An Overview on Tuberculosis and Worldwide Steps to Combat TB Including Awareness Programme in India

Objectives of current review is to collate history of Tuberculosis (TB), overview of the current literature on epidemiology, world health organisations (WHO) recent strategic plan to overcome and eliminate TB from the root, and to determine current knowledge gaps for control of TB. This study is a review, a descriptive approach of state-of-science for better treatment strategies for TB. The article finds that to reach to end TB goal, WHO, we have to follow the guideline of who about TB control, along with that the Indian government also maintained awareness program. Current findings on TB suggest that with the development of science and technology, researches being conducted to minimise the drug resistance tuberculosis, as well as WHO sets new strategy to fight against TB, which could potentially change the casual outlook of the people towards their health habits, health issues, and will help them in future to tackle from this deadly killer disease.

Perspectives on Social and Environmental Determinants of Oral Health

Most oral conditions have a multifactorial etiology; that is, they are modulated by biological, social, economic, cultural, and environmental factors. A consistent body of evidence has demonstrated the great burden of dental caries and periodontal disease in individuals from low socioeconomic strata. Oral health habits and access to care are influenced by the social determinants of health. Hence, the delivery of health promotion strategies at the population level has shown a great impact on reducing the prevalence of oral diseases. More recently, a growing discussion about the relationship between the environment, climate change, and oral health has been set in place. Certainly, outlining plans to address oral health inequities is not an easy task. It will demand political will, comprehensive funding of health services, and initiatives to reduce inequalities. This paper sought to give a perspective about the role of social and physical environmental factors on oral health conditions while discussing how the manuscripts published in this Special Issue could increase our knowledge of the topic.

Experiences With Physical Distancing: Coping Strategies and Positive Experiences

A representative U.S. sample of adults completed an online survey (N=360) about perceived changes in social health and wellbeing since the implementation of physical distancing restrictions in April. Analyses are conducted on a subsample of adults aged 60+ (n=93; m=65.7 years; SD=4.7). Baseline bivariate descriptive analyses showed no geographic-based differences in self-rated health, resilience, perceived financial wellbeing, or family/friend support measures. Content analysis of rural residents’ (n=20) responses about coping strategies and positive experiences across three time points (April/July/November) revealed aspects of resilience. Individuals coped via acceptance and planning; engaging in activities; and keeping with routines. Positive experiences were relatively stable over time, with individuals describing improved health habits and enhanced social connectedness with family/neighbors. Individuals identified societal betterment and saving money as unintended benefits of the efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. When faced with adversity, identifying positive experiences may help individuals cope with challenges in the long-term

The Effect of Quarantine During the COVID-19 Pandemic on The Oral Health Habits of the Syrian Community

Introduction: Corona Virus appeared at the end of 2019. It belongs to a large family of viruses that can cause respiratory infections. Due to its ability to spread rapidly and easily, it has become a pandemic throughout almost the entire world. This has necessitated the establishment of quarantine procedures in order to reduce the rate of spread of the virus and thus the number of deaths. However, these procedures may cause a range of effects on people. One of the most important aspects that can be affected is oral health care. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of quarantine procedures on the oral health habits of the Syrian community.Materials and methods:A survey was created using Google Forms and published on Facebook from 16 April 2020 until 11 May 2020. The number of people corresponding to the study criteria in Syria reached 1033. The survey looked at the effect of quarantine procedures on changing oral health habits, including the number of times of brushing and the time of brushing.Results: Quarantine led to a change in oral health habits in 57.4% of the sample. Females were significantly more affected by changing habits during quarantine (P=0.020). The number of brushing times was not clearly affected and it was twice daily (49.4% before quarantine, 42.1% during quarantine). There was no statistically significant difference between the two periods in terms of the number of times of brushing.Conclusion: This study is the first study that showed the effect of home quarantine on the oral habits of members of the Syrian community. Home quarantine did not significantly affect the oral health habits of Syrians.

Physical activity and health: Findings from Finnish monozygotic twin pairs discordant for physical activity

Genetic and early environmental differences including early health habits associate with future health. To provide insight on the causal nature of these associations, monozygotic (MZ) twin pairs discordant for health habits provide an interesting natural experiment. Twin pairs discordant for leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) in early adult life are thus a powerful study design to investigate the associations between long-term LTPA and indicators of health and wellbeing. We have used this study design by identifying 17 LTPA discordant twin pairs from two Finnish twin cohorts and summarize key findings of these studies in this paper. The carefully characterized rare long-term LTPA discordant MZ twin pairs have participated in multi-dimensional clinical examinations. The occurrence of type 2 diabetes and death has been evaluated on the basis of prospective questionnaire data and register follow-up among a larger number of twin pairs. Key findings highlight that, compared to less active twins in such MZ twin pairs, the twins with higher long-term LTPA have higher physical fitness, reduced body fat, reduced visceral fat, reduced liver fat, increased lumen diameters of conduit arteries to the lower limbs, increased bone mineral density in loaded bone areas, increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and reduced occurrence of type 2 diabetes. However, we have not been able to document differences in the life expectancy between the less and more active twin siblings of the LTPA discordant MZ twin pairs. The findings are in agreement with intervention studies but not with all observational studies in which genetic factors are not controlled for.

