Physical activity and academic achievement in children:A historical perspective

As the focus on academic achievement has increased,physical activity(PA) opportunities in schools have decreased in the United States.In an attempt to discover how the decline in PA may affect academic achievement,researchers have been studying the effects of PA on cognition and academic achievement in children for more than 50 years.This review takes a historical perspective on the science of PA and academic achievement prior to and during the past 5 years.A total of 125 published articles were included and reviewed.Fifty-three of these articles were published in the past 5 years.In recent years,the overall quality of the studies has increased,but the results continue to be inconsistent.Many use cross-sectional designs and the methods vary substantially.The majority of conclusions show a positive effect of PA on constructs related to academic achievement.Future studies should use strong study designs to examine the types and doses of PA needed to produce improvements in academic achievement.

Pharmacological role of efflux transporters: Clinical implications for medication use during breastfeeding

The World Health Organisation recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life and in combination with solid food thereafter. This recommendation was introduced based on research showing numerous health benefits of breastfeeding for both the mother and the infant. However, there is always concern regarding the transfer of medications from mother to their breastfed baby via milk. Pharma-cokinetic properties of a drug are usually used to pre-dict its transferability into breast milk. Although most drugs are compatible with breastfeeding, cases of toxic drug exposure have been reported. This is thought to be due to active transport mechanisms whereby effux transporter proteins expressed in the epithelial cells of the mammary gland actively secrete drugs into milk. An example of such effux transporters including the breast cancer resistance protein which is strongly induced during lactation and this could result in contamination of milk with the substrates of this transporter which may place the suckling infant at risk of toxicity. Furthermore, there is little known about the substrate specifcity of most effux transporters as we have highlighted in this review. There also exists some degree of contradiction between in vivo and in vitro studies which makes it difficult to conclusively predict outcomes and drug-drug interactions.

Physical activity and exercise in children with chronic health conditions

In the last two or three decades,physical activity(PA) has gained increasing recognition as being essential for maintaining good health and improving quality of life for all ages.Children have traditionally been active in both free play and organized sports.However,there has been a recent decline in the PA levels among children for various reasons.This lifestyle change has resulted in increased obesity accompanied by a rise in diabetes and cardiovascular risk among otherwise healthy children.These lifestyle changes have been shown to be even more a problem when the child is already affected by a chronic disease.Due to medical limitations and contraindications,much care must be taken to make certain that these children are involved in the appropriate volume and intensity of exercise.The type of activity must also be given careful consideration to avoid undue risk for the child who may have problems such as poor balance,limited strength,poor vision,or cognitive disability.Further complications are either caused or exacerbated by lack of sufficient PA.The priority beyond concern for safety should be focused on ensuring the highest quality of life possible.The purpose of this review is to examine how PA can benefit children with selected chronic health conditions.

Young people are fit and active——Fact or fiction?

This paper analyses young people's habitual physical activity(HPA) and aerobic fitness(AF) in relation to health and well-being,with reference to previous generations.Data consistently show that more boys than girls experience health-related physical activity(PA) and that both genders experience a decline in HPA during adolescence.The majority of young people(～60%-75%) do not meet the requirements of current health-related PA guidelines but youth HPA appears to have stabilised over the last two decades.Although it does not describe all aspects of AF, peak oxygen uptake(peak VO_2) is recognised as the best single measure of AF.Peak VO_2 is enhanced with age,growth and maturation with increases of～150%and～80%in boys and girls respectively from 8 to 16 years.Boys' values are higher than those of girls throughout childhood and adolescence with the gender difference reaching～35% by age 16 years.There is no compelling evidence to suggest that young people have low levels of peak VO_2 or that they are less aerobically fit than children of previous generations.Despite the relative stability of peak VO_2 there has been a decline of～13%over the last 35 years in young people's ability to perform maximal aerobic exercise which involves the transport of body mass.In their daily lives young people very rarely experience PA of the intensity and duration to enhance AF and peak VO_2 is, at best,only weakly related to current levels of HPA during youth.Low levels of HPA and a marked secular decline in maximal aerobic performance remain major issues in the promotion of youth health and well-being.

