Middle-aged Working Population Research Articles

Does financial literacy influence preventive health check-up behavior in Japan? a cross-sectional study

BackgroundGeneral health check-ups are an important element of healthcare, as they are designed to detect diseases, thereby reducing morbidity and mortality. Recent studies have found that financial literacy promotes preventive healthcare usage and reduces risky health behaviors such as smoking, lack of exercise, and gambling. Based on this evidence, we hypothesize that financial literacy, as a rational decision-making tool, is positively associated with health check-up behavior in Japan.MethodsWe extracted data on financial literacy, the main explanatory variable of this study, from the 2010 wave of the Preference Parameter Study (PPS) of Osaka University. Data on health check-up behavior as a dependent variable, along with control variables, were obtained from the 2011 PPS wave. Our sample focused on Japan’s middle-aged working population (40–64 years), and we applied probit regressions to test our hypothesis.ResultsOur final sample size was 2,208 participants after merging the two datasets. Descriptive statistics show that respondents had moderate financial literacy (mean = 0.62, SD = 0.33), low financial education (mean = 0.17, SD = 0.38), and low participation (mean = 31.75%, SD = 46.56%) in the health check-up. The probit regression analysis showed that financial literacy is insignificantly associated with health check-up behavior in Japan (coefficient = -0.0229; 95% CI: -0.2011—0.1551; p-value = 0.801). However, demographic factors such as being male (coefficient = -0.2299; 95% CI: -0.3649—-0.0950; p-value = 0.001), older (coefficient = 0.0280; 95% CI: 0.0188 – 0.0371; p-value = 0.000), and married (coefficient = 0.3217; 95% CI: 0.0728 – 0.5705; p-value = 0.011), as well as risky health behavior such as smoking (coefficient = -0.2784; 95% CI: -0.4262—-0.1305; p-value = 0.000) are significantly related to health check-up behavior.ConclusionsOur results suggest that financial literacy insignificantly motivates people to behave rationally and understand the value of health check-ups as a tool for sustainable health.

Premenstrual syndrome incidence rate and risk factors among the working population in the Republic of Korea: a prospective cohort study

BackgroundPremenstrual syndrome (PMS) is the most common disease of the genitourinary tract in women. Although a sizeable proportion of women have symptoms or diagnosed PMS, its etiology remains unclear. The purpose of this cohort is to offer incidence and relevant risk factors of PMS among reproductive-aged Korean female workers.MethodsCohort data used were from the National Health Insurance Service–Female Employees (from 2007 to 2015) conducted by the NHIS. A total of 121,024 female workers were analyzed to estimate the incidence and hazard ratio of PMS. PMS data was based on information obtained from medical facility visits during an eight-year follow-up.ResultsThe incidence of PMS was 7.0% during follow-up periods. In industrial classification, human health and social work activities have the highest incidence (9.0%) of PMS. Cumulative incidence of PMS has continuously increased by approximately 1% annually for eight years. Adjusted hazard ratio with 95% confidence interval was significantly higher in the 15–19 years old age group (2.81, 95%CI 2.35–3.36), manual worker (1.06, 95%CI 1.01–1.12), with anemia (1.13, 95%CI 1.06–1.20), and underweight (1.21, 95%CI 1.10–1.25) compared to those in the reference group.ConclusionThis study describes the PMS status with trend and risk factors using follow-up design among women under a middle-aged working population. Further study is warranted for better understanding on the risk factors of PMS for reproductive-aged female workers.

Feasibility of a Home-Based Task-Switching Training in Middle-Aged Caregivers

The current study aimed at investigating feasibility of a self-administered task-switching training in a middle-aged working population. Eighty-one caregivers (41–62 years old) were instructed to train at home 8 times either within a 7- or 14-day interval. Only 56.7% performed more than 50% of the instructed number of training sessions. However, compliant caregivers (who completed more than 4 training sessions) showed significant training gains and transfer to an untrained task-switching task. Although transfer effects to other cognitive tasks were not found, trained participants tended to report fewer everyday memory failures than a control group. In conclusion, the implementation of a home-based task-switching training in everyday life of caregivers is possible. However, there is only limited evidence for generalization of results of previous laboratory studies. Adherence and transfer to other cognitive tasks are discussed as important challenges in conveying laboratory findings into real life.

