Corey H. Basch

“To each his own”: Discussions of vaccine decision-making in top parenting blogs

ABSTRACT Although social media provides a way for people to congregate with like-minded others, it can also play a role in spreading misinformation about public health interventions. Previous research demonstrates that parents who use the Internet to gather information on vaccination are more likely to hold anti-vaccination beliefs. There has been little examination of vaccination decision-making discussions on parenting blogs. This study seeks to fill that gap. Posts and comments on the top 25 top parenting blogs were analyzed using a mixed-method approach. Comments were analyzed using deductive coding scheme that examined whether content areas of interest were present or absent in vaccination discussions. Posts were coded inductively using a thematic analysis. Posts and comments were further coded as strongly vaccine-discouraging, vaccine-ambivalent, or strongly vaccine-encouraging. Finally, posts were grouped by year of publication and comments were analyzed within each group to examine the evolution of vaccination decision-making discussions in the parenting blogosphere over the past decade. Fifty-two percent of posts were categorized as strongly vaccine-discouraging and were most commonly associated with expressions of individual liberty. Comments were nearly 3 times as likely to strongly discourage vaccination than to strongly encourage it. Comments on the oldest posts (2006–2009), were more likely to strongly discourage vaccination (p = 0.008), whereas comments on newer posts (2013–2015), were more likely to strongly encourage vaccination (p = 0.003). These findings suggest there is a need for public health professionals to understand the concerns being expressed in these forums, and develop innovative ways to dispel anti-vaccination myths, as these views may create obstacles in the meeting the goals of the public health agenda.

An exploratory assessment of weight loss videos on YouTube

OBJECTIVEnTo describe the variation in contents between different video sources on YouTube ™ regarding weight loss.nnnSTUDY DESIGNnThe 100 most widely viewed weight loss videos on YouTube™ were selected for manual coding.nnnMETHODSnVideos were manually coded based on sources and contents, we also identify themes for each of the videos. Univariate logistic regression was used to assess difference in contents between videos from different sources.nnnRESULTSnAfter excluding two videos, a sample of 98 videos remained. Among them, there were 74 consumer-generated videos, 12 news videos, and 12 from commercial television and companies. Collectively, the 98 videos were viewed more than 365 million times. The odds of mentioning ongoing lifestyle that includes long-term changes in daily eating was 90% less in commercial and company videos compared to consumer videos (odds ratio [OR]xa0=xa00.10, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.01-0.85, Pxa0=xa00.03). The odds of showing a female talking in the video about weight loss was 81% less in news videos compared to consumer videos (ORxa0=xa00.19, 95% CI 0.05-0.68, Pxa0=xa00.01). In addition, commercial and company videos were found to be 18 times as likely to carry a theme on workout as consumer videos (ORxa0=xa018.13, 95% CI 3.60-91.22, Pxa0<xa00.01).nnnCONCLUSIONnPublic health professionals need to be more creative to make their videos popular if they want to reach a wide audience.

Attitudes and Behaviors Related to Sun-Safety in College Students

The purpose of this study was to determine the level of sun safe behaviors, as well as to measure knowledge and attitudes toward being tan in a sample of college students. The sample was comprised of 315 college students attending a personal health course. During Fall of 2016, a survey was distributed to assess knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of university students regarding skin cancer related behaviors. Students with a friend or family member with skin cancer more often reported thinking that they were at risk for developing skin cancer (48.6 vs. 21.2%, pu2009<u20090.001). Despite this opinion, they more often sunbathed (pu2009=u20090.008) and had a sunburn (pu2009<u20090.001) in the past year. Being inxa0a health-related major did not significantly impact attitudes or behaviors. Future studies can focus further onxa0raising awareness about skin cancer, specifically in college aged populations.

YouTube as a Source of Information on Skin Bleaching: A Content Analysis

Skin bleaching is a common, yet potentially harmful body modification practice.

Lyme Disease and Youtube: a Cross-sectional Study of Video Contents

Objectives Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease. People seek health information on Lyme disease from YouTubeTM videos. In this study, we investigated if the contents of Lyme disease-related YouTubeTM videos varied by their sources. Methods Most viewed English YouTubeTM videos (n = 100) were identified and manually coded for contents and sources. Results Within the sample, 40 videos were consumer-generated, 31 were internet-based news, 16 were professional, and 13 were TV news. Compared with consumer-generated videos, TV news videos were more likely to mention celebrities (odds ratio [OR], 10.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.13–52.58), prevention of Lyme disease through wearing protective clothing (OR, 5.63; 95% CI, 1.23–25.76), and spraying insecticides (OR, 7.71; 95% CI, 1.52–39.05). Conclusion A majority of the most popular Lyme disease-related YouTubeTM videos were not created by public health professionals. Responsible reporting and creative video-making facilitate Lyme disease education. Partnership with YouTubeTM celebrities to co-develop educational videos may be a future direction.