Understanding the basic biology underlying the flavor world of children

Health organizations worldwide recommend that adults and children minimize intakes of excess energy and salty, sweet, and fatty foods （all of which are highly preferred tastes） and eat diets richer in whole grains, low- and non- fat dairy products, legumes, fish, lean meat, fruits, and vegetables （many of which taste bitter）. Despite such recommendations and the well-established benefits of these foods to human health, adults are not complying, nor are their children. A primary reason for this difficulty is the remarkably potent rewarding properties of the tastes and flavors of foods high in sweetness, saltiness, and fatness. While we cannot easily change children＇s basic ingrained biology of liking sweets and avoiding bitterness, we can modulate their flavor preferences by providing early exposure, starting in utero, to a wide variety of flavors within healthy foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Because the flavors of foods mothers eat during pregnancy and lactation also flavor amniotic fluid and breast milk and become preferred by infants, pregnant and lactating women should widen their food choices to include as many flavorful and healthy foods as possible. These experiences, combined with repeated exposure to nutritious foods and flavor variety during the weaning period and beyond, should maximize the chances that children will select and enjoy a healthier diet [Current Zoology 56 （6）： 834-841, 2010].

A Family of Origin Scale in Mothers of Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder-Preliminary Report

The influence of the family of origin is often described in the aetiology of different psychiatric disorders. The majority of papers concerning the families of autistic children concentrate on the quality of their lives. The aim of our study was to compare the experiences from the family of origin of mothers of children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders （ASD） and from mothers of healthy children. In our study a Family of Origin Scale （FOS） was used. This scale consists of l0 constructs： clarity of expression, responsibility, respect for others, openness to others, acceptance of separation/loss, range of feelings, mood and tone, conflict resolution, empathy and trust. It was a pilot study. The examined group consisted of 9 mothers of children with ASD, the control group-7 mothers of healthy children. We found that both groups differed in a statistically significant way as for the construct called responsibility. Our research was a pilot study and it required further investigations.

Correlation analyses of covering and righting behaviors to fitness related traits of the sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis in different environmental conditions

Complex marine benthic environments shape a number of ecologically important behaviors in sea urchins, including covering and righting behaviors. The present study correlated covering and righting behaviors to a series of fi tness-related traits in sea urchins. Righting response time of Glyptocidaris crenularis was signifi cantly positively correlated with body size, but signifi cantly negatively correlated with food consumption. Covering behavior was not signifi cantly correlated with test diameter, test height or body weight, but covering response time was negatively correlated with body weight. A signifi cantly negative correlation was found between righting response time and covering response time. Glyptocidaris crenularis showed a signifi cantly positive correlation in covering response time with and without exposure to poured sand, but no signifi cance in covering ability(number of shells used to cover). The present study provides new insight into internal mechanisms and evolutionary drives of covering and righting behaviors of sea urchins.

Lean Healthy Children with Short Stature Have Distinct Eating Patterns

Nutrition plays an essential role in normal linear growth in children. Knowledge of the eating styles and dietary consumption of healthy short children from developed countries is scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate the dietary patterns in idiopathic short stature （ISS） and relatively low weight children compared to children with normal stature and weight. This research is a case-control study of 86 pre-pubertal healthy children, mean age 5.9 ± 1.5 years. The study group comprised 43 ISS children; 43 age-matched children with normal stature and weight served as controls. Outcome measures included： dietary patterns and physical activity. The absolute daily average energy, protein and carbohydrate intake was significantly lower in the ISS children （P 〈 0.05）; after correcting for body surface area, no significant differences were found between groups. Intake of micronutrients calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin A and vitamin C, expressed as percentage from Recommended Dietary Allowance, was significantly lower in the ISS children （P 〈 0.05）, who had lower food responsiveness, higher satiety responsiveness, lesser enjoyment of food and were slower eaters （P 〈 0.001）. Physical activity was sedentary in both the ISS cases and controls. Our findings in healthy, pre-pubertal, relatively lean ISS children point to a distinct eating pattern with no alteration in physical activity. Understanding the differences in dietary intake and eating behaviors may be beneficial in the development of targeted nutritional intervention for lean ISS children.

