Search Results (40)

Background/Objectives: Social media’s impact on adult well-being varies by engagement patterns, highlighting the need for evidence to inform digital well-being strategies. This study examines the association between social media use and self-esteem, a key psychological indicator linked to adult well-being, with the aim of identifying modifiable behavioral targets relevant to clinical, workplace, and public health contexts. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 81 Greek adults assessed daily social media use, engagement patterns, and self-esteem using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Analyses included linear and exploratory quadratic regression models, multiple regression with demographic covariates (age, gender), and descriptive group comparisons. Results: A small but statistically significant negative association was observed between daily social media use and self-esteem (R² = 0.078), indicating limited explanatory power. Exploratory analyses did not provide strong evidence of non-linear effects. Demographic factors and usage categories were not significant predictors, likely reflecting limited statistical power. Participant self-reports highlighted potentially disruptive patterns such as intensive use at specific times/conditions, perceived sleep impact, and cognitive preoccupation with social media, as well as motivation to reduce or stop use. Conclusions: Time spent online is a weak predictor of self-esteem, underscoring the importance of engagement quality over frequency. From a management perspective, the findings support shifting attention from generic screen-time reduction to targeting specific potentially high-risk patterns of engagement in future policy and practice. This exploratory pilot study provides initial, hypothesis-generating evidence within a Greek adult sample and highlights the need for larger, population-based studies to confirm and extend these findings. Full article

Background/Objectives: The ReCODE (Reversal of Cognitive Decline) protocol, a precision medicine program for patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), has demonstrated promising results in improving cognitive function. However, its impact on mood, specifically depressive symptoms, has been less explored. Depression is highly prevalent in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and AD, shares common risk factors (e.g., systemic inflammation), and negatively affects quality of life and disease trajectory. This study evaluated whether participation in the ReCODE program is associated with measurable improvement in depressive symptoms, as assessed by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Methods: This retrospective, observational analysis utilized de-identified data from 170 individuals diagnosed with mild to moderate AD enrolled in the ReCODE program. Participants received initial consultations and program orientation. Follow-up visits occurred 31 days post-enrollment, including further guidance on diet, lifestyle, medications, and supplements, along with mood assessment using the PHQ-9. Pre- and post-intervention PHQ-9 scores were analyzed using the non-parametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: Participants showed a statistically and clinically significant reduction in PHQ-9 scores. Improvement was observed across all baseline depression categories (mild, moderate, and severe). Critically, the proportion of participants scoring above the clinical threshold for depression decreased substantially following the intervention. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the ReCODE precision-medicine framework offers concurrent benefits for both mood and cognition. Extending prior work, our results indicate that the ReCODE program not only benefits cognitive and biological measures but also significantly alleviates depressive symptoms. While the results highlight ReCODE’s potential as a successful multifaceted therapeutic approach addressing both cognitive decline and mental health in Alzheimer’s disease, given the retrospective, uncontrolled design, the findings should be interpreted as associative and hypothesis-generating rather than causal. Full article

Background/Objectives: Environmental noise is a non-specific biological stressor that is becoming an escalating health concern for both industrialized and developing countries. A study by the World Health Organization identified ambient noise as the second most prevalent factor adversely affecting public health, causing high levels of stress. Extended or intense exposure to environmental noise (EN) has been linked to various alterations in auditory pathways and auditory-related central nervous system structures. We tested the hypothesis that acute exposure to intense noise could lead to such alterations. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate neuronal activation in auditory-related brain regions resulting from acute noise exposure using immunohistochemistry processes. Methods: We examined a total of 12 Wistar rats (6 rats for noise exposure group; 6 rats for the control group). The noise exposure group was exposed to intense noise, while the control group experienced basal noise for thirty minutes. After scarification of the rats, tissues were collected and examined histologically using the immunohistochemical staining method. Results: Our research demonstrates that acute noise exposure markedly elevates neuronal activity in critical parts of the auditory system, such as the cochlear nuclei, inferior colliculi, trapezoid body, and primary auditory cortex. While we identified c-Fos immunoreactive neurons in the medial geniculate body of both the experiment and control groups, no statistically significant changes were found between these groups. Conclusions: These findings indicate that noise exposure-related stress could be caused primarily by the disruption of lower centers rather than the medial geniculate body. Full article

