Role In Health Promotion Research Articles

Algae and omega-3 PUFAs

Nutrition plays a critical role in health promotion and disease prevention, while nutrition-related factors are in many cases key risk factors contributing to morbidity and mortality. The “modern” diet is increasingly leading to health problems such as overweight and obesity, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, neurodegenerative and other diseases. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) due to their positive effects on human health. This correlates with the ever-increasing demand for two omega-3 PUFAs, eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid (EPA and DHA). Humans cannot synthesize omega-3 PUFAs de novo or produce them from their precursors in sufficient quantities. Thus, they must be obtained from food or means that allow you to adjust the diet of a person. Therefore, it is important to find sustainable ways to provide PUFAs to meet demand.

Differences in Behavioral Practices of Health Maintenance and Promotion between Knowledge and Manual Workers

Introduction: The problem of maintaining and promoting health is relevant for all working citizens, regardless of the form and conditions of their work. A decrease in the mortality rate in the working-age population is one of the priorities of the national demographic policy. Employers shall pay great attention to occupational safety, prevention of occupational injuries and diseases, and work–rest schedule. Routine behavioral practices of employees, however, play an important role in health promotion. At the same time, the form of labor activity affects their attitude to a healthy lifestyle and the respective behavior pattern. The objective of the study was to analyze current differences in behavioral practices of health maintenance and promotion between manual and non-manual workers. Methods: The article is based on the results of the social survey of 1,500 people aged 18 years and older conducted on April 18–27, 2022 in 30 regions of the Russian Federation using the method of an in-home personal interview. Result: The results of the survey revealed different behavioral practices in workers of physical and mental labor. Knowledge workers generally pay more attention to their health: they take dietary supplements and vitamins, have regular health checkup, follow basic principles of a healthy lifestyle, including systematic physical activity, a healthy diet, and rejection of bad habits. Blue-collar workers, however, raise concern as they demonstrate opposite results. Conclusions: The survey findings are of interest in terms of assessing the potential of strengthening health resources of manual and non-manual workers. Measures of health promotion and disease prevention can be more effective if they address both occupational risks and lifestyle behaviors of the workforce.

Internists’ ambivalence toward their role in health counseling and promotion: A qualitative study on the internists’ beliefs and attitudes

Crucial to its success is that physicians enhance their competence in Lifestyle Medicine and take on their role as Health Advocates in Health Counseling and Promotion (HC&P). However, studies on patients' views of lifestyle counseling in clinical practice demonstrate that many patients neither perceived a need to adopt a healthy lifestyle nor having had any discussion with their physician about their lifestyle. This study is part of a participatory action research project focusing on identifying areas of improvement for health promotion in the practice of internists. Within this project, we interviewed 28 internists from six different subspecialties of an academic medical center in the Netherlands. This study aims to gain insight into how internists understand their role in HC&P by a qualitative analysis of their beliefs and attitudes in the interview data. Participants claimed that promoting a healthy lifestyle is important. However, they also reflected a whole system of beliefs that led to an ambivalent attitude toward their role in HC&P. We demonstrate that little belief in the success of HC&P nurtured ambivalence about the internists' role and their tasks and responsibilities. Ambivalence appeared to be reinforced by beliefs about the ability and motivation of patients, the internists' motivational skills, and the patient-doctor relationship, and by barriers such as lack of time and collaboration with General Practitioners. When participants viewed HC&P as a part of their treatment and believed patients were motivated, they were less ambivalent about their role in HC&P. Based on our data we developed a conceptual framework that may inform the development of the competences of the Health Advocate role of internists in education and practice.

