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At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Implications of the restricted range of family environments for estimates of heritability and nonshared environment in behavior-genetic adoption studies.

Group and individual-difference adoption designs lead to opposite conclusions concerning the importance of shared environment (SE) for the child outcomes of IQ and antisocial behavior. This paradox could be due to the range restriction (RR) of family environments (FE) that goes with adoption studies. Measures of FE from 2 of the most recent adoption studies indicate that RR is substantial, about 67%, which corresponds to the top half of a normal FE distribution. RR of 67% cuts effect sizes and R2 statistics by factors of 3 and 2-2.5, respectively. Because selection into an adoption study in inherently a between-family process and assuming that comparable restriction of genetic (G) influences are absent, estimates of SE, G, and nonshared influences will be substantially biased, respectively, down, up, and up by RR. Corrections for RR applied to adoption studies indicate that SE could account for as much as 50% of the variance in IQ.

Adoption↗
PubMed2004

The Stockholm Indoor Environment Questionnaire: a sociologically based tool for the assessment of indoor environment and health in dwellings.

The aim was to develop and validate a standardized questionnaire - the Stockholm Indoor Environment Questionnaire (SIEQ). The validation procedure was based on sociological principles and test procedures for validation. The indicators of indoor environment are air quality, thermal climate, noise, and illumination. The indicators of health are symptoms comprised in the sick building syndrome (SBS). The questionnaire also contains questions about the apartment, individual behavior, and personal factors. The everyday language describing the building and its function was first obtained by qualitative personal interviews, then by standardized questions. The interview questionnaire was transformed into a postal self-administered questionnaire. The reduction of the questionnaire was based on correlation analysis. It was found that to obtain a good validity, general questions are not sufficient, but specific question on perceptions and observations are needed. Good test-retest agreement was found both on an area level, building level, and individually. For each indicator, a set of questions are constructed and validated. SIEQ has been used in several studies, and the results are presented in graphic problem profiles. Reference data has been calculated for the Stockholm area.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed1993

Chemical carcinogens in the environment: risk assessment for the environment.

The high priority of chemical carcinogens in environmental monitoring programmes is primarily due to a fear of a human exposure to these chemicals. Diseases like cancer are, however, also observed in indigenous populations of e.g. fish and shellfish, although these effects in general are rare events in the environment. High levels of carcinogens seem to be required for an influence on the prevalence of cancer, and an influence has almost exclusively been detected on the prevalence of liver tumours in populations of bottom-dwelling fish. The most important ecological aspect of chemical carcinogens in the environment may be the genotoxic potential of the carcinogens. Induced mutations may result in effects on survival or growth of the exposed organisms. In germ cells induced mutations are transmitted to future generations, resulting in an anthropogenic increase in the background mutation rate. The structure and function of the ecosystem is in the long run somehow determined by the background mutation rate which raises the question whether an increase in the mutation rate is advantageous or disadvantageous from a population and evolutionary point of view. To date experimental knowledge is hardly available even on the type of changes to be expected.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Developing a local comprehensive environment and health tracking system: using what we know to improve health and the environment.

Recent national reports have highlighted the absence of a coordinated local, state, and national environmental health tracking system. Local environmental health agencies are struggling to design and implement data systems that will allow them to evaluate environmental exposures ecological trends, and health outcomes in order to formulate more effective prevention strategies. This paper articulates the need for local environment and health tracking systems, discusses efforts under way around the nation, and describes the initiative being undertaken in one county health department to address this need. It provides information on attributes of indicators to be included in such a system, sources of data, criteria for evaluating the usefulness of indicators, suggestions for involving the community and staff, management strategies for implementing a data system, and recommendations for resolving common barriers to data sharing and use. This information will be useful to agencies that wish to develop their own robust environment and health tracking systems to support the three core functions of public health and the 10 essential public health services.

Community Health Planning↗
PubMed1983

[Electron microscopic study of 3H-leucine transport between the internal body environment and the enteral environment].

Using electron microscopic autoradiography, a space-time characteristics of 3H-leucine transport, from the enteral to the inner environment, and from blood plasma to the enteral environment, has been given. Some gradient of intracellular leucin accumulation is determined, from the tip cells of a villus to epithelocytes of the basal membrane. Amino acid transport from blood plasma to the lumen of the intestine is accomplished mainly via the cytoplasm and intercellular space of epithelocytes of the villus basement. It is proposed that amino acid transport through membranes of microvilli and through basal-lateral membranes of cells being on various levels along the villus may start at different amino acid concentrations which may be, presumably, to different concentration and different conjugation of enzyme-transport complexes in these membranes.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

[Occupational environment and strain induced gout. A review of epidemiological studies of the connection between occupational environment and coxarthrosis].