Financial fragility among non-financial corporations (NFCs) has become a critical concern in developing economies, where both firm-specific and macroeconomic conditions shape corporate financial stability. Understanding these dynamics is essential to enhancing corporate resilience and informing effective regulatory interventions. This study is motivated by Minsky’s Financial Instability Hypothesis (FIH), to empirically investigate the determinants of financial fragility in Jordanian non-financial firms (NFCs) using panel data from 71 companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) between 2015 and 2021. By employing a panel logistic regression analysis, results reveal that Return on Assets (ROA) significantly supports financial stability, while inflation negatively impacts it, underlining the detrimental impact of increasing inflation rates on corporate financial health. The beneficial effects of GDP growth and institutional quality also emphasize how important governance and economic conditions are in promoting financial stability. The study offers an original insight on the dynamics of financial fragility in a developing market, with important ramifications for regulators, business managers, and policymakers looking to boost institutional quality, control inflation, and increase corporate profitability. The findings extend Minsky’s hypothesis to a developing-market context and provide implications for policymakers seeking to strengthen institutional frameworks, contain inflationary pressures, and promote corporate financial stability. Full article

Background/Objectives: Cord blood mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn) has been proposed as a biomarker reflecting environmental influences during fetal life, with reported associations with perinatal outcomes such as birth weight and length. Within the framework of the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) theory, this study aimed to investigate whether cord blood mtDNAcn is related to postnatal physical growth in early childhood. Methods: We analyzed data from 150 newborns (68 females and 82 males) enrolled in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study in Japan. Cord blood mtDNAcn was quantified using real-time PCR, and standard deviation scores for weight and height were assessed at 1, 2–3, 4–6, 18–24, and 36–48 months of age. Correlation analyses were conducted separately by sex. Results: Cord blood mtDNAcn showed no significant associations with body weight or height at any of the postnatal time points up to 48 months of age. Growth trajectories of infants with higher or lower mtDNAcn values at birth tended to converge toward the population mean during infancy and toddlerhood. Conclusions: Although no significant relationships were observed, this exploratory, hypothesis-generating study provides a foundation for future investigations. Larger cohorts with extended follow-up are needed to clarify the potential significance of cord blood mtDNAcn in early-life research on child growth and health. Full article

Forest tourism visitation in U.S. national forests has grown by approximately 8 percent over the past decade (from 2014 to 2022) from 147 million to 158.7 million visits per year, indicating a clear upward trajectory in demand for nature-based leisure experiences, yet the determinants of traveler satisfaction in this context remain insufficiently understood. Existing studies have primarily emphasized destination attributes, overlooking the interplay between psychological motivations, lifestyle orientations, and physical conditions. This omission is critical because it limits a holistic understanding of forest traveler’s experiences, which prevents us from fully capturing how internal dispositions, everyday life contexts, and well-being concerns interact with destination attributes to shape satisfaction. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how motivation, lifestyle, and physical condition jointly shape satisfaction in forest tourism, drawing on Push–Pull Theory and environmental psychology. A dataset of 10,792 TripAdvisor reviews of U.S. national forests was analyzed using LIWC 2022 for psycholinguistic feature extraction and Ordered Logit Regression for hypothesis testing. Results show that positive emotional tone, leisure-oriented language, health references, and reward motivation significantly enhance satisfaction, while negative tone, illness, and work-related language reduce it. Curiosity and risk motivations were non-significant, and allure exerted only a marginal effect. These findings extend the Push–Pull framework by incorporating lifestyle and physical condition as moderating variables and validate emotional tone in user-generated content as a proxy for subjective evaluations. The study refines motivation theory by revealing context-specific effects of motivational dimensions. The results offer actionable insights for destination managers, service providers, marketers, and policymakers aiming to enhance forest travel experiences and promote sustainable tourism development. Full article

