Journal of Human Environment and Health Promotion
Volume:10 Issue: 1, Winter 2024

Today, chronic diseases have spread all over the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) mentions air pollution as the biggest environmental health hazard, attributing 7 million premature deaths every year to this pollution, which includes suspended particles and gases with concentrations that are detrimental to human health. Factors of interest in this field are micrometer diameter particles, tropospheric ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and carbon monoxide. The purpose of this research is to increase public awareness of air pollution and its side effects on different parts of the digestive system.

A narrative review was done using several databases, including PubMed, Magiran, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Relevant studies published from 1990-2021 were identified.

Globally, ecological studies have demonstrated a relationship between short-term exposure to air pollution and several gastrointestinal diseases.

The results of these studies showed that pollutants have a direct effect on the increased prevalence and number of cases of chronic gastrointestinal diseases. The results of this research can inform policymakers in making comprehensive decisions to solve the problem, individuals who are exposed to pollutants, and the public in raising awareness and promoting the use of protective equipment.

As cities are the focus of health services and diseases, it is noteworthy that two-thirds of the global population affected by diabetes, totaling 415 million individuals, live in urban areas. Consequently, cities have become the main centers of health interventions aimed at reducing the growing curve of diabetes. The current study aims to investigate the effect of urban factors on the prevalence of diabetes, with a particular focus on the spatial and spatial differences in Zanjan City, with an applied developmental goal.

The current study employs a descriptive survey method. Geographic information systems (GIS) have been used to understand the spatial difference in the incidence of diabetes. For this purpose, after collecting information, a database was created in ArcCatalog, and spatial statistics tools in ArcMap.

The analysis, supported by Movaren's index with a coefficient of 1.64 confirms the presence of special clusters in diabetes distribution within Zanjan City. Cold spots, indicating lower prevalence, are centered in the southern and southwestern regions, while higher incidence is observed in the northeastern and northwestern parts of the city, with a statistically significant confidence level of 99 %. The regression results also show a strong and positive relationship between certain occupational sectors, such as art and entertainment (coefficient of 2.5), transportation (coefficient of 3.5), and the food industry (coefficient of 2.01) with this disease. In terms of the spatial distribution of diabetes, there is a significant relationship. A strong and positive correlation at the 99 % confidence level can be seen in Darmangah, Shahrak Shahada, and Qeysarieh.

The findings of the present study underscore the existence of a cluster pattern in the occurrence of diabetes within Zanjan City.

 The presence of Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) in dairy products results from the ingestion of feedstuffs contaminated with aflatoxin B1 by ruminants. The current study aimed to determine the AFM1 concentration in commercial pasteurized cow milk samples obtained from the Iranian market.

A total of 54 pasteurized cow milk samples, manufactured between January and April 2019, were purchased from different cities in Iran, including Tehran, Isfahan, Sari, Tabriz, Zanjan, Kermanshah, Ahvaz, Shiraz, and Kerman. These samples were analyzed using a competitive enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay technique. The associated health risk was estimated by the Monte Carlo simulation method. Additionally, the margin of exposure and cancer risk were employed as benchmarks to assess threats to consumer health.

AFM1 was detected in 33 samples (61 %), totally with concentrations ranging from 0.003 to 0.45 µg kg-1. 9.26 % of the samples exceeded the maximum residue level specified by Iran's national standard (0.1 µg kg-1). The average concentration of AFM1 in the 54 pasteurized milk samples collected from different regions was determined to be 0.042 ± 0.072 µg L-1. Nevertheless, all samples remained below the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) maximum limit (0.5 µg kg-1). Human health risk assessment showed that about half of the consumers were at risk based on the Margin of Exposure (MOE) assessment.

The results of this survey indicate the usefulness of a monitoring program to supervise the safety of commercially available pasteurized cow milk for consumers.

This study investigates consumer behavior in chronic disease management, specifically type 2 diabetes. Adherence to disciplined disease management is critical for individuals affected by this condition. We explore how patient attitudes and behaviors are influenced by their environment and resources, including family support, medical guidance, emotions, habits, and self-efficacy. This research aims to provide insights into promoting discipline and positive behaviors in consumers managing lifelong chronic illness.

To achieve our research objectives, we employed a Glaserian grounded theory approach and conducted semi-structured interviews with 13 patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, as well as their family members. Theoretical sampling was used to elucidate the role of social interactions in influencing adherence.

The analysis of the collected data yielded three core categories that represent the spectrum of consumer discipline: indiscipline, disrupted discipline, and absolute discipline. The section on disrupted discipline highlights how disruptions in patients’ interactions with their families and healthcare professionals impact their discipline.

Consumer discipline involves a dynamic interplay between the individual and their immediate environment. This study examines the influence of familial and medical support as key mediating factors in shaping consumer health behavior. Drawing on cognitive and emotional capacities, habits, and self-efficacy, consumer disciplinary practices are shaped through a diverse range of personal and social resources. By recognizing the intermediary roles of family members and healthcare providers, policymakers can gain valuable insights to inform efforts aimed at enhancing self-discipline and ultimately improving public health outcomes.

