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PubMed2001

Personal values and sexual decision-making among virginal and sexually experienced urban adolescent girls.

PURPOSE: To guide the development of an intervention to reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in urban, adolescent girls, we investigated such girls' reasons for deciding to have or not to have sexual intercourse. METHODS: Consecutive girls >or=14 years of age attending an urban adolescent clinic were invited to complete an anonymous survey about sexual decision-making. In this pilot study, girls were asked: (a) whether they agreed with a statement that they had or had not had sexual intercourse "because of my values and beliefs"; and (b) to select from a list one or more specific reasons why they had or had not had intercourse. The girls were categorized by self-report as either "virgins," "currently inactive" (no intercourse in the preceding 3 months), or "currently active" (had intercourse during the preceding 3 months). RESULTS: Usable surveys were obtained from 197 adolescents whose age (18.2 +/- 2.6 years) and race (69% black) were comparable to those of clinic attendees in general. Forty girls (20%; age 16.1 +/- 2.1 years) were virgins, 25 girls (13%; age 17.8 +/- 2.3 years) were inactive, and 132 girls (67%; age 18.9 +/- 2.5 years) were currently active. "Values and beliefs" were cited as the reason for decisions about sexual behavior by 53% of the virgins, but only by 24% of the sexually inactive and 24% of the sexually active girls (p = .002). Virgins were more likely than inactive girls to cite three specific reasons for not having sex: "not the right thing for me now" (82% vs. 50%, p = .007), "waiting until I am older" (69% vs. 8%, p = .001), and "waiting until I am married" (67% vs. 38%, p = .02). The reason "against my religious beliefs" was cited by 23% of virgins and 13% of inactive girls (p = not significant). Personal values were implicit in the two specific reasons for having sex that active girls chose most frequently, namely, "I like/love the person" (86%) and "I like having sex" (37%), although only 24% of these girls had explicitly cited "values and beliefs" as their reason for having sex. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that urban girls, both those who have had sexual intercourse and those who have not, view their sexual behavior as being based on personal (although infrequently religious) values. Many of the virginal urban, adolescent girls we surveyed hold abstinence as a personal value. The sexually active adolescents perceive the decision to have sexual intercourse as being based affirmatively on their personal values rather than on the chance occurrence of opportunities to have intercourse. These data may be useful in the development of new strategies for reducing urban adolescent girls' risk of acquiring sexually transmitted diseases.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Effect of animal contact and microbial exposures on the prevalence of atopy and asthma in urban vs rural children in India.

BACKGROUND: Environmental factors, including microbial exposures and close animal contact, are implicated in the lower prevalence of asthma and allergy in rural vs urban children. OBJECTIVES: To determine (1) the prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, eczema, and atopic sensitization in rural and urban children in India; (2) differences in microbial and animal exposures in these locales; and (3) whether differences in environmental exposures account for the different rates of asthma and atopy in these locales. METHODS: One child from each of 50 urban (Mysore) and 50 rural (Vinobha) households in southern India was randomly selected for data analysis. Allergy, asthma, health, environment, and lifestyle information was obtained using a questionnaire and household inspections. Atopy was determined via skin prick testing for common allergens. Endotoxin content was measured in house dust samples. RESULTS: Children from rural vs urban areas had lower prevalences of self-reported asthma (8% vs 30%; P = .005), rhinitis (22% vs 42%; P = .03), and atopic sensitization (36% vs 58%; P = .03). Higher median dust endotoxin loads were found in rural vs urban households (6.50 x 10(4) EU/m2 vs 1.27 x 10(4) EU/m2; P < .001). In multivariate analysis, close indoor animal contact (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.2; 90% confidence interval [CI], 0.05-0.9), outdoor animal contact (OR, 0.3; 90% CI, 0.1-0.8), and exclusive breastfeeding for at least 6 months (OR, 0.2; 90% CI, 0.1-0.5) were associated with lower atopic sensitization; mud flooring was associated with lower self-reported wheezing (OR, 0.1; 90% CI, 0.02-1.0). CONCLUSION: Children in India who live with close animal contact and mud flooring and who were exclusively breastfed in infancy are less likely to develop asthma, rhinitis, and atopic sensitization.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Urbanization and mental health in Brazil: social and economic dimensions.

While there have been attempts to examine urbanization and the quality of urban life as special risk factors in the generation of mental illness, the issue is controversial and remains largely unresolved. In this article particular consideration is given to the process of contemporary structural transformation in the Brazilian society leading to urbanization. Selected Brazilian studies of mental illness in urban areas are described. Economic displacement, or unemployment, emerges as the most significant risk factor for mental ill-health and is more important than, for example, rural to urban migration. Current studies are then criticized for focusing too much on the search for single risk factors instead of taking the social, structural context into account.

