Swedish Boys Research Articles

Weight status and psychosomatic complaints in Swedish adolescent boys and girls: does family support play a buffering role?

BackgroundPsychosomatic complaints have increased among adolescents in recent decades, as have overweight and obesity rates. Both of these trends are regarded as public health concerns. However, the associations between weight status and psychosomatic complaints are not yet clear, necessitating further research. The aim of the present study was to investigate the associations between weight status and psychosomatic complaints in Swedish adolescent boys and girls, as well as to explore the potential buffering effect of family support.MethodsThe data was obtained from the cross-sectional Swedish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study conducted in 2017/18, which involved 3,135 students aged 11, 13, and 15 years. Weight status was based on self-reported information on weight and height, which allowed for the calculation of body mass index (BMI) and the categorisation of participants into three groups: non-overweight, overweight, and obese. Psychosomatic complaints were assessed based on information regarding the frequency of eight different complaints, which were summed into an index. Family support was measured using three items describing the level of perceived emotional support, and an index was created, which was dichotomised into low and high family support. Gender stratified linear regression models were run to examine the associations between weight status and psychosomatic complaints. Age and family affluence were included as covariates. Interaction terms were included to evaluate whether family support moderated the main association.ResultsObesity was associated with higher levels of psychosomatic complaints in both boys and girls when compared to being non-overweight (boys: b = 2.56, 95% CI 0.32, 4.79; girls: b = 3.35, 95% CI 0.77, 5.94), while being overweight did not show any statistically significant associations with the outcome (boys: b = 0.21, 95% CI -0.72, 1.15; girls: b = 0.78, 95% CI -0.42, 1.98). In girls, a statistically significant interaction effect between family support and weight status was observed (p = 0.031), indicating that family support buffered against psychosomatic complaints in girls with obesity. No statistically significant interaction was found for boys (p = 0.642).ConclusionsThe findings of this study highlight the importance of public health initiatives aimed at preventing childhood obesity. They also underscore the significant role of family support in reducing psychosomatic complaints among adolescents with obesity. Further research is necessary to gain a deeper understanding of these relationships.

Swedish Boys’ Narratives on Sexual Harassment and their Ways of Doing Masculinity

When #MeToo was the most intensive, many girls, women and non-binary people’s voices were heard about being exposed. Knowledge on boys’ perspectives is important as they need to be involved to provide change. In research, boys’ and men’s voices are missing unless accounted for in settings associated with violence or harassment. This project contributes knowledge about schoolboys’ positionings with respect to masculine hegemony and sexual harassment. The analysis of pair interviews with 22 participating boys, aged 14–16, suggests three ways in which they relate to the topic. With respect to the discursive patterns labelled equal boy and let-go boy, gender issues are competently expressed and these two patterns convey knowledge about the power that the gender culture exercises. These two discursive patterns also suggest a proficient way of taking the gender order into account to fit in with the peer group. Nevertheless, the third pattern, labelled the dominant boy, suggests settings when a traditional masculinity culture exercises power. We conclude that discussions on situations where different discursive patterns are overt would facilitate a shift towards gender equal discourses with less risk of sexual harassment.

Treatment of Osgood-Schlatter disease in an adolescent athlete with liquid platelet-rich fibrin and heat-coagulated albumin gel: a case report

Background: Knee pain is one of the most frequent musculoskeletal symptoms in young physically active males. In some cases, it is very painful, can be hard to treat, and often leads to heterotopic ossification of the patellar tendon. To the best of our knowledge, there are no reported cases of remission of ossification after clinical intervention. Case Presentation: A 13-year-old Swedish boy with a 3-year anamnesis of severe Osgood-Schlatter with significant ossification of the patellar tendon at the point of tuberositas tibiae, was treated with injections of liquid platelet-rich fibrin concentrated platelet rich fibrin and heat coagulated albumin platelet rich fibrin gel (ALB-PRF) using a horizontal centrifuge system. He recovered and presented a near complete remission of ossification of the patellar tendon 2 months after treatment and could return to sport after a 3-year break. Conclusion: This case raises the hypothesis that liquid ALB-PRF gel may be an effective intervention in the treatment of Osgood-Schlatter disease. Further research is required to test this theory.

