Diabetes and Hypertension Are Associated with Food Insecurity in a Cameroonian Population: A Case-Control Study

Diabetes and hypertension are the most prevalent cardiovascular risk factors. Recent studies showed an increase in the prevalence of food insecurity in our country. The aim of this study was to assess how food insecurity affects the dietary habits, socio-demographic characteristics and metabolic profile of individuals with diabetes or hypertension. This case-control study was conducted among diabetic and hypertensive participants (cases) and diabetic and hypertensive normal (controls) during the screening campaigns for nutrition-related chronic diseases. The sociodemographic, clinical and biochemical parameters of the participants were analyzed. Logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with diabetes and hypertension in the study population. Bivariate analyses showed that male gender (OR = 1.972;95% CI: 1.250 - 3.089), regular alcohol consumption (OR = 2.012;95% CI: 1.294 - 3.130), low fruit consumption (OR = 1.590;95% CI: 1.016 - 2.488), low dietary diversity (OR = 2.915;95% CI: 1.658 - 5.127) and abdominal obesity (OR = 1.893, CI 95% 1.203 - 2.978) were significantly associated with hypertension. In addition, low fruit consumption (OR = 1.829;95% CI 1.092 - 3.064), low legume consumption (OR = 3.515;95% CI 1.861 - 6.635), and hypertriglyceridaemia (OR = 2.241, 95% CI 1.139 - 4.408) were significantly associated with diabetes. The indirect association observed between food insecurity and diabetes and hypertension suggests the need for nutritional policies aimed at popularizing the production and consumption of fruits and legumes. Similarly, health services need to be aware and informed of the important role that food insecurity can play in the development of diabetes and hypertension.

Causal relationship between feelings and cognitive decline:An univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomization study

BACKGROUND While the impact of depression on cognition is well-documented,the relationship between feelings and cognition has received limited attention.AIM To explore the potential association between feelings and cognition with a twosample Mendelian randomization(MR)analysis.METHODS Our analysis utilized genome-wide association data on various feelings(fed-up feelings,n=453071;worrier/anxious feelings,n=450765;guilty feelings,n=45-0704;nervous feelings,n=450700;sensitivity/hurt feelings,n=449419;miserableness,n=454982;loneliness/isolation,n=455364;happiness,n=152348)in the European population and their impact on cognitive functions(intelligence,n=269867).Conducting a univariable MR(UVMR)analysis to assess the relationship between feelings and cognition.In this analysis,we applied the inverse variance weighting(IVW),weighted median,and MR Egger methods.Additionally,we performed sensitivity analysis(leave-one-out analysis),assessed heterogeneity(using MR-PRESSO and Cochran’s Q test),and conducted multiple validity test(employing MR-Egger regression).Subsequently,a multivariable MR(MVMR)analysis was employed to examine the impact of feelings on cognition.IVW served as the primary method in the multivariable analysis,complemented by median-based and MR-Egger methods.RESULTS In this study,UVMR indicated that sensitivity/hurt feelings may have a negative causal effect on cognition(OR=0.63,95%CI:0.43-0.92,P=0.017).After adjustment of other feelings using MVMR,a direct adverse causal effect on cognition was observed(OR_(MVMR)=0.39,95%CI:0.17-0.90,P_(MVMR)=0.027).While a potential increased risk of cognitive decline was observed for fed-up feelings in the UVMR analysis(ORUVMR=0.64,95%CI:0.42-0.97,PUVMR=0.037),this effect disappeared after adjusting for other feelings(OR_(MVMR)=1.42,95%CI:0.43-4.74,P_(MVMR)=0.569).These findings were generally consistent across MV-IVW,median-based,and MR-Egger analyses.MR-Egger regression revealed pleiotropy in the impact of worrier/anxious feelings on cognition,presenting a challenge in identifying the effect.Notably,this study did not demonstrate any significant impact of guilty feelings,nervous feelings,miserableness,or loneliness/isolation on cognition.Due to a limited number of instrumental variables for happiness,this study was unable to analyze the relationship between happiness and cognition.CONCLUSION This MR study finds that sensitivity/hurt feelings are associated with cognitive decline,while the link between worrier/anxious feelings and cognition remains inconclusive.Insufficient evidence supports direct associations between happiness,guilty feelings,nervous feelings,miserableness,loneliness/isolation,and cognition.

