Mental health and psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing measures among young adults in Bogotá, Colombia

We sought to explore mental health and psychosocial impact among young people (18 to 24 years old) in Bogotá during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsWe carried a cross sectional study using a web-based survey to assess mental health and personal impact among 18 to 24 years old living in Bogotá during the first 4 months of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. The depressive symptoms were measured with PHQ-8 and anxiety symptoms with (GAD-7). We also designed a questionnaire exploring changes in personal, family and social life.ResultsOverall, 23% of the sample (n = 834) reported mild depressive symptoms (males 24% and females 23%); 29% reported moderate depressive symptoms (males 28%, females 30%); 22% moderate-severe symptoms (males 20%, females 23%) and 17% severe symptoms (males 15%, females 17%). Mild anxiety symptoms were reported by 29% of the sample (males 30%, females 29%); moderate anxiety symptoms by 29% (males 26%, females 30%); moderate-severe 18% (males 15%, females 20%) and severe anxiety by 6.0% (males 6.0% and females 6.0%). High symptoms of depression (PHQ-8 ≥ 10) were associated with being female, considering that the quarantine was stressful, having one member of the family losing their job, worsening of family relationships, decrease of physical activity and having a less nutritious diet. Having high anxiety symptoms (GAD-7 ≥ 10) were associated with sometimes not having enough money to buy food.ConclusionsThe first months of the pandemic lockdown were associated with high depressive and anxiety symptoms among young persons living in Bogotá, Colombia. Increasing public health measures to provide support for young people is needed during lockdowns and it is necessary to further explore the long-term mental health impact due to personal, family and social changes brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.     

Young Australian Adults Prefer Video Posts for Dissemination of Nutritional Information over the Social Media Platform Instagram: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Survey

Growing social media use in young adults may have applications in health promotion. This study aimed to determine the acceptability and feasibility of using Instagram to disseminate nutritional information to young Australians and assess the most preferred post style. A cross-sectional web-based pilot survey was conducted in 18–30-year-olds residing in New South Wales. Eight sets of mock Instagram posts were generated comprising three formats: (i) text/icon, (ii) realistic image, or (iii) video. Respondents (n = 108) were asked to review and rank posts from highest to lowest according to likelihood of engagement, visual preference, motivation to change eating behaviors, and relevancy of information. The Friedman test (Wilcoxon signed-rank test post hoc analysis with Bonferroni correction) was conducted to determine differences between the three post styles. Video style posts were more likely to be engaged with (p < 0.001), visually preferred (p < 0.001), more motivating to change eating behaviors (p < 0.001), and presented the most relevant food and nutrition knowledge (p < 0.001) compared with the other post styles. Most participants reported that Instagram was a suitable platform to share food and nutrition information (96%). The findings of this pilot study can be used to inform a large study that investigates the use of Instagram among a more diverse population and with a greater number of video posts tailored for audience segmentation.     

Effects of Advertising: A Qualitative Analysis of Young Adults’ Engagement with Social Media About Food

Young adults are constantly exposed to energy-dense, nutrient-poor food and beverages, particularly through advertising. Exposure can influence poor food choices and negatively impact health. This study aimed to understand young adults’ attitudes and experiences associated with food-related advertisements, particularly on social media. This qualitative analysis involved n = 166 Australian 18 to 24-year-olds who were involved in a four-week online conversation on different areas relating to health, social media, and eating. Inductive thematic analysis was utilised on two forums on the recall and perceptions of food-related advertisements. Young adults commonly mentioned aspects of the marketing mix (promotion, product, price, and place) in food advertisements. Participants were more readily able to recall energy-dense, nutrient-poor food advertisements compared to healthy food-related advertisements. Digital advertisements were often discussed alongside the use of ad-blockers and algorithms which tailored their social media viewing to what they like. Participants felt constant exposure to unhealthy food advertisements hindered their ability to realise healthy eating behaviours and created feelings of guilt. This current analysis highlights the need to provide an advertising environment that appropriately motivates healthy eating and a food environment that allows healthy food to be the affordable and convenient option.     

