Australian print news media coverage of sweet, non-alcoholic drinks sends mixed health messages

Objective: This study aimed to analyse the contribution of Australian print news coverage to the public profile of sweet, non‐alcoholic beverages. News media portrayal of health contributes to individuals’ decision‐making. The focus on sugar‐sweetened beverages reflects their contribution to excessive energy intake. Methods: One year's coverage of sweet, non‐alcoholic beverages by major Australian newspapers was analysed using content and frame analysis. Research questions addressed which sweet drinks are most prominently covered, what makes sweet drinks newsworthy and how are the health aspects of sweet drinks framed? Results: Fruit juice was the most widely covered sweet drink, closely followed by carbonated, sugar‐sweetened soft drinks. Overall coverage was positively oriented towards sweet drinks, with fruit juice primarily portrayed as having health benefits. Some coverage mentioned risks of sweet drinks, such as obesity, tooth decay, metabolic syndrome and heart attack. Conclusions: Sweet drinks often enjoy positive coverage, with their health benefits and harms central to their ability to attract journalists’ attention. However, the mix of coverage may be contributing to consumer confusion about whether it is safe and/or healthy to consume sweet non‐alcoholic drinks. Implications: Framing of sweet drinks as healthy may undermine efforts to encourage individuals to avoid excess consumption of energy‐dense drinks which offer few or minimal health benefits.     

The Cinderella of public health news: physical activity coverage in Australian newspapers, 1986-2006

Objective: This research examined trends in physical activity reporting by Australian newspapers, and described these trends compared to coverage of obesity and tobacco.
Method: The Factiva database was searched for articles published in major Australian metropolitan newspapers (1986-2006) that mentioned physical activity, obesity or tobacco smoking. Standardised frequencies compared the three health issues, and trends in reporting were estimated by using standard multiple regression models to fit linear splines with fixed knots at years 1991, 1996 and 2001 to the standardised data.
Results: Physical activity received the least coverage 1986-2006, appearing in 4,988 articles, compared with 15,410 and 63,738 articles for obesity and tobacco respectively. Between 1996 and 2000, there were significant increases in the rate of coverage of physical activity (β=0.21; p<0.01), obesity (β=0.13; p<0.01) and tobacco (β=0.24; p<0.0001). From 2001 to 2006 the rate of physical activity coverage was relatively steady, while the obesity coverage rate increased dramatically (β=0.34; p<0.0001), and tobacco coverage rate slowed (β=-0.33; p<0.0001).
Conclusions: This study demonstrates that physical activity reporting in the media has increased, but received less attention than obesity and tobacco.
Implications: Physical activity advocates face the challenge of highlighting the newsworthiness of physical activity and raising the issue higher on the public agenda.     

Media coverage of cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine: implications for geographic health inequities

Objective To describe the content of newspaper articles about cervical cancer and the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine published in Appalachia and identify potential differences in coverage as compared to the content of newspaper articles published in non‐Appalachia Ohio. Background Individuals rely on media as an important source of health information. Inadequate coverage of health issues may reinforce health inequities such as the elevated cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates in Appalachia Ohio. Methods A content analysis was conducted of all newspaper articles about cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine published in Appalachia and non‐Appalachia Ohio during 2006. Findings A total of 121 published newspaper articles (42 in Appalachia and 79 in non‐Appalachia) about cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine were identified. Articles published in Appalachia Ohio were significantly less likely than articles published in non‐Appalachia Ohio to provide information about the threat of cervical cancer and the efficacy of the HPV vaccine. Specifically, few articles published in Appalachia included information about the ability of the vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, the cost of the vaccine and the availability of assistance programmes for the un‐ and underinsured. Conclusions Newspaper articles printed in the Appalachia region lacked vital information that could help promote uptake of the HPV vaccine. Health educators and healthcare providers should be aware that women from underserved geographic regions like Appalachia may have greater information needs regarding their risk of cervical cancer and the potential benefits of the HPV vaccine as compared to the general patient population.     