Post-COVID-19 Challenges for Full-Time Employees in China: Job Insecurity, Workplace Anxiety and Work-Life Conflict

Background:Though the COVID-19 pandemic recedes,and our society gradually returns to normal,Chinese people’s work and lifestyles are still influenced by the“pandemic aftermath”.In the post-pandemic era,employees may feel uncertainty at work due to the changed organizational operations and management and perceive the external environment to be more dynamic.Both these perceptions may increase employees’negative emotions and contribute to conflicts between work and life.Drawing from the ego depletion theory,this study aimed to examine the impact of job insecurity during the post-pandemic era on employees’work-life conflicts,and the mediating effect of workplace anxiety in this relationship.Besides,this study also considered the uncertainty of the external macro environment as a boundary condition on the direct and indirect relationship between job insecurity and work-life conflicts.Methods:A two-wave questionnaire survey was conducted from October to December 2023 to collect data.MBA students and graduates from business school with full-time jobs are invited to report their perception of job insecurity,work anxiety,perceived environment uncertainty,and work-life conflict.This resulted in 253 valid responses.Data analysis was performed using the SPSS,Amos,and PROCESS.Results:The results showed that:(1)Employees’job insecurity would directly intensify the work-life conflict(B=0.275,p<0.001,95%CI[0.182,0.367]).(2)Employees’workplace anxiety mediates the relationship between job insecurity and work-life conflict(B=0.083,p<0.001,95%CI[0.047,0.130]).(3)The mediating effect of workplace anxiety between job insecurity and work-life conflict exists when perceived environmental uncertainty is high(B=0.049,95%CI[0.011,0.114]),while vanishes when perceived environmental uncertainty is low(B=0.024,95%CI[−0.005,0.068]).Conclusion:Job insecurity combined with perceived environmental uncertainty in the postpandemic era fuels employees’workplace anxiety and work-life conflicts.Post-pandemic trauma lingers,necessitating urgent attention and response.

The Effects of Job Insecurity, Emotional Exhaustion, and Met Expectations on Hotel Employees’ Pro-Environmental Behaviors: Test of a Serial Mediation Model

There are a plethora of empirical pieces about employees’pro-environmental behaviors.However,the extant literature has either ignored or not fully examined various factors(e.g.,negative or positive non-green workplace factors)that might affect employees’pro-environmental behaviors.Realizing these voids,the present paper proposes and tests a serial mediation model that examines the interrelationships of job insecurity,emotional exhaustion,met expectations,and proactive pro-environmental behavior.We used data gathered from hotel customer-contact employees with a time lag of one week and their direct supervisors in China.After presenting support for the psychometric properties of the measures via confirmatory analysis in LISREL 8.30,the abovementioned linkages were gauged using the PROCESS plug-in for statistical package for social sciences.The findings delineated support for the hypothesized associations.Specifically,emotional exhaustion and met expectations partly mediated the effect of job insecurity on proactive pro-environmental behavior.More importantly,emotional exhaustion and met expectations serially mediated the influence of job insecurity on proactive pro-environmental behavior.These findings have important theoretical implications as well as significant implications for diminishing job insecurity,managing emotional exhaustion,increasing met expectations,and enhancing ecofriendly behaviors.

