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Special Issue "Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan"

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Public Health Statistics and Risk Assessment".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2021.

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ana Sofia Fernandes
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Leading Guest Editor

CBIOS - Research Center for Biosciences & Health Technologies, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Portugal
Interests: redox biology; oxidative stress; toxicology; cancer; drug discovery
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Dr. João Pedro Gregório
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Guest Editor

CBIOS - Research Center for Biosciences & Health Technologies, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Portugal
Interests: eHealth; health service research; health and development policies

Dr. Marilia Silva Paulo
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Guest Editor

Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
Interests: health systems; healthcare workers; environmental exposures; occupational health

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

During the course of a life, a person’s exposure to different risk factors changes and evolves. From malnutrition in the womb to occupational hazards, humans have to tackle multiple challenges.

Depending on the predominant social and environmental factors where a population is inserted, the pervasiveness of social determinants of health will determine the exposure to risk factors. Risk factors differ and evolve across the lifespan, and have particular importance at certain ages, including exposure to literacy, nutrition and lifestyle habits, environmental and occupational exposure, medication and drug use, and diseases. How populations and individuals deal with risk and its perception, learning mechanisms and coping strategies, how they change and evolve through life, and how to develop health-promotion strategies and implement interventions targeted to specific age groups, are all matters of interest for researchers.

This Special Issue aims to present a broad updated view of risk factor changes and evolution through the lifespan. Contributions from all over the globe are encouraged, in order to provide an image of the best practices and policies each country has in place to deal with this ever-present concern.

Researchers are invited to submit original research articles, using any study design, including case studies, implementation/interventional studies, cohort studies, cross-sectional studies, as well as reviews and meta-analyses.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Yours sincerely,

Dr. Ana Sofia Fernandes
Dr. João Pedro Gregório
Dr. Marilia Silva Paulo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2300 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Occupational and environmental exposure
Nutrition and lifestyle
Medication and drugs use
Health literacy
Public health interventions

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

A Potential Health Risk to Occupational User from Exposure to Biocidal Active Chemicals

Joo-Hyon Kim

Moon-Young Hwang

and

Yoo-jin Kim

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(23), 8770; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17238770 - 25 Nov 2020

Abstract

Biocidal active chemicals have potential health risks associated with exposure to retail biocide products such as disinfectants for COVID-19. Reliable exposure assessment was investigated to understand the exposure pattern of biocidal products used by occupational workers in their place of occupation, multi-use facilities, and general facilities. The interview–survey approach was taken to obtain the database about several subcategories of twelve occupational groups, the use pattern, and the exposure information of non-human hygiene disinfectant and insecticide products in workplaces. Furthermore, we investigated valuable exposure factors, e.g., the patterns of use, exposure routes, and quantifying potential hazardous chemical intake, on biocidal active ingredients. We focused on biocidal active-ingredient exposure from products used by twelve occupational worker groups. The 685 non-human hygiene disinfectants and 763 insecticides identified contained 152 and 97 different active-ingredient chemicals, respectively. The toxicity values and clinical health effects of total twelve ingredient chemicals were determined through a brief overview of toxicity studies aimed at estimating human health risks. To estimate actual exposure amounts divided by twelve occupational groups, the time spent to apply the products was investigated from the beginning to end of the product use. This study investigated the exposure assessment of occupational exposure to biocidal products used in workplaces, multi-use facilities, and general facilities. Furthermore, this study provides valuable information on occupational exposure that may be useful to conduct accurate exposure assessment and to manage products used for quarantine in general facilities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan)

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Graphical abstract

Open AccessArticle

Adenoma Characteristics and the Influence of Alcohol and Cigarette Consumption on the Development of Advanced Colorectal Adenomas

and

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(22), 8296; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17228296 - 10 Nov 2020

Abstract

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC), one of the leading public health problems worldwide, is a disease that can be prevented when it is detected in time. The objectives of this cross-sectional study were to investigate the characteristics of colorectal adenomas and whether alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking correlated with the development of advanced adenomas in participants in The National Programme for Early Detection of Colorectal Cancer (NP) in Osijek-Baranja County (OBC), Croatia. Methods: The screening methods were the guaiac Faecal Occult Blood Test (gFOBT), colonoscopy, histological analysis, and risk factor questionnaire. Results: The results showed the presence of adenomas in 136 men (57.4%) and 101 women (42.6%), p < 0.001. There was one adenoma in 147 (62%) most commonly located in sigmorect, in 86 (59%) participants, and 44 (18.6%) participants had multiple adenomas, most commonly found in multi loc, p < 0.001. According to size, 118 (49.8%) of all adenomas were between 0.1 and 0.9 cm, while adenomas of 3 cm 19 (8%) were the fewest, p < 0.001. There were 142 (59.9%) advanced adenomas. Conclusions: Adenoma development in the OBC population was correlated with predictors: adenoma size, high-grade dysplasia, smoking and alcohol consumption of 20 g per day. Non-smoking was found to be a health protective behaviour. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan)