Role of Community Pharmacist in Public Health Services, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Background and Aims: Currently, the scope of practice has allowed pharmacists to engage in the clinical aspects of direct patient care and public health services to the patient. This study's main objective is to investigate community pharmacists' involvement in public health services and the barriers in the health system that hinder the integration of community pharmacy professionals into the public health task in the local context of Saudi Arabia.
 Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in community pharmacies in a different region of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (June and July 2019). A sample was calculated to include 431 pharmacists working in different community pharmacies proportionally randomly selected from the five areas in Riyadh city. A multistage, stratified, random sample method was used. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software. A P value < 0.05 considered as statistically significant.
 Results: The 431 participants showed the dominance of male pharmacists (97.2%), non-Saudi (84.9%), and Bachelor’s pharmacy degrees (81.2%). Most of the participants were involved in smoking cessation (83.1%) as public health services, weight management (62.4%), but less involvement in activities related to physical activities or dietary intake (33.0%, 31.8%, respectively). More likely the involvement of the Saudi pharmacist in lifestyle activities in comparison to non-Saudi (AOR:1.932; 95% CI: 1.125 - 3.320). Moreover, the perceived barrier in the involvement level was more associated with years of experience.
 Conclusion: This study showed that community pharmacists should play an important role in health promotion and prevention; they recognize a wide gap between ideal and actual levels of participation. The researcher presents the main barriers to the role of the pharmacist to improve the level of the individual and society because many obstacles limit the role of the pharmacist in public health.

The Mental Health Benefit of Friend Networks in Older Korean Americans: The Conditioning Effect of Family Type.

We identified types of family relationships of older Korean Americans and examined how the mental health benefit of friend networks might be conditioned by family type. Data were from 2,070 participants in the Study of Older Korean Americans, a multistate survey of Korean immigrants aged 60 and older (Mage = 73.3, standard deviation [SD] = 8.01). To identify family types, latent profile analysis (LPA) was performed with marital status, living arrangement, family network, positive and negative interactions with family members, and family mistreatment. Linear regression models examined how mental distress was associated with friend networks and family types, as well as their interactions. LPA identified 5 family types: close-knit, intimate but distant, detached, connected but dysfunctional, and dysfunctional. Greater distress was associated with smaller friend networks and belonging to the detached, connected but dysfunctional, and dysfunctional family types in comparison to the close-knit type. The interaction model showed that people in the connected but dysfunctional and dysfunctional groups had a stronger association between friend networks and mental distress than the counterparts in the close-knit group. We not only confirmed the health-promoting role of friend networks and the value of a close-knit family but also found that the benefit of friend networks was pronounced when quality of the family relationship was impaired. Our findings called renewed attention to older immigrants' social convoys of family and friends, suggesting that the enhancement of friend networks could be particularly advantageous for older immigrants with dysfunctional family relationships.

The Role of Health Promotion in Change Teenage Smoking Behavior

The implementation of health promotion programs is important because it is to increase adolescent knowledge about the dangers of smoking, improve adolescent perceptions of smoking, and change adolescent attitudes about smoking to not smoking anymore. The purpose of writing this article is to know and understand the role of health promotion in changing adolescent smoking behavior. The method used in this paper is a systematic review study. 80 articles (2011-2021) were collected in English based on the database of Google, Google Scholar, PubMed, DOAJ, and Emerald Insight. From the 7 articles analyzed, it can be found that the adverse effects of cigarettes on smokers and people around smokers are diseases; some of these diseases are cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, acute respiratory infections (ARI), hypertension, stroke, and various other diseases. This impact cannot be felt when initially consuming cigarettes in the early stages. The bad impact will refer to a decrease in individual productivity and performance. One of the strategic efforts to change smoking behavior is through health promotion interventions to change unhealthy lifestyles into healthy ones. Health promotion is one of the efforts to improve public health that focuses on promotion and preventive efforts to provide knowledge in changing adolescent smoking behavior so that they are able to maintain and improve their health status independently.

Plant-soil-microbes: A tripartite interaction for nutrient acquisition and better plant growth for sustainable agricultural practices

Plants can achieve their proper growth and development with the help of microorganisms associated with them. Plant-associated microbes convert the unavailable nutrients to available form and make them useful for plants. Besides nutrient acquisition, soil microbes also inhibit the pathogens that cause harm to plant growth and induces defense response. Due to the beneficial activities of soil nutrient-microbe-plant interactions, it is necessary to study more on this topic and develop microbial inoculant technology in the agricultural field for better crop improvement. The soil microbes can be engineered, and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) technology can be developed as well, as its application can be improved for utilization as biofertilizer, biopesticides, etc., instead of using harmful chemical biofertilizers. Moreover, plant growth-promoting microbe inoculants can enhance crop productivity. Although, scientists have discussed several tools and techniques by omics and gene editing approaches for crop improvement to avoid biotic and abiotic stress and make the plant healthier and more nutritive. However, beneficial soil microbes that help plants with the nutrient acquisition, development, and stress resistance were ignored, and farmers started utilizing chemical fertilizers. Thus, this review attempts to summarize the interaction system of plant microbes, the role of beneficiary soil microbes in the rhizosphere zone, and their role in plant health promotion, particularly in the nutrition acquisition of the plant. The review will also provide a better understanding of soil microbes that can be exploited as biofertilizers and plant growth promoters in the field to create environmentally friendly, sustainable agriculture systems.

