BACKGROUND: The prevalence of obesity and overweight in childhood has increased dramatically over the past decades globally. Thus, the risk factors of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents must be studied. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to reveal the prevalence of childhood obesity and examine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and z-body mass index (z-BMI) via parental obesity and dietary intake using path analysis. METHODS: Stratified cluster sampling was used to select 17,007 participants aged 6-12 years on two avenues per region in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Path analysis was conducted to examine the mediators between SES and z-BMI. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of overweight and obesity were 13.36% and 8.60%, respectively, and were positively correlated with the father's education level, family income, a birth weight > 3000g, a parental obesity history, vegetable intake and red meat intake (all P < 0.05). Four mediators (paternal obesity history, red meat intake, vegetable intake, and nutritional supplements) were observed, and the four path analyses were significant (all P < 0.05). The adjusted total effects on z-BMI were significant for income (β CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of overweight/obesity in children was notable, and the relationship between SES and z-BMI was mediated by paternal obesity history and dietary intake.
Child ; China/epidemiology* ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Eating/psychology* ; Fathers/statistics & numerical data* ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity/psychology* ; Pediatric Obesity/etiology* ; Social Class

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the effects of a reinforcement program for behavioral skills in postpartum care for couples with their first baby. METHODS: The study used a non-equivalent control group and pretest-posttest design. It was conducted from January 14 to April 10, 2016 at a postpartum care center in D city. It analyzed 43 couples (22 in the experimental group and 21 in the control group.) For data analysis, descriptive statistics, test of homogeneity in pretest, independent t-tests, and repeated measures ANOVA were used. RESULTS: For maternal fulfillment of postpartum care and postpartum fatigue, there was no significant difference in the interaction between group and time. In terms of parent-newborns attachment, the interaction between group and time showed a significant difference for mothers (F=13.63, p=.001) and fathers (F=6.51, p=.001). In marital intimacy, the interaction between group and time showed a significant difference for mothers (F=14.40, p<.001) and fathers (F=9.46, p=.004). In parenting stress, the interaction between group and time showed a significant difference for mothers (F=31.8, p<.001) and fathers (F=11.69, p=.001). A significant difference was found for the mothers' postpartum sleeping hours (F=0.14 p=.004). CONCLUSION: This program for behavioral skills in postpartum care, which is based on the information-motivation-behavioral skills model, improves postpartum care, parent-newborn attachment, marital intimacy, parenting stress, and maternal postpartum sleeping, by reinforcing behavioral skills required for postpartum care.
Child ; Child Care ; Family Characteristics ; Fathers ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Mothers ; Parenting ; Parents ; Parturition ; Postnatal Care ; Postpartum Period ; Statistics as Topic

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the mothers' native country on influenza vaccinations in adolescents in multicultural families. METHODS: Data were gathered from the 13th (2017) Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey. Logistic regression analyses were conducted using a complex sample data analysis method. The participants in this study had a father who was born in Korea and a mother born outside of Korea. The sample included 481 adolescents. RESULTS: The analysis of non-adjusted confounding variables showed that influenza vaccination was higher in multicultural adolescents whose mother's native country had an annual minimum temperature less than 21℃ (odds ratio [OR]: 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.20~2.74). Furthermore, when the analysis was adjusted for confounding variables, an annual minimum temperature less than 21℃ in the mother's native country had a statistically significant association with influenza vaccination (OR: 2.12, 95% CI: 1.36~3.29). CONCLUSION: Multicultural adolescents belong to a socioeconomically vulnerable class, and their health promotion behaviors are influenced by their mothers' culture. Thus, healthcare providers and school nurses should provide adolescents with appropriate information related to influenza vaccination depending on their mothers' culture and their family's cultural background.
Adolescent* ; Confounding Factors (Epidemiology) ; Cultural Diversity ; Emigrants and Immigrants ; Fathers ; Health Personnel ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Influenza Vaccines ; Influenza, Human* ; Korea* ; Logistic Models ; Methods ; Mothers ; Risk-Taking* ; Seasons* ; Statistics as Topic ; Vaccination*