Nutrition and Healthcare for Children from Rural Tibetan Households

Three major programs have been implemented in rural Tibetan areas in order to improve children's nutrition and healthcare,namely antenatal care,infant and young child feeding,as well as school feeding.In terms of effectiveness of service provision,the school feeding program has been put into practice more effectively than the other two for two reasons.First,rural Tibetan families are accustomed to traditional infant and young child feeding practices.Secondly,the lack of incentives for healthcare workers and the shortage of funding have hindered the provision of healthcare to rural families.Therefore,this paper proposes an adjustment of the incentive structure for healthcare providers,a fortification of the village level network of healthcare services,an improvement in the approach to healthcare education for farmers and herders,and the coordination of training courses targeted at the officials and service teams of the healthcare system.

Children＇s Problem Behaviors During Free Time as an Incentive for the Increase in Social Risks and Health Risks

Since children, as a rule, have more free time than adults, it is adults＇ responsibility to provide children with a chance to spend the time of relaxation, play, and fun in a beneficial way. Unfortunately, children＇s spare time is nowadays very frequently organized for the sake of brushing up children＇s knowledge, skills, and competences, which is accomplished by means of escalating extra-curriculum activities. When expressed by teacher and parents, these ambition-related attitudes pave the way for the disappearance of children＇s personal interests and motivations to perform complicated tasks which are perceived as unwanted or obscure by the affected children themselves. This form of adults＇ behavior may lead to the feelings of frustration, stress, demotivation, or rebellion on behalf of their children. The said emotional states, especially in relation to the lack of spontaneous play, give rise to serious psychic dysfunctions, and the instability of children＇s psychic balance. It may also pave the way for various forms of destructive behavior that mostly characterize children of younger school age who are about to start schooling.

Improving the Transitional Care for Child Dental Nursing via the Use of Documentary Films

The purpose of this paper is utilizing quasi-experimental study to evaluate the educational value of a documentary film for transitional care about children dental health management The method used in this study is a pre-post survey among nurse viewers. The study was completed over a 12-month period. In the experimental group, when the nurses watched the documentary film, they evaluated the documentary film highly and reported an intention to change their transitional care practice and mind as a result of watching the documentary film. Following viewing, children and their parents felt more strongly that ＂children with dental problems should meet with a nurse early＂ and that ＂transitional care greatly impacts children oral health＂. As a result, a documentary film about oral transitional care is an effective educational tool to improve nurses＇ transitional care awareness among children about the importance and needs of children. The results suggest that if significant modifications are obtained, this approach can be an efficient way applicable to other contexts of patient care.

Efficacy observation of auricular point sticking in combination with a healthy diet for simple obesity in children

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of combining auricular point sticking and a healthy diet to treat simple obesity in children aged 6–9 years old.Methods A total of 190 eligible obese kids were divided into an observation group and a control group using the random number table method,with 95 cases in each group.The observation group was intervened by auricular point sticking plus guide on a healthy diet,while the control group was only provided with the guide on a healthy diet.The therapeutic efficacy was observed after intervention for three consecutive months,as well as the changes in body mass(BM),body mass index(BMI),waist circumference(WC),hip circumference(HC),and subcutaneous fat thickness.Results After the 3-month intervention,the total effective rate was 91.6%in the observation group,versus 74.7%in the control group,and the between-group difference was statistically significant(P<0.01);in both groups,the BM,BMI,WC,HC,and subcutaneous fat thickness all decreased significantly(P<0.05),and were lower in the observation group than in the control group,showing statistical significance(P<0.05).Conclusion Auricular point sticking plus a healthy diet is safe and effective in treating simple obesity in children,producing more significant efficacy than healthy diet intervention alone.