Pressurized green liquid extraction of betalains and phenolic compounds from Opuntia stricta var. Dillenii whole fruit: Process optimization and biological activities of green extracts

The Opuntia Stricta var. Dillenii's prickly pears are an underutilized fruits, which provide a great source of betalains (mainly, betacyanins) and phenolic compounds (phenolic acids and flavonoids) that could play an important role in health-promotion. This study focuses on the optimization of process for the green extraction of betalains and phenolic compounds from Opuntia stricta var. Dillenii's whole fruits by Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE), using a response surface methodology (RSM) by a central composite design (CCD) in order to obtain rich extracts in betalains and phenolic compounds with the similar profile of the original one found in O. dillenii fruits (avoiding any degradation of these compounds during the extraction process) with proven biological activities. For PLE optimization, the ethanol volume in water (0–100%, v/v) and the temperature (25–65°C) were selected as independent variables. The identification and quantification of the individual bioactive compounds of the obtained green extracts were done by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS and HPLC-DAD-ESI/QTOF and their biological activities were determined by in vitro tests, as: the antioxidant activity by the ORAC method and the anti-inflammatory activity by the hyaluronidase inhibition method. Ethanol volume in water (%, v/v) was the variable with most significant (p ≤ 0.05) effect in the target responses (bioactive content and biological activities). The best results were obtained at 50% ethanol in water (v/v) and 25°C temperature (run 10) obtaining extracts with betalains as 2.34 ± 0.18 mg of betanin/g dry weight, 2.51 ± 0.04 mg of 5′´-O-E-sinapoyl-2′-apyosil-phyllocactin/g dry weight, 2.32 ± 0.19 mg of neobetanin/g dry weight and phenolic compounds, 2.08 ± 0.07 mg of piscicid acid/g dry weight and 0.25 ± 0.02 mg of isorhamnetin glucoxyl-rhamnosyl-pentoside (IG2) /g dry weight. The betalain and phenolic profile of the PLE extracts was quite similar to the profile from the conventional extraction, but PLE extraction process enhanced the extraction of some bioactives as neobetanin (39%) andpiscidic acid (124%). All employed PLE process CCD combinations significantly upgrade the in vitro biological activities (antioxidant and anti-inflammatory) of the Opuntia stricta var. Dillenii's PLE green extracts.

Understanding how general practice nurses support adult lifestyle risk reduction: An integrative review.

To review the literature exploring how general practice nurses support lifestyle risk reduction. Integrative literature review. CINAHL, Emcare, MEDLINE, Proquest and Scopus were searched for peer-reviewed primary research published in English from 2010 to 2022. Sixteen papers met the inclusion criteria and were assessed for methodological quality using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Findings were extracted and thematically analysed. Four themes described general practice nurses: (1) Establishing relational connections; (2) Empowering active participation; (3) Engaging mutual motivation and (4) Enabling confident action. General practice nurses used complex interpersonal, risk communication and health coaching skills to build collaborative partnerships that supported patients' self-determination and self-efficacy. While mutual motivation and confidence were reciprocally enabling, gaps in skills, experience and knowledge plus time, resource and role constraints limited general practice nurses' ability to support lifestyle risk reduction. General practice nurses play a key role in lifestyle risk reduction. Ongoing education, funding, organizational and professional support are needed to enhance their commitment, confidence and capacity. What problem did the study address? While general practice nurses play a key role in health promotion and risk reduction, their potential is yet to be fully realized. Research examining methods by which nurses working in general practice support lifestyle risk reduction is limited. What were the main findings? Successful interactions depended on personal, professional, organisational and systemic factors which either enhanced or inhibited relational quality, shared decision-making, mutual commitment, and nurses' confidence and capacity to address lifestyle risks. Targeted professional development and peer mentoring are needed to build proficient practice. Where and on whom will the research have impact? Understanding how general practice nurses support risk reduction can inform policy and identify training and support needs to advance their skills and role. Research exploring synergies between themes may illuminate this process.

