Multilevel modelling of somatotype components: the Portuguese sibling study on growth,fitness, lifestyle and health

Background: Somatotype is a complex trait influenced by different genetic and environmental factors as well as by other covariates whose effects are still unclear.

Aims: To (1) estimate siblings’ resemblance in their general somatotype; (2) identify sib-pair (brother–brother (BB), sister–sister (SS), brother–sister (BS)) similarities in individual somatotype components; (3) examine the degree to which between and within variances differ among sib-ships; and (4) investigate the effects of physical activity (PA) and family socioeconomic status (SES) on these relationships.

Subjects and methods: The sample comprises 1058 Portuguese siblings (538 females) aged 9–20 years. Somatotype was calculated using the Health-Carter method, while PA and SES information was obtained by questionnaire. Multi-level modelling was done in SuperMix software.

Results: Older subjects showed the lowest values for endomorphy and mesomorphy, but the highest values for ectomorphy; and more physically active subjects showed the highest values for mesomorphy. In general, the familiality of somatotype was moderate (ρ?=?0.35). Same-sex siblings had the strongest resemblance (endomorphy: ρ_SS > ρ_BB > ρ_BS; mesomorphy: ρ_BB = ρ_SS > ρ_BS; ectomorphy: ρ_BB > ρ_SS > ρ_BS). For the ectomorphy and mesomorphy components, BS pairs showed the highest between sib-ship variance, but the lowest within sib-ship variance; while for endomorphy BS showed the lowest between and within sib-ship variances.

Conclusions: These results highlight the significant familial effects on somatotype and the complexity of the role of familial resemblance in explaining variance in somatotypes.     

河北省某高校低年级医学生体质健康状况调查

目的了解医学生体质健康的现状,为改善和提高医学生体质健康水平提供依据。方法选取河北大学医学类专业在校生910人,通过自行设计的调查表,测量调查对象的基本体格、心肺功能、身体素质等情况。结果近70％的医学生营养状况处于正常等级,女生低体重率为15．34％、男生超重／肥胖率为36．4％;肺功能中不及格的学生所占比例为42．63％;近一半的医学生握力体重指数及格。结论医学在校生的体质健康状况多处于正常等级,但仍有不少学生处于中等偏下水平。     

Physical attractiveness: The influence of selected torso parameters

Front-view line drawings of male and female physiques were rated for attractiveness. Both subject sexes rated female physiques with greater curvature as less attractive. Male subjects' ratings were unaffected by breast size while female subjects showed slight negative evaluation of large breasts. Both subjects sexes rated broad shoulders as attractive in male physiques. Greater chest muscularity resulted in slightly higher attractiveness ratings; waist slimness was also judged attractive, particularly by female subjects.     

不同营养状况女生形态、机能发育差异的判别分析

本研究对261名10～19岁中小学女生,利用多元典则判别分析,着重探讨(1)营养状况不同的女生在形态、机能发育方面的差异;(2)各形态、机能指标间的相互关系;(3)能否用多元分析手段,综合反映因营养状况不同而造成的发育差异?     

维吾尔族发旋的调查

本文报告了新疆维吾尔族425名大学生的发旋调查情况。发现维吾尔族的单旋顺旋率明显高于汉族(P<0.05),极显著高于壮族和瑶族(P<0.01),而反旋率低于汉族(P<0.05),明显低于壮族及瑶族(P<0.01)。双旋顺反旋率高于壮族(P<0.05),低于瑶族(P<0.01),顺顺旋率均高于汉族、壮族及瑶族(P<0.01)。提示了发旋这一性状有着明显的民族差异。     

Effectiveness of physical exercise in psychiatry: a therapeutic approach?

Introduction

There is a general belief that physical activity and exercise have positive effects on mood and anxiety. Intervention studies describe an anxiolytic and antidepressive effect of exercise in healthy subjects and patients. However, the majority of published studies have substantial methodological inconsistencies. Our review of the literature showed the importance of distinguishing three items in studies regarding efficacy of physical exercise in psychiatry: operationalisation of concepts (duration, frequency, intensity, type of exercise), the type of disorder, the diagnosis, and exploratory hypotheses. The aim of this article is to demonstrate that physical exercise in the psychiatry department contributes to the improvement of the mental health of in-hospital patients.

