoma) were detected during 19.2 million person-years of follow-up. Origin was a strong independent predictor of TGCTs with remarkably low incidence for North African-born (HR = 0.10, 95% CI: 0.04-0.21) and Asian-born (HR = 0.35, 0.20-0.62), while intermediate for Israeli-born of North African origin (HR = 0.48, 0.40-0.58) and Asian origin (HR = 0.56, 0.47-0.66), compared to European origin. A comparison of Israeli born of North African and Asian origin with North African and Asian-born yielded a HR of 2.31 (1.36-3.93). Significant risk factors controlled for were year of birth, years of education and height. Findings persisted when analyses were stratified by histologic subtypes of TGCTs. The findings of lower rates of TGCTs among men born in North Africa and Asia compared to European ancestry, but a steep increase in next generation migrants, particularly among the Israeli-born migrants from North Africa, provide clues to direct further research on the role of modern lifestyle and environment in the etiology of TGCTs.

Measured Body Mass Index in Adolescence and the Incidence of Colorectal Cancer in a Cohort of 1.1 Million Males

The increasing prevalence of adolescent obesity affects adult health. We investigated the association of adolescent overweight with colorectal cancer incidence in a large cohort of males. Body mass index (BMI) was measured in 1.1 million Jewish Israeli males who underwent a general health examination at ages 16 to 19 between 1967 and 2005. Overweight was defined as BMI ≥ 85th percentile of the standard U.S. distribution in adolescence. Colorectal cancer was identified by linkage with the Israel National Cancer Registry up to 2006. The mean follow-up period was 17.6 ± 10.9 years, reflecting 19.5 million person-years. Cox proportional hazards modeling was used. The prevalence of adolescent overweight increased from 9.9% to 16.8% in the first 10 and last 10 annual examination cohorts. Colon (n = 445) and rectal cancer (n = 193) cases were detected. Overweight predicted an increased risk of colon cancer [HR = 1.53; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.17-2.02, P = 0.002] but not of rectal cancer (HR = 1.09; 95% CI, 0.38-1.73, P = 0.72). The risk was greatest for nonmucinous adenocarcinoma of the colon (HR = 1.68, 95% CI, 1.26-2.23, P = 0.001). The association of BMI ≥ 85th percentile with colon cancer was even more pronounced in analyses that were restricted to men followed until at least 40 years of age [N = 367,478; HR = 1.75 (95% CI, 1.33-2.3, P < 0.001)]. Adolescent overweight is substantially associated with colon cancer incidence in young to middle-aged adults. These long-term sequelae add to the urgency to seriously address increasing childhood and adolescent obesity with its attendant increasing population impact.

Gender role expectations of pain is associated with pain tolerance limit but not with pain threshold

Gender role expectations of pain (GREP) was suggested to predict sex differences in pain perception. Our aim was to explore sex differences in GREP and investigate its relationship with heat-pain threshold (HPT) and heat-pain tolerance limit (HPTL). University students (115 males, 134 females) filled the GREP questionnaire. HPT and HPTL were measured in a sample of 72 students. Additionally, GREP values of the present sample were compared with those of the original, American sample to explore possible cultural effects.Both males and females perceive themselves (and their own sex in general) to be less sensitive to pain and less willing to report of pain than the opposite sex. Males perceived themselves and other men, to endure pain relatively similar to women whereas females perceived themselves and other women as less endurable to pain than men. HPT was similar for the two sexes but males had higher HPTL than females. Within each sex, HPTL correlated mainly with self’s perception of pain sensitivity. The American and Israeli samples differed in that Israeli males and females presented stronger stereotypical views towards same and opposite sexes.Both males and females held stereotypical “macho” attitude towards themselves with regard to pain sensitivity and willingness to report of pain however only females held stereotypical, “macho” attitude towards themselves with regard to pain endurance. The sex differences in GREP and in HPTL and the correlations between GREP items and experimental thresholds suggest that the relationship between GREP and experimental pain is complex and sex-specific. It also appears that GREP is affected by culture.