Australian television news coverage of alcohol,health and related policies, 2005 to 2010: implications for alcohol policy advocates

Objective: To describe television news coverage between 2005 and 2010 of alcohol, health and relevant alcohol‐control policies, with a view to informing policy advocacy. Methods: A content analysis of all alcohol stories archived by the Australian Health News Research Collaboration. We recorded what triggered a news item, the main topics covered, whether risks to health were communicated, whether alcohol‐control policies were featured and which news‐actors appeared. Results: We identified 612 stories, where 69.2% were triggered by a particular newsworthy incident or the release of new findings. The most frequently reported alcohol stories were focused on associated harms (30.2%) and ‘binge drinking’ (19.0%). A majority (75.3%) reported a variety of positive and negative health effects, yet mainly focused on short‐term consequences. Combined, 63% mentioned an alcohol‐control policy, yet no one particular policy was featured in more than 10% of all stories. The most commonly featured news‐actors included public‐health professionals (50.0%), members of affected communities (28.4%) and government representatives (24.3%) Conclusions: Problems related to alcohol were well‐established foci of news attention and reportage and covered a broad spectrum of issues related to public health goals, yet less coverage centred on long‐term health consequences or effective policy solutions. Implications: Future policy advocacy could focus on moving the debate away from simple problem definition to better communication of long‐term health risks, existing policies, and evidence of their effectiveness and arguments for their adoption. Future research might consider audience understanding of the information.     

'A matter of faith, not science': analysis of media coverage of prostate cancer screening in Australian news media 2003-2006

OBJECTIVE: Despite a near universal absence of evidence-based policies supporting population screening for prostate cancer, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is aggressively promoted in the media as a life-saving form of screening. The objective of this study was to examine media coverage of prostate-cancer screening in Australia. DESIGN: Frame analysis of all direct or attributed quotes about prostate cancer. SETTING: Australian capital city newspapers (February 2003-December 2006) and Sydney television news (January 2003-December 2006). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Quotes regarding prostate cancer screening: n=436 in newspapers and television news. RESULTS: Seven rhetorical frames were identified. 86% of all quotes framed prostate screening and its outcomes as desirable, associating PSA testing as being consonant with other early-detection cancer-control messages. Adverse surgical sequelae to screening were often minimized, scientific progress highlighted and gender equity appeals appropriated. Those questioning screening were vilified, with epidemiology being framed as an inferior form of knowledge than clinical experience. CONCLUSIONS: Australian men are exposed to unbalanced and often non-evidence-based appeals to seek PSA testing. There is a disturbing lack of effort to redress this imbalance.     

中国居民2006—2012年胃癌死亡趋势分析

目的分析2006-2012年中国居民胃癌死亡分布特征及变化趋势。方法利用全国疾病监测系统2006-2012年死因监测数据, 选取因胃癌死亡的113 793例病例纳入分析, 描述不同性别、城乡和地域居民的胃癌死亡情况, 并采用对数线性回归法分析各年龄组标化死亡率的年度变化。结果2006-2012年全国范围内胃癌标化死亡率总体呈下降趋势, 2006年全国胃癌标化死亡率男性为31.84/10万, 女性为13.32/10万, 2012年分别降低到26.51/10万和10.95/10万;男性胃癌死亡率年下降幅度为3.73%, 女性为4.40%, 其中农村女性下降幅度最为明显, 为4.69%, 农村男性下降幅度为3.82%, 城市女性下降幅度最低, 为3.34%。结论2006-2012年中国胃癌死亡率整体呈下降趋势, 农村地区下降幅度较大。     

2006年全国公众结核病防治知识核心信息知晓情况调查

目的了解全国公众结核病知识核心信息知晓情况，为今后更有效地开展结核病防治健康教育工作提供方向和重点。方法采用5阶段分层系统随机抽样方法，在全国抽取19个省60个县／区共69253名城乡居民。使用统一设计的调查问卷对调查对象进行入户面对面询问式调查。结果调查对象的核心信息总知晓率为48．9％。12～19岁组、小学及以下文化程度者、农民和学生知晓率较低。调查对象对肺结核病的传染性、传播途径的知晓率较高，而一半或超过一半的调查对象不知道当地有检查和治疗结核病的专门机构、结核病人应到专门机构检查治疗、结核病可治愈、国家有免费检查治疗政策、不应该歧视结核病人，尤其是对“咳嗽咳痰3周以上或有咯血、血痰症状者应怀疑得了肺结核病”这条核心信息的知晓率只有16．0％。结论应根据当地居民知晓结核防治知识的情况制定地方政策，开展广泛深入的传播活动并及时评估效果     