BACKGROUND: Chemical intolerance is a widespread public health problem characterized by symptoms that reportedly result from low-level exposure to chemicals. Although several studies have reported factors related to chemical intolerance in adults, the impact of family members has not been reported. In the present study, we investigated the background factors related to chemical intolerance in family members and parent-child relationships. METHODS: We distributed a self-reported questionnaire to 4325 mothers who were invited to visit the Kishiwada Health Center in Kishiwada City, Osaka, between January 2006 and December 2007 for the regular health checkup of their three-and-a-half-year-old children. RESULTS: The prevalence of chemical intolerance in the 3-year-old children was almost one eighteenth of that reported by their mothers. Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed that cold sensitivity [odds ratio (OR), 1.89; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.04-3.44], past bronchial asthma (OR, 2.84; 95% CI, 1.46-5.53), and any past allergies (OR, 2.21; 95% CI, 1.36-3.60) were significantly associated with chemical intolerance in the mother. The presence of indoor cat during childhood (OR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.08-3.69) was significantly associated with chemical intolerance in the mother; however, the association was weak compared with cold sensitivity and past asthma and allergies. The current chemical intolerance of the mother was significantly associated with allergic rhinitis (OR, 2.32; 95% CI, 1.19-4.53), bronchial asthma (OR, 3.66; 95% CI, 2.00-6.69), and chronic bronchitis (OR, 3.69; 95% CI, 1.04-13.03) in her 3-year-old child. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that inherent physical constitution and childhood housing environment are associated with a risk of acquiring chemical intolerance. Children of mothers with chemical intolerance have a possible risk of respiratory hypersensitivity or inflammation. Further investigation is recommended to determine the inherent physical constitution and background environmental factors associated with the risk of acquiring chemical intolerance. The impact of having mothers with chemical intolerance on the health of children also requires further study.
Cross-Sectional Studies ; Fathers ; statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Japan ; epidemiology ; Male ; Mothers ; statistics & numerical data ; Multiple Chemical Sensitivity ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Parent-Child Relations ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors

PURPOSE: This study was done to examine the prevalence and associated factors of depressive symptoms among married immigrant women in South Korea. METHODS: Data from the 2015 Living Profiles of Multiculture Family Survey were used in this study. The sample consisted of 1,579 married immigrant women aged 19 to 39 years. Sociodemographic, acculturation, and social support factors were analyzed. Logistic regression was used for the data analysis. RESULTS: Married immigrant women having a poor relationship with their husbands and a culture gap with husbands were more likely to report depressive symptoms. Low socioeconomic status, no satisfaction with mother role, and no satisfaction with father role, and high social support resources were associated with depressive symptoms among married immigrant women in Korea. Having a moderate level of social support resources was more likely to lower the risk of depressive symptoms than high social support resources. CONCLUSION: The findings in this study indicate that prevention of depressive symptoms in married immigrant women in Korea could be aided by acculturation programs that include participation of husbands and social supports for the parenting role.
Acculturation ; Depression* ; Emigrants and Immigrants* ; Fathers ; Female ; Humans ; Korea* ; Logistic Models ; Mothers ; Parenting ; Parents ; Prevalence ; Social Class ; Spouses ; Statistics as Topic

PURPOSE: This study was performed to identify the experience of becoming a father of a high risk premature infant. METHODS: Grounded theory was used for this research. The participants were 12 fathers who had premature infants lighter than 2,500g of birth weight, less than 37 weeks of gestational age and having stayed 2 weeks or longer in a NICU right after birth. Theoretical sampling was done to identify participants and indepth interviews were done for the data collection. For data analysis, the process suggested by Corbin and Strauss was used. RESULTS: For these participants the core phenomenon of the experience of becoming a father of a high risk premature infant was ‘striving through with belief and patience’. The phenomenon was ‘being frustrated in an unrealistic shock’. Contextual conditions were ‘uncertainty in the health status of the premature baby’ and ‘no one to ask for help’ and intervening conditions were ‘possibility in the health recovery of the premature baby’ and ‘assistance from significant others’. Action/interaction strategies were ‘withstanding with belief in the baby’ and ‘enduring with willpower as head of the family’ and the consequence was ‘becoming a guardian of the family’. CONCLUSION: For the participants, the process of becoming the father of a high risk premature infant was striving through the situation with belief in their babies' ability to overcome the crisis and waiting for the babies' recovery with patience.
Birth Weight ; Data Collection ; Fathers* ; Gestational Age ; Grounded Theory ; Head ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature* ; Life Change Events ; Parturition ; Qualitative Research ; Statistics as Topic

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the factors influencing maternal depression in low-income families with young children. METHODS: The study consisted of 376 mothers in low-income families from participants enrolled in the population-based study of 2011 PSKC by Korea Institute of Child Care and Education. The factors including depression, self-esteem, parenting stress, marital conflict, father involvement in child rearing, social support, and family life event were assessed with questionnaires. Data analysis was conducted by description analysis, partial correlation, and hierarchical regression using SPSS 22.0 program. RESULTS: The results showed that 10.6% of mothers were in severe depressive group in this study. Also the result revealed that marital conflict was the strongest predictor of maternal depression. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that mothers with young children in low-income families especially had difficulty with depression due to family related factors. Implications included the need to support mothers and develop intervention programs focusing on family relationships in order to improve and sustain mental health.
Child Care ; Child Rearing ; Child* ; Depression* ; Education ; Family Conflict ; Family Relations ; Fathers ; Humans ; Korea ; Mental Health ; Mothers ; Parenting ; Parents ; Statistics as Topic