Therapeutic observation on lung-clearing and spleen-strengthening tuina in children with exogenous cough

Objective:To observe the clinical efficacy of lung-clearing and spleen-strengthening tuina on exogenous cough in children.Methods:A total of 77 children with exogenous cough that met the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group according to the random number table,with 39 cases in the treatment group and 38 cases in the control group.The routine lung-clearing manipulation was used in the two groups,while the spleen-strengthening manipulation was added in the treatment group.Both groups were treated once a day,5 times as a course of treatment.After one course of treatment,the symptom score and clinical efficacy were observed.Results:There were one dropout in the treatment group and 2 dropouts in the control group.Therefore,a total of 74 cases were finally included in the analysis,with 38 cases in the treatment group and 36 cases in the control group.After treatment,there was a statistically significant difference in cough score between the two groups(P<0.05).There was a statistically significant difference in the score of poor appetite between the two groups(P<0.05).After treatment,the total effective rate was 89.5%in the treatment group versus 75.0%in the control group,showing a statistically significant difference(P<0.05).Conclusion:The therapeutic efficacy of lung-clearing spleen-strengthening manipulation is better than that of lung-clearing tuina manipulation alone for children with exogenous cough;regulating spleen and stomach can improve the curative efficacy of exogenous cough in children.

Influences of AMY1 gene copy number and protein expression on salivary alpha-amylase activity before and after citric acid stimulation in splenic asthenia children

OBjECTIVE:To compare the correlations between salivary alpha-amylase(sAA) activity and amylase,alpha 1(salivary) gene(AMY1) copy number or its gene expression between splenic asthenia and healthy children,and investigate the reasons of attenuated sAA activity ratio before and after citric acid stimulation in splenic asthenia children.METHODS:Saliva samples from 20 splenic asthenia children and 29 healthy children were collected before and after citric acid stimulation.AMY1 copy number,sAA activity,and total sAA and glycosylated sAA contents were determined,and their correlations were analyzed.RESULTS:Although splenic asthenia and healthy children had no differences in AMY1 copy number,splenic asthenia children had positive correlations between AMY1 copy number and sAA activity before or after citric acid stimulation.Splenic asthenia children had a higher sAA glycosylated proportion ratio and glycosylated sAA content ratio,while their total sAA content ratio and sAA activity ratio were lower compared with healthy children.The glycosylated sAA content ratio was higher than the total sAA content ratio in both groups.Splenic asthenia and healthy children had positive correlations between total sAA or glycosylated sAA content and sAA activity.However,the role played by glycosylated sAA content in sAA activity in healthy children increased after citric acid stimulation,while it decreased in splenic asthenia children.CONCLUSION:Genetic factors like AMY1 copy number variations,and more importantly,sAA glycosylation abnormalities leading to attenuated sAA activity after citric acid stimulation,which were the main reasons of the attenuated sAA activity ratio in splenic asthenia children compared with healthy children.

Household Environmental Factors and Childhood Morbidity in South-Western Nigeria

This study investigates household environmental factors and childhood morbidity in South-western Nigeria. To determine patterns of household environ- mental characteristics in south-western Nigeria, both primary and secondary data were employed in the study. The primary data were obtained through in-depth interviews （IDIs） with women of childbearing age who have at least a child within the last 5 years in two randomly selected states, Oyo and Osun states, in south-west Nigeria, while the secondary data were extracted from the 2013 Nigeria Demo- graphic Health Surveys （NDHS） designed to elicit information from 33,385 women of ages between 15 and 49 years in randomly selected households across all the states in Nigeria and the Federal Capital, Abuja. Three remarkable contributions were obtained： （i） the prevalence of childhood disease is high among homes with poor household environmental facilities; （ii） incidence of childhood diseases is greatly influenced by poor toilet facilities, biomass source of cooking fuel and unhealthy type of roofing material; （iii） age of mothers, mothers＇ educational status, wealth index and access to health facility were found to have a significant rela- tionship with childhood diseases. Therefore, it is confirmed that poor household environmental condition and low socio-economic status impede child health in South-western Nigeria.