Grażyna Nowak-Starz

Health-Related Physical Fitness, BMI, physical activity and time spent at a computer screen in 6 and 7-year-old children from rural areas in Poland.

The objective of the study was determination of the effect of various forms of physical activity, BMI, and time devoted to computer games on the level of Health-Related Physical Fitness (H-RF) in 6-7-year-old children from Polish rural areas. The study covered 25,816 children aged 6-7: 12,693 girls and 13,123 boys. The evaluations included body height and weight, and 4 H-RF fitness components (trunk strength, explosive leg power, arm strength and flexibility). The BMI was calculated for each child. The Questionnaire directed to parents was designed to collect information concerning the time devoted by children to computer games, spontaneous and additional physical activity. The strength of the relationships between dependent and independent variables was determined using the Spearmans rank correlation (RSp), and the relationship by using the regression analysis. The BMI negatively affected the level of all the H-RF components analysed (p=0.000). The negative effect of computer games revealed itself only with respect to flexibility (p=0.000), explosive leg power (p=0.000) and trunk muscle strength (p=0.000). A positive effect of spontaneous activity was observed for flexibility (p=0.047), explosive leg power (p=0.000), and arm strength (p=0.000). Additional activity showed a positive relationship with trunk muscles strength (p=0.000), and explosive leg power (p=0.000). The results of studies suggest that it is necessary to pay attention to the prevention of diseases related with the risk of obesity and overweight among Polish rural children as early as at pre-school age. There is also a need during education for shaping in these children the awareness of concern about own body, and the need for active participation in various forms of physical activity.

Lifestyle related to health and quality of life of girls at puberty in light of the KIDSCREEN-52 Questionnaire

Introduction: The lifestyle of every human being, to a large extent, determines their health. Whatever young individuals do in their adult lives is extremely important for themselves and the next generations. Aim of the research: To investigate the relationship between health-related lifestyle and the quality of life of girls in light of the KIDSCREEN-52 questionnaire. Material and methods: The study involved 122 girls with menstrual disorders from rural and urban areas and 240 girls without any health or developmental disorders. It was conducted on patients of the Public Gynaecological Clinic for Girls in Kielce and girls attending primary and middle schools. A diagnostic survey was used including the following research tools: KIDSCREEN-52 questionnaire, authors’ survey, body mass index, and Rohrer Index. Results: The quality of life and health of girls with menstrual disorders (group I) and girls without any health or development disorders (group II) both from rural and urban areas was assessed. Taking into account variables such as age and the living environment, it was stated that younger girls (13–14 years old) from groups I and II generally perceive their health as worse (p < 0.001). Whereas, among older girls in both groups I and II (15–16 years old), a larger percentage of respondents perceive themselves in a positive way, which results in higher self-assessment in health. Conclusions: The application of subjective health indicators in the assessment of quality of life relating to adolescence allows us to determine disease and malpractice in the care of the population in developmental age.

The frequency of overweight and obesity occurrence among Polish children (age 6–7 years) in relation to the place of residence, the education level of parents and the number children in the family

Abstract This study sought to evaluate the number of those overweight and the rate of obesity among 6- and 7-year-olds living in Poland with regard to their place of residence, the parental level of education and the number of children in the family. The analysis was based on a survey of 64 544 children (33 051 boys and 31 493 girls) living in Poland. Overweight and obesity were defined based on body mass index (BMI) using the IOTF cut-off points. To evaluate the rates of overweight and obesity occurrence in children with regard to family socio-economic status, parental level of education, the number of children in the family, and the place of residence (divided into city and village) was used. ‘Only children’ were the most likely group to be overweight or obese. These children were twice as likely to be obese as their peers living in families with four or more children. Overweight and obesity occurred more often amongst children living in cities rather than those living in rural areas. Moreover, these conditions were more frequent among children whose parents had higher levels of education. The most significant predictors of childhood overweight and obesity were the number of children in the family and the educational level of the mother

Subiektywna ocena pacjentów dotycząca postawy personelu medycznego podstawowej opieki zdrowotnej w świetle satysfakcji z usług medycznych

Wstep. Na subiektywną ocene pacjenta z jakości uslug medycznych ma wplyw poziom wykonania danej uslugi medycznej, w tym ocena wyglądu gabinetu medycznego, ocena atmosfery panującej w miejscu wykonania danej uslugi oraz ocena pracy personelu medycznego. Cel pracy. Zbadanie subiektywnej oceny pacjentow dotyczącej postawy personelu medycznego podstawowej opieki zdrowotnej w świetle satysfakcji z uslug medycznych. Material i metody. Badaniami objeto 422 pacjentow podstawowej opieki zdrowotnej na terenie wojewodztwa świetokrzyskiego. Dokonując analizy statystycznej, uzyto testu c2, testu Fishera oraz model regresji logistycznej. Przyjeto poziom istotności testu a < 0,05. Analize statystyczną wykonano za pomocą oprogramowania statystycznego SAS. Wyniki. Badani pacjenci wskazali, ze na satysfakcje z uslug medycznych ma wplyw przebieg wizyty — szczera i przyjacielska rozmowa (69,91%), pozytywny stosunek lekarza do pacjenta (60,90%) oraz stosunek pozostalego personelu medycznego — pielegniarek. Parametry w modelu regresji logistycznej dla zmiennych stosunek lekarza do pacjenta, sposob przywitania okazaly sie istotne na poziomie p < 0,001, a stosunek personelu pielegniarskiego na poziomie p = 0,002. Wyniki analizy regresji logistycznej wykazaly, ze zmienne te są istotnie związane z pozytywną jakością uslug medycznych. Wnioski. Na podstawie przeprowadzonych badan mozna stwierdzic, ze na subiektywną ocene pacjentow dotyczącej postawy personelu medycznego POZ w świetle satysfakcji z uslug medycznych istotnie wplywa przebieg wizyty lekarskiej, sposob zachowania sie lekarza i pielegniarek wobec pacjenta.