May Measurement Month 2017: an analysis of blood pressure screening results in China-East Asia.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a growing burden worldwide, leading to over 10 million deaths each year. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global initiative aimed at raising awareness of high BP and to act as a temporary solution to the lack of screening programmes worldwide. In China, several hypertension screening programmes are undertaken in the elderly in the community and in youths at university entrance and graduation. However, most people, especially the middle-aged working population, do not often have their BP measured. The current awareness (46.9%), treatment (40.7%), and control rates (15.3%) of hypertension remain low, while the proportion of screenees with hypertension is high in adult Chinese (23.2%). An opportunistic cross-sectional survey of volunteers aged ≥18 years was carried out in May 2017. Blood pressure measurement, the definition of hypertension and statistical analysis followed the standard MMM protocol. About 125 236 individuals were screened. After multiple imputation, with 124 623 as denominator, 32 089 (25.7%) had hypertension. Of the 103 981 individuals not on antihypertensive medication, 11 447 (11.0%) were hypertensive. Of the 20 547 individuals on antihypertensive medication, 7392 (36.0%) had uncontrolled BP (≥140/90 mmHg). An opportunistic screening may effectively identify those with high BP regardless of the use of antihypertensive medication and shows similar information on BP as a survey in a randomly selected population sample.

Need for Thorough Standardization of CO2 Laser Evoked Potential Procedure.

The objective of this study was to determine normative values of laser evoked potentials and anthropometric correlations in a healthy middle-aged working population. In 51 subjects, CO2 laser stimulation was applied bilaterally onto dorsal surface of the feet, hands, and neck using constant duration of stimulus and beam diameter, changing just the intensity of stimulation. Amplitudes and latencies of the laser evoked potential negative-positive complex were recorded, and relationship with height, age and gender was statistically analyzed. There was a significant correlation between the latencies obtained for feet, hands, and height. P2 amplitudes for feet, hands, and neck, and negative-positive pk-pk amplitudes for hands and neck correlated negatively with age. The values obtained did not differ significantly between male and female gender, except for N2 latencies for hands. Clinically useful reference values for laser evoked potentials in a healthy middle-aged population were provided, which are interesting from the physiological point of view.

Clinical utility of a new predictive model of cardiovascular risk in a young and middle-aged working population

Clinical utility of a new predictive model of cardiovascular risk in a young and middle-aged working population

Wrinkles and risk of death (total and cardiovascular mortality) in a middle-aged working population

Scarcely ever studied, only one prospective cohort study recently reported on associations between male pattern baldness, earlobe crease and xanthelasma, alone or in combination, and an increased risk of ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction independently of chronological age and other classical cardiovascular risk factors. To examine the association of forehead wrinkles with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. From VISAT cohort, 3221 French volunteer workers aged 32, 42, 52 and 62 years at baseline were recruited during medical examination carried out by occupational physicians. Forehead wrinkles were clinically assessed by investigators with the support of a set of graduated photos ranging from 0 (reference) to 3 (numerous and deep wrinkles). Among participants without prevalent pathologies as cancers, cardiovascular, liver and kidney diseases. Crude and adjusted Cox proportional analyses were used to determine the association between forehead wrinkles and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality over 20-year follow-up. In the course of the 19.5 year median follow-up, 7.2% (233) of subjects died; 2.1% in subjects with no wrinkle (score 0), 6.6% in score 1 and 15.2% in score 2 & 3 ( P for trend < 0.001). Using crude analyses and compared to wrinkle score 0, the risks of all-cause mortality death [hazard ratio (95% confidence intervals)] were: 3.05 (1.80–5.16) and 6.09 (3.54–10.5) in score 1 and score 2 & 3 respectively but became non-significant after multivariate adjustments. Forehead wrinkles remained significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality after multivariate adjustment on age, gender, education, smoking, systolic blood pressure, heart rate, diabetes and dyslipidemia. In a working population, the number and the depth of forehead wrinkles were associated with cardiovascular mortality regardless chronological age and classical cardiovascular risk factors.