Increasing temperatures associated with climate change will lead to (periodic) temperature-induced reductions in food intake in human and other mammal populations. Human adults, however, are both tolerant and resilient to periodic nutritional deficits, and the associated health effects should be limited. Intermittent nutritional deficits may also cause growth restriction in developing foetuses and young children, which potentially affects their food intake in later life. Therefore, temperature-induced hypophagia can be hypothesised to manifest as later compensatory responses with multiple concomitant (or extended) lags of varying temporal dimensions. We examined the relationship between calorie intake and ambient outdoor temperatures for a time series covering past decades (FAO data for 1961–2013) in 80 countries to determine if humans alter their food intake in response to elevated temperatures. We included eleven different temporal “windows of exposure” of varying lag. These windows considered current and recent exposure, just as lagged effects allowed for a consideration of past effects on mothers, their children, and childhood exposure. It was hypothesised that one of these could provide a basis for predicting future changes in human calorie intake in response to climate change. Our analyses showed no apparent association with temperatures in ten of the eleven hypotheses/models. The remaining hypothesis suggests that current calorie intake is linked to decadal mean temperatures with a lag of approximately three decades, pointing to an impact on mothers and their (developing) children. The impact of an increase in mean temperature varies with temperature amplitudes, and negative impacts are only found in countries with low temperature amplitudes (warmer countries), albeit the impact on calorie intake caused by a 2–3 °C change in temperatures or temperature amplitudes is generally modest. However, in considering calorie intake, we only address quantities of food (with unspecified quality), which insufficiently reflect the full range of nutritional challenges associated with increasing temperatures. Understanding climate-driven changes in human food intake requires global interdisciplinary collaboration across public health, environmental science, and policy. Full article

Background: Polysubstance use, particularly combining opioids with stimulants such as cocaine, is rising among individuals with substance use disorders. This practice aims to balance cocaine’s stimulant effects with opioids’ sedative effect, potentially decreasing adverse outcomes. We hypothesized that concurrent exposure to cocaine and opioids would reduce the risk of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) compared to opioid use alone. Methods: This analysis draws from an ongoing prospective study of maternal substance use (SUD) at Regional One Health’s perinatal center in Memphis, TN, and included mothers and their infants born between 2018 and 2022. Maternal SUD was identified via screening questionnaires, urine toxicology, or umbilical cord tissue analysis. Participants were grouped into using (a) opioids with cocaine (OwC) and (b) opioids without cocaine (OwoC). Univariate and regression analyses were conducted to assess the risk of NOWS. Results: A total of 353 infants were born to 342 mothers, with 31% (110/353) of the infants born to women who used cocaine along with opioids. While maternal demographics were similar, the OwC group had significantly lower rates of prenatal care, chronic pain history, and MOUD enrollment (p = 0.03). Infants in the OwC group had significantly higher rates of NOWS (p < 0.01), longer hospital stays (p < 0.01), and 6.5 times greater odds of developing NOWS (p < 0.001). NOWS was associated with an average 15-day increase in the length of stay for term infants (95% CI: 11.2, 18.8; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Contrary to our hypothesis, our study highlights the significant impact of maternal cocaine use on the increased likelihood of NOWS and extended hospital stays for affected infants. Full article

Climate change represents a complex and multifaceted challenge for health systems, particularly in the African region, where the research has predominantly focused on physical health impacts while overlooking critical mental health dimensions. Our central hypothesis is that integrating culturally adapted mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) into climate resilience frameworks and disaster response planning will significantly reduce psychological distress (e.g., anxiety, depression, and trauma) and enhance adaptive capacities among both mainstream and migrant communities in disaster-prone African regions. This rapid review methodology systematically explores the intricate relationships between climate change, mental health, and migration by examining the existing literature and identifying significant information gaps. The key findings underscore the urgent need for targeted research and strategic interventions that specifically address mental health vulnerabilities in the context of climate change. This review highlights how extreme weather events, environmental disruptions, and forced migration create profound psychological stressors that extend beyond immediate physical health concerns. This research emphasizes the importance of developing comprehensive adaptation strategies integrating mental health considerations into broader climate response frameworks. Recommendations emerging from this assessment call for immediate and focused attention on developing specialized research, policies, and interventions that recognize the unique mental health challenges posed by climate change in African contexts. We also note the current limitations in the existing national adaptation plans, which frequently overlook mental health dimensions, thereby underscoring the necessity of a more holistic and nuanced approach to understanding climate change’s psychological impacts. In this exploratory study, we intended to provide a crucial preliminary assessment of the complex intersections between climate change, mental health, and migration, offering valuable insights for policymakers, researchers, and healthcare professionals seeking to develop more comprehensive and responsive strategies in an increasingly challenging environmental landscape. Full article

