International Journal of Preventive Medicine
Volume:14 Issue: 7, Jul 2023

Children will grief when they experience loss of a loved one and parents consoling the child is a part of the circle of life. Although informing the child about the death of a family member has been primarily left to the responsibility of parents, they often avoid communicating with their children about the death of a loved one. This is because the parents are often unaware about how, what, and when the child should be told. This editorial offers tips to help parents learn how to better recognize and help their children grieve if someone they know has died.

Considering that metformin is widely used in the treatment of diabetes, and its protective role against various malignancies, the strength and validity of the available evidence from related systematic reviews and meta-analysis were evaluated.

Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, Web of science databases, and Google Scholar and manual screening of retrieved references were systematically searched from their inception dates to 24 March 2020 by extracting the effect size (Odds ratios (OR) and relative risk (RR) in each study. To present the forest plot of effect of metformin on each cancer, Stata version 14.2 was used.

This study included 36 meta‑analysis studies and 620 original research studies (26 randomized control trials studies and 594 observational studies (cohort, case–control)) covering 15 different cancers. Overall, metformin medication prevented different cancers, including ovarian cancer (OR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.62,0.93), cervical cancer (OR = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.43, 0.83), endometrial cancer (OR = 1.05, 95% CI: 0.82,1.35), liver cancer (OR = 0.59, 95% CI: 0.47,0.74), pancreatic cancer (OR = 0.59, 95%CI 0.50,0.69), head and neck cancer (OR = 0.71, 95% CI: 0.61,0.83), stomach cancer (OR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.26,1.99), colorectal cancer (OR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.59,0.91), colorectal adenoma cancer (OR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.65,0.86), colon cancer (OR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.69,0.91), esophagus cancer (OR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.83,0.98), lung cancer (OR = 0.92, CI95%:0.85,0.99), breast cancer (OR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.84,1.02), prostate cancer (OR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.85‑1.04), and bladder cancer (OR = 0.94 95% CI: 0.64,1.38).

Treatment with metformin can significantly decrease the chance of all cancers with larger preventive effect on hepatocellular carcinoma and smaller preventive effect on lung and breast cancers.

The prevalence of non‑communicable diseases (NCDs) and the status of nutritionally high‑risk behaviors in the country are not promising. Because of undeniable impact of media advertising on food choices, to combat the problem some regulations on food advertisements are developed in the country. However, the high prevalence of NCDs warns of the possibility that either the laws are not given the necessary attention or they are not implemented properly. Therefore in the present review, all studies on how the country’s visual and written mass media comply with regulations related to food product advertisement were systematically reviewed.

We searched all studies, including Persian and English articles, dissertations, and research projects, published and unpublished reports in eight domestic and international databases and search engines during the years 1996 to December of 2020 (25 years). Then, the content of the eligible studies was extracted, evaluated, and reported.

A total of 18 eligible studies (articles and reports) were included in the review. The results indicated violations of rules and regulations including displaying food products of low nutritional value and obese people, misleading/exaggerating claims, award offers, induction of gluttony, consumerism, and inconsistency with scientific facts. Most of the studies (55%) had, implicitly or explicitly, targeted children and adolescents.

The results of this study indicated a violation of the rules and regulations of health policies, mainly in the field of promoting foods of low nutritional value during the study period. Violations of the ban on advertising for children were also reported in more than half of the studies.

Dropout is one of the most important social problems in the world and especially in low‑ and middle‑income countries. Efforts to prevent dropouts require giving due attention to different perspectives for applying them. The present study aims to identify the policies and interventions made in previous studies because reviewing evidence‑based interventions and learning from their strengths and weaknesses is likely to play an effective role in preventing students from leaving school and returning them to school.

This scoping review study conducted on all available studies and documents related to students’ dropout. The study population includes articles searched in electronic sources that contain information related to the subject of dropout and out‑of‑school in primary schools. Appropriate keywords were extracted based on Mesh term and EMTREE and their synonyms and searched by a medical librarian. scientific sources and Gray literature published in Persian and English based on PRISMA standard criteria were reviewed.

A review of studies indicated that various interventions such as student interaction with school, educational interventions on students and teachers, family and local community cooperation, free nutrition, behavioral interventions, financial aid, and free education had positive effects on reducing dropout, absenteeism and encouraging students to return to schools. effect size was not reported for school dropout intervention.

The findings have indicated that intervention with a combination of global and targeted strategies can affect dropout in developing countries. However, to confirm the effectiveness of this type of intervention, further research is required to be conducted in different countries and with different cultures.

The liver is extremely vulnerable to damage because of its role in metabolism. Toxin, metabolic syndrome, alcohol, microorganisms, and autoimmune diseases can be the cause of liver damage. While different etiologies can cause liver disease, pathophysiologically, there are similarities in the role of free radicals, inflammatory mediators, and gut microbiome during the disease development. Therefore, ingredients with antioxidant, antiinflammatory, and antidysbiotic properties have the potential to act as hepatoprotectors; and water kefir is one of them. Water kefir is a traditional fermented drink made from water kefir grains, sugar, and dried fruit. Water kefir is dominated by lactic acid bacteria and yeast as a fermented beverage, and several species of this group of microorganisms have been shown as probiotics. According to researches, water kefir has strong antioxidant, antiinflammatory, and hepatoprotective effects. Even so, there are still few researches reported about water kefir as a hepatoprotective agent. Several studies, on the other hand, showed promising results. This review discusses the relationship between the pathophysiology of liver disease and the pharmacological activity of water kefir and other probiotics in general, which leads to the potential prospect of water kefir research as a hepatoprotective agent.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of garlic supplementation on androgen levels and glycemic‑related markers in patients with PCOS.