Agenda Setting for Health Promotion: Exploring an Adapted Model for the Social Media Era

Background

The foundation of best practice in health promotion is a robust theoretical base that informs design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions that promote the public’s health. This study provides a novel contribution to health promotion through the adaptation of the agenda-setting approach in response to the contribution of social media. This exploration and proposed adaptation is derived from a study that examined the effectiveness of Twitter in influencing agenda setting among users in relation to road traffic accidents in Saudi Arabia.

Objective

The proposed adaptations to the agenda-setting model to be explored reflect two levels of engagement: agenda setting within the social media sphere and the position of social media within classic agenda setting. This exploratory research aims to assess the veracity of the proposed adaptations on the basis of the hypotheses developed to test these two levels of engagement.

Methods

To validate the hypotheses, we collected and analyzed data from two primary sources: Twitter activities and Saudi national newspapers. Keyword mentions served as indicators of agenda promotion; for Twitter, interactions were used to measure the process of agenda setting within the platform. The Twitter final dataset comprised 59,046 tweets and 38,066 users who contributed by tweeting, replying, or retweeting. Variables were collected for each tweet and user. In addition, 518 keyword mentions were recorded from six popular Saudi national newspapers.

Results

The results showed significant ratification of the study hypotheses at both levels of engagement that framed the proposed adaptions. The results indicate that social media facilitates the contribution of individuals in influencing agendas (individual users accounted for 76.29%, 67.79%, and 96.16% of retweet impressions, total impressions, and amplification multipliers, respectively), a component missing from traditional constructions of agenda-setting models. The influence of organizations on agenda setting is also highlighted (in the data of user interactions, organizational accounts registered 17% and 14.74% as source and target of interactions, respectively). In addition, 13 striking similarities showed the relationship between newspapers and Twitter on the mentions trends line.

Conclusions

The effective use of social media platforms in health promotion intervention programs requires new strategies that consider the limitations of traditional communication channels. Conducting research is vital to establishing a strong basis for modifying, designing, and developing new health promotion strategies and approaches.     

Processing gender: lived experiences of reproducing and transforming gender norms over the life course of young people in Northern Uganda

The years between 10–19 represent a critical stage of human development during which boys and girls learn and embody socially constructed gender norms, with long-term implications for their sexual and reproductive health. This ethnographic cohort study sought to understand how gendered norms and practices develop during the transition from child to young adult in post-conflict northern Uganda. A total of 60 girls and boys aged 10–19 were selected using purposive sampling for in-depth interviews over a three-year period; 47 individuals completed all four interviews. Drawing on feminist theory and an ecological perspective, findings were used to create a conceptual framework displaying the experiences of young people navigating patriarchal and alternative norms, emphasising their lived processes of performing and negotiating norms within six key domains (work, puberty, family planning, intimate partner relations, child discipline and alcohol). The framework identifies: (1) personal factors (knowledge, agency and aspirations); (2) social factors (socialisation processes, capital, costs and consequences); and (3) structural factors (health/educational systems, religious institutions, government policies) which may encourage young people towards one norm or another as they age. These findings can inform policies and programmes to transform gender norms and promote equitable, healthy relationships.     

Supporting the communication of EC‐funded food,agriculture and biotechnology research through a European educational toolkit for schools: The development and design process

CommFABnet is a European Commission‐funded project aimed at significantly improving the information flow between European research projects in the fields of food, agriculture and fisheries, and biotechnology (the so‐called bioeconomy) and stakeholders, such as businesses, policy makers and European citizens. This includes children and young people, who are the target group of an educational toolkit that is being developed by the British Nutrition Foundation, a partner of the CommFABnet project, for use in classrooms across Europe. This paper focuses on the development of the educational toolkit, and in addition outlines the role of educating and inspiring young people in the science communication process, and how other networks or projects can learn from the CommFABnet model.     

The Digital Distribution of Public Health News Surrounding the Human Papillomavirus Vaccination: A Longitudinal Infodemiology Study

Background

New media changes the dissemination of public health information and misinformation. During a guest appearance on the Today Show, US Representative Michele Bachmann claimed that human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines could cause “mental retardation”.