Brazil↗
PubMed1990

Determinants of rural and urban fertility differentials in Nigeria.

Whatever proximate variables are examined, their differential effects on rural and urban fertility are small. This indicates that no major disturbance has taken place in urban or rural reproductive norms. However, two possible reasons for the converging pattern of rural and urban fertility in Nigeria are identified. One is that urban mothers in the first half of the childbearing age range have higher fertility than their rural counterparts. The other is that breast-feeding and post-partum abstinence, which are the major determinants of marital fertility, exert a more depressing influence on rural than urban fertility.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Campylobacter infection in urban and rural populations in Scotland.

A review of campylobacter infection in Scotland over five years (1978-82), during which 7808 human isolates were recorded (mean annual isolation rate of 30 per 100000), revealed differences in the epidemiology of the disease between rural and urban populations which were not apparent in the national data. The incidence of infection in the two rural areas studied was greatest in the early months of the year, whereas that in the two urban areas showed a third-quarter predominance. In both urban and rural populations, age-specific infection rates were highest in children less than 5 years old, but this trend was more pronounced in rural than urban populations. Conversely, secondary peaks in age-specific infection rates observed in young adults were more pronounced in the urban than rural populations. It is postulated that rural children were being infected by campylobacters at an early age by drinking contaminated raw milk which was not normally available to city residents. The lower incidence in adults in the rural populations is interpreted as indicating more widespread immunity, resulting from greater exposure to infection during childhood. The effect of compulsory heat treatment of milk sold in Scotland, introduced in August 1983, is currently being studied.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Association between psychotic disorder and urban place of birth is not mediated by obstetric complications or childhood socio-economic position: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Although urban place of birth has been identified as a risk factor for schizophrenia, the extent to which this association is mediated by socially patterned risk factors such as obstetric complications and childhood socio-economic position is unclear. The diagnostic specificity of the association within the clinical psychotic syndromes is also unclear. METHOD: A population cohort of 696025 males and females, born in Sweden between 1973 and 1980 and with linked birth and socio-economic data was followed up from age 16 for up to 9.8 years. Hospitalized cases of schizophrenia and other non-affective psychosis were identified from the Swedish Inpatient Discharge Register. We examined associations of these disorders with a three-level measure of urbanicity of birthplace before and after controlling for measures of foetal nutrition, obstetric complications and level of maternal education. RESULTS: Urban compared to rural birthplace was associated both with increased risk of adult onset schizophrenia (hazard ratio 1.34, CI 0.91-1.96) and other non-affective psychoses (hazard ratio 1.63, CI 1.18-2.26). None of these associations was greatly affected by adjustment for obstetric complications or maternal educational level. In the group of other non-affective psychoses urban-rural differences in disease risk were strongest among those born in the winter months. CONCLUSION: Urbanization of birthplace is associated with increased risk of non-affective psychosis but this is not confined to narrowly defined cases. The magnitude of the association in Sweden is lower than that reported in other studies. Causal factors underlying this association appear to operate independently of risks associated with obstetric complications and parental educational status.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Parking lot sealcoat: an unrecognized source of urban polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a ubiquitous contaminant in urban environments. Although numerous sources of PAHs to urban runoff have been identified, their relative importance remains uncertain. We show that a previously unidentified source of urban PAHs, parking lot sealcoat, may dominate loading of PAHs to urban water bodies in the United States. Particles in runoff from parking lots with coal-tar emulsion sealcoat had mean concentrations of PAHs of 3500 mg/kg, 65 times higher than the mean concentration from unsealed asphalt and cement lots. Diagnostic ratios of individual PAHs indicating sources are similar for particles from coal-tar emulsion sealed lots and suspended sediment from four urban streams. Contaminant yields projected to the watershed scale for the four associated watersheds indicate that runoff from sealed parking lots could account for the majority of stream PAH loads.

Construction Materials↗
PubMed1998

Antecedents and consequences of victimization of lesbian, gay, and bisexual young people: a structural model comparing rural university and urban samples.