Methods

Sociodemographical data, the diagnosis and the physical exercise (duration, distance, type and frequency) of 283 in-hospital patients in the psychiatry department were listed. Physical exercise (cycling, long walks, short walks, soft and hard gymnastics) included in a database has been proposed to patients for many years in this hospital. After their hospitalisation, the members of the medical staff (20 persons) evaluated the patients on a visual analogic scale from 1 to 10 related to the improvement of their mental health. No experimental manipulation was made.

Subjects

One hundred and twenty-eight men, mean age: 45.67 years (±13.59) exhibited the following disorders: major depressive disorder (117), anxious disorders (25), alcoholic addiction (85), toxicomania (10), psychotic decompensation (33), bipolar disorder (3) and others (10). Patients practised at least one exercise during their hospitalisation, mean duration of 15.93 (±9.18) working days. The frequency of physical exercises per patient was 5.65 (±6.20). The improvement of each patient was evaluated around six times (6.16 ± 3.83). The average amelioration score for all the patients was close to 50% (4.99 ± 1.65).

Results

Correlations between the improvement of mental health and participation in physical exercises were all significant (frequency: r = 0.228; P < 0.001; duration: r = 0.236; P < 0.001; distance: r = 0.201, P = 0.001). In comparison with psychotic patients, drug addiction and alcoholic, depressive patients showed greater interest in physical exercise. This is similar for anxious disorders. According to the results, two groups were created regarding their improvement (cut out point: 5.08). We observed that patients suffering from major depression considerably improved thanks to physical exercise (P = 0.048), spent more time practising (P = 0.037) and walked or cycled greater distances (P = 0.038). Finally, cycling (frequency: P = 0.008; distance: P = 0.016; duration: P = 0.011) and “hard” gymnastics were the physical exercises which optimized the results.

Discussion

Physical exercise is correlated with the improvement of mental health. The practice of physical exercise depends on the mental disorder. People suffering from major depressive disorder benefit more from physical exercise than other groups. Cycling and “hard” gymnastics are both exercises to be proposed in every programme.

Conclusion

To practice physical exercise during hospitalisation in a psychiatric department has a positive influence on the symptomatology, and contributes to the improvement of mental health.     

Two-month effects of individualized exercise training with or without caloric restriction on plasma adipocytokine levels in obese female adolescents

Objectives

To examine if, in young obese patients, an individualized training programme in association with a caloric restriction programme which had an effect on whole-body lipid oxidation, was able to induce changes on plasma adipocytokine concentrations.

Materials and methods

Twenty-seven obese female adolescents participated in the study. Whole-body lipid oxidation during exercise was assessed by indirect calorimetry during a graded cycle ergometer test. Body mass (BM), body mass index (BMI), percentage of body fat (%BF), insulin homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR) and fasting levels of circulating adipocytokines were assessed prior and after a two-month diet programme, individualized training programme targeted at Lipox_max corresponded to the power at which the highest rate of lipids was oxidized and combined diet/training programme.

Results

The diet/training programme induced both a shift to a higher-power intensity of Lipox_max (+27.8 ± 5.1 W; p < 0.01) and an increase of lipid oxidation at Lipox_max (+96.8 ± 16.2 mg/min; p < 0.01). The enhancement in lipid oxidation was significantly (p < 0.01) correlated with the diet/training-induced improvement in %BF (r = −0.47), HOMA-IR (r = −0.66), leptin (r = −0.41), TNF-α (r = −0.48), IL-6 (r = −0.38), adiponectin (r = 0.43) and resistin (r = 0.51).

Conclusion

This study showed that in obese female adolescents a moderate training protocol targeted at Lipox_max and combined with a diet programme improved their ability to oxidize lipids during exercise, and that this improvement was associated with changes in plasma adipocytokine concentrations.     

Exercise training in cardiac patients: usefulness of the cardiopulmonary exercise test

Exercise training is currently including in the treatment of coronary arterial disease patients, in patients with left ventricular dysfunction as well as in patients who underwent cardiac transplantation or cardiac surgery. However methods of prescribing exercise-training programs are difficult to determine and must be adapted for each patient Exercise test with gas analysis through the determination of anaerobic threshold may help to understand the physiopathological mechanism related to exercise limitation in these patients. Exercise test may help to precise exercise intensity during cardiac rehabilitation and may assess the benefits on exercise tolerance.