Treatment of Osgood-Schlatter disease in an adolescent athlete with liquid platelet-rich fibrin and heat-coagulated albumin gel: a case report

Background: Knee pain is one of the most frequent musculoskeletal symptoms in young physically active males. In some cases, it is very painful, can be hard to treat, and often leads to heterotopic ossification of the patellar tendon. To the best of our knowledge, there are no reported cases of remission of ossification after clinical intervention. Case Presentation: A 13-year-old Swedish boy with a 3-year anamnesis of severe Osgood-Schlatter with significant ossification of the patellar tendon at the point of tuberositas tibiae, was treated with injections of liquid platelet-rich fibrin concentrated platelet rich fibrin and heat coagulated albumin platelet rich fibrin gel (ALB-PRF) using a horizontal centrifuge system. He recovered and presented a near complete remission of ossification of the patellar tendon 2 months after treatment and could return to sport after a 3-year break. Conclusion: This case raises the hypothesis that liquid ALB-PRF gel may be an effective intervention in the treatment of Osgood-Schlatter disease. Further research is required to test this theory.

Shared Genetic Factors Contributing to the Overlap between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms and Overweight/Obesity in Swedish Adolescent Girls and Boys.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obesity are positively associated, with increasing evidence that they share genetic risk factors. Our aim was to examine whether these findings apply to both types of ADHD symptoms for female and male adolescents. We used data from 791 girl and 735 boy twins ages 16-17 years to examine sex-specific phenotypic correlations between the presence of ADHD symptoms and overweight/obese status. For correlations exceeding .20, we then fit bivariate twin models to estimate the genetic and environmental correlations between the presence of ADHD symptoms and overweight/obese status. ADHD symptoms and height/weight were parent- and self-reported, respectively. Phenotypic correlations were .30 (girls) and .08 (boys) for inattention and overweight/obese status and .23 (girls) and .14 (boys) for hyperactivity/impulsivity and overweight/obese status. In girls, both types of ADHD symptoms and overweight/obese status were highly heritable, with unique environmental effects comprising the remaining variance. Furthermore, shared genetic effects explained most of the phenotypic correlations in girls. Results suggest that the positive association of both types of ADHD symptoms with obesity may be stronger in girls than boys. Further, in girls, these associations may stem primarily from shared genetic factors.

Behavioural strengths and difficulties in relation to intellectual functions and age in Swedish boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to describe behavioral strengths and difficulties in relation to intellectual function and age in boys with DMD. In a cross-sectional design, 70 boys with DMD were tested at 5, 8, 11, and 14 years of age (mean age 10y 5 m). Parental ratings of behavioral strengths and difficulties were studied in relation to age, intellectual function, motor function, and family socioeconomic status (SES). Results show a significant relation between behavioral strengths and difficulties and age with parents rating increasingly more difficulties (slightly higher, higher and very high) from 5 years (11.1%) to 9 years (30.8%) and 11 years (78.9%) of age and then fewer difficulties at 14 years (50%) of age. Working Memory Index (WMI) explained significant variance in SDQ-Total-Score (17.5%) and SDQ-Impact-Score (11.2%). WMI together with upper motor function explained 19.5% variance in SDQ-Hyperactivity and 19.7% in SDQ-Peer-Problems. Age and SES explained an 18.9% variance in SDQ-Emotional-Problems. Age is an important factor when analyzing behavioral strengths and difficulties for boys with DMD. The development of boys with DMD needs to be understood in the context of expected developmental trajectory as well as in the decline of psychical functioning. Our study supports that age, cognition, motor function, and family SES all contribute to how behavioral strengths and difficulties evolves in boys with DMD.

Training cooperative citizens: masculinity and democratic citizenship in the Swedish Boy Scout Movement after 1945

ABSTRACT This article discusses the reconfiguration of citizenship education in the Swedish Boy Scout movement, one of the country’s largest civil society organizations, after 1945. Citizenship education was a core feature of scouting since its establishment during the first decades of the twentieth century, with patriotism and practical helpfulness as core tenets. Additionally, an emphasis on hiking and camping sought to train Scouts to become self-reliant and self-regulatory members of society. After 1945, several former Scout virtues, such as honour, self-sacrifice and bravery, became increasingly associated with authoritarian values and were thus challenged by democratic, individualist ideals. By the 1950s, differences between Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting became less apparent, and explicitly masculine ideals were rejected by leading figures of the Boy Scout movement. The reconfiguration of citizenship education contributed to gender integration and co-educational reform that reshaped the Scout movement in Sweden during the 1950s and 1960s.