Research indicates that antigay victimization is widespread and that lesbian, gay, and bisexual young people may be very vulnerable to such victimization. The current study builds upon previous work by Hershberger and D'Augelli (1995), who studied the consequences of sexual orientation-based victimization in 194 urban lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths. Using structural equation modeling, the present study models both antecedents and consequences (including psychological distress, self-esteem, and suicidality) of victimization via a secondary analysis of their data set. In addition, a second sample of 54 lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths from a rural university setting was examined to cross-validate and generalize the relationships found in urban settings. Results indicated that a revised model of victimization exhibited sufficient fit to the urban sample data and provided preliminary support for the generalizability of the model beyond the initial sample. Additional similarities were found between the urban and rural university community samples, including a high prevalence of reported suicide attempts: 42% of the urban sample and 32% of the rural university sample had attempted suicide at least once. Results indicated that victimization based on sexual orientation has similar correlates for young people in different community settings.

Bisexuality↗
PubMed2004

Individuation among bedouin versus urban arab adolescents: ethnic and gender differences.

Three scales assessing individuation (Objective Measure of Ego-Identity Status [OMEIS], Separation-Individuation Test of Adolescence [SITA], and Multigenerational Interconnectedness Scale [MIS]) were administered to 40 female and 38 male Bedouin Arab adolescents and to 39 female and 38 male urban Arab adolescents in Grade 12. It was hypothesized that Bedouin Arab adolescents and female adolescents would manifest less individuation than urban Arab adolescents and male adolescents, respectively. Results from the OMEIS revealed that the identity foreclosed mean of the Bedouin adolescents was higher than that of the urban adolescents. As for the SITA, significant differences were found between Bedouin and urban Arabs in terms of dependency denial, separation anxiety, teacher enmeshment, peer enmeshment, and rejection expectancy. Significant gender differences were found in regard to dependency denial, and a borderline difference was found for separation anxiety. Significant effects of ethnicity and gender were found on the financial interconnectedness subscale of the MIS. The results support the present hypotheses concerning ethnicity differences and indicate that urbanization seems to narrow the differences in individuation between male and female adolescents.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Spatial and temporal measurements of NO2 in an urban area using continuous mobile monitoring and passive samplers.

This paper describes the use of a continuous mobile monitor and passive samplers to estimate the spatial distribution of NO2 in an urban area for the purpose of siting a continuous monitor to measure population exposure. Monitoring sites were sites selected based on the State and Local Air Monitoring Stations (SLAMS) and National Air Monitoring Station (NAMS) siting criteria required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA). SLAMS monitoring objectives define scales in which the NO2 concentration and land use are homogeneous. The SLAMS scales relevant to NO2 monitoring for NAMS NO2 monitoring sites are neighborhood (0.5 to 4 km), and urban (several to 50 km). SLAMS siting objectives also define four categories of sites: highest concentration, representative concentration, impacts of major sources, and background sites. Mobile monitoring with a Scintrex LMA-3 luminal monitor was used on a neighborhood scale to measure the NO2 concentration at sites that covered a large geographical area. Passive samplers were then located at candidate mobile monitoring locations for long-term sampling which covered the neighborhood to the urban scale. These two methods complement each other by combining short-term continuous measurements and integrated long-term measurements which reflect the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for NO2 which is based on an annual average. The neighborhood site with the highest concentration was not only in the area of highest population density, but was also representative of the larger urban scale. The magnitude of this urban scale is approximately 20 km.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed2000

Blood pressure patterns and cardiovascular risk factors in rural and urban gambian communities.

Hypertension is emerging as an important public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa. We studied blood pressure (BP) patterns, hypertension and other cardiovascular risk factors in a rural and an urban area of The Gambia. A total of 5389 adults (> or =15 years) were selected by cluster sampling in the capital Banjul and a rural area around Farafenni. A questionnaire was completed, BP, pulse rate, height and weight were recorded. Glucose was measured 2 h after a 75 g glucose load among participants > or =35 years (n = 2301); total cholesterol, triglycerides, creatinine and uric acid were measured among a stratified subsample (n = 1075). A total of 7.1% of the study participants had a BP > or =160/95 mm Hg; 18.4% of them had a BP > or =140/90 mm Hg. BP was significantly higher in the urban area. BP increased with age in both sexes in both areas. Increasing age was the major independent risk factor for hypertension. Related cardiovascular risk factors (obesity, diabetes and hyperlipidaemia) were significantly more prevalent in the urban area and among hypertensives; 17% of measured hypertensives were aware of this, 73% of people who reported to have been diagnosed as hypertensive before had discontinued treatment; 56% of those who reported being on treatment were normotensive. We conclude that hypertension is no longer rare in either urban or rural Gambians. In the urban site hypertension and related cardiovascular risk factors were more prevalent. Compliance with treatment was low. Interventions aimed at modifying risk factors at the population level, and at improving control of diagnosed hypertension are essential to prevent future increases of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. In view of limited resources and feasibility of intervention in rural Gambia, these could initially be directed towards urbanised populations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Prolactin, testosterone and cortisol as possible markers of changes in cardiovascular function associated with urbanization.