Food insecurity increases the risk of overweight and chronic diseases in adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis

To investigate the relationship between food insecurity(FI)and overweight/obesity(OW/OB)or corresponding chronic diseases in adolescents,33 studies with 181135 individuals were included in this meta-analysis.Six studies and 10 studies,reported a higher risk of overweight and obesity in adolescents experiencing FI,respectively(OR 1.38,95%CI 1.20‒1.58,P<0.0001;OR 1.11,95%CI 1.01‒1.22,P=0.035,respectively).Based on the pooled results,adolescents with severe FI had the highest risk of OW/OB(OR 1.45,95%CI 1.20‒1.75,P<0.0001).The pooled OR indicated no signifi cant association between FI and OW/OB,when the adolescents were stratifi ed into those under 6 years old and those between 6 and 18 years old.Eleven studies assessed the relationship between FI and the risk of chronic diseases.The anemia subgroup was significantly associated with FI(OR 1.67,95%CI 1.30‒2.13,P<0.0001).Severe FI was reported to increase the risk of hypertension(OR 1.59,95%CI 1.28‒1.98,P<0.0001).Furthermore,a pooled analysis revealed a signifi cant association between FI and the risk of chronic diseases in both 6 and 6-18-year-old subgroups.

Obstetrical Emergencies in Ouahigouya Regional Teaching Hospital (Burkina Faso) in the Context of Insecurity Linked to Armed Groups: A Comparative Study between Patients from Precarious Security Zones and Those from Safe Areas

Introduction: Insecurity can be an obstacle to access to emergency obstetric and newborn care, that is why we proposed to study obstetrical emergencies in Ouahigouya Regional Teaching Hospital, a referral hospital in a region plagued by insecurity linked to armed groups. Method: This was an analytical cross-sectional study with prospective data collection over a 4-month period, from June 10 to October 10, 2020. Patients from precarious security areas were compared to those from safer areas. The Chi squared and Fisher tests were used for comparison of variables. Results: Obstetric emergencies accounted for 38.62% of admissions, from which 25.59% came from precarious security zones. Age was similar in both comparison groups. However, patients from unsafe areas were more likely to reside in rural areas (p 0.001) and more likely to be in unpaid occupations (p 0.001). Prenatal visits were less frequent (p 0.01) and women were more often multigravidae (p 0.01) in the precarious security group of patients. Apart from the more frequent uterine rupture (p = 0.02) in the group from precarious security zones, diagnosed complications and maternal mortality were similar in the 2 groups, while perinatal mortality was higher in the group of patients from precarious security zones (p 0.01). Conclusion: The precarious security situation has negative consequences on maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Further studies are needed for better understanding of these consequences, and improvement of health system resilience strategies, to reduce related maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality.

Common Emulsifier Combination Skin Feeling Research and Recommendation

Emulsifier is an important component of emulsified skin care BASE(matrix),and the common influencing factors affecting the skin feel of BASE are:emollient,thickeners,and emulsifier.The choice of emulsifier is crucial to the skin feel of cosmetics.In this paper,12 classical emulsifiers were selected and 13 combinations of them were made.Thirteen creams were designed using the same formulation structure,their physicochemical indexes were determined,and their skin feel was tested and evaluated using five expert panel scores,with the test site being the hand.Physicochemical parameters included pH and viscosity.Skin feel indicators include:stickiness,silkiness,whiteheads,greasiness at the end of application,absorption,softness after use,etc.The BASE formulations of the creams were tested and evaluated by five experts.Recommendations were also made for the selection of emulsifier combinations in the design of cream BASE formulations.

情绪与情绪调节策略对知晓感(Feeling-of-Knowing)判断的影响

本研究通过两个实验来研究情绪和情绪调节策略对知晓感判断的影响。在实验一中,通过让被试观看影片片段,激发相应的情绪状态,然后对不同情绪的词对做知晓感判断;在实验二中,通过观看影片诱发被试的负性情绪,然后采用不同情绪调节策略对被试的情绪状态进行调节并对不同情绪词对做知晓感判断。结果表明:1) 情绪状态和词对的情绪性质对FOK的判断等级和准确性存在影响,表现为在中性状态下,中性词对的判断等级和准确性均高于情绪词对;2) 情绪调节策略对FOK的判断等级产生影响,评价忽视策略和表情宣泄策略条件下被试的FOK判断值显著高于评价重视和表达抑制;3) 情绪调节策略对FOK判断准确性也存在影响,评价重视和评价忽视两种调节策略下被试的FOK判断准确性显著高于表情宣泄和表情抑制策略。