Glove Changing Practices of Mall Food Vendors in New Jersey

Gloves can serve as barriers to decrease the transfer of microorganisms from hands to food. Glove changing by food vendors is particularly important when handling paper currency, as bills can carry and transmit microbes from person to person. The purpose of this study was two-fold: (1) To ascertain the extent to which gloves are changed after monetary transactions in food vendors at a major mall in New Jersey; and (2) to document the level of bacterial contamination and the presence of coliform bacteria on paper currency handled by these vendors. This study was conducted with two phases: Phase 1, in which 10xa0min of observation of food workers was completed followed by a monetary sample collection and testing, and Phase 2, in which 1 h of observations were conducted. During Phase 1, gloves were changed after 4 (2.3%) of the 174 transactions. All the dollar bills collected from all 17 vendors during Phase 1 exhibited bacterial contamination. The number of CFUs ranged from 1.18u2009×u2009107 to 1.13u2009×u20091010, and bills collected from 6 of the 17 vendors (35.3%) tested positive for coliform bacteria. In Phase 2, gloves were changed after 3.35% of the 1193 transactions observed. This study makes the critical connection between the lack of compliance by food workers with the health code, and the contaminated money they may be handling while dispensing food.

Alcohol and violence in 2017 National Football League Super Bowl commercials

Background: The National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl is a widely-viewed sports event and the commercials are especially popular among viewers. Previous research has demonstrated risky health behaviors in advertisements aired during sporting events. The purpose of this study was to analyze the content of the advertisements aired during the 2017 NFL Super Bowl. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved examining the content of all commercials, with an emphasis on health-compromising behaviors. The themes and highlights of the advertisements were analyzed based on whether there was a reference to alcohol or violence. Results: A total of 103 unique commercials were analyzed. The most common themes were humor (n=43), happiness (n=25), innovation (n=25), and enjoyment or relaxation (n=25).Alcohol was referenced in 13 (12.6%, 95% CI 7.5%, 20.4%) of the commercials. Advertisements with alcohol references were more likely to contain the themes of partying (odds ratio [OR]:16.2, 95% CI 1.4-193.4, P=0.041) and enjoyment or relaxation (OR: 4.7, 95% CI 1.4-15.6,P=0.014). There were 24 commercials with references to violence and these were more likely tobe promoting a movie (OR: 5.4, 95% CI 3.5-8.2, P<0.001) or television program (OR: 8.9,95% CI 2.6-30.26, P<0.001). Conclusion: Parents should consider whether it is appropriate for their children to watch a concentrated number of intense images containing references to alcohol and violence during this popular sporting event.

Using Mind Mapping to Identify Research Topics: A Lesson for Teaching Research Methods:

Mind mapping is a brainstorming technique that allows users to deconstruct complex topics by creating a graphical representation of constituent subtopics and related themes. The aim of this article is to illustrate how the mind mapping technique was used to assist undergraduate health education students in developing topic ideas for a descriptive research study. Each fall semester since 2008, a mind mapping activity was used in an introductory undergraduate health research methods course to provide health education students with a structured activity aimed at the identification of a researchable health topic and the selection of a specific aspect of that topic that warrants further study. After the construction of the mind map, students developed structured research questions and a list of key search terms that served as the foundation for a review of the literature and the development of a questionnaire for a descriptive research study. To illustrate this instructional strategy, three example mind maps are provided with detailed commentary. Discussion includes suggestions on how instructors could scaffold the mind mapping activity with individual feedback and collaborative learning to enhance critical thinking.

Attitudes and behaviors related to distracted driving in college students: a need for interventions in adolescence

Abstract Objective One of the biggest contributors to distracted driving among young people in the United States is technology. The objective of this study was to describe distracted driving behaviors among college students, with a specific focus on attitudes towards and use of social media. Methods With written permission, a survey was adapted from the Distracted Driving Public Opinion Poll distributed by the National Safety Council. The survey comprised 43 questions assessing attitudes and behaviors. A total of 411 students enrolled in a personal health course were invited to complete the survey. In total 324 surveys were completed, resulting in a response rate of 79%. Results Among students with a driver’s license, 95.2% reported engaging in distracted driving behaviors. The use of social media while driving was common, with 30.7% reporting that they glance at, read, or post to social media while driving, most commonly on Snapchat or Instagram. It was common for students to make or answer phone calls (72.0%), review or send text messages (54.6%), or glance at or read automatic notifications (43.3%). Almost all students (91.5%) reported that they believed a hands-free solution is safer than holding the phone while driving, but only 67.9% reported that they usually used a hands-free device. Students in a health major and students who drive in urban areas were more likely to engage in distracted driving behaviors. Conclusions These findings suggest a need for interventions, particularly those which target adolescents in an attempt to deter these behaviors as they transition into adulthood.

Distracted driving on YouTube: implications for adolescents

Abstract For the first time in 50 years, traffic fatalities have increased in the United States (US). With the emergence of technology, comes the possibility, that distracted driving has contributed to a decrease in safe driving practices. The purpose of this study was to describe the content on the popular video sharing site, YouTube to ascertain the type of content conveyed in videos that are widely viewed. The 100 most widely viewed English language videos were included in this sample, with a collective number of views of over 35 million. The majority of videos were television-based and Internet-based. Pairwise comparisons indicated that there were statistically significant differences between the number of views of consumer generated videos and television-based videos (p = 0.001) and between television-based videos and Internet-based videos (p < 0.001). Compared with consumer generated videos, television-based videos were 13 times more likely to discuss cell phone use as a distractor while driving, while Internet-based videos were 6.6 times more likely to discuss cell phone use as a distractor while driving. In addition, compared with consumer generated videos, television-based videos were 3.67 times more likely to discuss texting as a distractor while driving, whereas Internet-based videos were 8.5 times more likely to discuss texting as a distractor while driving. The findings of this study indicate that the videos on YouTube related to distracted driving are popular and that this medium could prove to be a successful venue to communicate information about this emergent public health issue.