ANALYSIS OF TEMPORAL ANTHROPOMETRIC CHANGES IN VARIOUS GROUPS OF ISRAELI MALES

Based on anthropometric surveys of 5261 Israeli males conducted in 1970, 1985, and 2000, the study examines temporal changes of bodily size and shape in two groups of Israelis – Ashkenazim and Sephardim – over thirty years. The rate of changes varied. In the Ashkenazim, body length increased mostly between 1970 and 1985. In the Sephardim, body length decreased during the same period. The difference was caused by the fact that a considerable number of people sharply different from most Israelis in physical type immigrated to Israel from Africa in the 1980s. By 2000, the difference between the Ashkenazim and the Sephardim in body length decreased due to intense admixture and to higher living standards compared to the countries from whence the immigrants had arrived.

Dental Anxiety Among Young Israeli Male Adults as Related to Treatment Received during Childhood

To evaluate dental fear and anxiety among young male adults treated during childhood either by a certified pediatric dentist or a general dental practitioner. A structured questionnaire that included information regarding issues related to dental fear and anxiety (Intake Interview Questionnaire and the Dental Anxiety Scale) was completed by 497 young male army recruits (18 years old). During childhood, 59 (11.9%) of the participants were treated on a regular basis by a certified pediatric dentist and 344 (69.2%) by a general dental practitioner. Sporadic care (not regular care) by general dental practitioners was given to 94 participants (18.9%). Average level of dental anxiety among participants treated by certified pediatric dentists was 7.9 compared to 8.2 (general dentists) and 8.7 (sporadic care by general dentists). There were no significant differences between the groups. However, significant differences were found in the prevalence of high dental anxiety between participants treated by a regular dentist in childhood and those treated sporadically (15.4% vs. 23.4%, respectively). Negative emotions were common. Environmental etiologic factors were infrequently reported. The general level of dental anxiety among young Israeli males was normal. No relation was found between level of dental anxiety and the professional education of the treating dentist in childhood. Regular dental care in childhood has more effect on preventing the development of high dental anxiety than the professional education of the early caregiver.

The role of risk factor time trends in the steep decline of CHD mortality between two Israeli cohort studies

Background Over the past few decades, a sizable monotonous decrease in coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality rates was evident in Israel. Our purpose was to evaluate the association of risk factor time trends with this decline. Subjects and methods Data of two Israeli male cohorts with an inception date separated by 14 years were combined: (a) 9699 employees who participated in the Israeli Ischemic Heart Disease (IIHD) project, followed-up between 1965 and 1983, and (b) 1745 participants of the Glucose Intolerance, Obesity and Hypertension (GOH) study, sampled from the Central Population Registry, followed-up between 1979 and 1997. Results The mean age of both groups was comparable (52.9 vs. 51.2 years in the GOH and IIHD, respectively). Systolic blood pressure (133.5 vs. 138.1 mm/Hg), smoking (44% vs. 49%), and BMI (25.5 vs. 25.9 kg/m 2) were lower in the GOH, whereas mean serum cholesterol was higher (215 vs. 208 mg/dL). During the follow-up period, 3,173 deaths were recorded. Of these, 968 (31%) were attributed to CHD. Overall mortality, adjusted by age and ethnic origin, was lower in the GOH (HR = 0.80, 95% CI: 0.72–0.89). CHD mortality was remarkably lower (HR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.44–0.69). Adjusting for systolic blood pressure and smoking increased the HR for CHD death to 0.68 (95% CI: 0.55–0.85), whereas further adjustment for cholesterol reduced it slightly (HR = 0.63, 95% CI: 0.50–0.78). Conclusion Traditional risk factors appear to play a limited role in the declining rates of CHD mortality among Israeli males.

Association of self-reported religiosity and mortality in industrial employees: the CORDIS study

This study examined the association between self-reported religiosity and mortality in industrial employees, while controlling for workplace and socioeconomic factors. Subjects were 3638 Jewish Israeli males who participated in a 12-year follow-up study. During this period 253 deaths were recorded. The prevalence of negative workplace and sociodemographic factors: lower education, non-European origin, heavy physical work, blue-collar jobs and adverse job and environmental conditions, was highest among religious employees, and lower in traditional and nonreligious employees in descending order. Using Cox's proportionate hazard model an age by religiosity interaction on mortality was uncovered. In younger employees (age <55 years) religiosity was associated with lower adjusted mortality, after controlling for negative workplace and sociodemographic factors. Compared with nonreligious employees, the hazard ratios for the religious and traditional employees were: 0.64 ( p=0.016) and 0.39 ( p=0.118), respectively. In older employees (age ⩾55 years), religiosity was associated with higher adjusted mortality. The corresponding hazards ratios were 1.69 ( p=0.011) and 1.08 ( p=0.004), even after controlling for the above possible confounding variables. It was concluded that religiosity had a protective effect on mortality in younger employees, but the reverse was true for older employees. This opposite trend could not be explained by negative sociodemographic and workplace conditions. The possibility of involvement of yet another potent factor of social isolation was discussed.