On Aesthetic Feelings of Synaesthesia

Synaesthesia is both a common daily life phenomenon and a controversial rhetoric one.Respective evidence may be found in 'Wounded fingers may cause pain in heart' and 'The breeze blows away birds' sweet voice from under the flower'.Other examples,like 'the liquid stillness of the night,noise color,sweet voice,icy look,sharp cry,sour remark,oily-tongued…' are so frequently seen in both Chinese and foreign poems especially classic poems.Without doubt,use of synaesthesia blows a fresh air into essay and poem writing,let alone the accurate and aesthetic feelings it arouses among readers.However,when people try to find out the reason why it can arouse such aesthetic feelings,they seem to encounter difficulties.This paper makes an attempt to offer a different explanation based on psychological analysis.

Contribution of attachment insecurity to health-related quality of life in depressed patients

AIM: To examine the individual contributions of insecure attachment styles and depression symptom severity to health-related quality of life(HRQo L) in patients diagnosed with adjustment disorder(AJD) with depressed mood. METHODS: Participants were 67 patients diagnosed with International Classification of Diseases, Tenth edition AJD with depressed mood, who completed standardised self-report questionnaires measuring study variables. Mean scores and SDs were computed for the outcome and predictor measures. Pearson correlations among the measures were computed. The study hypotheses were tested using analysis of variance(ANOVA) and multiple regression analyses. All analyses were performed using the SPSS-17 software package(SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, United States).RESULTS: ANOVA showed a significant main effect of the insecure attachment styles on depression symptom severity and life satisfaction scores. The results suggestthat depressive symptoms were more severe(F = 4.13, df = 2.67, P < 0.05) and life satisfaction was poorer(F = 5.69, df = 2.67, P < 0.01) in both anxious-ambivalently and avoidantly attached patients compared with their securely attached counterparts, whereas the two insecure groups did not significantly differ by these variables. The anxious/ambivalent attachment style and depression symptom severity significantly contributed to HRQo L, accounting for 21.4% and 29.7% of the total variance, respectively [R2 = 0.79; Adjusted R2 = 0.77; F(5, 67) = 33.68, P < 0.0001], even after controlling for gender, marital and employment status confounders.CONCLUSION: The results show that the anxious/ambivalent attachment style together with depression symptom severity substantially and independently predict the HRQo L outcome in AJD with depressed mood.

Food and Nutritional Insecurity before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Households of Women Belonging to a Social Program

Introduction: According to the National Health and Nutrition Survey, the Mexican households in 2018 had food insecurity at 55.5% while in 2012 it was 70%. Food insecurity is a global health problem and now with the COVID-19 pandemic, it has increased. Objective: To compare the levels of food and nutritional insecurity in women’s households from two Social Impulse Centers of the Secretary for Human Social Development (SEDESHU) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A comparative and cross-sectional study was carried out in 41 women participating in a nutritional intervention program in two social promotion centers. Food security was measured with the Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale (ELCSA), comparing it in a period from January to April 2020: before and during the health contingency. Socio-economic and demographic variables were also measured, as well as access to water during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Food insecurity levels during the COVID-19 contingency were found to have increased by more than 60% (from 31.7% to 93%);the main risk factors associated with unemployment and access to healthy food. The COVID-19 contingency reflects impacts on households, but because women participated in the nutritional intervention program, it could influence by observing that, at least, the use of food was adequate since apparently food waste was minimal. Conclusions: The implementation of an educational nutrition program can be a strategy in the face of contingencies or extraordinary situations. In this way, the negative impact could be less in the population that does not have any type of food education.

