Rising food security concerns among New Zealand adolescents and association with health and wellbeing

The current paper explores recent changes in food insecurity among adolescents and determine if food security concerns are associated with poorer wellbeing. Data were collected as part of two nationally representative surveys of the health and wellbeing of high-school students in New Zealand in 2007 and 2012. In 2012, 11% of young people reported food security concerns often or always, with 33% reporting food security concerns occasionally/sometimes. The prevalence of food security concerns at both frequencies increased significantly from 2007 (8% and 28%, respectively). Young people with food security concerns were more likely to report poor indicators of health and wellbeing, including truancy, poor general health, mental health concerns and obesity. Our findings highlight the growing concerns of food insecurity reported by adolescents in New Zealand. Interventions that address food security for families may provide a tangible means of promoting the healthy development of children and young people.     

Sleep disturbance as a clinical sign for severe hypogonadism: efficacy of testosterone replacement therapy on sleep disturbance among hypogonadal men without obstructive sleep apnea

Objective: The present subanalysis of the EARTH study investigates the effects of one year testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) on sleep disturbance among hypogonadal men without obstructive sleep apnea.

Methods: Sleep disturbance was defined as three or more points in question 4 of the aging males symptoms (AMS) questionnaire. All participants completed the AMS scale, International Prostatic Symptoms Score (IPSS), Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM) and Short Form 36 (SF-36) health survey at baseline and after 12?months. Sexual symptoms were also evaluated based on three AMS subscores (Q15, 16 and 17).

Results: We identified 100 patients with sleep disturbance, of whom 48 (24 each in the TRT and control groups) were ultimately included for analysis. All SF-36 categories , AMS scale, IPSS and SHIM score subdomains were significantly worse in patients with sleep disturbance than in those without disturbance. Statistically significant differences in sleep disturbance, erectile symptoms, sexual desire and some domains of the SF-36 were observed between the TRT and control groups after 12?months.

Conclusion: Sleep disturbance may be one of the clinical signs for severe hypogonadism. Moreover, TRT improved sleep conditions, sexual function and quality of life among hypogonadal men with sleep disturbance.     

A Critical Examination of Immigrant Acculturation: Toward an Anti-Oppressive Social Work Model with Immigrant Adults in a Pluralistic Society

Today, in North America, the idea of complete assimilation ofimmigrants no longer seems relevant. Under the commonly espousedideologies of multiculturalism and pluralism, the goal of socialwork with immigrants is now integration into the host society,whether that be economically, socially and/or psychologically(Li, 2003). However, critics argue that the traditional ideaof immigrant assimilation continues to lurk behind social policiesand social services for immigrants, in that the successful integrationof immigrants is prompted by their conformation to the dominantculture (Balgopal, 2000). While a growing body of literatureon social work with immigrants has resulted in an increasedunderstanding of this diverse population and its needs, theliterature still lacks coherent theoretical and ideologicalframeworks necessary to inform effective models of service delivery.Social work literature on immigrants also requires criticalinterrogation of the impact of social science theories, particularlyin terms of long-held assumptions of culture and acculturation.In this paper, a critical review of literature on acculturationand social work with immigrants will be followed by findingsof a qualitative study with skilled immigrants in Canada. Basedon the research findings, an anti-oppressive approach to socialwork with immigrants is proposed.     

中日文学视野下的贾平凹小说中的城市意念

首先,比较《废都》与日本现代作家川端康成《古都》,解析代表历史古都的城市意象内涵与城市发展变化。其次,贾平凹自认为是农民,从农村与城市的角度解读其小说《白夜》、《土门》、《高兴》中的城市意念演变。最后,观照安部公房追求的大城市意念,探析贾平凹笔下经济发展后的城市想象。     

Ordinary Usage of New Media: Internet Usage via Mobile Phone in Japan

Abstract:  This paper, by analyzing Internet usage via mobile phones in Japan, aims to clarify an aspect of information behavior in present-day Japanese society.
Many discourses on the mobile Internet in Japan, either positive or negative, emphasize its novelty and describe this new media as an exotic phenomenon. These discourses can be divided into two categories. The nationalistic discourses and the moral panic discourses. Both types of discourse have built certain images of social influences of the mobile Internet in the future. However, it would be unwise to conclude that those images of the mobile Internet express the reality of this new medium, simply because they lack empirical ground.
With these points in mind, based on the result of our national survey conducted in 2001, we would like to show the actual status of use of the mobile Internet and discuss that the ordinary usage is a critically important realm to understand the process of social reception of the mobile Internet. As our data shows, although the actual usage of the mobile Internet is not very conspicuous, it gives us a chance to understand how the mobile Internet has been integrated into our everyday lives.     

Use of Critical Consciousness in Anti-Oppressive Social Work Practice: Disentangling Power Dynamics at Personal and Structural Levels

One of the limitations of anti-oppressive perspectives (AOPs)in social work is its lack of focus at a micro and individuallevel. AOPs should entail the social worker’s addressingthe needs and assets of service users, challenging the oppressivesocial structure and, most importantly, critically challengingthe power dynamics in the service-provider/service-user relationship.Critical consciousness challenges social workers to be cognizantof power differentials and how these differentials may inadvertentlymake social-work practice an oppressive experience. The authorscontend that critical consciousness fills in some of the gapsof AOPs, and argue for a fuller integration of critical consciousnessinto teaching and practice of AOPs. The methods to work towardcritical consciousness, such as inter-group dialogues, agent–targetdistinctions and empowerment, are detailed.     