Gender differences in diagnosis-specific sickness absence in middle-aged Finnish working population

Gender differences in diagnosis-specific sickness absence in middle-aged Finnish working population

Use of information communication technology and stress, burnout, and mental health in older, middle-aged, and younger workers - results from a systematic review.

The aim of this systematic review is to summarise quantitative studies in occupational settings observing the association between Information communication technology (ICT) and stress, and burnout, considering age as an effect modifier. A systematic review using PRISMA guidelines was conducted through the following bibliographic databases: PubMed, Web of Science, Psycinfo, and the Cochrane Library. Inclusion criteria were occupational settings and content relevant to our research question. Risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Two interventional, 4 cohorts, and 29 cross-sectional studies were found. ICT use in occupational settings was associated with stress seen in cross-sectional studies, but not in interventional studies. There was a concordant association with ICT and burnout in different study designs. Overall, there were no linear trends between age and technostress. We suggest that the observed associations were mostly present in the middle-aged working population and that these associations need to be supported in further studies.

Socioeconomic differences in physical activity in the middle-aged working population: The role of education, occupation, and income

Regular physical activity has positive effects on health at all ages. This study aims to investigate how far physical activity and regular sports engagement, as a more specific type of physical activity, are associated with socioeconomic factors in the middle-aged working population. Data were obtained from 21,699 working men and women aged between 30 and 64 years who participated in the 2009 and 2010 population-based national German Health Update (GEDA) surveys conducted by the Robert Koch Institute. Besides a multi-dimensional index of socioeconomic status (SES), three single dimensions of SES (education, occupation, and income) were used to analyse socioeconomic differences in total physical activity and regular sports engagement. While the prevalence of total physical activity increased with lower SES, the proportion of people with regular sports engagement decreased with lower SES. These associations remained after adjusting for age in men and women. After mutual adjustment of the three single socioeconomic dimensions, physical activity was independently associated with lower education and lower occupational status. Regular sports engagement was observed to be independently associated with higher education, higher occupational status, as well as higher income after mutual adjustment. This study demonstrates significant socioeconomic differences in physical and sports activity in the middle-aged working population. Education, occupation, and income show varying independent associations with physical activity behaviour. Such differences need to be considered when identifying target groups for health-enhancing physical activity interventions.

Study of sedentary time definitions and risk of metabolic syndrome in a middle-aged working population: The AWHS cohort

Study of sedentary time definitions and risk of metabolic syndrome in a middle-aged working population: The AWHS cohort

Distribution of and factors contributing to chronic kidney disease in a middle-aged working population.

To clarify the distribution of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and the factors contributing to its development and progression in middle-aged Japanese workers/employees. This was a retrospective study involving 3,964 men and 2,698 women aged 35-64 years in 2009 who had been followed-up until 2003. Data on proteinuria determined with a dipstick and glomerular filtration rate estimated from serum creatinine concentration (eGFR) were collected in the annual health check-ups. Proteinuria was detected in 2.9 and 1.1 % of the men and women, respectively, and total CKD was detected in 16.0 and 16.1 % of the men and women respectively. Moderate or severe CKD associated a high risk of cardiovascular diseases and end-stage kidney disease was found mostly in the male subjects [2.0 (men) vs. 0.6 % (women)]. High-risk CKD was found in 3.3 % of the men aged 55-64 years. A body mass index (BMI) of ≥30, hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), current smoking and some job types were independently related to the development of proteinuria, while age, BMI, hypertriglyceridemia, and job types were related to total CKD. The development of high-risk CKD was related to preceding mild CKD signs of reduced eGFR and proteinuria as well as to hypertension, DM, smoking, and job type. Chronic kidney disease was found in 16 % of middle-aged workers with an equal prevalence in both sexes, while high-risk CKD was found mostly in men, of whom 3.3 % were aged 55-64 years. Obesity, hypertension, DM, smoking and some job types were related to the development and progression of CKD.