Objective

The purpose of this study is to explore how new media influences the type of public health information users access, as well as the impact to these platforms after a major controversy. Specifically, this study aims to examine the similarities and differences in the dissemination of news articles related to the HPV vaccination between Google News and Twitter, as well as how the content of news changed after Michele Bachmann’s controversial comment.

Methods

This study used a purposive sampling to draw the first 100 news articles that appeared on Google News and the first 100 articles that appeared on Twitter from August 1-October 31, 2011. Article tone, source, topics, concerns, references, publication date, and interactive features were coded. The intercoder reliability had a total agreement of .90.

Results

Results indicate that 44.0% of the articles (88/200) about the HPV vaccination had a positive tone, 32.5% (65/200) maintained a neutral tone, while 23.5% (47/200) presented a negative tone. Protection against diseases 82.0% (164/200), vaccine eligibility for females 75.5% (151/200), and side effects 59.0% (118/200) were the top three topics covered by these articles. Google News and Twitter articles significantly differed in article tone, source, topics, concerns covered, types of sources referenced in the article, and uses of interactive features. Most notably, topic focus changed from public health information towards political conversation after Bachmann’s comment. Before the comment, the HPV vaccine news talked more often about vaccine dosing (P<.001), duration (P=.005), vaccine eligibility for females (P=.03), and protection against diseases (P=.04) than did the later pieces. After the controversy, the news topic shifted towards politics (P=.01) and talked more about HPV vaccine eligibility for males (P=.01).

Conclusions

This longitudinal infodemiology study suggests that new media influences public health communication, knowledge transaction, and poses potential problems in the amount of misinformation disseminated during public health campaigns. In addition, the study calls for more research to adopt an infodemiology approach to explore relationships between online information supply and public health decisions.     

A Comparison of Sugar Intake between Individuals with High and Low Trait Anxiety: Results from the NutriNet-Santé Study

(1) Background: Dietary carbohydrates are likely correlated with mental health in general, and with anxiety in particular. Our aim was to investigate the cross-sectional relationship between trait anxiety and carbohydrate (especially sugar) intake in a large sample derived from the general French population. (2) Methods: The analyses included 20,231 non-diabetic adults enrolled in the NutriNet-Santé e-cohort, who had completed the trait anxiety subscale of the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (T-STAI, 2013–2016) and who were subsequently divided into high and low trait anxiety groups (T-STAI cut-off of 40 points). Sugar-rich food and macronutrient intake was calculated from ≥3 self-administered 24-h dietary records. The association between trait anxiety and carbohydrate intake was evaluated by ANCOVA according to age category (<45 and ≥45 years). (3) Results: In the full sample, 7942 (39.3%) individuals fell into the high trait anxiety category. They were more likely to be women (82.2% versus 69.2%; p < 0.0001) and younger (mean age 51.6 versus 55.1 years; p < 0.0001) compared to the low trait anxiety group. In fully-adjusted models, high-anxiety individuals aged under 45 years had significantly higher mean consumption of added simple sugars (43.9 versus 42.3 g/d; p < 0.0007), whereas those aged over 45 years with high trait anxiety had significantly lower mean consumption of fruit (214.0 versus 219.5 g/d; p < 0.02) compared to their low-anxiety counterparts. (4) Conclusions: This cross-sectional study revealed modest age-specific associations between anxiety status and sugar intake among adults. Prospective studies with representative samples are needed to explore potential bi-directionality of the observed associations.     

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among blood donors in Québec: an update from a serial cross-sectional study

