Association of Serum Glucocorticoids with Various Blood Pressure Indices in Patients with Dysglycemia and Hypertension:the Henan Rural Cohort Study

Objective To our knowledge, no definitive conclusion has been reached regarding the relationship between glucocorticoids and hypertension. Here, we aimed to explore the characteristics of glucocorticoids in participants with dysglycemia and hypertension, and to analyze their association with blood pressure indicators.Methods The participants of this study were from the Henan Rural Cohort study. A total of 1,688 patients 18–79 years of age were included in the matched case control study after application of the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Statistical methods were used to analyze the association between glucocorticoids and various indices of blood pressure, through approaches such as logistic regression analysis, trend tests, linear regression, and restricted cubic regression.Results The study population consisted of 552 patients with dysglycemia and hypertension(32.7%).The patients with co-morbidities had higher levels of serum cortisol(P = 0.009) and deoxycortisol(P <0.001). The adjusted odds ratios(and 95% confidence intervals) for dysglycemia with hypertension were1.55(1.18, 2.04) for the highest tertile of Ln-cortisol compared with the lowest tertile. Additionally, the highest Ln-deoxycortisol levels were associated with increased prevalence of dysglycemia with hypertension by 159%(95% confidence interval: 122%, 207%).Conclusions Serum deoxycortisol was positively correlated with systolic blood pressure, pulse pressure, mean arterial pressure, mean blood pressure, and mean proportional arterial pressure.Glucocorticoids(deoxycortisol and cortisol) increase the risk of hypertension in people with dysglycemia, particularly in those with T2 DM.

Chinese Rural Women's Decision-Making Status in Family

THE decision-making status of rural women in families is an important aspect which reflects the degree of their participation in development. Implementation of the Nairobi Forward-Looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women represent over the past 10 years has witnessed the gradual maturation of the production-related contract responsibility system in Chinese rural areas. Family functions have been further strengthened in both productive and social development in basic units such as production, consumption and trade. The period has been an important time for the rapid development of Chinese

UN Official Helps Chinese Rural Women Journey from Poverty to Empowerment

"ONE of the biggest challenges that the international society and this conference has confronted is the fight against poverty," said Dr. Leena M. Kirjavainen. a division director with Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) at the Fourth World Conference on Women (FWCW). "Today more than 550 million women live below the poverty line in rural areas worldwide. The feminization of poverty has become the major obstacle to the empowerment of women."

China's Household Tradition and Its Rural Development Path: With Reference to Traditional Russian and Indian Village Communities

Sources of tradition that produce a lasting influence upon modern society are fundamental to that society＇s development. Among Eastern sources of tradition, the village systems of Russia and India are very unlike the Chinese household system, a system that served as the foundation for China＇s unique path of rural development. This system includes the following features： the organization of agricultural operations on the basis of household operations; an economy where agriculture, industry and commerce complement each other on the basis of their integration at the household level; forms of agricultural cooperation based on mutual assistance and cooperation among households; and a system of rural governance based on the joint governance by household and state. In China＇s rural development process, the household system, though at one time discarded, still constitutes the institutional backdrop for current and future rural development.

Progress of China＇s Market Institution： Requiring a Stringent Implementation of Policies

Since reform, China＇s market institution has been gradually evolving, but is still facing insufficient competition owing to lower transparency, administrative interventions, and territorial limitations in certain areas. This paper reviews the applicability of market hypotheses to China, and analyzes the implications with respect to various markets and the resolution of the Third Plenary Session of the Eighteenth Central Committee Congress. It is vital for the relevant authorities to reinforce implementation of the resolution＇s initiatives. Following the new policies, it is expected that the market institution will be advanced to a higher level.