Localized Internationalism : Camping Across Borders in the Early Swedish Boy Scout Movement

Localized Internationalism : Camping Across Borders in the Early Swedish Boy Scout Movement

“Something You Just Don’t Talk About”: An Analysis of Teenage Boys’ Experiences of Non-Consensual Sexting in Lower Secondary School

The current study explores Swedish teenage boys’ exposure to non-consensual sexting, drawing on interviews with ninth-grade students, age 14 to 15 years, in a lower secondary school in northern Sweden. The results reveal that boys are exposed to unsolicited “dick pics,” unsolicited “female nudes” and non-consensual “explicit video” sharing via the social media platform Snapchat. However, traditional notions of heteronormativity and heterosexual masculinity prevented boys from talking about, understanding and handling experiences that may be identified as digital sexual harassment. Additionally, because of traditional gendered perceptions, students had difficulty categorizing victims and perpetrators of sexting. The study shows that there is a link between male vulnerability and male loneliness that can be manifested in both an individual and collective sense.

Excellent Self-Rated Health among Swedish Boys and Girls and Its Relationship with Working Conditions in School: A Cross-Sectional Study.

The aim of this study was to investigate the extent to which school demands, teacher support, and classmate support were associated with excellent self-rated health among students, and to examine if any such statistical predictions differed by gender. Data were drawn from the Swedish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study of 2017/18, performed among adolescents in grades five, seven, and nine (n = 3701). Linear probability models showed that school demands were negatively associated with excellent self-rated health, whereas teacher and classmate support showed positive associations. The link with school demands was stronger for girls than boys, driven by the finding that in grades five and nine, school demands were associated with excellent self-rated health only among girls. In conclusion, the study suggests that working conditions in school in terms of manageable school demands and strong teacher and classmate support may benefit adolescents’ positive health. The finding that the link between school demands and excellent self-rated health was more evident among girls than among boys may be interpreted in light of girls’ on average stronger focus on schoolwork and academic success. The study contributes with to knowledge about how working conditions in school may impede or promote students’ positive health.

Daily School Physical Activity Improves Academic Performance.

Physical activity (PA) may improve brain development, cognition, concentration and academic performance. In this prospective controlled intervention study, we increased the level of PA in 338 children aged 6–8 years at study start, from the Swedish standard of 60 min per week to 200 min per week (40 min daily). The intervention continued in all nine compulsory school years until the students graduated between 2007–2012. All other 689,881 Swedish children who graduated the same years were included as a control group. We registered at graduation eligibility rate for upper secondary school and the final grade score (from 0 to 320 grade points). We also registered the same end points in the 295 students in the index school and in all other 471,926 Swedish students who graduated in 2003–2006, that is, those who graduated before the intervention study started. Before the intervention, academic performance was similar among children in the index school as for all other Swedish boys and girls. With the intervention, the eligibility rate increased for boys in the index school by 7.3 percentage points and the mean grade scores by 13.3 points. This should be compared with a decrease of 0.8 percentage points in eligibility rate and an increase by 2.7 points in grade score in other Swedish boys. No changes were seen for intervention girls, neither in eligibility rates or grade scores. By introducing daily school-based PA in compulsory school, more boys would probably reach the eligibility rate for higher education.

Social-emotional problems among Swedish three-year-olds: an Item Response Theory analysis of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional

BackgroundThere is enough evidence to believe that young children’s social-emotional problems can have a long-term effect if extra support is not given early. Therefore, early identification of such problems and any differences between boys and girls are of importance. We utilized the 36-month interval of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ:SE) among 3-year-olds aiming: 1) to report the normative values of social-emotional problems for Swedish boys and girls; 2) to identify ASQ:SE items that are most commonly endorsed by children with high level of social-emotional problems (high score on ASQ:SE); 3) to assess whether certain ASQ:SE items differ between boys and girls at the same level of social-emotional problems; and 4) to examine whether ASQ:SE performs well in identifying children with high level of social-emotional problems (high score on ASQ:SE).MethodDuring 2014–2017, data were collected from 7179 three-year-old children (boys = 3719, girls = 3460) through Child Health Care in the Region Västerbotten in the northern part of Sweden. Unidimensionality was assessed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis and goodness-of-fit was reported. Item Response Theory was used to answer the aims of the study.ResultsItems regarding interest in sexual words, too little sleep, disinterest in things around, unhappiness and self-injury were more commonly endorsed by children with high levels of social-emotional problems, as reported by their parents. For the same level of social-emotional problem, girls were more likely to demonstrate difficulties in occupying themselves, clinging behaviour and repetitive behaviour. On the other hand, boys were more likely to score high in items regarding destruction of things on purpose, difficulty to name friends and to express feelings. We have also found that the ASQ:SE is suitable for identifying children with high level of social-emotional problems.ConclusionThe salient point of our study was to increase knowledge about Swedish children’s social-emotional problems at 3-years of age based on the psychometric characteristics of the ASQ:SE using Item Response Theory model. The gender differences as well as those items that occurred at high levels of social-emotional problems should be of concern for everyday practice in Child Health Care.