The Chosen Body: The Politics of the Body in Israeli Society (review)

Meira Weiss. The Chosen Body: The Politics of Body in Israeli Society. Stanford University Press, 2002. pp. 232. Anthropological interest in Jewish bodies has historic roots in anthropometric measures used in German science between World Wars I and II to prove Jewish biological inferiority. Historian Sander Gilman, in The Jew's Body, traces efforts of pre-Nazi German science centuries back, referring, for example, to a medieval European physicians' correlation of Jews coming out of Africa black skinned due to syphilis, a condition shared with other Africans [1991:100]. Many sorts of others have been interested in scrutinizing Jewish bodies. The Jewish religion scrutinizes body. It requires male be circumcised at eight days of age. The religiously observant Jewish male follows a regimen of rituals prescribed by halacha, Jewish law, surrounding bodily functions. The Jewish female comes under Jewish law and ritual between first menstruation and menopause, subject to intense scrutiny by rabbinic authorities over issues of purity and pollution. Judaism is Israel's official state religion; in rites de passage, all Jewish citizens are subject to fundamentalist interpretation of halacha. In recent years, anthropological interest has focused on Israeli Jewish woman's body: Rahel Wasserfall on rules governing menstruation, Susan Kahn in Reproducing Jews on rules governing halachic interpretations for using modern technology to inseminate single and married women. Most recently, Susan Sered's What Makes Israeli Women Sick? analyzes reproductive body, militarized body, ritualized body, scrutinized and resisting to explain why Israeli women are far less healthy than Israeli men. The Chosen Body touches not at all on contexts cited above. Israel was born in 1948 in an uneasy balance of triumph and tragedy. It has existed in that perpetual uneasy balance, imposed and self-inflicted, since it was conceived as an idea in 19th century. Meira Weiss is an acknowledged member of socially privileged Ashkenazi sabra status group [native-born of European ancestry). She has devoted her professional life to dark, tragic side of Israeli life and culture. She looks at various ways in which the is constituted, and others, tragic non-chosen, are rejected. She conducts a special kind of participant-observation: she is a participant, an actor vested in system, perpetuating its darkness. She is an observer: using questionnaires to study different expressions of tragic in Israeli public and private life, collecting poems, newspaper articles, television and radio broadcasts and other cultural artifacts to illustrate her research interest. At times I wondered if, unintentionally, she got answers she expected to hear, if she asked loaded questions. The actor with vested interests is methodologically problematic. For this reason, examples of her questionnaires, and allowing those questioned to speak to us directly rather than through her voice, would have been appropriate. This is not an ethnographic account; it is more similar to cultural studies. Weiss traces Zionist story of historic origin of need for Jew for a new nation, physically distinct from weakling of Diaspora. She shows centrality of male in Israeli politic, a point made by psychologist Lesley Hazleton in her 1977 book, Israeli Women: The Reality Behind Myths. The difference between Weiss's focus and other feminist anthropologists writing about Israel is that they focused on impact of patriarchal on women. Weiss's focus is squarely on of idealized, perfectly formed, physically strong, young Israeli male of European ancestry. His is Jew for new nation, Chosen People's Chosen Body in modern state. Weiss traces impact of idealized male chosen on body politic in Israeli culture as a collectivity. …

Genetic analyses of male breast cancer in Israel.

Male breast cancer is a rare disorder, and little is known about the molecular mechanisms associated with the tumorigenic process. We genotyped 31 Jewish Israeli males with breast cancer for the predominant Jewish BRCA1 (185delAG, 5382InsC) and BRCA2 (6174delT) germline mutations: 11 individuals from high-risk families and 20 patients unselected for family history of cancer. Two patients of the high-risk group (18.2%) displayed germline mutations: one harbored the 185delAG BRCA1 mutation, and the other the 6174delT mutation in BRCA2. None of the unselected patients displayed any mutation. In 2 patients, complete mutation analysis of the BRCA2 gene did not reveal any disease-associated mutations. We conclude that the predominant Jewish germline mutations in BRCA1/BRCA2 contribute to male breast cancer in Israel, primarily in Ashkenazi individuals with a family history of cancer.