Drinking habits and disability retirement

To examine associations between drinking habits and disability retirement, and to determine whether the associations differ between all-cause disability retirement and the main causes of disability retirement, i.e. musculoskeletal diseases and mental disorders. A prospective cohort study with a mean follow-up time of 8 years. Middle-aged employees of the City of Helsinki, Finland. A total of 6275 municipal employees (78% women) who were 40-60 years old at baseline. Data on drinking habits, i.e. quantity and frequency of drinking, binge drinking and problem drinking, were derived from the baseline questionnaire. The data on disability retirement and its diagnoses came from the Finnish Centre for Pensions. The analyses were made using Cox regression analysis. Heavy average and frequent drinking were not associated with all-cause disability retirement, but increased the risk of disability retirement due to mental disorders even after adjusting for all covariates [hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) 2.54 (1.26-5.12) and 2.10 (1.23-3.61), respectively]. Binge and problem drinking were both associated with all-cause disability retirement in the base models adjusted for age, gender and marital status. Problem drinking more than doubled the risk of disability retirement due to mental disorders even after all adjustments (HR 2.17, CI 1.53-3.08). Non-drinkers had an increased risk for disability retirement due to all mental and musculoskeletal diagnoses. Adverse drinking habits may contribute to disability retirement among the middle-aged working population. Tackling unhealthy drinking habits may lessen the likelihood of early retirement due to poor mental health.

The effects of continuing and discontinuing smoking on the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the healthy middle-aged working population in Japan.

The strength of the association between smoking and the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the healthy middle-aged working age population has not been established. This was a retrospective 6-year observational study involving 4,121 male and 2,877 female workers who were free of primary kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, severe hypertension, and the signs and symptoms of CKD. Proteinuria was detected by a dipstick method, and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was estimated by the equation of the Japan Society of Nephrology. Sixty men (1.5 %) and 21 women (0.7 %) developed proteinuria over the 6 years of the study. Irrespective of sex, in comparison with non-smokers, those who continued smoking showed an odds ratio (OR) of 2.52 with a 95 % confidence interval (CI) of 1.50-4.25 for developing proteinuria while those who quit smoking showed an OR of 1.29 (95 % CI 0.48-3.42), following adjustment for confounders. Among the study population, 443 men (10.7 %) and 356 women (12.4 %) developed a GFR of <60 mL/min/1.73 m(2), corresponding to stage III CKD. Continuing smokers had a low OR (0.74, 95 % CI 0.60-0.90) for developing a low GFR, as well as a higher mean GFR than non-smokers. The reduction in GFR during the 6-year study period was not different between smokers and non-smokers, but it was larger in those who developed proteinuria than in those who did not, irrespective of smoking. Continuing smokers showed a twofold or more higher risk of developing proteinuria. Discontinuation of smoking substantially reduced the risk. A longer observational period may be required to detect the smoking-induced risk of developing stage III CKD in the middle-aged working population.

The course of physical functional limitations and occupational conditions in a middle-aged working population in France