Osteoarthrosis of the hip is a frequent complaint with multifactorial causal relations. The causes have hitherto not been associated with the work environment. Through a systematic literature search 15 epidemiological studies dealing with the relation between occupation or factors in the work environment and coxarthrosis were found. A critical evaluation finds that farmers and construction workers have an increased risk of contracting coxarthrosis. Work that is strenuous for the hip such as lifting and ladder climbing might also be risk factors. Prevention of heavy work involving the hip is proposed as a consequence of this knowledge. The Danish Workers Compensation Act should also take these findings into consideration.

Cumulative Trauma Disorders↗
PubMed1992

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist MK-801 and spatial memory representation: working memory is impaired in an unfamiliar environment but not in a familiar environment.

Female Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with the noncompetitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist MK-801 or saline 30 min before daily testing in spatial working memory (WM) and reference memory (RM) procedures in an 8-arm radial maze. MK-801 impaired RM and WM acquisition but not performance when rats were trained to criterion before drug administration. Neither a 2-hr nor a 4-hr delay between the first and last 2 correct WM choices impaired long-term WM. MK-801 impaired WM performance in trained rats only when rats were tested in a new environment. Thus, 2 mechanisms may be required for relational memory: an NMDA-dependent mechanism for acquiring long-term spatial representations and an NMDA-insensitive mechanism for operating on these stored representations.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Multisensory environments: are they therapeutic? A single-subject evaluation of the clinical effectiveness of a multisensory environment.

This article reviews the current literature on multisensory therapy. Utilizing a single-subject quasi-experimental design, the therapeutic clinical effectiveness of multisensory therapy in promoting relaxation in a young man with learning disabilities is evaluated. Findings support the hypothesis that multisensory therapy can promote relaxation. It is concluded that multisensory environments are therapeutic, in that they can promote relaxation, and they may also have a place in the care of people with learning disabilities who display challenging behaviours.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Natural environment surpasses polluted environment in inducing DNA damage in fish.

Measurement of specific DNA adduct concentrations in target tissues of organisms may provide a key biologic end-point of exposure to environmental carcinogens. Using a general and highly sensitive assay with 32-P-postlabeling, we found that natural populations of freshwater fish species chub, barbel, bream and carp, as well as a marine fish mugil, revealed the presence of four to nine qualitatively similar adducts irrespective of whether they were caught from unpolluted or polluted waters. No statistically significant differences were observed between the adduct levels of fish from the unpolluted waters and those of fish from the polluted waters. A dominant feature of the fish DNA adducts was a species specificity. The finding that a vast majority of DNA modifications in fish are caused by natural factors rather than man-made chemicals offers a basis for a more realistic view in assessing the genotoxic risks in any aquatic environment.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Do people make environments or do environments make people?

This article discusses the influence of people's genetic make-up on their mental states of happiness and depression. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, great fortune does not guarantee happiness; neither does great misfortune assure depression. Emotional states are surprisingly immune to "objective" social circumstances. A biological basis for this relative immunity is that people possess biological set points for these emotional states, rendering the effects of most life events transitory. Genotypes also have indirect effects. People react differently to psychological stressors depending on their genotypes. A susceptible person may succumb to depression, whereas a resilient person may remain unaffected. People also expose themselves to different social environments. Exposure to controllable life events is partly a result of genetic predispositions. Consilience requires that this biological individuality be considered in any understanding of human behavior, including the pursuit of happiness.

Affect↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The perceived environment of special education classrooms for adolescents: a revision of the classroom environment scale.

The Classroom Environment Scale (CES), originally developed for use in traditional public school classrooms, was revised for use in special education classrooms. The scale, which assesses students' perceptions of various aspects of the classroom, was administered to students in 79 special education classrooms in 16 residential and day treatment schools serving special education students with behavior disorders and emotional disturbance. Psychometric analyses showed that only seven of the nine aspects of the classroom found in the original CES were reliably reported in special education classrooms. The revised scale was found reliable for use in special education classes in residential and day treatment settings.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

Ward environment in an inpatient drug dependence treatment unit: II. Attempts to improve ward environment.

Ward activity and atmosphere in a Drug Dependence Treatment Unit were found to be poor in a previous study. The results of two attempts to improve ward environment are reported. The arrival of an occupational therapist had a very slight and restricted effect on the level of patients' constructive activity, and produced only one significant change on the Ward Atmosphere Scale; patients perceived an increase in Practicality. There was, however, a consistent improvement in patients' Vigor and Friendliness mood scores following the arrival of the occupational therapist. A pilot project using cigarettes as reinforces for patient constructive activity produced little sustained effect. Possible reasons for the difficulties in managing drug-dependent patients are discussed, and suggestions made for improvement.

Affect↗
PubMed1977

Environment-dependent attachment behaviour of goslings (Anser indicus) due to environment-specific separation experience.

Hand-reared Bar-headed goslings (Anser indicus) were always left alone by the human parent in one room, while in another room the parent was always with them. After 13--22 h of experience in each room and at an age of 4--5 days individual goslings were left alone for 5 min in each room. They uttered significantly fewer distress calls in the room in which they were accustomed to being left alone by the parent. The result is interpreted in terms of environment-dependent calibration of interindividual distances. Such weighted distances are expected to be important variables in the short-term control of attachment behaviour.

Animals↗
PubMed1978

[Environment. Preventive health action in the creation of the environment].

The present quantitative importance of prevention is in Switzerland extremely low in comparison to the health budget of the national community. It has taken in recent years increasing place however in speeches and talks as well as in medical thinking. Prevention presently tends to be seen as a medical specialty among others and perhaps prefigures a new form of medicine, the object of which would be the societal body more than the body of the sick individual. In this perspective (would that be good?), a new type of physician-informatician-statistician might be trained, with the mission to manage and supervise the health status of the population. Preventive health action through the environment at large could fulfill an important role in the foreseeable developments. New health "morals" are currently emerging, which are bringing together numerous adepts. This might mean that the time of a "health society" (or health-determined society) is not far.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed2002

Selection and prioritisation procedure of hazardous substances for the marine environment within OSPAR/DYNAMEC. Oslo and Paris Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North East Atlantic.

In 1998, the contracting parties to the OSPAR Convention agreed on a "Strategy with regard to Hazardous Substances": [... ] the prevention of pollution of the maritime area by continuously reducing discharges, emissions and losses of hazardous substances thereby moving towards the target of their cessation within one generation (25 years, year 2020) [... ]. In OSPAR, an ad-hoc working group on the development of a dynamic selection and prioritisation mechanism for hazardous substances (called DYNAMEC) has developed a dynamic selection and prioritisation scheme for the marine environment. The approach taken within OSPAR and DYNAMEC to implement the political agreement into practical instruments is summarised in the following.

Europe↗
PubMed2006

Psychosocial work environment and incidence of severe depressive symptoms: prospective findings from a 5-year follow-up of the Danish work environment cohort study.

The authors analyzed the impact of psychosocial work characteristics on the incidence of severe depressive symptoms among 4,133 (49% women) employees from a representative sample of the Danish workforce between 1995 and 2000. Psychosocial work characteristics at baseline included quantitative demands, influence at work, possibilities for development, social support from supervisors and coworkers, and job insecurity. Severe depressive symptoms were measured with the five-item Mental Health Inventory of the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey, with a cutoff point of 52. Women with low influence at work (relative risk (RR) = 2.17, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.23, 3.82) and low supervisor support (RR = 2.03, 95% CI: 1.20, 3.43) were at increased risk for severe depressive symptoms after exclusion of cases at baseline and adjustment for sociodemographic factors, baseline depression score, and health behaviors. Further adjustments for socioeconomic position did not change the result substantially. Additional analyses showed that a one-standard deviation increase on the influence scale resulted in a 27% decreased risk of severe depressive symptoms. Among men, job insecurity predicted severe depressive symptoms (RR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.02, 4.07). The findings indicate that the work environment influences the risk of developing severe depressive symptoms and that different factors play a role for men and women.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Photosynthetic Adaptation of Solanum dulcamara L. to Sun and Shade Environments: II. Physiological Characterization of Phenotypic Response to Environment.

Photosynthetic and growth properties of Solanum dulcamara L. were studied under controlled environments. The 200 experimentally tested plants were clonal replicates of five field-collected individuals, three from fully exposed habitats and two from deeply shaded habitats. After 4 weeks of growth in one of eight environmental treatments, each plant was measured for leaf adaxial and abaxial conductance to water vapor, specific leaf weight, chlorophyll per square decimeter of leaf, photosynthetic unit size, light-saturated photosynthetic rate, total leaf area, and total leaf, stem, and root dry weights. Changes in light level influenced photosynthesis and growth of each plant more than changes in water availability or temperature. It is strongly suggested that the primary adaptive response of the tested individuals to changes in levels of light involves the regulation of leaf thickness.

Journal Article↗