Physical activity buffers the effects of family conflict on depressed mood: a study on adolescent girls and boys

This paper investigates the relationship between physical activity and depressed mood, under conditions of family conflict. We analyze data from a representative sample of 7232 Icelandic adolescents. Analysis of variance was carried out to test for main and interaction effects. The study shows that while family conflict increases the likelihood of depressed mood, among adolescents, physical activity decreases the likelihood of depressed mood. Furthermore, physical activity plays a more important role among those adolescents living in aversive circumstances, than other adolescents, as family conflict and physical activity interact in the effect on depressed mood for adolescents living in such circumstances. The findings highlight the role of physical activity in decreasing mental distress among adolescents, especially those living in aversive circumstances at home.     

Trends in depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms and visits to healthcare specialists: a national study among Icelandic adolescents

AIMS: The aim of the study was to examine trends in adolescent depression and anxiety symptoms from 1997 to 2006, using four time-points (1997, 2000, 2003, and 2006), and adolescent mental health service use in the same period, using three time-points (1997, 2000, and 2006). METHODS: Four cross-sectional population-based samples of 14- and 15-year-old students, attending the compulsory 9th and 10th grades of the Icelandic secondary school system, completed questionnaires relating to mental health. In total, 21,245 students participated in the four studies. RESULTS: Anxiety symptoms increased significantly for both boys and girls, throughout the period from 1997 to 2006. Depressive symptoms increased significantly for girls, while there were no significant changes in depression among boys. During the same time period, the proportion of adolescents who visited healthcare specialists, i.e. psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers, increased significantly. The results revealed that regular visits (six times or more during 1 year) to psychiatrists and psychologists increased significantly over the same period among girls but not among boys. CONCLUSIONS: The findings show that symptoms of depression and anxiety have increased among adolescents in Iceland. Future work would benefit from further research into the trends in risk and protective factors associated with these outcomes. The findings call particular attention to the increasing risk for depression and anxiety symptoms among girls.     

A multi-level developmental approach towards understanding adolescent mental health and behaviour: rationale,design and methods of the LIFECOURSE study in Iceland

Purpose

Identifying and understanding modifiable risk and protective factors that can inform early detection and intervention to prevent adolescent emotional problems and harmful behaviours is among the most pressing modern-day public health challenges. This paper describes the rationale, objectives, methods, and anticipated outcomes of the LIFECOURSE study, a multi-level, bio-psychosocial prospective study designed to advance our understanding of factors that shape adolescent mental health and behaviour.

Methods

Conducted by the Icelandic Centre for Social Research and Analysis at Reykjavik University, LIFECOURSE is a longitudinal population-based developmental study of Icelandic adolescents born in 2004. The study utilizes a comprehensive multi-informant assessment of individual, societal and biological factors measured across the lifespan. Data assembly and collection were conducted from 2016–2020 and utilize both retrospective and prospective data sources: (a) retrospective registry data assembled from seven national databases, (b) prospectively collected social surveys and (c) biomarker samples.

Results

Of the 3914 eligible adolescents, 60.8% (n = 2378) provided informed parental consent and student assent to participate in the study, with approximately half of the participants being female (n = 1175, 49.4%) and the majority being born in the capital area (n = 1455; 61.2%). The coverage of available data from the national databases and participation in the social surveys ranged from 81.7 to 100%.

Conclusions

Major gaps remain in our knowledge of how individual, societal and biological factors across the lifespan—from early life to adolescence—interact and shape the risk for emotional problems and harmful behaviours during adolescence. The LIFECOURSE study was designed to address this knowledge gap.

     

The Landscape of Overweight and Obesity in Icelandic Adolescents: Geographic Variation in Body-Mass Index Between 2000 and 2009

The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased globally. This study examined the geographic variation in overweight and obesity trends among Icelandic adolescents in urban and rural areas. Data from two cross-sectional population-based samples of 14- and 15-year-old students attending the compulsory 9th and 10th grades of the Icelandic secondary school system in 2000 and 2009 were used to calculate body mass index (BMI). Overweight and obesity rates were represented for 17 zones on maps created with the ArcGis geographic information and imaging software. Results were that males had higher rates of overweight and obesity than females in both 2000 and 2009, with a significant difference for both genders between years. Mean BMI was higher for rural areas than urban areas in both study years. Out of 17 geographic zones, the prevalence of obesity increased between 2000 and 2009 for males in 16; however, the one remaining zone had the highest increase in overweight. Obesity increased in 13 zones for girls and decreased in four from 2000 to 2009. Mean BMI rose between the study years but fewer zones differentiated from each other in 2009 than 2000. The prevalence of overweight and obesity increased among Icelandic adolescents in both urban and rural areas; however, rural areas have higher rates of obesity, overweight, and mean BMI than urban areas. Because of diminishing differences between areas from 2000 to 2009 the increase in mean BMI, increases in overweight, and obesity appear to be more rapid in urban areas than rural areas.     

Substance use prevention for adolescents: the Icelandic Model

Data from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol andother Drugs have shown that adolescent substance use is a growingproblem in western and particularly Eastern European countries.This paper describes the development, implementation and resultsof the Icelandic Model of Adolescent Substance Use Prevention.The Icelandic Model is a theoretically grounded, evidence-basedapproach to community adolescent substance use prevention thathas grown out of collaboration between policy makers, behaviouralscientists, field-based practitioners and community residentsin Iceland. The intervention focuses on reducing known riskfactors for substance use, while strengthening a broad rangeof parental, school and community protective factors. Annualcross-sectional surveys demonstrate the impact of the interventionon substance use among the population of 14- to 16-year-oldIcelandic adolescents. The annual data from two cohorts of over7000 adolescents (>81% response rate) show that the proportionsof those who reported being drunk during the last 30 days, smokingone cigarette or more per day and having tried hashish onceall declined steadily from 1997 to 2007. The proportions ofadolescents who reported spending time with their parents andthat their parents knew with whom they were spending their timeincreased substantially. Other community protective factorsalso showed positive changes. Although these data suggest thatthis adolescent substance use prevention approach successfullystrengthened a broad range of parental, school and communityprotective factors, the evidence of its impact on reducing substanceuse needs to be considered in light of the correlational dataon which these observations are based.     

Social correlates of cigarette smoking among Icelandic adolescents: A population-based cross-sectional study

Background  

Previous research has shown that between 80 and 90 percent of adult smokers report having started smoking before 18 years of age. Several studies have revealed that multiple social factors influence the likelihood of smoking during adolescence, the period during which the onset of smoking usually occurs. To better understand the social mechanisms that influence adolescent smoking, we analyzed the relationship and relative importance of a broad spectrum of social variables in adolescent smoking in Iceland, a Nordic country with high per-capita income.     

Trends in prevalence of substance use among Icelandic adolescents, 1995–2006

Background  

Adolescent substance use continues to be of great global public health concern in many countries with advanced economies. Previous research has shown that substance use among 15–16 year-old-youth has increased in many European countries in recent years. The aim of this study was to examine trends in prevalence of daily smoking, alcohol intoxication, and illicit substance use among Icelandic adolescents.