2006年陕西公众结核病防治知识核心信息知晓情况调查

目的了解陕西公众结核病知识核心信息知晓情况,为更有效地开展结核病防治健康教育提供依据。方法采用分层系统随机抽样方法,在全省抽取7个县区共8119名城乡居民。使用统一设计的调查问卷对调查对象进行入户面对面询问式调查。结果调查对象的核心信息总知晓率为49.5%,其中男性总知晓率为52.0%,女性为47.0%,城区居民总知晓率为62.7%,农村居民为47.5%。自述周围有人患有肺结核病的人群,其核心信息总知晓率为60.9%。12~19岁组、小学及以下文化程度者、学生和农民知晓率较低。调查对象对肺结核病的传染性、传播途径的知晓率较高,而一半或超过一半的调查对象不知道当地有检查和治疗结核病的专门机构、结核病人应到专门机构检查治疗、国家有免费检查治疗政策、不应该歧视结核病人,尤其是对＂咳嗽咳痰3周以上或有咯血、血痰症状者应怀疑得了肺结核病＂这条核心信息的知晓率只有20.2%。结论被调查人员结核病核心信息知晓率较低,不同特征居民间知晓率有差别,应根据当地居民结核防治知识的知晓情况制定相关政策。     

Trends in colorectal cancer care in southern England, 1989-1993: using HES data to inform cancer services reviews

BACKGROUND: This paper describes trends in hospital activity, hospital admissions, and treatments for colorectal cancer on residents of the South Thames regions (population 8 million) between 1989-1993 against the background of the Calman Report on the future of cancer services in England and Wales. METHODS: The analyses are derived from UK hospital data, which are collected as finished consultant episodes (FCEs). These are defined as episodes "where a patient has completed a period of care under a consultant and is either transferred to another consultant or is discharged." Probability matching was used to derive patient-based records, matching FCEs to admissions. A total of 18,542 South Thames residents aged 40-99 were admitted for colorectal cancer between 1 January 1989 and 31 December 1993. Time trends were analysed for procedures, FCEs, admissions, and patient numbers by admission type (ordinary admissions and day case admissions). RESULTS: Between 1989 and 1993 inclusive colorectal cancer admissions doubled (98% increase p (trend) < 0.0001). These admissions were a result of a 6.4-fold increase in day case admissions and a 41% increase in ordinary admissions. The proportion of patients having a day case admission rose from 9% in 1989 to 18% in 1993 (p < 0.0001). Overall, 2894 (16%) patients had a day case admission; 1894 of these (65%) were also admitted as ordinary admissions. The number of FCEs and admissions per patient rose from 1.37 and 1.28 respectively in 1989 to 2.09 and 1.99 respectively in 1993. FCEs were between 5% and 8% higher than admissions over the five years. The number of ordinary (that is, overnight) inpatient admissions per patient rose from 1.23 to 1.41 over the five year period and day case inpatient admissions from 1.25 to 3.45. Chemotherapy accounted for 50% of the rise in day case admissions; colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy were associated with a further 18%. Fourteen per cent of the increase in ordinary admissions was also because of chemotherapy. CONCLUSION: The monitoring of site specific trends in admission, treatments, and procedures on a population basis should be a core requirement of health authorities to inform needs assessment, resource allocation, and service planning. The rise in admissions and chemotherapy treatments have implications for drug costs, laboratory and inpatient services, monitoring, and clinical audit.