ObjectivesWe previously estimated the seroprevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies following the first pandemic wave at 2.23% in Québec, Canada. Following the much bigger second wave in fall 2020 and early 2021, we estimated the seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 in Québec during the first months of 2021.MethodsBlood samples from regular, asymptomatic (for ≥ 14 days) donors were collected between January 25, 2021 and March 11, 2021. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity was assessed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay that captures antibodies directed against the receptor binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 spike (and hence cannot discriminate between infection- and vaccine-induced seropositivity). Seroprevalence estimates were adjusted for regional distribution, age, and sex.ResultsSamples from 7924 eligible donors were analyzed, including 620 (7.8%) vaccinated donors and 7046 (88.9%) unvaccinated donors (vaccination status unknown for 258 (3.3%) donors). Overall, median age was 51 years; 46.4% of donors were female. The adjusted seroprevalence was 10.5% (95% CI = 9.7–11.3) in the unvaccinated population and 14.7% (95% CI = 13.8–15.6) in the overall population. Seroprevalence gradually decreased with age and was higher among donors who self-identified as having a racial/ethnic background other than white, both in the overall and in the unvaccinated populations.ConclusionThe seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies significantly increased in Québec since spring 2020, with younger persons and ethnic minorities being disproportionately affected. When compared with the cumulative incidence rate reported by public health authorities (i.e., 3.3% as of March 11, 2021), these results suggest that a substantial proportion of infections remain undetected despite improvements in access to COVID-19 testing.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.17269/s41997-022-00622-y.     

Use of #SaludTues Tweetchats for the Dissemination of Culturally Relevant Information on Latino Health Equity: Exploratory Case Study

BackgroundLatinx people comprise 18% of the US adult population and a large share of youth and continue to experience inequities that perpetuate health disparities. To engage Latinx people in advocacy for health equity based on this population’s heavy share of smartphone, social media, and Twitter users, Salud America! launched the #SaludTues Tweetchat series. In this paper, we explore the use of #SaludTues to promote advocacy for Latinx health equity.ObjectiveThis study aims to understand how #SaludTues Tweetchats are used to promote dissemination of culturally relevant information on social determinants of health, to determine whether tweetchats serve to drive web traffic to the Salud America! website, and to understand who participates in #SaludTues Tweetchats and what we can learn about the participants. We also aim to share our own experiences and present a step-by-step guide of how tweetchats are planned, developed, promoted, and executed.MethodsWe explored tweetchat data collected between 2014 and 2018 using Symplur and Google Analytics to identify groups of stakeholders and web traffic. Network analysis and mapping tools were also used to derive insights from this series of chats.ResultsWe conducted 187 chats with 24,609 reported users, 177,466 tweets, and more than 1.87 billion impressions using the hashtag #SaludTues during this span, demonstrating effective dissemination of and exposure to culturally relevant information. Traffic to the Salud America! website was higher on Tuesdays than any other day of the week, suggesting that #SaludTues Tweetchats acted effectively as a website traffic–driving tool. Most participants came from advocacy organizations (165/1000, 16.5%) and other health care–related organizations (162/1000, 16.2%), whereas others were unknown users (147/1000, 14.7%) and individual users outside of the health care sector (117/1000, 11.7%). The majority of participants were located in Texas, California, New York, and Florida, all states with high Latinx populations.ConclusionsCarefully planned, culturally relevant tweetchats such as #SaludTues can be a powerful tool for public health practitioners and advocates to engage audiences on Twitter around health issues, advocacy, and policy solutions for Latino health equity. Further information is needed to determine the effect that #SaludTues Tweetchats have on self- and collective efficacy for advocacy in the area of Latino health equity.     

Stakeholders’ perspectives on models of care in the emergency department and the introduction of health and social care professional teams: A qualitative analysis using World Cafés and interviews

BackgroundThere is some evidence that health and social care professional (HSCP) teams contribute to enhanced patient and process outcomes in increasingly crowded emergency departments (EDs), but the views of service users and providers on this model of care need investigation to optimize implementation.ObjectiveThis qualitative study investigated the perspectives of key ED stakeholders about HSCP teams working in the ED.MethodsUsing a participatory design, we conducted World Café focus groups and individual interviews in two Irish hospital sites with 65 participants (purposive sampling) including ED patients and carers/relatives, ED doctors and nurses, HSCPs and pre‐hospital staff. Data were thematically analysed using NVivo software.ResultsParticipants reported that ED‐based HSCP teams could improve quality and integration of care and staff experience (Theme 1) and would be appropriate for older adults with complex needs and non‐urgent complaints (Theme 2). Concerns were raised about operational and relational barriers to implementation (Theme 3), and changes in processes and culture were considered necessary for HSCPs to work successfully in the ED (Theme 4). In contrast to service providers, service users’ concerns centred on the importance of positive communication and relations (Theme 5).ConclusionsOur study indicates potential acceptability of HSCP teams working in the ED, especially to care for older adults; however, operational and relational aspects, particularly developing interdisciplinary and integrated care, need addressing to ensure successful implementation. Differences in priorities between service users and providers (relational vs operational) highlighted the usefulness of gathering views from multiple stakeholders to understand ED processes.     