During the early days of COVID-19 pandemic, due to the shortage of N95 respirators in hospitals and healthcare centers, the reuse of N95 respirators was posed as a crisis capacity strategy. Several studies have evaluated the efficacy of various decontamination methods on N95 respirators of well-known and approved brands. However, fundamental question is whether decontamination and reuse methods can be applied to all types of respirators.

Six types of respirators were selected from well-known and lesser-known brands which their manufacturers claimed to be N95. The selected respirators decontaminated with dry heat, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, and ethylene oxide methods in seven consecutive cycles and their particle filtration efficiency and pressure drop were measured before and after each decontamination cycle.

As the initial measurements revealed, 4 respirators (group A) showed a sharp drop in efficiency and also, negative efficiency in removing 2.5 and 4 µm particles in most of the experiments. In these respirators (group A), the maximum efficiency in removing 0.5 µm particles was 74.4 %, while the last two respirators (group B) achieved an efficiency of 98 %. Subsequent experiments following the decontamination process revealed that the non-authentic N95 respirators within group A which were not resistant to decontamination. However, the second group demonstrated a removal rate of over 95 % of particles ranging from 0.5 to 10 µm after six consecutive decontamination cycles using all three methods. The results demonstrated that ultraviolet germicidal irradiation and ethylene oxide methods could eradicate the covid-19 virus from respirators.

The results indicated that decontamination can be successfully applied to original N95 respirators, not low-quality respirators, even under critical conditions.

Assessing the changes in public attitudes toward pandemics is crucial in adapting public health strategies to changing circumstances. This study aims to assess the community’s attitude toward the COVID-19 pandemic using the Social Profile Ratio (SPR) method among different occupational groups in Ardabil province.

Employing a cross-sectional survey design, this research assessed the attitudes of 230 respondents toward the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020. Then, the standard SPR method, along with the Index of Resolution (IR), was utilized to analyze the SPR scores, considering different aspects (prevention, control, treatment, and impacts) of the pandemic.

According to the SPR values, the occupational groups had different points of view. The highest life expectancy (30 years) was attributed to employees, students, collegians, and instructors. Notably, employees and university professors had the highest SPR and IR values (9.343 and 1) for the prevention indicator. Regarding the control indicator, the unemployed and university professors had SPR and IR values of 5.36 and 0.733, respectively. The highest SPR value of 44.11 in terms of treatment was attributed to employees, while students had the highest SPR value of 10.03 in terms of impact indicator.

The study identified employees, university professors, and the unemployed as the most effective groups across prevention, control, treatment, and impact indicators.

Heavy metals, such as lead harms animals’ health. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of Pb pollution in the cities of Golestan and Mazandaran Provinces by measuring Pb concentrations in the blood of brown rats, which serve as omnivorous bioindicators living in the same habitat as humans.

Eight highly populated cities were selected, with 10 rats trapped in each city. Blood samples were taken from the rats, and Pb measurements were done by atomic absorption spectrometry.

All sampled rats were Pb-contaminated. The mean Pb concentrations in different cities of Golestan Province were statistically similar (p > 0.05). In Mazandaran cities, however, significant differences in mean Pb concentrations were observed. The highest contamination was recorded in Neka (10.28 ± 0.97 μg/dL), while the lowest contamination was observed in Babol (7.3 ± 1.36 μg/dL). The mean Pb concentrations in the studied cities of Golestan (9.43 ± 1.81 μg/dL) and Mazandaran (9.02 ± 1.07 μg /dL) Provinces, as well as in male (10.38 μg/dL) and female (9.25 μg/dL) rats were similar.

The Pb contaminations observed in the sampled rats are indicative of Pb contaminations of the sampled cities and the presence of Pb sources in these areas. It seems necessary to take precautionary procedures to prevent the entry of polluted effluents into the sampled cities and the consumption of Pb-contaminated gasoline in these areas, to prevent Pb contamination of human populations.

This study aimed to evaluate the ergonomics of the office workplace and determine the cut-off point of the workstation layout checklist (WSLC) and the work posture checklist (WPC) of computer users.

The descriptive-analytical was performed among 200 office staff willing to cooperate at the university. To collect data and evaluate workstations and the posture of employees, the WSLC and WPC were used, respectively. The ROC curve was used to determine the cut point of the final score of the checklists.

The optimal cut-off point value for the WSLC was 14.5 (sensitivity = 91.2, specificity = 77.8, and area under the curve = 0.89). Similarly, the best cut-off point value for the WPC was identified as 8.5, with a sensitivity of 93.9, specificity of 71.8, and area under the curve of 0.88. The evaluation results showed that 25 % of the workstations and 32 % of the working postures of the employees were at an undesirable level.

Determining the cut-off point for valid WSLC and WPC plays a crucial role in evaluating the cost, facilitation, speed, and repetition associated with office workplaces, thereby categorizing them as either desirable or undesirable. A quarter of the workstations and a third of the working postures of the employees were evaluated as undesirable.