Growth and Pubertal Timing in Boys With Adult-diagnosed Celiac Disease: A Population-based Longitudinal Cohort Study.

There are few longitudinal data on whether childhood growth and pubertal timing may be impaired by adult-diagnosed celiac disease (CD). Through school health care records and national registers, we retrieved serial growth measurements on 37,672 Swedish boys born in 1945 to 1961, out of whom 72 (0.2%) were clinically diagnosed with CD as adults. Boys with, versus without, adult-diagnosed CD exhibited no appreciable mean differences in body mass index (BMI, kg/m) and height (cm) at ages 8 or 20 to 21 years (childhood BMI, 15.9 [CD] vs 15.7 [comparators]; childhood height, 129.1 [CD] vs 128.6 [comparators]; adult BMI, 21.3 [CD] vs 21.4 [comparators]; adult height, 180.7 [CD] vs 180.4 [comparators]). Neither did we observe any between-group differences in growth development during puberty nor in the timing of pubertal growth spurt (all P values ≥0.30). Conclusively, in this population-based longitudinal study, boys with adult-diagnosed CD had similar growth and pubertal timing as their peers.

Secular Trends in Pubertal Growth Acceleration in Swedish Boys Born From 1947 to 1996

A secular trend for earlier menarcheal age has been established in girls but there are few studies of pubertal timing for boys. To determine if there is a secular trend for earlier pubertal timing among boys. For this population-based retrospective cohort study conducted in Gothenburg, Sweden, we collected heights and weights from school health records for boys born consecutively from January 1 and onwards in 1947 and every 5 years from 1951 to 1996 (n = 375 for each birth cohort from 1947-1991, n = 340 for the birth cohort in 1996, and n = 4090 for the total cohort). We estimated age at the peak height velocity (PHV), the maximum growth velocity during puberty, and childhood body mass index (BMI) at age 8 years for all study participants. The data were analyzed during 2018 and 2019. Boys were eligible if they had a complete personal identity number and data to calculate their age at PHV and childhood BMI. Approximately 2.4% of the original study population was excluded because they lacked a personal identity number, and in the remaining study population, 4090 (69%) had sufficient data to calculate childhood BMI and age at PHV. The exposure was birth year and a potential confounding factor was childhood BMI. The outcome was age at PHV. Of the 4090 participants, most were white and the mean (SD) age at PHV was 13.9 (1.1) years. A linear regression model revealed a significant association between year of birth and age at PHV. Age at PHV was 1.5 months earlier for every decade increase in birth year (95% CI, -1.72 to -1.19; P < .001). After adjusting for childhood BMI, age at PHV was 1.2 months earlier per decade increase in birth year (95% CI, -1.41 to -0.89). All analyses were repeated in the subgroup of boys born in Sweden and with parents born in Sweden with similar results, indicating that the secular trend was not explained by demographic changes in the population between 1947 and 1996. We provide evidence of a secular trend for earlier pubertal timing in boys that is partially explained by an increased childhood BMI, but other factors that are unknown contribute.

Secular trends of birthweight in boys from 1950 to 2010

Birthweight is an indicator of fetal development and intrauterine conditions and is associated with future health outcomes. Secular birthweight trends prior to the 1970s are mostly unknown. Our aim was to explore secular birthweight trends in Swedish boys from 1950 to 2010. We have collected detailed growth data including birthweight from archived School Health Care records for children born in Gothenburg from 1946 and onwards and established a unique population-based cohort, the Body Mass Index Epidemiology Study (BEST). The birthweight cohort spans six decades (1950-2010) and includes 46,548 boys. The mean birthweight of the complete study cohort was 3580±562g. Linear regression analysis of the entire period revealed a minimal negative secular trend for birthweight (BETA=-0.4g/year; p<0.01). However, three distinct trends appeared during sub-periods: a decrease 1950-80, an increase 1980-2000 and another decrease 2000-2010. We demonstrate that birthweight in boys has undergone periodic decreases and subsequent increases, but the overall trend from the 1950s to the present is stable.

Discipline and Punish at Camp: Citizenship and the Issue of Violence at a Swedish Boy Scout Camp

This article examines reports of physical punishment at the national Swedish Boy Scout camp Åvatyr in 1950. The Swedish newspapers Dagens Nyheter and Expressen described the events in terms of bullying and violence, while the camp directors declared that the reports were merely exaggerated accounts of innocent pranks and practical jokes. This article draws information from newspaper articles, Scout magazines and archival sources to discuss how the incidents at the Åvatyr camp tapped into a debate on disciplinary measures against children in Sweden. The analysis also concerns how these acts of punishment related to the Boy Scouts’ scheme of citizenship instruction. Finally, the long-term effects of this purported scandal are evaluated, including a call for reform of masculinity and citizenship ideals within the Boy Scout movement during the following decade.