Exploring the experiences of having Guillain‐Barré Syndrome: A qualitative interview study

BackgroundGuillain‐Barré syndrome (GBS) is a rare inflammatory disorder affecting the peripheral nerves. Although typically there is full neurological recovery, some people continue to experience residual physical, psychological or social problems longer term. Evidence describing the experiences of people with GBS is limited.ObjectiveWe aimed to explore the experiences of people with GBS in the UK.DesignWe used qualitative (face‐to‐face and telephone) interviews to explore experiences of people with GBS. Audio‐recorded data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using the Framework Method supported by NVivo 11.Setting and ParticipantsWe purposively recruited a sample of 16 volunteers with a prior diagnosis of GBS of varying age, sex, ethnicity, location, marital status, time since diagnosis and length of hospital stay to maximize differences in experience. Interviewees were required to have been discharged from hospital, able to give informed consent, able to speak and understand English and currently resident in the United Kingdom.ResultsThe key themes arising from the analysis were as follows: the importance of early diagnosis; the experiences of inpatient care; the importance of active support for recovery; the need for communication throughout the course of the illness; the need for greater awareness, knowledge and provision of information by health‐care staff; and path to achieving function.ConclusionThis is the first qualitative study exploring experiences of people with GBS in the UK through their whole illness journey from onset to recovery. The findings contribute to our understanding of the experiences and support needs of people recovering from GBS.     

Impact of the Make Healthy Normal mass media campaign (Phase 1) on knowledge,attitudes and behaviours: a cohort study

Objective : To determine the impact of the first phase of the Make Healthy Normal mass media campaign on NSW adults’ active living and healthy eating knowledge, attitudes, intentions and behaviour. Methods : Cohort design with NSW adults, followed up three times over 12 months, with n=939 participants completing all three waves. We used generalised linear mixed models to examine campaign awareness, knowledge, attitudes, intentions and behaviours over time. Results : Campaign recognition built to a reasonable level (45% at Wave 3), although unprompted recall was low (9% at Wave 3). There were significant increases in knowledge of physical activity recommendations (46% to 50%), the health effects of obesity (52% to 64%), and weight loss benefits (53% to 65%), with stronger effects in campaign recognisers. Conversely, we found declines in self‐efficacy and intention to increase physical activity (39% to 31%) and decrease soft drink consumption (31% to 24%). Conclusions : Overall, there are some positives for the campaign but intentions need to be a focus of future campaign phases. Continued investment over the medium‐ to long‐term is needed. Implications : Mass media campaigns can play a role in obesity prevention but robust evaluations are needed to identify the characteristics of effective campaigns.     

Using a Marketing Evaluation Tool to Optimize a Social Marketing Campaign: Insights From a Copy Test of a You&#x27;re the Mom Campaign Ad

A copy test is a business tool for assessing advertisements. This report provides an example of how copy test may be used within nutrition education practice and research. A public health nutrition advertisement for You're the Mom was copy tested with a market research firm. Mothers (n?=?300) were aged 22-49years, had a household income <$50,000 and ≥1 child aged 4–8years and bought fast food ≥2–3times/mo. Compared with advertisements for for-profit goods, the advertisement scored high on impact (77th percentile) and moderate on persuasiveness (46th percentile) and communicated 2 key messages at higher rates than norms (51% and 46%) and a third at a lower rate (37%). Copy test results can best inform campaign development when the distinct purpose of the ad (versus the overall campaign) is clear; and when evaluation tools are designed to align directly with that purpose.     