Training for Marathons during a Marathon Pandemic: Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Fitness among High-Level Nonelite Runners

Background. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on all aspects of life, including physical fitness and well-being of the general population. In the present study, we assessed the effect of the pandemic on the subjective and objective fitness of high-level nonelite runners. Methods. The MASTERS Athletic Study is an ongoing survey of training and health habits of high-level nonelite runners, the majority of whom compete in marathons and other extreme endurance events. We invited participants to a web-based questionnaire regarding training and fitness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comparisons were made between subjective and objective fitness as well as well as the relationship of prepandemic training volume and history of COVID-19 on change in fitness during the pandemic, using Mann–Whitney rank-sum tests and chi-square tests for nonparametric and categorical variables, respectively. Results. A total of 189 runners completed the survey, of whom 26 (13.8%) reported prior diagnosis with COVID-19. In terms of the subjective sense of fitness compared to before the pandemic, 49 (25.9%) reported they were less fit, 55 (29.1%) reported they were more fit, and 85 (45.0%) reported their fitness was unchanged. These assessments correlated well with objective measurement of training volume in MET-min/week. Runners with improved fitness at present had a lower calculated training volume before the pandemic versus those who reported unchanged or worsened fitness. There was no relationship between the report of prior COVID-19 and either subjective or objective measures of fitness. Conclusion. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a variable effect on the fitness of high-level nonelite runners. We found an inverse relationship between baseline training volume and the likelihood of runners reporting improved fitness and no relationship between a history of COVID-19 and change in fitness through the pandemic. Understanding the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on athletic fitness will help guide strategies to maintain physical health and wellness through future public health crises.

Exploring Indirect Aspects in Motivation and Academic Achievement During The Pandemic

<p>Online learning methodologies are the most influential factor in educational success. However, it cannot be denied that there are non-technical aspects that indirectly affect students' motivation and academic achievement after the Covid-19 pandemic occurred. This study involves paired <em>t</em>-tests, regression tests, and partial <em>t</em>-tests to analyze the factors that can indirectly shape student motivation and academic achievement in Indonesia's higher schools. The factors studied were related to economic condition, health, habits, and social interaction. The result shows significant changes in learning motivation, economic and health conditions, student interactions with friends and lecturers, student involvement in student activity units and religious activities, use of social media, and time spent reading. The Grade Point Accumulative (GPA) before the pandemic was influenced by learning motivation. However, during the pandemic, the GPA was not significantly affected by learning motivation. Before the pandemic, family engagement and student involvement in religious activities significantly influence the GPA. Meanwhile, the factors that influence learning motivation during the pandemic are student involvement in social activities, interaction with lecturers, health conditions, and time spent reading.</p>

The Role of Love and Children’s Agency in Improving Fathers’ Wellbeing

This chapter focuses on father-child wellbeing arguing that fathers are emotionally transformed by having a child and that children have a beneficial influence on father’s health and positive engagement in work. Previous research described how involved fatherhood offers men the opportunity to resist practices of risk-taking, denial of treatment, expression of anger, which are harmful to their health. However, studies on the relationship between fathers and children often overlook the mutual beneficial effects that these family members have on each other. Based on findings from 47 qualitative interviews and 6 observations with Scottish and Romanian involved fathers and their children, I show how children were described by fathers as re-energizing them for work and helping them let go of negative health habits, such as smoking, drugs, and reckless driving. Fathers in turn, adopted a long-term perspective for their health and wellbeing brought on by planning for the future. Conclusively, children seem to play an important role in counteracting the toxic aspects of masculinity, as children were described as helping fathers shift emotionally from stoicism and control to increased nurturance and emotional openness, thereby affecting their wellbeing in positive ways.

Evaluation of Periodontal Risk Factors with Quantitative Light-Induced Fluorescence Based Fluorescent Plaque Index, in Comparison to Radiographic and Oral Health Habit Scoring: A Retrospective Case Study

The aim of this study was to evaluate periodontal risk factors with oral health habits and fluorescent plaque index (FPI) using quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) images, and to evaluate their effect on the degree of radiographic bone loss (RBL). Selected were 276 patients over 19 years of age to complete the questionnaire for oral health habit and take QLF images, periapical and panoramic radiographs. Oral health habit score, age, and sex showed a statistically significant correlation with FPI. FPI showed a lower value as the oral health habit score increased and the age decreased. Moreover, females showed lower FPI values than did males. RBL showed a statistically significant positive correlation with age but did not show any correlation with oral health habit scores and sex. There was no correlation between FPI and RBL. The results of this study suggest that the clinical use of QLF allows plaque detection by non-invasive procedures and can aid in a more objective estimation for oral hygiene status.