In this manuscript, we highlight the evolutionary origins of mitochondria from bacterial endosymbionts and explore their contributions to health, energy metabolism, and neural–immune communication. Mitochondrial adaptability and the roles played by these organelles in promoting oxygen-dependent ATP production provide critical regulation of cognition, motivation, and inflammation. Hypoxia has been identified as an important initiator of inflammation, neurodegeneration, and mitochondrial dysfunction, emphasizing the overall importance of oxygen homeostasis to health and well-being. The Behavior, Exercise, Relaxation, and Nutrition framework highlights these observations as tools that can be used to optimize mitochondrial efficiency. Interestingly, mitochondrial dysfunction may also be linked to psychiatric disorders (e.g., schizophrenia), a hypothesis that focuses on energy dynamics, a proposal that may extend our understanding of these disorders beyond traditional neurotransmitter-focused concepts. Collectively, these perspectives underscore the critical contributions of mitochondria to health and disease and offer a novel framework that may help to explain the connections featured in mind–body medicine. Full article

The assessment of mosquito diversity in remnants of the Atlantic Forest, which are considered biodiversity hotspots, is crucial for studying patterns of behavior and adaptation, performing environmental monitoring, and public health. These studies provide valuable insights into the ecology and biology of these insects, contributing to a better understanding of forest ecosystems and the interactions among the species that inhabit them. The present study aimed to assess the variation in faunistic parameters of abundance, richness, diversity, and evenness along an environmental gradient. This gradient extends from the edge toward the interior of the fragment. The research tested the hypothesis that edge effects influence the distribution of mosquito species in the Tijuca National Park. Sampling was carried out from May 2022 to December 2023, occurring monthly over two consecutive days within the park area. Three different sampling points within the conservation unit were selected: sampling point 1, forest edge; sampling point 2, 35 m from the edge; and sampling point 3, 500 m from the edge, representing different distance gradients. Mosquitoes were captured using CDC light traps with CO₂, Shannon traps, and human-protected attraction; the combination of these traps provided a representative sampling of the diversity of adult mosquitoes present in the study area. An active search for immatures was performed in larval habitats using pipettes and entomological scoops. During the sampling period, a total of 1004 specimens were collected, comprising 320 immatures and 684 adults, representing 27 species. Statistical analyses showed that abundance and richness along the established gradient were not uniform among the sampling points. The Kruskal–Wallis test identified two distinct sampling points: the forest edge (point 1) and a location 35 m from the edge (point 2). The sampling point at the forest edge exhibited the highest levels of species richness, diversity, and evenness. However, given the brief duration of this study, it is crucial to expand the sampling efforts by increasing both the number and frequency of traps and collections. Such enhancements are essential to achieve a more thorough understanding of the ecological patterns and processes at play. Full article

Smart homes offer promising opportunities for risk prevention in private households, especially concerning safety and health. For instance, they can reduce safety risks by detecting water leakages quickly and support health by monitoring air quality. Current research on smart home technology predominantly focuses on usability, performance expectations, and cyber risks, overlooking the potential importance of risk prevention benefits to prospective users. We address this gap by utilizing data from a recent survey to construct a structural equation model. Our overarching hypothesis is that prevention benefits and comfort considerations positively influence adoption. The results confirm the relevance of comfort, as suggested by previous research. In addition, the results reveal significant prevention benefits in safety and health, which are positively related to technology expectations and the intention to adopt smart homes. Furthermore, newly included variables such as technology affinity and active aging lifestyle emerge as indicators of potential smart home users, extending the knowledge of user characteristics beyond traditional sociodemographic indicators. The findings contribute to filling a gap in the current risk and technology literature and are also relevant for smart home device manufacturers and risk and insurance practitioners looking to evolve their business models. Full article