Cognitive and behavioural functioning in men with schizophrenia both before and shortly after first admission to hospital. Cross-sectional analysis.

The extent of premorbid changes associated with the onset of schizophrenia are debated. The study examined cognitive and behavioural functioning prior to, and after, first hospitalisation for schizophrenia. Data from the Israeli Draft Board Register of intelligence, social functioning and behaviour testing for all Israeli males aged 16-17 was linked with data from the National Psychiatric Hospitalisation Case Register. This identified 692 men who had been admitted to hospital for schizophrenia. Cases and non-cases matched on age and school were compared, as were cases aggregated by the time that had elapsed between testing and first admission to hospital. Cases performed worse than non-cases on all measures. On Social Functioning and on Raven's Progressive Matrices-R, differences between cases and non-cases were progressively greater for cases admitted closer to the time of testing. These differences were greatest for persons tested after first psychiatric hospitalisation. The results confirm premorbid deficits associated with schizophrenia and support the hypothesis that decline is progressive.

Body mass index in 17-year-old Israeli males of different ethnic backgrounds; national or ethnic-specific references?

To evaluate whether a single national reference is appropriate for assessing prevalence of overweight in heterogeneous populations, or whether ethnic-specific references are needed. A population-based study of Israeli Jewish males who underwent routine physical and clinical examinations prior to army recruitment served as the basis for the development of two types of references for body mass index (BMI): a national reference (NR) and an ethnic-specific reference (ER). Consecutive cohorts of all 17-y-old Jewish male recruits (n=109, 570). Weight, height and blood pressure values were obtained. BMI was calculated, and the 85th percentile of BMI was used as a cut-off point for overweight, using both types of references. Prevalence of hypertension among recruits was used as a biomarker to support the reliability of the ER when discrepancy in classification between the two references was found. As compared to the NR, three ethnic groups had a BMI distribution shifted to the left (light sub-population) and five were shifted to the right (heavy sub-population). In the light sub-population, 7% of the inductees who were classified as having normal weight by the NR were considered overweight by the ER and had a hypertension rate similar to that of those defined as overweight by both references (3.1 per 1000). In the heavy sub-population the 4% of subjects who were overweight by NR and normal by ER had hypertension rates similar to those defined as normal weight by both references (2.7/1000), and significantly lower than that of those classified as overweight by both references (10.8/1000). In heterogeneous populations, ethnic references should be used to evaluate prevalence of overweight, rather than one national reference. International Journal of Obesity (2000)24, 88-92

Cognitive and Behavioural Development of Israeli Males with Fragile X and Down Syndrome

Hebrew translations of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (KABC) and the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales (VABS) were administered to 17 Israeli males with fragile X and 17 with Down syndrome matched for chronological and mental ages. When differences in the initial baselines were considered, the pattern of findings was generally consistent with previous reports. On the K-ABC, the males with fragile X scored higher on some subtests of the Simultaneous Domain but not on any of those of the Sequential Domain. On the VABS, superior scores of the males with fragile X on the Daily Living Skills and Communication domains is consistent with prior evidence of their relative strength on the former and the specific weakness of persons with Down syndrome on the latter. These differences between the males with fragile X and Down syndrome with regard to functioning on various domains and subdomains highlight the need to carefully examine the profiles of aetiologically homogeneous groups of persons.

Choosing the right mate when everyone is watching: Cultural and sex differences in television dating games

A cross‐cultural study was conducted to determine whether there are cultural and sex differences in mate selection choices displayed by ordinary men and women (ranging in age from 16 to 24) participating in television dating games in the United States and in Israel. A content analysis of 80 programs from both countries yielded 258 topical categories (76 from American shows; 182 from Israeli shows) used to screen potential mates. American females used physical categories to select potential mates slightly less often than did Israeli females. Americans, regardless of sex, employed physical categories slightly less often than did Israelis. There was no significant difference between American males and Israeli males, nor between males, in general, and Israeli females. American females, however, differed significantly from males in general, regardless of which country they came from, as well as from Israeli females in their choice of mate selection categories. These results support Fiske's (1990) theory that television dating games are contra‐stereotypical with regard to sex.