The Global Value ofMencius＇s Ideas on Moral Feeling and Reason： Reinterpreting the Feeling of Compassion From the Perspective of the Philosophy of Emotion

Amid the recent global upsurge of studies on the philosophy of emotion, a reinterpretation of traditional Confucian philosophy, especially Mencius＇s ideas on the siduan （Four Original Sources） of morality, may shed new light on the subject in comparative philosophy. This paper probes the structure of moral feeling and reason described by Mencius＇s from five perspectives： （1） In view of the relationship between feeling and reason, is it better to use the expression ＂siduan＂ or the expression ＂sixin （Four Heart-minds）＂？ （2） In view of dispositional feeling, what are the four original sources？ （3） In view of moral feeling, what are the structural order of the four sources and the corresponding procedure of reasoning of four heart-minds of Humanity？ （4） In view of positive feeling, how does moral feeling grow out of the goodness of human nature？ （5） What is the global value of Mencius＇s ideas on human moral feeling？ The author concludes that Mencius＇s thought on moral feeing has a global value and cross-cultural significance, and that Chinese wisdom is more than regional but universally applicable. The structure of moral feeling and reason that Mencius identified is in accordance with the principles ofzhiliang （grasping the two poles of the beginning and the end） and yongzhong （emloying the middle）. The principles ofzhiliang and yongzhong are true universal wisdoms of Confucianism, which should be rekindled today. From a practical point of view, ＂the Way begins from moral feelings,＂ and Confucius and Yah Hui＇s seeking the simple, virtuous life is an ideal model of emotional well-being.

A Study on Feelings of Worriment Due to Middle-Sized Robot in Living Space

Recently, the demand of services for architectural space is more increasing due to the diversification and complication of people＇s needs. In this research, it is assumed that the robot will support people＇s various needs and people＇s lives in the near future. In this study, the authors investigated the relationship between a robot and a person in quasi space close to actual life space. The authors carried out an experiment to clarify the feelings of worriment due to a robot in the living room in the case of Japanese males. This research aims to establish architecture techniques for robots and humans living together. In this experiment, the robot approached a male sitting on a sofa in quasi space. At different distances between the robot and the male, the subject evaluated his feelings of worriment from ＂no worriment＂ to ＂worriment＂ in five steps from one to five. The robot used in this experiment is middle-sized （380 mm （L） × 380 mm （W） × 350 mm （H））. In this experiment, it is considered that the robot asks for help outside when an emergency occurs. In this experiment, the authors had three situations for the subject： watching television, reading a magazine and just sitting.

Lipid and Diabetic Profiles of School Teachers in Afghanistan Facing Food Insecurity and Their Association with Knowledge Relating to Healthy Lifestyle

Objectives: To investigate lipid and diabetic profiles of school teachers in Kabul, Afghanistan, who face food insecurity, and examine the association of those with the teachers’ knowledge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Methods: A survey to examine biochemical indicators of NCDs (triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), blood pressure, height, weight, waist circumference), food insecurity, lifestyle and knowledge of NCDs was conducted among 600 school teachers. Analyses were made of biochemical indicators of NCDs, blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, obesity, and subject’s lifestyle in relation to food security and the subject’s knowledge of NCDs. Results: Thirty-nine percent of school teachers experienced food insecurity. The percentage of TC ≥ 200 mg/dL;HbA1c ≥ 5.5%;hypertension and metabolic syndrome were 20.2%, 29.7%, 32.2% and 33.7%, respectively. Food insecurity was associated with lower fruit and vegetable consumption and higher potato consumption. Food insecurity was associated with increased TC (AOR 2.03;95%CI: 1.23 - 3.34), decreased HDL (AOR 1.70;95%CI: 1.12 - 2.58), increased HbA1c (AOR 1.73;95%CI: 1.14 - 2.64), hypertension (AOR 1.68;95%CI: 1.01 - 2.80) and diagnosis of metabolic syndrome (AOR 1.78;95%CI: 1.18 - 2.68), after adjustment by demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle variables. Among people living under condition of food insecurity, greater NCD knowledge was associated with smaller prevalence of TG ≥ 150 mg/dL, HDL Conclusions: Under conditions of food insecurity, diets have less variety and individuals are more likely to exhibit biomedical risk factors of NCDs. Even under conditions of food insecurity, people with knowledge of NCDs may have better coping strategies for their choice of lifestyles and exhibited a lower percentage of risk factors of NCDs.