Community Health Agents Advancing Women’s Empowerment: A Qualitative Data Analysis

Community health agents (CHAs) play a critical role in primary healthcare delivery and health promotion in low-resource settings. Though there is substantial evidence of the benefits of CHAs in achieving targeted community health outcomes, there is limited research into the impact of empowerment experienced by CHAs themselves. This study examined how working as a CHA impacts the lives and self-perceptions of women in Peru volunteering with Catholic Medical Mission Board’s (CMMB) markedly successful robust CHA model. We conducted six focus group discussions (FGDs) of 53 CHAs who implement CMMB programming in Trujillo and Huancayo, Peru. The FGDs were designed to explore themes related to empowerment, changes in women’s lives, and perceptions of themselves. We identified four major themes related to women’s empowerment: achievements, agency, meaningfulness, and resources. The most common empowerment theme was achievements, expressed through subthemes of changes in family behavior, self worth, education, health and nutrition, and rights and politics. The second most common empowerment theme was agency, with subthemes related to increases in using their voice, confidence, decision making, and participation. CHAs also reported experiencing empowerment through enhanced meaningfulness. CMMB’s CHA model is an example of how well-structured community programs can facilitate women’s empowerment. Providing meaningful community leadership opportunities can have far-reaching effects on women’s perceptions of themselves as valuable, capable, and empowered leaders. This work deepens our understanding of how to practically improve community health through empowering women to catalyze gender equality in communities with disproportionate barriers and limited opportunities burdening them.

Attitudes, perceptions, and barriers of community pharmacists in Rwanda towards health promotion: a cross sectional study

BackgroundThe practice of Pharmacists has changed worldwide over the past years. Today, health promotion is better known as an important part of modern pharmacy practice. Involving Community Pharmacists in health promotion is thus considered a valuable option in addressing public health issues. However, the literature on this practice remains unsubstantiated in African countries. In Rwanda, Community Pharmacists are believed to be solely involved in dispensing and very little has been studied about their role in health promotion. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate attitudes, perceptions, and barriers of Community Pharmacists in Rwanda towards their involvement in health promotion.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among 236 licensed Community Pharmacists in Rwanda from 23rd January to 23rd June, 2021. A list of all respondents was obtained from Rwanda Food and Drugs Authority. All participants were randomly enrolled. Each community pharmacy was represented by one Pharmacist. We collected data from community pharmacy settings using a self-administered questionnaire made of close and open-ended questions. Statistical analyses were performed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.ResultsOf the 236 respondents, (n = 149, 63.1%) were male and (n = 87,37%) were female. The average age was 38.1 years (SD = 4.3). More than half confirmed that professional curriculum is adequate for offering health promotion services (n = 152, 64.4%).Majority responded that health promotion is part of their responsibility, and they are willing to provide health promotion services (n = 233,98.7%).The statement that “Pharmacists should not be involved in public health activities “was opposed by many (n=174,73.7%).The most sought-after service provided was education to drug misuse (n=211, 89.4%).Three major barriers to provision of health promotion were: lack of coordination with other healthcare professionals(n=106,69%),structure of healthcare system (n=157,67%),and lack of equipment (n=144,61%).Most Pharmacists disagreed with the statement that “patients are not interested in getting health promotion services”(n = 134,57%).ConclusionThough Community Pharmacists faced several challenges that hindered their participation in health promotion, they had positive attitudes towards promoting public health messages. There are several barriers like lack of structure to provide health promotion services that need to be addressed to boost more active participation of Pharmacists in health promotion.