 

     

Still a burning issue: trends in the volume,content and population reach of newspaper coverage about tobacco issues

Tobacco control advocates expend considerable effort in generating news stories on tobacco issues to assist progress in tobacco control, and the news coverage itself may have important policy and behavioral influences. Yet, studies of trends in such news coverage are uncommon. Between 2001 and 2006, we conducted a content analysis of tobacco-related newspaper articles in the 12 major daily Australian newspapers and coded them for type of article, topic, and tone. Overall, 6483 tobacco-focused articles were published, representing an average of one article every 4 days for each newspaper. There was variability in volume between years but no decline over time. Overall, 67% of articles reported on events that represented progress for tobacco control, 21% on setbacks, and 7% on events that were of mixed impact. Newspaper coverage of tobacco issues was dominated by articles on smoke-free issues (32% of articles), health effects of smoking (12%), education, prevention and cessation programs and services (12%), and the tobacco industry (9%). During the 6-year period, on average, Australian adults were potentially exposed to around one article on tobacco issues every week, or using a more stringent prominence-adjusted measure, one article every 2 to 3 weeks, a level comparable to paid media campaigns in some jurisdictions. Temporal variation in population exposure to news coverage about tobacco issues may reflect variability in newsworthiness of tobacco control issues, media advocacy resources and success, and/or preparedness of editors and journalists to entertain news stories on tobacco.     

Trends in Tuberculosis Reported From the Appalachian Region: United States, 1993-2005

ABSTRACT:  Context: Appalachia has been characterized by its poverty, a factor associated with tuberculosis, yet little is known about the disease in this region. Purpose: To determine whether Appalachian tuberculosis risk factors, trends, and rates differ from the rest of the United States. Methods: Analysis of tuberculosis cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Tuberculosis Surveillance System (NTSS) within the 50 states and the District of Columbia from 1993 through 2005. Results: The 2005 rate of tuberculosis in rural Appalachia was 2.1/100,000, compared to 2.7/100,000 in urban Appalachia. Urban non-Appalachia had a 2005 tuberculosis rate of 5.4/100,000. Over the 13-year period, tuberculosis rates fell in Appalachia at an annual rate of 7.8%. In one age group (15- to 24-year-olds) the rates increased at an annual rate of 2.8%. Foreign-born Hispanics were the largest racial/ethnic group in this age group. When private providers gave exclusive care for tuberculosis disease, Appalachians were less likely to complete therapy in a timely manner when compared to non-Appalachians (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5-0.7). Conclusions: Tuberculosis rates and trends are similar in urban and rural Appalachia. It is crucial for public health officials in Appalachia to address the escalating TB rate among 15- to 24-year-olds by focusing prevention efforts on the growing numbers of foreign-born cases. Due to the increased risk of treatment failure among Appalachians who do not seek care from the health department, public health authorities must ensure completion of treatment for patients who seek private providers.     

News of disparity: content analysis of news coverage of African American healthcare inequalities in the USA, 1994-2004

National survey data reveal that while public awareness of healthcare inequalities in the USA has increased, the public have become less supportive of federal responsibility to address healthcare inequalities. Agenda setting literature suggests that news coverage may have an impact on both public awareness of an issue and public support for government responsibility to address that issue, particularly in relation to racial inequalities. This research examines the prominence and content of news coverage on racial healthcare disparities in the USA between 1994 and 2004 in order to disentangle the messages that may affect public views of who should be responsible for reducing racial disparities. Even among those who are aware of healthcare disparities, these data show that support for federal responsibility has significantly decreased. Results show that the prominence of coverage of racial healthcare inequalities increased over the period. Journalists increasingly used academics, academic reports, experts, advocacy groups, and Republican politicians, as sources of information. Mentions of actors responsible for causing healthcare inequalities were mixed, with a plurality of stories describing no responsible causal agent. Further, we found that approximately half of the articles in almost every time period studied did not report actors who are working to ameliorate healthcare inequalities, nor did a majority of stories call on any actor to address disparities. As a political agenda to reduce racial healthcare inequalities advances, public support for federal government responsibility will be needed to develop sustainable public policy. This research helps us to understand the messages that the public may be receiving in order to motivate public will to support federal responsibility for reducing racial healthcare inequalities.     

