Walk Score and Australian adults' home-based walking for transport

The relationships of Walk Score, a publicly-accessible walkability assessment tool, with walking for transport to and from home were examined among a large representative sample of Australian adults aged 18–64 years (N=16,944). Residents in highly and somewhat walkable areas were twice and 1.4 times more likely to accumulate 30 min of walking per day compared to those in very car-dependent neighborhoods, respectively. Mean duration of walking was also longer for participants living in highly and somewhat walkable areas compared to those in very car-dependent areas. Walk Score has potential as a widely-applicable tool for identifying the walkability of local neighborhoods.     

Effects of trophic 2,2′, 4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) exposure in Oreochromis niloticus: A multiple biomarkers analysis

Polybrominated diphenyl esters are emerging environmental contaminants with few toxicological data, being a concern for the scientific community. This study evaluated the effects of BDE-47 on the health of Oreochromis niloticus fish. The animals were exposed to three doses of BDE-47 (0, 0.253, 2.53, 25.3 ng g⁻¹) every 10 days, for 80 days. The BDE-47 affected the hepatosomatic and gonadosomatic index in female and the condition factor by intermediate dose in both sexes. The levels of estradiol decreased and the T4 are increased, but the vitellogenin production was not modulated in male individuals. Changes in AChE, GST, LPO and histopathology were observed while the integrated biomarker response index suggests that the lowest dose of BDE-47 compromised the activity of antioxidant enzymes. The oral exposure to BDE-47 in environmental concentrations is toxic to O. niloticus and the use of multiple biomarkers is an attribution in ecotoxicology studies and biomonitoring programs.     

Entitlement to concessionary public transport and wellbeing: A qualitative study of young people and older citizens in London,UK

Access to transport is an important determinant of health, and concessionary fares for public transport are one way to reduce the ‘transport exclusion’ that can limit access. This paper draws on qualitative data from two groups typically at risk of transport exclusion: young people (12–18 years of age, n = 118) and older citizens (60+ years of age, n = 46). The data were collected in London, UK, where young people and older citizens are currently entitled to concessionary bus travel. We focus on how this entitlement is understood and enacted, and how different sources of entitlement mediate the relationship between transport and wellbeing. Both groups felt that their formal entitlement to travel for free reflected their social worth and was, particularly for older citizens, relatively unproblematic. The provision of a concessionary transport entitlement also helped to combat feelings of social exclusion by enhancing recipients' sense of belonging to the city and to a ‘community’. However, informal entitlements to particular spaces on the bus reflected less valued social attributes such as need or frailty. Thus in the course of travelling by bus the enactment of entitlements to space and seats entailed the negotiation of social differences and personal vulnerabilities, and this carried with it potential threats to wellbeing. We conclude that the process, as well as the substance, of entitlement can mediate wellbeing; and that where the basis for providing a given entitlement is widely understood and accepted, the risks to wellbeing associated with enacting that entitlement will be reduced.     

Why France is making eight new vaccines mandatory

France is one of the countries with the highest prevalence of vaccine hesitancy in the world. In an attempt to raise vaccination coverages, the French government made on January 1, 2018 eight more vaccines mandatory in addition to the three required until then. The process that led to this policy choice is of particular interest. We describe how vaccines became contentious in France and how French authorities came to view mandatory vaccination as the solution to the rise in vaccine hesitancy. In a bold move, French public health authorities turned to a new type of institutional device grounded in the ideal of democracy and public participation to political decision-making: “a citizen consultation”. This consultation anchored the idea that legal coercion could be the solution to France’s crisis with vaccines. Time will tell whether the French extension of mandatory vaccination will reduce tensions around vaccines.