In these 8 weeks of randomized double‑blinded control trial, 80 women were randomly assigned into two groups in which patients were asked to intake either 800 mg/day garlic or an identical placebo. A blood sample was obtained pre‑ and post‑trial to assess androgens and glycemic‑related parapets. A 3‑days‑ food record and a short form of international physical activity questionnaires (IPAQ) were also evaluated at the beginning and end of the trial.

All participants completed the trial. Garlic supplementation resulted in significant reduction in fasting plasma glucose (‑3.22 ± 7.41 vs. 0.72 ± 5.37; P = 0.008) and homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA‑IR) (‑0.29 ± 1.45 vs. 0.28 ± 1.20; P = 0.02). In addition, a trend to a significant improvement was detected in free androgen index (FAI) (P = 0.09), insulin levels (P = 0.07), and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI) (P = 0.06). However, no significant difference was found in testosterone and sex hormone‑binding globulin (SHBG) (P > 0.05).

Present study indicates that garlic supplementation could be beneficial for FPG and insulin resistance improvement. However, garlic supplementation does not show remarkable efficacy on androgens. Further studies are warranted to confirm the results.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) pandemic elicited the general population to use various dietary supplements (DSs) and nutraceuticals as a protective means against the disease. The present study aimed to evaluate changes and certain determinants of DS intake during the COVID‑19 lockdown among Iranian households.

This nationwide cross‑sectional study was conducted from April 4 to April 25, 2020, during which Iran was in lockdown. To collect data, a web‑based electronic self‑administered questionnaire was created. The data were compared among provinces based on their food security situations.

A total of 21,290 households were included in the analyses. Approximately 27% of the households were using DSs after the epidemic. The most common DSs used were vitamin D (42%) and vitamin C (20%), followed by multi‑vitamin (16%), zinc (9%), omega‑3 (6%), vitamin A (4%), and probiotics (3%). Logistic regression analysis revealed that DS intake was directly associated with the household income but inversely with household size and the food security status of the provinces. DS intake was positively associated with the presence of high‑risk persons in the households, the education of the households’ head, and the presence of a person with a history of COVID‑19 within the household.

During epidemic lockdown, DS use was remarkably increased among the Iranian households. Apart from the debatable usefulness of DSs against COVID‑19, the inverse association of DS use with a household’s income and provincial food security well indicates inequity in accessibility to DS. Actions to improve the nutritional status of the under‑privileged populations including targeted supplementation are strongly recommended.

Dear Editor, COVID‑19 is a disease that started in late 2019 and after more than a year, according to the World Health Organization, there are more than 225 million confirmed cases and more than 4 million deaths in the world. This disease continues to take victims and the only solution to control it is vaccination.

Dear Editor, The first recorded case of coronavirus disease (COVID‑19) in Mexico was on January 3, 2020. Since then, there have been 2,861,498 confirmed cases and 241,279 recorded deaths as of August 4, 2021.[1] This unprecedented situation has put considerable strain on health systems around the world. By September 2020, Mexico ranked number one in healthcare worker (HCW) deaths due to COVID‑19 at 1,320, despite having a much lower COVID‑19 incidence in the general population than other countries.

Dear Editor, The coronavirus disease‑2019 (COVID‑19) pandemic is a phenomenon that has infected and killed many people in many countries. Vaccination has been suggested as a good way to fight COVID‑19, and it is certainly important to design a safe and effective vaccine. In the healthcare system, artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as an effective tool. The use of AI in diagnosing various health conditions and interpreting complex medical issues is very significant. AI capabilities can be used as an effective tool to study SARS‑CoV‑2 and its capabilities, virulence, and genome. For example, machine learning techniques such as neural networks and support vector machines can be used to identify antigens from protein sequences. Epidemic progression can also be tracked and patients monitored. Thus, AI accelerates research into the treatment of COVID‑19.

Dear Editor, As per World Health Organization (WHO) report, by the end of 2030, nearly one in six people will be over 60 years and it would double from 1 billion to 2 billion by the year 2050. The United Nations General Assembly declared 2021–2030 as a decade of healthy aging and proposed WHO to lead the path for its implementation.[1] The growth in elderly population necessitates an upgradation of health requirement. It has always been a challenge in managing dependent aging population at household level and is high time that newer approaches like artificial intelligence are given priority.

Dear Editor, It has been a year since the World Health Organization (WHO) reported the emergence of a new virus in December 2019 following the outbreak of the severe respiratory disease in China. Subsequently, the virus causing the pandemic was called COVID‑19.[1,2] According to a report by the WHO on December 8, 2021, approximately, 2 years after the onset of the COVID‑19 pandemic, the virus has infected more than 266 million people and killed more than 5 million people worldwide.

In the article titled “Is Enough Attention Paid to the Health Effects of Low‑Frequency Noise in Today’s Society?”, published on allocation ID 162, Issue 1, Volume 13 of International Journal of Preventive Medicine,[1] the name of the author is written incorrectly as "Farhad Forouharmajda, Hadi Asadya, Mariana Alves Pereirab, Adrian Fuentec, Siamak Pourabdiana" instead of "Farhad Forouharmajd, Mariana Alves Pereira, Adrian Fuente, Siamak Pourabdian, Hadi Asady". The “How to cite this article” section should read correctly as “Forouharmajd F, Pereira MA, Fuente A, Pourabdian S, Asady H. Is enough attention paid to the health effects of low-frequency noise in today’s society? Int J Prev Med 2022;13:162.”