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare smoking prevalence and risk factors of smoking between Korean and Korean-Chinese middle school students. METHODS: Data was collected from seventh and eighth grade students from 12 schools in Korea and 6 schools in China. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and t test were performed. RESULTS: For data analysis 10,002 usable surveys were utilized. The smoking prevalence was higher in Korean-Chinese students than in Korean students. Risk factors, such as father smoking, friends smoking, gender, grade, academic achievement, alcohol use, and family income were associated with current smoking, and the differences in the two samples were significant. Korean-Chinese students were more likely than Korean students to have friends who smoked and a father who smoked. Smokers had a significantly higher rate of friends smoking, father smoking, and alcohol use. Korean-Chinese male students smoking prevalence was more than three times higher than Korean students. Korean students could sense a more anti-tobacco atmosphere in their environment. Korean-Chinese students were more likely than Korean students to perceive that it was easy to buy cigarettes and to smoke cigarettes in a public computer room. CONCLUSION: These results highlight the differences of smoking prevalence and risk factors between Korean-Chinese students and Korean students. The findings may help health educators and researchers to better understand adolescent smoking and risk factors cross culturally and aid in the development of more effective education programs, which could lead to preventing tobacco use among these populations.
Achievement ; Adolescent ; Atmosphere ; China ; Cross-Cultural Comparison ; Fathers ; Friends ; Health Educators ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Statistics as Topic ; Tobacco ; Tobacco Products

PURPOSE: To report the current trends of Korean duplicated thumbs and their reconstructive surgery based on Iowa system performed during the last five years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed retrospective review of all (164) patients who had performed operations between 2003 and 2007. Out of all, 109 were male and 55 were female. The age at the time of surgery ranged from six months to 46 years. Data analysis was done by using information from preoperative radiographs and patients'chart including operative records, etc. RESULTS: Wassel type IV was the most common one, and type II was the next. The thumbs were involved as follows: bilateral in nine patients; right, 100; left, 55. In right duplicated thumb, males had about 2.45 more times than females. Eighty five percent of all were 24 months or less: their average body weight was 2.72 kg; average body weight at surgery, 9.07 kg (7.7~10.3 kg); average age at surgery, 9.98months (6~19months). In age distribution of their parents, each average age of fathers and mothers was 34.3 and 32.5 years old. And 10.1 percent of all had combined anomalies. Though there could be some discrimination between radiological types and intraoperative findings on cartilaginous epiphyseal portions, surgical procedures were simple ablation, central resection followed by reconstruction, and combination with radial remnant tissue portions after resection of radial extradigital bone through preoperative findings including radiographs based on Iowa system. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical procedures for duplicated thumb are not ablation but reconstruction. At the appropriate time and optimal procedures are needed for satisfactory postoperative results.
Age Distribution ; Body Weight ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Fathers ; Female ; Humans ; Iowa ; Male ; Mothers ; Parents ; Retrospective Studies ; Statistics as Topic ; Thumb

This study was to performed to assess social factors and physical health status. The subjects of the study were 103 elderly people of age over 85 years living in Ganghwa-gun area. The method of this research was based on the interview-survey with questionnaire. Chi-square test was the main data analysis method. The subject group was composed of 36 males and 67 females, the average age being 91.0 +/- 3.2 years old for the males and 91.1 +/- 3.4 years old for the females. The aged average height and weight were 161.0 +/- 7.9 cm and 54.6 +/- 7.8 kg in males, 141.0 +/- 8.2 cm and 42.2 +/- 7.9 kg in females which were lower than the Korean average standard but the mean BMIs of both male and female showed normal range. Their level of education was lower and they tended to be religious. The aged population might be economically poor. Their level of living standards tended to have been lower-middle and lower class. The mean age of their parents' death were 64.3 +/- 17.2 years in males, 59.0 +/- 14.9 years in females for the father and 70.9 +/- 15.5 years in males, 66.8 +/- 16.6 years in females for the mother. The rate of living together with their family or spouse in the female aged was 83.2% higher than in the male aged. They tended to have engaged in hobbies that require less movement. Of the kinds of hobby, "TV watching (47.8% in male and 44.9% in female) was the highest. Ratios of the drinking and the smoking elderly were 30.6%, 25.0% in male and 7.5%, 18.8% in female but they tended to have never drunken and smoked. Of the subjects, 42.9% spend 8~9 hours for sleeping in male and 35.8% spend 10 hours for sleeping in female. They tended to have not done any particular health behavior. The most common diseases were digestive disease in male, arthritis and hypertension in female. Most elderly males (47.3%) and females (61.2%) had 1~2 diseases.
Aged* ; Arthritis ; Drinking ; Education ; Fathers ; Female ; Health Behavior ; Hobbies ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Male ; Mothers ; Reference Values ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Spouses ; Statistics as Topic