BackgroundPhysical functional limitations (PFL) have mainly been studied in older populations. The aim of this study was to better understand the course of PFL and associations with occupational factors by gender in a middle-aged working population.MethodsThe data came from 16,950 workers in the ESTEV (Enquête Santé Travail et Vieillissement) cohort in France. PFL were assessed using the physical abilities section of the Nottingham Health Profile. Occupational conditions were measured with a self-administered questionnaire covering physical and psychosocial factors in 1990 and 1995. Multivariate analyses were used to assess the associations.ResultsThe PFL appearance rate in 1995 was the same by gender (6.3%); the rate of PFL recovery was higher in men (23.9% versus 20.9%). Age was an independent factor of PFL at age 47 years or older in both genders after adjusting for confounding factors. The PFL appearance rate in 1995 was higher with physical occupational exposure in 1990, such as awkward work with a dose relation in both genders, while the PFL recovery rate decreased significantly only for men. Exposure to psychosocial occupational conditions, such as having the means to produce quality work in 1990, was significantly associated with a decreased PFL appearance rate in 1995 in both genders, and having high decision latitude in 1990 was associated with a decreased PFL appearance rate in 1995 only in men. Changes in exposure to occupational factors between 1990 and 1995 were associated with the PFL appearance and recovery rates in 1995 in both genders.ConclusionsAfter five years, the course of PFL in this working population changed and was associated with physical and psychosocial occupational factors. Relationships were stronger for the PFL appearance rate in both genders and were weaker for recovery from PFL, mainly among women.

Relationship between Mindfulness and Psychological Adjustment in Soldiers According to Their Confrontation with Repeated Deployments and Stressors

Although interest in incorporating mindfulness into medical interventions is growing, data on the relationships between mindfulness, stress and coping in military personnel is still scarce. This report investigates the relationship between psychological adjustment and mindfulness in soldiers according to their repeated deployments and confrontations with stressors. Our findings indicate that soldiers’ mindfulness levels were in the range of the middle-aged civilian working population, and were negatively correlated with emotional disturbance measures, and positively correlated with their subjective assessments of their own well-being. Individuals confronted with conflict deployments and stressors recorded lower mindfulness scores, and appeared high in emotional disturbance measures.

Does adding information on job strain improve risk prediction for coronary heart disease beyond the standard Framingham risk score? The Whitehall II study

Background Guidelines for coronary heart disease (CHD) prevention recommend using multifactorial risk prediction algorithms, particularly the Framingham risk score. We sought to examine whether adding information on job strain to the Framingham model improves its predictive power in a low-risk working population.Methods Our analyses are based on data from the prospective Whitehall II cohort study, UK. Job strain among 5533 adults (mean age 48.9 years, 1666 women) was ascertained in Phases 1 (1985–88), 2 (1989–90) and 3 (1991–93). Variables comprising the Framingham score (blood lipids, blood pressure, diabetes and smoking) were measured at Phase 3. In men and women who were CHD free at baseline, CHD mortality and non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI) were ascertained from 5-yearly screenings and linkage to mortality and hospital records until Phase 7 (2002–04).Results A total of 160 coronary deaths and non-fatal MIs occurred during the mean follow-up period of 11.3 years. The addition of indicators of job strain to the Framingham score increased the C-statistics from 0.725 [95% confidence intervals (95% CIs): 0.575–0.854] to only 0.726 (0.577–0.855), corresponding to a net reclassification improvement of 0.7% (95% CIs: −4.2 to 5.6%). The findings were similar after inclusion of definite angina in the CHD outcome (352 total cases) and when using alternative operational definitions for job strain.Conclusion In this middle-aged low-risk working population, job strain was associated with an increased risk of CHD. However, when compared with the Framingham algorithm, adding job strain did not improve the model's predictive performance.

Validation of a French version of the Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory - short version: relationships between mindfulness and stress in an adult population

BackgroundWhereas interest in incorporating mindfulness into interventions in medicine is growing, data on the relationships of mindfulness to stress and coping in management is still scarce. This report first presents a French validation of the Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory-short form (FMI) in a middle-aged working population. Secondly, it investigates the relationship between psychological adjustment and mindfulness.MethodsFive hundred and six non-clinical middle-aged working individuals rated themselves on the self-report French version FMI and completed measures of psychological constructs potentially related to mindfulness levels.ResultsResults were comparable to results of the original short version. Internal consistency of the scale based on the one-factor solution was .74, and test-retest reliability was good. The one-dimensional solution as the alternative to the two-factor structure solution yielded suboptimal fit indices. Correlations also indicated that individuals scoring high on mindfulness are prone to stress tolerance, positive affects and higher self-efficacy. Furthermore, subjects with no reports of stressful events were higher on mindfulness.ConclusionThese data showed that mindfulness can be measured validly and reliably with the proposed French version of the FMI. The data also highlighted the relationship between mindfulness and stress in an adult population. Mindfulness appears to reduce negative appraisals of challenging or threatening events.

