Blood pressure differences in people with various individual characteristics in Guangdong Province

Objective To study the differences in blood pressure (BP) levels and the main factors raising BP among the population in Guangdong Province. Methods The data analyzed stem from the sampling survey of hypertension in Guangdong Province in 1991, covering 42, 894 subjects over 15 years old. Individual characteristics included age, sex, occupation, education, smoking, alcohol drinking and body mass index (BMI) . Results Systolic and diastolic BP increased with age. The hypertension prevalence rate in male is higher than in female. The age - adjusted prevalence rate in office personnel is the highest (12.9 % ) among all occupations. It was increased with education level and BMI (in people educated at university and over is 13. 1 % ), and higher in smokers and alcohol-drinkers than non-smokers and non -alcohol-drinkers. Conclusions Age, occupation, education, smoking, alcohol drinking and BMI all effect BP. These risk factors should be reduced in the Guangdong population.

Characterising populations living close to intensive farming and composting facilities in England

Bioaerosol exposure has been linked to adverse respiratory conditions.Intensive farming and composting facilities are important anthropogenic sources of bioaerosols.We aimed to characterise populations living close to intensive farming and composting facilities.We also infer whether the public are becoming more concerned about anthropogenic bioaerosol emissions,using reports of air pollution related incidents attributed to facilities.We mapped the location of 1,257 intensive farming and 310 composting facilities in England in relation to the resident population and its characteristics(sex and age),area characteristics(deprivation proxy and rural/urban classification)and school locations stratified by pre-defined distance bands from these bioaerosol sources.We also calculated the average number of air pollution related incidents per year per facility.We found that more than 16%of the population and 15%of schools are located within 4,828 m of an intensive farming facility or 4,000 m of a composting facility;few people(0.01%)live very close to these sites and tend to be older people.Close to composting facilities,populations are more likely to be urban and more deprived.The number of incidents were attributed to a small proportion of facilities;population characteristics around these facilities were similar.Results indicate that populations living near composting facilities(particularly>250 to≤4,000 m)are mostly located in ur6an areas(80188%of the population),which supports the need for more community health studies to be conducted.Results could also be used to inform risk management strategies at facilities with higher numbers of incidents.