Association between Self-Reported Gluten Avoidance and Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Findings of the NutriNet-Santé Study

Self-management of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is increasingly focusing on exclusion diets. In particular; patients are showing a significant interest in the gluten-free diet for the treatment of IBS. However; the lack of scientific evidence prevents the establishment of clear dietary guidelines and attention is needed as dietary restriction can lead to potentially adverse effects. This cross-sectional study aims to explore the practice of gluten avoidance in participants identified with IBS in a large cohort of non-celiac French adults. The population included 15,103 participants of the NutriNet-Santé study who completed a functional gastrointestinal disorder questionnaire based on the Rome III criteria to identify IBS in 2013 and a food avoidance questionnaire in 2016. Data on diet and anthropometric and sociodemographic characteristics were collected. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to compare the avoidance of gluten between IBS and non-IBS participants. Participants were mainly women (73.4%) and the mean age in this population was 55.8 ± 13.2 years. Among these individuals, 804 (5.4%) participants were identified as IBS cases. Among them, the prevalence of gluten avoidance was estimated at 14.8%, of which 3.0% reported total avoidance; versus 8.8% and 1.6% in non-IBS participants. After adjustments; gluten avoidance was higher in IBS participants compared to their non-IBS counterparts: (OR = 1.86; 95%CI = 1.21, 2.85) for total and (OR = 1.71; 95%CI = 1.36, 2.14) for partial avoidance. Participants identified with IBS were more associated with gluten avoidance than non-IBS participants. Further studies are needed to explore the long-term consequences of dietary interventions and to provide consistent dietary guidance connected to patient perception.     

Social Media Use,Unhealthy Lifestyles,and the Risk of Miscarriage Among Pregnant Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Prospective Observational Study

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in changes to normal life and disrupted social and economic function worldwide. However, little is known about the impact of social media use, unhealthy lifestyles, and the risk of miscarriage among pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic.ObjectiveThis study aims to assess the association between social media use, unhealthy lifestyles, and the risk of miscarriage among pregnant women in the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in China.MethodsIn this prospective cohort study, 456 singleton pregnant women in mainland China were recruited during January and February 2020. Sociodemographic characteristics, history of previous health, social media use, and current lifestyles were collected at baseline, and we followed up about the occurrence of miscarriage. Log-binomial regression models were used to estimate the risk ratios (RRs) of miscarriage for women with different exposures to COVID-19–specific information.ResultsAmong all the 456 pregnant women, there were 82 (18.0%) who did no physical activities, 82 (18.0%) with inadequate dietary diversity, 174 (38.2%) with poor sleep quality, and 54 (11.8%) spending >3 hours on reading COVID-19 news per day. Women with excessive media use (>3 hours) were more likely to be previously pregnant (P=.03), have no physical activity (P=.003), have inadequate dietary diversity (P=.03), and have poor sleep quality (P<.001). The prevalence of miscarriage was 16.0% (n=73; 95% CI 12.6%-19.4%). Compared with women who spent 0.5-2 hours (25/247, 10.1%) on reading COVID-19 news per day, miscarriage prevalence in women who spent <0.5 hours (5/23, 21.7%), 2-3 hours (26/132, 19.7%), and >3 hours (17/54, 31.5%) was higher (P<.001). Miscarriage prevalence was also higher in pregnant women with poor sleep quality (39/174, 22.4% vs 34/282, 12.1%; P=.003) and a high education level (66/368, 17.9% vs 7/88, 8.0%; P=.02). In the multivariable model, poor sleep quality (adjusted RR 2.06, 95% CI 1.24-3.44; P=.006), 2-3 hours of media use daily (adjusted RR 1.74, 95% CI 1.02-2.97; P=.04), and >3 hours of media use daily (adjusted RR 2.56, 95% CI 1.43-4.59; P=.002) were associated with miscarriage. In the sensitivity analysis, results were still stable.ConclusionsPregnant women with excessive media use were more likely to have no physical activity, inadequate dietary diversity, and poor sleep quality. Excessive media use and poor sleep quality were associated with a higher risk of miscarriage. Our findings highlight the importance of healthy lifestyles during the COVID-19 pandemic.