Open AccessArticle

Gender-Based Analysis of Risk Factors for Dementia Using Senior Cohort

and

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(19), 7274; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17197274 - 05 Oct 2020

Abstract

Globally, one of the biggest problems with the increase in the elderly population is dementia. However, dementia still has no fundamental cure. Therefore, it is important to predict and prevent dementia early. For early prediction of dementia, it is crucial to find dementia risk factors that increase a person’s risk of developing dementia. In this paper, the subject of dementia risk factor analysis and discovery studies were limited to gender, because it is assumed that the difference in the prevalence of dementia in men and women will lead to differences in the risk factors for dementia among men and women. This study analyzed the Korean National Health Information System—Senior Cohort using machine-learning techniques. By using the machine-learning technique, it was possible to reveal a very small causal relationship between data that are ignored using existing statistical techniques. By using the senior cohort, it was possible to analyze 6000 data that matched the experimental conditions out of 558,147 sample subjects over 14 years. In order to analyze the difference in dementia risk factors between men and women, three machine-learning-based dementia risk factor analysis models were constructed and compared. As a result of the experiment, it was found that the risk factors for dementia in men and women are different. In addition, not only did the results include most of the known dementia risk factors, previously unknown candidates for dementia risk factors were also identified. We hope that our research will be helpful in finding new dementia risk factors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan)

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Figure 1

Open AccessArticle

Exploring Volatile Organic Compound Exposure and Its Association with Wheezing in Children under 36 Months: A Cross-Sectional Study in South Lisbon, Portugal

Raquel Rodrigues dos Santos

João Gregório

Liliana Castanheira

and

Ana S. Fernandes

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(18), 6929; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17186929 - 22 Sep 2020

Abstract

Air quality and other environmental factors are gaining importance in public health policies. Some volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been associated with asthma and symptoms of respiratory disease such as wheezing. The aim of this study was to measure the concentration of Total VOCs and assess their possible association with the occurrence of wheezing episodes in children under 36 months of age, in a region south of Lisbon, Portugal. A cross-sectional study was performed from October 2015 to March 2016. The sample of children under 36 months of age was selected by convenience, by inviting parents to take part in the study. A survey was applied to collect information on bedroom features, as well as to verify the occurrence of wheezing episodes. The indoor air quality parameters of bedrooms were measured using three 3M Quest^® EVM-7 environmental monitors. In total, 34.4% of infants had had wheezing episodes since birth, with 86.7% of these presenting at least one episode in the previous 12 months. Total VOC levels were above the reference values in 48% of the analyzed bedrooms. No significant association of VOC exposure in a domestic setting with episodes of wheezing was found. However, children living in households with smokers were 4 times more likely to develop wheezing episodes. Thus, this study provides relevant information that warrants further studies to assess infant exposure to indoor air pollution and parental smoking in a residential context. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan)

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Figure 1

Open AccessArticle

Changes in Eating Habits among Displaced and Non-Displaced University Students

Rita Bárbara

and

Cíntia Ferreira-Pêgo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(15), 5369; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17155369 - 25 Jul 2020

Abstract

Nowadays the younger generations are moving their food habits from the traditional diet to a Western diet, which is low in fruits and vegetables and high in fat and sugary drinks. University students are a particularly vulnerable population once, with the entrance to university, they are subjected to new influences and responsibilities; in particular, those who live far from their parents’ houses are more predisposed to unhealthy eating habits. To assess the influence that admission to university has had on the frequency of intake of certain foods and meals as well as their adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet), self-administered questionnaires were applied. The sample included 97 Portuguese students, with an average age of 21 years, a normal weight, according to body mass index, and an average MedDiet adherence. Most of the individuals did not smoke and the majority did not drink coffee. It was also observed that displaced students consume fast food more frequently compared to the period before they start university. Fish ingestion decreased and coffee consumption increased, in the same group, after starting their university studies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan)

Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Title: Changes in Eating Habits Among Displaced and Non-Displaced University Students
Authors: Cíntia Pêgo
Affiliation: Universidade Lusófona’s Research Center for Biosciences and Health Technologies, Lisbon, Portugal
Abstract: NA

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Special Issue "Public Health and Risk Factors across the Lifespan"

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