Exploration of health and health behaviours of undergraduate nursing students: a multi-methods study in two countries

Background Nurses play a vital role in health promotion, and there may be a link between a nurse’s own lifestyle practices and how they educate others. Supporting health and well-being in student nurses is critical given they will be educating others once registered and practicing. Objectives To explore the health and health behaviours of undergraduate nursing and midwifery students considering the demands of their profession, their public health role and their ability to be role models. Design Multi-methods study. Methods Undergraduate nursing students in the second and third years of their programme were invited to self-complete a health and health behaviour questionnaire in a Scottish and Australian Higher Education Institution. Qualitative data were collected from a convenience sample of 20 third-year nursing and midwifery students. Results Two hundred and thirty-five Scottish students and 113 Australian students, 175 (85%) and 84 (74%), respectively, completed the questionnaire. Some differences and similarities were noted across groups, in particular, perceived physical health, the prevalence of binge drinking, smoking and being overweight/obese and some dietary measures were found to be less favourable among Scottish students. There were worryingly high levels of poor mental well-being at both higher education institutions, with scores on a mental well-being scale suggesting that (82) 34.7% of Scottish students and 33 (29.6%) of Australian students were at risk of depression. Nine Scottish students and 11 Australian students were interviewed. Key contributors and barriers to healthy behaviours were noted across both groups of students in relation to lifestyle. Students perceived that certain elements of their curriculum had implications on their ability or motivation to make healthy lifestyle choices. Conclusion The poor health and health behaviours of future nurses need to be addressed in their higher education to shape resilient role models for future nursing practice. Impact Statement Priority should be given to supportive learning environments for student nurses that foster emotional support and encourage healthy lifestyles.

Long-term daily high-protein, drained yoghurt consumption alters abundance of selected functional groups of the human gut microbiota and fecal short-chain fatty acid profiles in a cohort of overweight and obese women

• A cohort of overweight and obese women consumed Skyr daily for 4 months. • This study combines longitudinal analysis, quantitative microbiota profiling, and in-depth fecal metabolite analysis. • Skyr consumption successfully transmitted both starter cultures to the gastrointestinal tract. • Intervention-dependent changes in fecal microbiota composition and short chain fatty acid profiles were linked to metabolites of dairy fermentations. • Skyr consumption had major impact on intestinal microbial cross-feeding. The consumption of fermented foods has gained considerable attention due to the ability to deliver live microbes with specific enzymatic activities, and fermentation metabolites, which might play a role in health promotion or disease prevention. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of long-term daily consumption of a high-protein drained yoghurt (Skyr) on intestinal microbial ecology and fermentation activity in a free-living cohort of overweight and obese women (n = 29). Longitudinal analysis and quantitative microbiota profiling identified time intervals with significantly differentially abundant taxa during intervention that differed in functional activity. Our results suggest that ingestion of Skyr persistently modified intestinal microbial cross-feeding activities which altered fecal short chain fatty acid profiles. This study provides a framework indicating the potential of fermented dairy containing starter cultures, lactose and lactate in individualized nutrition or microbiome engineering due to nutritive and microbial components.

The role of communication, building relationships, and adaptability in non-profit organisational capacity for health promotion.

While the non-profit sector has an integral role in health promotion, it is unclear whether these organisations have the capacity for health promotion activities. This study aims to explore and describe capacity changes of a non-profit organisation during a 3-year community-based nutrition intervention. The non-profit organisation, with 3800 members throughout the state of Queensland, Australia, implemented a 3-year food literacy community-based intervention. A team of qualified nutritionists delivered the program in partnership with community-based volunteers. A separate aim of the intervention was to build capacity of the non-profit organisation for health promotion. A qualitative study was undertaken, using a social constructivist approach to explore organisational capacity changes longitudinally. All relevant participants including non-profit executive managers and nutritionists were included in the study (100% response rate). Data collection included semi-structured interviews (n = 17) at multiple intervention time points and document analysis of program newsletters (n = 21). Interview transcripts and documents were analysed separately using thematic and content analysis. Codes and categories between the two data sources were then compared and contrasted to build themes. Organisational capacity was predominantly influenced by four themes; ‘communicating’, ‘changing relationships’, ‘limited organisational learning’ and ‘adaptability and resistance to change’. Developing non-profit organisational health promotion capacity appears to require focusing on fostering communication processes and building positive relationships over time. Capacity changes of the non-profit organisation were not linear, fluctuating across various levels over time. Assessing non-profit organisational capacity to implement community interventions by describing adaptive capacity, may help researchers focus on the processes that influence capacity development.