Trends in cancer incidence in Metropolitan Detroit, 1937–1977: Leads for prevention

Cancer incidence among the black and white male and female population of metropolitan Detroit is presented for the years 1937, 1948, 1969–1971, and 1973–1977. These trends reveal increases in lung cancer among all four groups over time, while stomach cancers have decreased among each of the four groups. For black and white men lung cancer has the highest incidence in the two recent time periods, while cancer of the prostate was highest in the two earlier time periods. Among women, uterine cancer had the highest incidence for both blacks and whites in the earlier time periods, but breast cancer occurred among women more frequently than any other cancer in the most recent time period. These trends reveal the changing incidence patterns over time within an urban, industrialized population. Population-based cancer incidence data provide the most complete and accurate assessment of the occurrence of cancer within a population. Such data are particularly useful for proper planning of screening programs and for evaluating the need for preventive measures. As an example, the continuous increase in lung cancer in all four groups across all time periods clearly reveals the need for more effective measures to reduce cigarette smoking in this population.     

Trends in risk factors for the major "lifestyle-related diseases" in Geneva,Switzerland, 1993-2000

PURPOSE: Continuous monitoring of health determinants in populations is necessary to predict future disease burdens. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalences of major risk factors for lifestyle diseases for 8 years (1993 to 2000) in representative samples of the general population. METHODS: Independent cross-sectional surveys representative of adults aged 35 to 74 years (4228 men and 4190 women) in Geneva, Switzerland, conducted continuously between 1993 and 2000. RESULTS: Prevalence of hypertension decreased 15% in men and 10% in women (trend p's<.0001), while overweight/obesity prevalences increased 10% in men and 8% in women (trend p's<.05). The prevalences of smoking (men: 29%; women: 24%) and physical inactivity (men: 44%; women: 50%) remained high and unchanged, and the dietary unsaturated/saturated fat ratio did not change (men: 0.40; women: 0.48). CONCLUSIONS: Because of the persistent high prevalence of risk factors, the global burden of chronic diseases is likely to grow in the next decade and beyond. Continuous monitoring provides reliable trends, beyond seasonal and sampling variations.     

2004—2006年云南省道路交通伤害的流行趋势

目的了解2004—2006年云南道路交通伤害流行特征,为制定道路交通伤害预防控制策略提供依据。方法分析来自云南省公安厅交通警察总队发布的2004—2006年的《云南省道路交通事故统计年报》,初步掌握云南省道路交通伤害的流行状况、事故原因及其变化趋势。结果2004—2006年云南省共发生道路交通伤害24711起。道路交通事故数、伤亡人数、人口死亡率、万车死亡率、里程死亡率均呈下降趋势,每起事故平均死亡人数呈上升趋势。肇事人员及伤亡人员男性多于女性,以21～45岁青壮年人群为主。乘客、行人和摩托车驾驶者也是道路交通伤害的主要受害者。结论云南省道路交通伤害呈下降趋势,但事故严重程度呈上升趋势。     

Telling stories: news media, health literacy and public policy in Canada

Mass media are very influential in shaping discourses about health but few studies have examined the extent to which newspaper coverage of such stories reflect issues embedded in health policy documents. We estimate the relative distribution of health stories using content analysis. Nine meta-topics are used to sort stories across a range of major influences shaping the health status of populations adapted from the document Toward a Healthy Future (Second Report on the Health of Canadians (1999)) (TAHF). A total of 4732 stories were analyzed from 13 Canadian daily newspapers (10 English, 3 French language) using a constructed week per quarter method. Stories were sampled from each chosen newspaper for the years 1993, 1995, 1997 and 2001. 72% (n=3405) of stories in this analysis were from English-language papers, 28% (n=1327) were from French-language papers. Topics related to health care (dealing either with issues of service provision and delivery or management and regulation) dominated newspaper stories, accounting for 65% of all stories. Physical environment topics accounted for about 13% of all stories, the socio-economic environment about 6% of stories, personal health practices about 5% of stories, and scientific advances in health research about 4% of stories. Other influences upon health identified in TAHF were rarely mentioned. The overall prominence of topics in newspapers is not consistent with the relative importance assigned to health influences in TAHF. Canadian newspapers rarely report on socio-economic influences frequently cited in the research literature (and reflected in TAHF) as being most influential in shaping population health outcomes.