Prevalence of melanocytic nevi and freckles in young Israeli males. Correlation with melanoma incidence in Jewish migrants: demographic and host factors.

The role of host and environmental factors in the pathogenesis of multiple melanocytic nevi, atypical nevi, and freckles was studied in 1989 in a random sample of 3,040 Israeli males aged 17 years. Multiple melanocytic nevi were significantly associated with family history of melanoma or multiple melanocytic nevi (odds ratio (OR) = 15.0), fair or lightly pigmented skin color (OR = 2.7 and 2.3, respectively), and affiliation to the high or heterogenous melanoma risk group, determined by the incidence rates of melanoma in Jewish migrants from corresponding origin (OR = 3.1 and 2.1, respectively). An environment-related effect may account for the increased multiple melanocytic nevi risk among second- (OR = 8.2) compared with first-generation, native-born recruits (OR = 3.0) from the high melanoma risk group whose families had been living in Israel the longest. Atypical nevi were associated with fair (OR = 6.1) and lightly pigmented (OR = 3.5) skin color, high and moderate sunburn susceptibility (OR = 4.7 and 2.5, respectively), and family history of melanoma or multiple melanocytic nevi (OR = 4.7). Freckles were significantly associated with sun-sensitive phenotype, family history of melanoma or multiple melanocytic nevi (OR = 1.5). Conservative (OR = 1.9) or nonreligious status (OR = 1.9), and high (OR = 2.4) or heterogenous melanoma risk groups (OR = 1.8). These findings indicate that environmental factors may modify the occurrence of multiple melanocytic nevi and freckles in genetically susceptible ethnic groups.

The Actor as Performer of the Implied Spectator's Role

Omri Nitzan's direction of Goldoni's The Servant of Two Masters at the Israeli National Theatre Habimah in 1993 was one of the most ingenious and locally-bound contemporizations of a classical play that I have ever seen, as well as one of the most dependent on a correlatively attuned recipient. Nitzan sets out from the viewpoint that Goldoni's comedy of errors, derived from the commedia dell'arte and negating it, is not a stylized refined and exclusively theatrical pastime, set in the never-never locus of a glamorous stage Venice, as implied by Strehler's famous precedent, but is rather a kind of socially critical and realistically inclined play, ‘dealing with crime, class-distinctions and the capitalist structure of society’. ‘As I repeatedly read the play’–maintains Nitzan–‘I felt myself attracted to its human tale. I have seen suffering, miserable characters, relentlessly striving for unattainable happiness. There are three suicide attempts in the play […], which sometimes seems like a nightmare.’ Nitzan's production is set in a derelict square, a cross between a contemporary shabby Italian piazza and the backyard of a ramshackle, old Bauhaus building in a Tel Aviv suburban slum. The set of enclosing walls, lit by harsh Mediterranean lighting, and its multiple doors including a revolving one, vaguely alludes to the traditional setting of a farce. However, this impression is contradicted by the very theatrical and yet lifelike signs of depravity, instability and aggression: the thin paper walls, which are punctured and vandalized throughout the performance, are smeared with hostile graffiti expressing the pent-up feelings of its emotionally mute inhabitants. Heaps of trash lie scattered. The performance does not start with Clarice's engagement to Silvio, but with an invented mimed scene of Federigo Rasponi's murder by his sister Beatrice's lover, Florindo Artusi, performed to flickering disco lighting and accompanied by the shrill music of a Gothic horror melodrama. The actors speak a brilliantly processed vulgar slang; their body language is erratic and violent, including in the love scenes; these are lovers who swiftly resort to blows or pull out knives with long blades resembling shabarias, the weapon of Palestinian terrorists in 1993. Truffaldino wears the stained blue overall of a delivery boy, with an empty money pouch, typical of many such lads seen driving third-hand scooters in the streets of Tel Aviv. He is no smart comedy servant, but a hungry, humiliated and bitter unemployed youngster, although some remnants of the traditionally stooped posture are still vaguely in evidence. The archetypal attributes of the commedia masks are also belied by the performance of other characters such as Pantalone, who appears here as a small-time Levantine merchant, clad in a cheap suit, an unlit cigarette butt between his lips, bragging with his car keys in the typical macho gesture of working-class Israeli males.