Primary school teachers’ contributions to oral health promotion in urban and rural areas of the Gulu District, Northern Uganda: a qualitative study

BackgroundDental caries remains the most prevalent non-communicable disease globally affecting 60–90% of children. The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) health-promoting school program offers a framework for dental intervention in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study explored teacher contributions to children’s oral health in relation to the WHO health-promoting school framework in rural Uganda.MethodsSemi structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 18 teachers. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.ResultsMany teachers reported preparing children to practise proper oral hygiene care through skills training and demonstrations around proper teeth brushing. Teachers’ roles included raising health awareness by providing information on oral health topics using different educational methods. Many teachers mentioned performing oral health examinations on children at the school, first aid, referral for dental treatments and engaging parents, students and health workers in oral health promotion.ConclusionsTeachers play an essential role in oral health promotion in countries like Uganda. Teachers are implementing key principles of the WHO’s health-promoting school framework on the ground and need to be considered as a key public health resource. If improvements in oral health are to be attained in Sub-Saharan Africa and other LMICs, government interventions need to harness teachers’ contributions in delivering oral health promotion.

Exploring nurses' experiences of social media and in-person educational interventions for professional development: a qualitative study

BackgroundNurses play an important role in health promotion, prevention strategies, and care. Therefore, nurses need to obtain and update their knowledge and skills via appropriate strategies. This study aimed to explore nurses’ experiences of receiving social media and in-person education to integrate the findings into practice.MethodsThis was a qualitative study using the directed content analysis approach. A sample of nurses with previous experiences of receiving social media and in-person education participated in the study. They were asked to express their experiences and indicate their preferences. The data were collected based on individual semi-structured interviews.ResultsIn total 15 participants took part in the study with a mean age of 40.6 ± 8.93 years and work experiences of 15.3 ± 9.21 years. During the process of content analysis, three main themes emerged: Approaches to nursing education and its adoption in the health system, Achieving effectiveness and efficiency in nursing education, and Health care policy and facilitating pathways for nursing education. Participants indicated several barriers to attending an educational program, including motivation, workload, time and place, and hospital politics.ConclusionOverall the findings suggest that regardless of any methods of education nurses cannot actively engage in the educational interventions while on duty. However, the findings suggest that nurses believe that the social media approach might be superior in reducing barriers and making the educational interventions work better.

Association between health literacy and purpose in life and life satisfaction among health management specialists: a cross-sectional study

Purpose in life is anchored as a goal in national health promotion plans in several countries. Health literacy is the ability to find, understand, use, and evaluate health-related information; this ability has been investigated in terms of its effect on health outcomes and is said to play a critical role in health promotion. In the context of national health promotion, the effect of health literacy on purpose in life and life satisfaction remains unclear; therefore, this study aims to determine the effect of health literacy. A cross-sectional study was conducted on Japanese health management specialists (N = 1920). Health literacy was measured using the Communicative and Critical Health Literacy scale. Purpose in life and life satisfaction were measured using the Ikigai-9 scale and a Likert scale, respectively. We analyzed the associations between health literacy and purpose in life and life satisfaction with regression analyses. Age, sex, income, education, marital status, psychological stress, and diseases as present illness were adjusted in the statistical models. Our multiple linear regressions indicated that health literacy was significantly associated with purpose in life (β = 0.199, p < 0.001), after adjusting for covariates (age, sex, income, education, marital status, psychological factor, and disease status). Life satisfaction was also significantly associated with health literacy (β = 0.126, p < 0.001). Health literacy is associated with purpose in life and life satisfaction among specialists in health management. Health literacy plays a critical role in lifestyle-related disease prevention and health promotion. Interventions to improve health literacy may be warranted in the context of national health promotion.

Perceptions of practising physiotherapists in Saudi Arabia about their role in the health promotion of patients with musculoskeletal conditions: a qualitative study.

This study aimed to explore physiotherapists' perceptions in Saudi Arabia about their understanding and role in health promotion through lifestyle behaviours and risk factors assessment and management of patients with musculoskeletal pain and disabilities. Qualitative study. One-to-one interviews with 12 physiotherapists (six females; mean age 34.5 ± 8) within a constructivist framework. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using a thematic analysis approach. Three themes were identified: (1) the physiotherapists' awareness and knowledge of health promotion; (2) current practice of physiotherapists to implementing health promotion practice; and (3) the physiotherapists' perceived barriers to implementing health promotion practice. Participants generally perceived health promotion to be within their scope of practice. However, their understanding and approaches to deliver this practice were varied and non-standardised. Some barriers to routine engagement in health promotion were identified, including time constraints, the beliefs of healthcare practitioners, and limited education and training. This study highlighted that physiotherapists acknowledged the role of health promotion in their practice. However, there were different explanations of the concept and it was informally practised.