A Systematic Review of the Literature on the Relationships between Chronic Diseases and Food Insecurity

Background: The association between food insecurity (FI) and obesity is now so well documented that scholars have dubbed it the “‘new’ food insecurity” and cited it as a leading cause of increased chronic disease (CD) risk. Here, the chain of causality is assumed to be FI → obesity → CD. However, this model overlooks the possible direct associations between FI and CD independent of obesity. Aim: This study assessed the literature on relationships between FI and CD. Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review of electronic databases. Selection criteria were designed to elicit studies that assessed FI and CD using a measure of CD other than obesity. Results: Fifty-one articles met the inclusion criteria. Forty-five studies (87%) reported a statistically significant association between FI and CD, but only 15 adjusted for obesity. The association was less consistent for asthma and dyslipidemia than for diabetes, hypertension, and other dietrelated CDs, and most were conducted in the USA or Canada. Conclusion: There is a body of literature documenting relationships between FI and CD, but it is heavily biased toward Western nations, ecological study designs, and type 2 diabetes as the CD of focus. A small subset of the literature controls for BMI, demonstrating that a portion of the FI-CD relationship cannot be fully explained by obesity. Possible direct pathways linking FI and CD include systematic effects of poverty that accompanies FI, micronutrient deficiencies, and environmental exposure to toxins;however, exploration of these alternative pathways is limited by study designs that fail to include obesity as a control variable.

Negative feelings experienced by people with mental disorder in the workplace: A qualitative study

Mental disorders are a significant cause of disability and loss of workplace productivity. Many people with mental illness want to work. Occupational health in the world has to face up to psychosocial risks to protect the health of employees. My study aims are to improve negative feelings in work place and work functioning and to stimulate better coping mechanisms. Participants were collected from “Mental health daycare facility”, “Regional living assistance center” and “B-type employment assistance office” in Japan. I took interviews with 25 members. The content of the interviews was categorized about negative feelings in work place. A total of 33 small category negative feelings of mental disorder were extracted and were classified into 11 subcategories. These subcategories were then classified into two higher-level categories: inward-directed feelings and outward-directed feelings. Inward-directed feelings include “reserve or timidity,” “hesitation about being open about the illness,” “anxiety about being dismissed,” “regrets about resigning,” “sense of isolation,” “feelings of remorse,” and “suffering.” Outward-directed feelings include “failure in interpersonal relationships,” “distrust,” “frustrations,” “negative feelings toward those with mental disorder.” Employment has been linked to having better social networks, to enhanced quality of life and to overall wellbeing. We will have to defend them legally. The legal and moral obligations placed on the employer require that it provides a healthy, harassment-free work environment.

Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic and Poverty on Food Insecurity: Yearly Spatial Analysis

Spatial regression analysis was applied separately to the annual US state-level food insecurity data from 2015 through 2018, and 2020 to examine the effects of race, region of residency, and poverty particularly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of the analysis suggested that the US food insecurity level was trending downwards between 2015 and 2018 but increased by 33.5% in 2020, obviously due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, residents from the West experienced higher food insecurity levels relative to the Mid-West between 2015 and 2018. The analysis also revealed that race is not a determining factor of food insecurity as both White and Black are equally affected to a significant level. Rather, the most salient determinant of food insecurity is poverty. The effects of poverty were positive and strongly significant from 2015 through 2018. The effect was, however, mild in 2020 probably due to the stimulus and unemployment checks people received through the Care Act. This result underscored the importance of SNAP and other government intervention programs in addressing the country’s food insecurity problems.