People living in large informal settlements in South Africa showed a significant increase in cardio/cerebrovascular disease. This study was undertaken to compare the cardiovascular and endocrine parameters of urbanized and rural black female and males. The hormone levels such as prolactin, cortisol and testosterone may also change with urbanization and could make a contribution to the high rate of hypertension. For this study, 1202 black subjects were selected from 37 randomly selected rural and urbanized settlements. Resting blood pressure was recorded with a Finapres apparatus. Cardiac output, stroke volume, heart rate, total peripheral vascular resistance and compliance had been obtained with the Fast Modelflow software program. An acute laboratory stressor (hand dynamometer exercise) was applied to challenge the cardiovascular system and the measurements were repeated. Blood sampling was done and hormone levels were determined by biochemical analyses. For females, significant lower levels of cortisol were found in the urban strata in comparison with the rural strata. The testosterone levels were significantly lower and the prolactin levels significantly higher for females in the informal settlements compared with the rural strata. It is noticeable that most cardiovascular parameters showed the highest changes with the application of the stressor in the informal settlement strata and the lowest in people living on farms for both male and female. The prolactin levels in males are significantly higher in the informal settlement stratum. Subjects living in informal settlements showed a noticeable endocrine pattern of ongoing stress that can be associated with changes in the cardiovascular parameters with urbanization. This can partly explain the reported high rate of cardio/cerbrovascular disease in black South Africans living in informal settlements.

Biomarkers↗
PubMed1999

Contrasting levels of adolescent drug use between adjacent urban and rural communities in Scotland.

AIMS: To compare life-time prevalence of illicit drug use between adolescents resident in adjacent urban and rural localities. DESIGN: Samples of schoolchildren attending urban and rural comprehensive schools (n = 2558) were obtained using an identical questionnaire survey method. SETTING: Respondents were recruited from 10 schools in two contrasting adjacent local authorities. Five representative schools in each locality were chosen. PARTICIPANTS: All children present in each school, in the two final compulsory school years, were eligible for this study. MEASUREMENTS: Respondents were asked to provide detailed information about their place of residence and use of illegal drugs. The data obtained in schools were compared with local geographical statistics, such as levels of deprivation. FINDINGS: As expected from the demographics of their respective localities, the urban schools displayed higher levels of deprived children and lower levels of school achievement. These socio-economic differences were not reflected in reported levels of life-time drug use. This was true both between and within the urban and rural samples. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that adolescent drug use in Scotland is not particularly concentrated in areas of urban deprivation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

The cost and cost-effectiveness of malaria vector control by residual insecticide house-spraying in southern Mozambique: a rural and urban analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To compare two separately funded, but operationally similar, residual household-spraying (RHS) initiatives; one rural and one peri-urban in southern Mozambique. METHODS: The rural programme is a regional project involving the participation and co-ordination of organizations across three countries in southern Africa and is focussed on control in an area in Mozambique of 7552 km2. The second programme focuses on spraying a peri-urban community within a 10-km radius around MOZAL, an aluminium smelter plant of area 410 km2. An ingredients approach was used to derive unit costs for both the rural and peri-urban spraying programmes using detail retrospective cost data and effectiveness indicators. RESULTS: The economic cost per person covered per year using Carbamates for indoor residual spraying (IRS) in the rural area, excluding the costs of project management and monitoring and surveillance was $3.48 and in the peri-urban area, $2.16. The financial costs per person covered in the rural area and peri-urban area per year were $3.86 and $2.41, respectively. The economic costs per person covered were respectively increased by 39% and 31% when project management and monitoring and surveillance were included. The main driving forces behind the costs of delivering RHS are twofold: the population covered and insecticide used. Computed economic and financial costs are presented for all four insecticide families available for use in RHS. CONCLUSIONS: The results from both these initiatives, especially the rural area, should be interpreted as conservative cost estimates as they exclude the additional health gains that the newly introduced programmes have had on malaria rates in the neighbouring areas of South Africa and Swaziland. Both these initiatives show that introducing an IRS programme can deliver a reduction in malaria-related suffering providing financial support, political will, collaborative management and training and community involvement are in place.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Proteinase inhibitors and other biochemical criteria in infants and primary schoolchildren from urban and rural environments.

1. Preschool children and schoolchildren from a rural area in the northeast of Thailand were compared with children from urban areas for prealbumin, albumin, transferrin, alpha 1 B-glucoprotein, the acute-phase reactants alpha 1-acid glycoprotein, alpha 1-antichymotrypsin, haptoglobin and the proteinase inhibitors alpha 1-protease inhibitor (A1PI) as well as alpha 2-microglobulin (alpha 2M). Urinary urea nitrogen:creatinine (U-C) as well as haemoglobin were also determined. Village preschool children were grouped according to their SD score for weight-for-height based on the (US) National Center for Health Statistics (1976) standard into a normal group with SD scores of greater than or equal to --1.99 and an undernourished group with SD scores of less than or equal to --2.00. 2. There was no significant difference between the normal and the undernourished groups of preschool children for any of the factors measured. 3. Haemoglobin and prealbumin concentrations of preschool children were lower in the rural children than in the urban preschool children from Bangkok. 4. In rural schoolchildren haemoglobin was lower but albumin, transferrin, alpha 1B-glycoprotein and haptoglobin were higher than in urban schoolchildren from the provincial town of Khon Kaen. 5. Serum concentrations of the proteinase inhibitors A1PI and alpha 2M were significantly higher in the rural children than in the urban children. 6. U-C values were lower in rural schoolchildren compared with urban schoolchildren.

Blood Proteins↗
PubMed2001

Influence of urbanisation on physical activity and dietary changes in Huli-speaking population: a comparative study of village dwellers and migrants in urban settlements.

The influence of urbanisation on physical activity and dietary changes was examined in a Papua New Guinea Highland population. Adult male and female subjects (n 56) were selected, including twenty-seven rural villagers and twenty-nine urban migrants. BMR was calculated from values measured in similar samples of Huli-speaking population, according to gender and body weight. Total daily energy expenditure (TEE) was assessed by 24 h heart rate (HR) monitoring (flex-HR method) and physical activity level (PAL) calculation was based on BMR. Energy, protein and fat intakes were measured by weighing food on a single day. Urban subjects were heavier and taller than their rural counterparts; significant differences were found in stature in men (P < 0.05) and body weight in women (P < 0.05). Urban subjects had longer sedentary periods (HR < or = flex-HR) and shorter active periods (HR > flex-HR) than rural subjects. Consequently, the former had lower TEE and PAL than the latter; significant differences were found in women (TEE, P < 0.05, PAL, P < 0.01) but not in men. Total daily energy intake and TEE were well balanced (<7 %) in all groups, whereas protein and fat intakes were considerably higher in urban subjects than rural subjects. Reduced PAL and increased fat intake by urban dwellers may increase the risks of obesity and chronic degenerative diseases.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Lead concentrations in breast milk of Malaysian urban and rural mothers.

This study was conducted to determine lead concentrations in breast milk among urban and rural mothers in Malaysia, and to determine if lead absorption among urban maternal populations in Malaysia poses a potential health hazard to infants through breastfeeding. Milk samples, which were collected from 89 urban and 91 rural mothers, were analyzed by flameless atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The mean lead level in urban samples was 0.0253 microgram/ml, which was significantly higher than that of the rural samples (0.0211 microgram/ml). The estimated daily lead intake of breast-fed infants in Malaysia was well below proposed tolerable levels. There also appeared to be no specific pattern in the milk lead levels at different periods of lactation. The significance of the higher milk lead concentrations in urban mothers is also discussed.

Female↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Association of ambient air quality with children's lung function in urban and rural Iran.

During the summer of 1994, a cross-sectional epidemiological study, in which the pulmonary function of children in Tehran was compared with pulmonary function in children in a rural town in Iran, was conducted. Four hundred children aged 5-11 y were studied. Daytime ambient nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter were measured with portable devices, which were placed in the children's neighborhoods on the days of study. Levels of these ambient substances were markedly higher in urban Tehran than in rural areas. Children's parents were questioned about home environmental exposures (including heating source and environmental tobacco smoke) and the children's respiratory symptoms. Pulmonary function was assessed, both by spirometry and peak expiratory flow meter. Forced expiratory volume in 1 s and forced vital capacity-as a percentage of predicted for age, sex and height-were significantly lower in urban children than in rural children. Both measurements evidenced significant reverse correlations with levels of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter. Differences in spirometric lung function were not explained by nutritional status, as assessed by height and weight for age, or by home environmental exposures. Reported airway symptoms (i.e., cough, phlegm, and wheeze) were higher among rural children, whereas reported physician diagnosis of bronchitis and asthma were higher among urban children. The association between higher pollutant concentrations and reduced pulmonary function in this urban-rural comparison suggests that there is an effect of urban air pollution on short-term lung function and/or lung growth and development during the preadolescent years.

Air Pollutants↗