Factors associated with the implementation of health-promoting telework from the perspective of company decision makers after the first COVID-19 lockdown

AimOwing to the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies shifted to telework, with few insights into its implementation, organisational conditions or the role of workplace health promotion and management. This study focused on a multifactorial investigation of conditions in companies which implemented and evaluated telework during the first lockdown in 2020 as well as on their future intentions to facilitate teleworking under health-promoting working conditions.Subject and methodsThe research hypotheses relate to an extended technology acceptance model. In a mixed-methods design, expert interviews were fed into the development of an online questionnaire. Out of 1858 contacted companies representing a broad range of Austrian businesses, 192 responses (general management, workplace health managers, etc.) were analysed using descriptive and multivariate statistics.ResultsThe degree of implementation and claim to teleworking increased significantly during the first lockdown and did not return to pre-pandemic levels afterwards. Changes depended on preparation and experience: evaluation of teleworking and willingness to continue offering teleworking were conditional on preparation and the degree of implementation. Prerequisites for future intentions to implement health-promoting teleworking included readiness, general willingness and existing workplace health promotion/management structures.ConclusionThis paper demonstrates the potential of health-promoting organisational cultures for development processes – particularly in times of crisis. Anchoring health-focused structures in companies helps to create health-promoting frameworks. Health-promoting teleworking can be developed from workplace health promotion/management using established approaches. It is essential to build on in-house capacities and competencies to develop awareness for a holistic culture for health-promoting (tele)work and to encourage deliberations about potential measures.

Quercetin Attenuates Osteoporosis in Orchiectomy Mice by Regulating Glucose and Lipid Metabolism via the GPRC6A/AMPK/mTOR Signaling Pathway.

Quercetin, a flavonoid found in natural medicines, has shown a role in disease prevention and health promotion. Moreover, because of its recently identified contribution in regulating bone homeostasis, quercetin may be considered a promising agent for improving bone health. This study aimed to elucidate the role of quercetin in androgen deprivation therapy-induced osteoporosis in mice. C57BL/6 mice were subjected to orchiectomy, followed by quercetin treatment (75 and 150 mg/kg/d) for 8 weeks. Bone microstructure was then assessed by micro-computed tomography, and a three-point bending test was used to evaluate the biomechanical parameters. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining was used to examine the shape of the distal femur, gastrocnemius muscle, and liver. The balance motion ability in mice was evaluated by gait analysis, and changes in the gastrocnemius muscle were observed via Oil red O and Masson’s staining. ELISA and biochemical analyses were used to assess markers of the bone, glucose, and lipid metabolism. Western blotting analyses of glucose and lipid metabolism-related protein expression was performed, and expression of the GPCR6A/AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway-related proteins was also assessed. After 8 weeks of quercetin intervention, quercetin-treated mice showed increased bone mass, bone strength, and improved bone microstructure. Additionally, gait analysis, including stride length and frequency, were significantly increased, whereas a reduction of the stride length and gait symmetry was observed. H&E staining of the gastrocnemius muscle showed that the cross-sectional area of the myofibers had increased significantly, suggesting that quercetin improves balance, motion ability, and muscle mass. Bone metabolism improvement was defined by a reduction of serum levels of insulin, triglycerides, total cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein, whereas levels of insulin-like growth factor-1 and high-density lipoprotein were increased after quercetin treatment. Expression of proteins involved in glucose uptake was increased, whereas that of proteins involved in lipid production was decreased. Moreover, the GPRC6A and the phospho-AMPK/AMPK expression ratio was elevated in the liver and tibia tissues. In contrast, the phospho-mTOR/mTOR ratio was reduced in the quercetin group. Our findings indicate that quercetin can reduce the osteoporosis induced by testosterone deficiency, and its beneficial effects might be associated with the regulation of glucose metabolism and inhibition of lipid metabolism via the GPCR6A/AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway.