OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the relationship between dietary intake (macronutrients, fruits, vegetables and lycopene), lifetime physical activity and oxidative DNA damage with prostate cancer.
DESIGN: A case control study was carried out among 105 subjects (case n=35, control n=70), matched for age and ethnicity. Data on sociodemographic, medical, dietary intake, consumption of lycopene rich food and lifetime physical activity were obtained through an interview based questionnaire. Anthropometric measurements including weight, height and waist hip circumferences were also carried out on subjects. A total of 3 mL fasting venous blood was drawn to assess lymphocyte oxidative DNA damage using the alkaline comet assay.
RESULTS: Cases had a significantly higher intake of fat (27.7 ± 5.5%) as compared to controls (25.1 ± 5.9%) (p < 0.05). Mean intakes of fruits and vegetables (3.11 ± 1.01 servings/d)(p < 0.05), fruits (1.23 ± 0.59 servings/d) (p<0.05) and vegetables (1.97 ± 0.94 servings/d) were higher in controls than cases (2.53 ± 1.01, 0.91 ∓ 0.69, 1.62 ± 0.82 servings/d). A total of 71% of cases did not met the recommendation of a minimum of three servings of fruits and vegetables daily, as compared to 34% of controls (p < 0.05) (adjusted OR 6.52 (95% CI 2.3-17.8)) (p < 0.05). Estimated lycopene intake among cases (2,339 ∓ 1,312 mcg/d) were lower than controls (3881 ∓ 3120 mcg/d) (p< 0.01). Estimated lycopene intake of less than 2,498 mcg/day (50th percentile) increased risk of prostate cancer by double [Adjusted OR 2.5 (95%CI 0.99-6.31)]. Intake of tomatoes, watermelon, guava, pomelo, papaya, mango, oranges, dragon fruit, carrot, tomato sauce and barbeque sauce were higher in controls compared to cases. Intake of tomato sauce of more than 2.24 g/d (25th percentile), papaya more than 22.7 g/d (50th percentile) and oranges more than 19.1g/h (50th percentile) reduced prostate cancer risk by 7.4 (Adjusted OR 7.4 (95% CI 1.17-46.8)), 2.7 (adjusted OR 2.75 (95% CI 1.03-7.39)) and 2.6 times (adjusted OR = 2.6 (95% CI=1.01-6.67)), respectively (p < 0.05 for all parameters). No oxidative damage was observed among subjects. Past history of not engaging with any physical activities at the age of 45 to 54 years old increased risk of prostate cancer by approximately three folds (Adjusted OR 2.9(95% CI = 0.8-10.8)) (p < 0.05). In conclusion, low fat diet, high intake of fruits, vegetables and lycopene rich foods and being physical active at middle age were found to be protective. Thus, it is essential for Malaysian men to consume adequate fruits and vegetables, reduce fat intake and engage in physical activity in order to reduce prostate cancer risk.
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to examine associations between SSB intake and cardiometabolic risks among Malaysian adolescents.
METHODS: Anthropometric data, blood pressure (BP), fasting blood glucose (FBG), lipid profiles and insulin levels measured involved 873 adolescents (aged 13 years). SSB intake, dietary patterns and physical activity level (PAL) were self-reported.
RESULTS: Mean SSB consumption was 177.5 mL day-1 with significant differences among ethnicities (Malay, Chinese, Indians and Others) (p
METHODS: This study included 1740 males (1146 Chinese, 327 Malays and 267 Asian Indians) and 1950 females (1329 Chinese, 360 Malays and 261 Asian Indians) with complete data on anthropometric indices, fasting lipids, smoking status, alcohol consumption, exercise frequency and genotype at the APOE locus.
RESULTS: Malays and Asian Indians were more obese compared with the Chinese. Smoking was uncommon in all females but Malay males had significantly higher prevalence of smokers. Malays had the highest LDL-C whilst Indians had the lowest HDL-C, The epsilon 3 allele was the most frequent allele in all three ethnic groups. Malays had the highest frequency of epsilon 4 (0.180 and 0.152) compared with Chinese (0.085 and 0.087) and Indians (0.108 and 0.075) in males and females, respectively. The epsilon 2 allele was the least common in Asian Indians. Total cholesterol (TC) and LDL-C was highest in epsilon 4 carriers and lowest in epsilon 2 carriers. The reverse was seen in HDL-C with the highest levels seen in epsilon 2 subjects. The association between ethnic group and HDL-C differed according to APOE genotype and gender. Asian Indians had the lowest HDL-C for each APOE genotype except in Asian Indian males with epsilon 2, where HDL-C concentrations were intermediate between Chinese and Malays.
CONCLUSION: Ethnic differences in lipid profile could be explained in part by the higher prevalence of epsilon 4 in the Malays. Ethnicity may influence the association between APOE genotypes and HDL-C. APOE genotype showed no correlation with HDL-C in Malay males whereas the association in Asian Indians was particularly marked. Further studies of interactions between genes and environmental factors will contribute to the understanding of differences of coronary risk amongst ethnic groups.