Spatial variation in female fertility related to interactions with flower consumers and pathogens in a forest metapopulation ofPrimula sieboldii

Antagonistic biological interactions with flower consumers and pathogens may influence reproductive success of flowering plants, affecting population dynamics and natural selection for floral traits. However, ecological and evolutionary consequences of the interactions may depend on both spatial and temporal patterns of the interactions. In a forest metapopulation ofPrimula sieboldii E. Morren, an endangered clonal plant species, we measured between-subpopulation patterns of seed sets and interactions with an influential flower consumer, a rove beetle,Eusphalerum bosatsu Watanabe, and a specific smut fungal pathogen,Urocystis tranzschelina (Lavrov) Zundel (Ustilaginales), for three years. Mean female fertility (seed set per flower) for individual subpopulations fluctuated moderately among years but was highly variable within each year among the five subpopulations studied. In two subpopulations, the impact ofEusphalerum beetle, was sufficiently large to result in almost complete failure in seed production over eight years including the three study and five previous preliminary observation years. In the two other subpopulations, seed set failure was caused by infection by the smut fungus. Infected capsules which constitute 10–30% of the capsules produced in the subpopulations were filled with ustilospores instead of seeds. In the subpopulation that escaped flower damage byEusphalerum beetles and smut fungal infection, seed sets of both pin and thrum flowers were much higher than in the other subpopulations. The spatial restriction of individual antagonistic agents to a part of subpopulations suggest that dispersal of the agents, as well as the mode of spatial subdivision of the plant population would be important for determining the overall effects of antagonistic interactions on plant performances at the metapopulation level.     

Who Wants to Work for Japanese Companies? A Case in Malaysia

This study examined the factors associated with job‐pursuit intentions for Japanese companies among young, college‐educated Malaysian respondents. Building on the frameworks of Japanese‐style management and the organizational image theory, the study examined the perceived images of Japanese companies and their relations to the actual job‐pursuit intentions among potential job seekers in Malaysia. Using two types of surveys—one based on students (prospective new graduates), and the other based on mid‐career workers—we found that a positive image of Japanese companies’ human resource management was attractive to both types of potential job applicants. Images related to skill training and monetary compensation were more appealing to students, whereas the image of career development was more appealing to mid‐career workers. We also found that Japanese companies tend to attract members of the workforce who are talented in job‐specific skills and professional knowledge in the Malaysian context.     

The correlation between highly sensitive C-reactive protein levels and erectile function among men with late-onset hypogonadism

We investigated the correlation between highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels and erectile function, and assessed the clinical role of hs-CRP levels in men with late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) syndrome. For 77 participants, we assessed Sexual Health Inventory for men (SHIM) score, Aging Male Symptoms (AMS) score and International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS). We also evaluated free testosterone (FT), hs-CRP, total cholesterol, triglyceride levels, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, hemoglobin A1c, body mass index, waist size and blood pressure. We attempted to identify parameters correlated with SHIM score and to determine the factors affecting cardiovascular risk based on hs-CRP levels. A Spearman rank correlation test revealed that age, AMS score, IPSS and hs-CRP levels were significantly correlated with SHIM score. Age-adjusted analysis revealed that hs-CRP and IPSS were the independent factors affecting SHIM score (r=??0.304 and ?0.322, respectively). Seventeen patients belonged to the moderate to high risk group for cardiovascular disease, whereas the remaining 60 belonged to the low risk group. Age, FT value and SHIM score showed significant differences between the two groups. A multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that SHIM score was an independent factor affecting cardiovascular risk (OR: 0.796; 95%CI: 0.637–0.995).     

Effects of dutasteride on lower urinary tract symptoms: a prospective analysis based on changes in testosterone/dihydrotestosterone levels and total prostatic volume reduction

This study analyzed the effects of dutasteride on lower urinary tract symptoms based on the association between changes in the total testosterone (TT)/dihydrotestosterone (DHT) levels and total prostate volume (TPV) reduction. Sixty participants diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia were given 0.5?mg of dutasteride daily for 52 weeks. Measures of TT and DHT levels, TPV and uroflowmetry were obtained before and after dutasteride treatment. Forty-three patients demonstrated a TPV reduction of ≥5% (Group 1), whereas the remaining 17 patients demonstrated a TPV reduction of <5% (Group 2). DHT suppression and DHT/TT ratio at baseline were significantly higher in Group 1 than Group 2. International Prostate Symptom Scores (IPSS) and uroflowmetry were significantly improved in both groups. In Group 2, nine patients demonstrated some improvement in IPSS (Group 2A), whereas eight did not (Group 2B). The rate of TT increase and improvement in voiding symptoms were significantly higher in Group 2A than Group 2B. Dutasteride-induced TPV reduction is dependent on individual 5-α reductase inhibitor activity. Some patients demonstrating smaller dutasteride-induced TPV reduction may experience an improvement in voiding symptoms owing to an increased level of testosterone.