Serum 17β-estradiol and oral dryness feeling in menopause

The aim of this study was to compare serum 17β-estradiol of menopausal women with/without Oral Dryness (OD) feeling, and evaluate the re-lationship between serum 17β-estradiol and severity of OD feeling. A case-control study was carried out on 70 selected menopausal women aged 40 - 77 years with or without OD feeling (35 as case, 35 as control) conducted at the Clinic of Oral Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Xerostomia inventory (XI) score was used as an index of OD feeling severity. The serum 17β-estradiol concentration was measured by an enzyme immunoassay kit (ELISA). Statistical analysis of Student’s t-test and Spearman correlation coefficient was used. The mean serum concentration of 17β-estradiol was significantly lower in case than control. There was a significant negative correlation between XI score and concentration of 17β-estradiol in menopausal women (r = –0.311, P = 0.004). It seems that there is a negatively slight correlation between OD feeling severity and serum 17β-estradiol in menopausal women.

Empirical Study on the Empowerment of Families Raising Children with Severe Motor and Intellectual Disabilities in Japan: The Association with Positive Feelings towards Child Rearing

Background: “Children with severe motor and intellectual disabilities” refers to children with markedly limited activity due to severe overlapping of physical and intellectual disabilities. The physical and mental burden placed on families raising severely disabled children, particularly the primary caregivers, is great in home settings. For families to effectively utilize services and over-come child rearing problems, the families themselves need the “strength” to cooperate with others for the purpose of raising a severely disabled child. The ultimate goal of family support is to enable such families to achieve satisfaction and self-growth in child rearing. Methods: We used a questionnaire to survey 75 primary caregivers to empirically elucidate the empowerment and positive feelings towards child rearing of families raising children with severe motor and intellectual disabilities and the related factors. The t-test and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient were used to examine the association with bivariates. A multiple regression analysis was conducted for empowerment and positive feelings. Results: Results revealed that life events, livelihood, awareness of social support and the child’s sleep problems were factors related to empowerment. Of these, awareness of social support from outside of the family was found to contribute the most to empowerment. Furthermore, improvement and maintenance of positive feelings towards child rearing reaffirmed the existence of empowerment in addition to reducing negative feelings towards child rearing and ensuring social support. Conclusions: Raising children with severe motor and intellectual disabilities requires specialist knowledge and skills. Support from professionals to empower the entire family is therefore important in order to strengthen positive feelings towards child rearing.

Study on Prediction and Application of Human Body Feeling Temperature

[ Objective] The study aimed to forecast human body feeling temperature. [ Method] Using air temperature data outside shutter boxes of cement and asphalt underlying surface at 1.5 m and conventional observation data from 2008 to 2010 as well as T639 and Japan numerical forecast product, the characteristics of the minimum temperature in winter half year and the maximum temperature in summer half year in Changzhou were analyzed, and the prediction equation of the maximum temperature from May to September as well as year-round comfort prediction index were es- tablished. Moreover, the announcement platform of human body feeling temperature was developed to forecast it. [ Result] There remained a tiny discrepancy in the winter minimum temperature between inside and outside shutter box, and clays with the minimum temperature difference lower than 2 ℃ accounted for 94.3% of total days. However, the summer maximum temperature difference between inside and outside shutter box was larger, and days with the maximum temperature difference higher than 2 ℃ accounted for 82.0%, while the maximum difference was 5.5 ℃. The prediction accuracy of the inside maximum temperature was 78%. Wind was considered as the primary factor based on the effective temperature, and comfort index forecast and service were determined based on human feelings, dress, meteorological care and so forth. Both human body feel- ing temperature and comfort index forecast were released in the temperature forecast service. [ Condusion] The prediction of human body feeling temperature could provide scientific references for people＇s dress and traveling in daily life.