METHODS: A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Singapore. Participants wore an accelerometer for 7 days to measure physical activity (PA). Demographic, anthropometric and psychological data were also collected. Psychological variables included PA guideline knowledge, motivational profile for PA self-regulation (5 subscales), perceived barriers to PA (4 subscales) and perceived social support for PA. Regression models with adjustment for socio-demographic variables were fitted.
RESULTS: External regulation (b = - 13.03, 95% CI - 34.55; - 1.50) and perceived daily life barriers (b = - 12.63, 95% CI - 24.95; - 0.32) were significantly associated with fewer weekly MVPA minutes. A significant interaction between perceived social support and age (p = 0.046) was found. Social support was significantly negative associated with MVPA minutes in younger (
OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of self-reported low back pain (LBP), and neck and/or shoulder pain (NSP) among secondary school teachers; and to evaluate the association of LBP and NSP with psychological distress and work-related psychosocial factors.
METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted among teachers in the state of Penang, Malaysia. The participants were recruited via a two stage sampling method. Information on demographic, psychological distress, work-related psychosocial factors, and musculoskeletal pain (LBP and NSP) in the past 12 months was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Poisson regression was used to estimate the prevalence ratio (PR) for the associations between psychological distress and work-related psychosocial factors with LBP and NSP.
RESULTS: The prevalence of self-reported LBP and NSP among 1482 teachers in the past 12 months was 48.0% (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 45.2%, 50.9%) and 60.1% (95% CI 57.4%, 62.9%) respectively. From the multivariate analysis, self-reported LBP was associated with teachers who reported severe to extremely severe depression (PR: 1.71, 95% CI 1.25, 2.32), severe to extremely severe anxiety (1.46, 95% CI 1.22, 1.75), high psychological job demand (1.29, 95% CI 1.06, 1.57), low skill discretion (1.28, 95% CI 1.13, 1.47) and poorer mental health (0.98, 95% CI 0.97, 0.99). Self-reported NSP was associated with mild to moderate anxiety (1.18, 95% CI 1.06, 1.33), severe to extremely severe anxiety (1.25, 95% CI 1.09, 1.43), low supervisory support (1.13, 95% CI 1.03, 1.25) and poorer mental health (0.98, 95% CI 0.97, 0.99).
CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported LBP and NSP were common among secondary school teachers. Interventions targeting psychological distress and work-related psychosocial characteristics may reduce musculoskeletal pain among school teachers.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between the dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D, physical activity, and bone mineral content (BMC) in 13-year-old Malaysian adolescents.
DESIGN: Cross-sectional.
SETTING: Selected public secondary schools from the central and northern regions of Peninsular Malaysia.
PARTICIPANTS: The subjects were from the Malaysian Health and Adolescents Longitudinal Research Team Cohort study (MyHeARTs).
METHODS: The data included seven-day diet histories, anthropometric measurements, and the BMC of calcaneal bone using a portable broadband ultrasound bone densitometer. Nutritionist Pro software was used to calculate the dietary calcium and vitamin D intakes from the diet histories, based on the Nutrient Composition of Malaysian Food Database guidance for the dietary calcium intake and the Singapore Energy and Nutrient Composition of Food Database for vitamin D intake.
RESULTS: A total of 289 adolescents (65.7% females) were recruited. The average dietary intakes of calcium and vitamin D were 377 ± 12 mg/day and 2.51 ± 0.12 µg/day, respectively, with the majority of subjects failing to meet the Recommended Nutrient Intake (RNI) of Malaysia for dietary calcium and vitamin D. All the subjects had a normal Z-score for the BMC (-2.00 or higher) with a mean of 0.55 ± 0.01. From the statistical analysis of the factors contributing to BMC, it was found that for those subjects with a higher intake of vitamin D, a higher combination of the intake of vitamin D and calcium resulted in significantly higher BMC quartiles. The regression analysis showed that the BMC might have been influenced by the vitamin D intake.
CONCLUSIONS: A combination of the intake of vitamin D and calcium is positively associated with the BMC.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This is a community-based feasibility study focused on the assessment of cognition, embedded in the longitudinal study of health and demographic surveillance site of the South East Asia Community Observatory (SEACO), in Malaysia. In total, 200 adults aged ≥50 years are selected for an in-depth health and cognitive assessment including the Mini Mental State Examination, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, blood pressure, anthropometry, gait speed, hand grip strength, Depression Anxiety Stress Score and dried blood spots.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The results will inform the feasibility, response rates and operational challenges for establishing an ageing study focused on cognitive function in similar middle-income country settings. Knowing the burden of cognitive impairment and dementia and risk factors for disease will inform local health priorities and management, and place these within the context of increasing life expectancy.
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study protocol is approved by the Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee. Informed consent is obtained from all the participants. The project's analysed data and findings will be made available through publications and conference presentations and a data sharing archive. Reports on key findings will be made available as community briefs on the SEACO website.