Accuracy of self-reported body weight, height and waist circumference in a Dutch overweight working population

BackgroundIn population studies, body mass index (BMI) is generally calculated from self-reported body weight and height. The self-report of these anthropometrics is known to be biased, resulting in a misclassification of BMI status. The aim of our study is to evaluate the accuracy of self-reported weight, height and waist circumference among a Dutch overweight (Body Mass Index [BMI] ≥ 25 kg/m2) working population, and to determine to what extent the accuracy was moderated by sex, age, BMI, socio-economic status (SES) and health-related factors.MethodsBoth measured and self-reported body weight and body height were collected in 1298 healthy overweight employees (66.6% male; mean age 43.9 ± 8.6 years; mean BMI 29.5 ± 3.4 kg/m2), taking part in the ALIFE@Work project. Measured and self-reported waist circumferences (WC) were available for a sub-group of 250 overweight subjects (70.4% male; mean age 44.1 ± 9.2 years; mean BMI 29.6 ± 3.0 kg/m2). Intra Class Correlation (ICC), Cohen's kappa and Bland Altman plots were used for reliability analyses, while linear regression analyses were performed to assess the factors that were (independently) associated with the reliability.ResultsBody weight was significantly (p < 0.001) under-reported on average by 1.4 kg and height significantly (p < 0.001) over-reported by 0.7 cm. Consequently, BMI was significantly (p < 0.001) under-reported by 0.7 kg/m2. WC was significantly (p < 0.001) over-reported by 1.1 cm. Although the self-reporting of anthropometrics was biased, ICC's showed high concordance between measured and self-reported values. Also, substantial agreement existed between the prevalences of BMI status and increased WC based on measured and self-reported data. The under-reporting of BMI and body weight was significantly (p < 0.05) affected by measured weight, height, SES and smoking status, and the over-reporting of WC by age, sex and measured WC.ConclusionResults suggest that self-reported BMI and WC are satisfactorily accurate for the assessment of the prevalence of overweight/obesity and increased WC in a middle-aged overweight working population. As the accuracy of self-reported anthropometrics is affected by measured weight, height, WC, smoking status and/or SES, results for these subgroups should be interpreted with caution. Due to the large power of our study, the clinical significance of our statistical significant findings may be limited.Trial RegistrationISRCTN04265725

Sleep duration and caffeine consumption in a French middle-aged working population

Objective/background To explore the association between sleep duration and daily caffeine intake in a working population. Caffeine acutely disrupts sleep in the laboratory, but the inter-relations between sleep and caffeine intake in daily life are ill-known. Methods Questionnaire and diary based survey of 1498 persons from the GAZEL cohort of employees of the National Electricity and Gas Company (EDF-GDF) working in various locations in the Paris and South-West France areas. We analyzed total sleep time, our primary measure, and time in bed, both by sleep logs. We assessed daily intake of caffeine, consumption of alcohol and tobacco, use of hypnotics, and daytime somnolence, all by questionnaire. Results Multiple linear regression analysis did not find a significant relationship between total sleep time and daily caffeine intake less than 8 cups of coffee per day, after controlling for age, gender, alcohol intake, smoking status, and use of hypnotics. By contrast, time in bed was reduced as caffeine intake increased ( β=−0.125; P<0.001). Higher caffeine intake was not related to a higher daytime somnolence. Conclusion Despite the well-known acute effects of caffeine on sleep, habitual use of up to 7 cups of coffee (or 600 mg of caffeine equivalent) per day was not associated with decreased duration of sleep.