Interest in the use of nanoparticles in agriculture has grown in recent years due to their potential abilities across a range of applications that could increase agricultural production, improve the efficiency of nutrient delivery, or improve pest management. However, as with any application of nanomaterials, concern exists about potential risks to human health. Because many applications might result in the attachment of nanoparticles to produce surfaces, it is important to understand the conditions under which rinsing is likely to remove nanoparticles from surfaces and the degree to which they can be removed. This work explored the rinsing removal of two types of nanoparticles, titanium dioxide (TiO₂) and zinc oxide (ZnO), from spinach leaf surfaces in the absence and presence of biofilms based on extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). A hypothesis driving the work was that the presence of biofilms might enhance the retention of nanoparticles. The work combined experiments to determine surface energy parameters for fresh and rotten spinach, for use in extended DLVO (xDLVO) calculations, as well as direct rinsing experiments to explore nanoparticle removal from spinach surfaces. Nanoparticles were quantified using backscattered scanning electron microscopy using techniques developed for the work. Results of xDLVO calculations suggest that the presence of biofilms may actually be likely to reduce the retention of nanoparticles by produce surfaces, although this effect was not apparent in rinsing experiments, which exhibited similar removal of high-concentration TiO₂ from spinach leaves. Overall, nanoparticles deposited from high-concentration suspensions were found to be removed to a greater degree by rinsing, while those deposited from low-concentration suspensions exhibited no apparent release, even under conditions where release might be favored. Full article

Clusters of knowledge-intensive industries and manufacturing industries form industrial agglomeration in Step I and activate innovation in Step II. Industry clusters are formed by building segments. “Construction sequencing” in the construction industry refers to the process of determining the sequence of segments to optimize a project’s resources, budget, and scheduled timeline. The process usually begins by dividing a project into segments. Urban segments consist of public spaces, airports, factories, health, housing, etc. A “segment” is a component of a cluster; the organization of a cluster consists of constructing segments. These segments can be divided into four main categories: human resources, physical infrastructure, institutions, and the living environment. Each segment has a specific function in the process of building a cluster. This study focused on innovation in Step II and extended the Fujita–Thisse model of spatial economics to hypothesize that research expenditure per researcher leads to value being added. The Granger causality was tested for the knowledge and manufacturing industries in nine major countries including China and the U.S. The results showed that the hypothesis was significant in identifying the starting segment of innovation in Step II. Accordingly, it can be concluded that research funding is the start switch that triggers innovation. The policy implication is that activating innovation in cluster policies begins with the establishment of a research fund for researchers in its assigned clusters. Full article

Technology is increasingly shaping human life, particularly in healthcare, where recent advancements have revolutionized patient care. Despite these advances, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) definition of health remains rooted in traditional notions, raising questions about its adequacy in light of technological progress. This paper explores the conceptual and practical limitations of the current definition and argues for its revision to encompass the role of technology in health. This paper examines the evolving landscape of healthcare technology and its philosophical implications, drawing on theories such as the Extended Health Hypothesis and the Extended Mind Hypothesis. It claims that health extends beyond traditional biological boundaries and includes the influence of technology on well-being. This paper advocates for a re-examination of the WHO definition of health to reflect the integral role of technology in modern healthcare. Recognizing technology as part of health necessitates a broader conceptual framework that acknowledges the interconnectedness of biology, technology, and human well-being. Given technology’s transformative role in healthcare, this paper argues for a revaluation of the WHO’s definition of health to encapsulate the evolving relationship between technology and human well-being. At the end, we propose a new definition recognizing that health is a dynamic state of physical, mental, social, and technological well-being, wherein individuals can achieve optimal quality of life through the harmonious integration of biological, psychological, and technological factors. This state encompasses not only the absence of disease but also the effective utilization of advanced technologies. Full article