Mental health problems and social disadvantages as predictors of teenage parenthood: A register-based population study of Swedish boys and girls

It has been argued that the relationship between mental health and teenage parenthood might be explained by the connection of social disadvantage and mental health. This paper embraces a life course approach and investigates the link between social and health disadvantages and teenage parenthood in Sweden, in attempt to disentangle experiences of early mental health problems from other social disadvantage factors. The research questions were explored through random intercept logistic models for panel data. The data for this study consists of all individuals born in Sweden between 1989 and 1994, drawn from Swedish population registers. The final models comprised 680,848 individuals who were followed throughout their teenage years. The results show that mental health problems in youth function as an independent predictor of teenage parenthood, even after adjusting for other social disadvantage factors. This observation applies for both boys and girls. Activities aimed at increasing the perceived life opportunities of youth and giving significance to life may be considered as means of preventing teenage parenthood through policy. This study suggests that such activities could be extended to include teenagers with mental health problems.

Suicide attempt predicted by academic performance and childhood IQ: a cohort study of 26 000 children.

Academic performance in youth, measured by grade point average (GPA), predicts suicide attempt, but the mechanisms are not known. It has been suggested that general intelligence might underlie the association. We followed 26 315 Swedish girls and boys in population-representative cohorts, up to maximum 46 years of age, for the first suicide attempt in hospital records. Associations between GPA at age 16, IQ measured in school at age 13 and suicide attempt were investigated in Cox regressions and mediation analyses. There was a clear graded association between lower GPA and subsequent suicide attempt. With control for potential confounders, those in the lowest GPA quartile had a near five-fold risk (HR 4.9, 95% CI 3.7-6.7) compared to those in the highest quartile. In a mediation analysis, the association between GPA and suicide attempt was robust, while the association between IQ and suicide attempt was fully mediated by GPA. Poor academic performance in compulsory school, at age 16, was a robust predictor of suicide attempt past young adulthood and seemed to account for the association between lower childhood IQ and suicide attempt.

Structural relations between sources of parental knowledge, feelings of being overly controlled and risk behaviors in early adolescence

ABSTRACTIn this study, we have investigated parental knowledge and its sources, namely adolescent disclosure, parental control, and parental solicitation; and how they relate to adolescents’ feelings of being overly controlled, and to three types of adolescent risk behaviors, namely bullying, substance use, and delinquent behavior. This was studied in a sample of 1520 Swedish early adolescent boys and girls (M age = 13.0). A structural equation path model showed that adolescent disclosure and parental control were positively associated with parental knowledge, which in turn related to all three risk behaviors. Adolescent disclosure was related to lower levels of risk behaviors, while parental solicitation was linked to higher levels of adolescent engagement in risk behaviors, especially for boys, through feelings of being overly controlled. The findings support the idea of a functional role of open communication, as well as adequate levels of autonomy granting, for managing boys’ and girls’ risk behavior.

Factor analysis of the adolescent version of the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q): results from Swedish general population and clinical samples

BackgroundAlthough the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) is perhaps the single most widely used self-report measure of eating disorder (ED) symptoms, important questions remain about its validity and applicability in relation to particular groups of individuals, especially adolescents of both genders.MethodsThe present study investigated the factor structure of the adolescent version of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) in samples of Swedish girls and boys from the general population and girls with a diagnosed eating disorder. Girls (N = 239) and boys (N = 248) aged between 13 and 15 years who were attending school, and girls (N = 570) aged between 12 and 14 years who were in treatment for an eating disorder at a specialist eating disorder clinic were assessed on the adolescent version of the EDE-Q.ResultsThe adolescent version of the EDE-Q demonstrated satisfactory levels of internal consistency. However, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) failed to support the four-factor model of the EDE-Q. Parallel analysis (PA) and subsequent exploratory factor analysis (EFA) suggested that the adolescent version of the EDE-Q comprises one underlying factor in young adolescent girls (both clinical and general population), centred on Dissatisfaction with Shape and Weight. In boys three factors were found: Weight-related Concerns, Body Discomfort and Restraint.ConclusionsThe EDE-Q appears to measure different underlying aspects of eating disorder psychopathology in young teenagers compared to adults. The dimensions underlying disordered eating in young girls may become increasingly differentiated with time. There appear to be important gender-based differences in the dimensions underlying the EDE-Q in young teenagers. Therapists should be alert to beliefs that girls have about the importance of shape and weight, while in boys it may be more important to be attentive to how they feel about their bodies in relation to weight.