Yuko Odagiri

Association between perceived neighborhood environment and walking among adults in 4 cities in Japan

Background Recent research highlights the importance of environment as a determinant of physical activity; however, evidence among Japanese is sparse. The aim of this study was to examine the association between perceived neighborhood environment and neighborhood walking for multiple purposes among Japanese. Methods We conducted a population-based, cross-sectional study of 1461 Japanese adults (age: 48.2 ± 14.1 years, men: 44.8%). Neighborhood environment and walking were assessed by a validated questionnaire. The odds ratio of active walkers was calculated in relation to environmental characteristics after adjustment for age, sex, and other potential confounders. Results Participants were more likely to walk when they perceived that there was high residential density (odds ratio, 1.47; 95% confidence interval, 1.11–1.96), fair land use mix–diversity (1.37, 1.04–1.81), good walking/cycling facilities (1.56, 1.19–2.04), and attractive aesthetics (1.49, 1.14–1.95). Environmental factors associated with walking differed with respect to the purpose for walking. The environmental characteristics associated with walking for daily errands and with walking for commuting were similar, and included residential density and land use mix. Walking for leisure was associated with walking/cycling facilities, aesthetics, and traffic safety. Stratified analyses showed some sex-specific associations. Among women, there was an unexpected inverse association of leisure walking with both residential density and land use mix–diversity. Conclusions The association between neighborhood environment and walking differed by walking purpose. The results were generally consistent with those of studies conducted in Western countries, except for the association of high residential density and good land use mix–diversity with less leisure walking in women. These results suggest possible targets for environmental interventions to promote walking.

Association of physical activity and neighborhood environment among Japanese adults.

OBJECTIVE Although environmental attributes related to physical activity is an emerging research topic, most studies have been reported from Western countries. This study aimed to examine the relationship between perceived environment and physical activity among Japanese adults. METHODS The sample included 492 adults aged 20 to 74 years (61%: male) living in Tokyo and Himeji in Japan. Primary measures were the short version of International Physical Activity Questionnaire and its Environmental Module. Data were collected between October and December 2003. Odds ratio (OR) of meeting physical activity recommendations was examined in relation to neighborhood environmental characteristics, adjusted for age, sex, employment status and education. RESULTS Three perceived environmental attributes were significantly related to walking 150 min/week or more: high residential density (OR=1.82), good access to shops (OR=1.65) and presence of sidewalks (OR=1.65). Two environmental attributes, access to shops (OR=2.32) and the presence of bike lanes (OR=1.57), were related to high levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity (950 MET*min/week or more). CONCLUSION Associations of physical activity with four environmental attributes emerged in this Japanese sample. These results support the generalizability of findings on physical activity environments across Western countries and Japan.

Perceived neighborhood environment and walking for specific purposes among elderly Japanese.

Background Recent research has revealed the importance of neighborhood environment as a determinant of physical activity. However, evidence among elderly adults is limited. This study examined the association between perceived neighborhood environment and walking for specific purposes among Japanese elderly adults. Methods This population-based, cross-sectional study enrolled 1921 participants (age: 65–74 years, men: 51.9%). Neighborhood environment (International Physical Activity Questionnaire Environmental Module) and walking for specific purposes (ie, transportation or recreation) were assessed by self-report. Multilevel logistic regression analyses with individuals at level 1 and neighborhoods at level 2 were conducted to examine the association between environment and walking, after adjustment for potential confounders. Results Access to exercise facilities, social environment, and aesthetics were associated with total neighborhood walking. Odds ratios (95% CI) were 1.23 (1.00–1.51), 1.39 (1.14–1.71), and 1.48 (1.21–1.81), respectively. Regarding walking for specific purposes, social environment and aesthetics were consistent correlates of both transportation walking and recreational walking. Environmental correlates differed by specific types of walking and by sex. Transportation walking significantly correlated with a greater variety of environmental attributes. Sex differences were observed, especially for transportation walking. Bicycle lanes, crime safety, traffic safety, aesthetics, and household motor vehicles were significant correlates among men, while access to shops, access to exercise facilities, and social environment were important among women. Conclusions Specific environment–walking associations differed by walking purpose and sex among elderly adults. Social environment and aesthetics were consistent correlates of both transportation walking and recreational walking. Improving these environmental features might be effective in promoting physical activity among elderly Japanese.

Factors Associated With Shift Work Disorder in Nurses Working With Rapid-Rotation Schedules in Japan: The Nurses’ Sleep Health Project

Workers who meet the criteria for shift work disorder (SWD) have elevated levels of risk for various health and behavioral problems. However, the impact of having SWD on shiftworkers engaged in rapid-rotation schedules is unknown. Moreover, the risk factors for the occurrence of SWD remain unclear. To clarify these issues, we conducted a questionnaire-based, cross-sectional survey on a sample of shiftworking nurses. Responses were obtained from 1202 nurses working at university hospitals in Tokyo, Japan, including 727 two-shift workers and 315 three-shift workers. The questionnaire included items relevant to age, gender, family structure, work environment, health-related quality of life (QOL), diurnal type, depressive symptoms, and SWD. Participants who reported insomnia and/or excessive sleepiness for at least 1 mo that was subjectively relevant to their shiftwork schedules were categorized as having SWD. The prevalence of SWD in the sampled shiftworking nurses was 24.4%; shiftworking nurses with SWD showed lower health-related QOL and more severe depressive symptoms, with greater rates of both actual accidents/errors and near misses, than those without SWD. The results of logistic regression analyses showed that more time spent working at night, frequent missing of nap opportunities during night work, and having an eveningness-oriented chronotype were significantly associated with SWD. The present study indicated that SWD might be associated with reduced health-related QOL and decreased work performance in shiftworking nurses on rapid-rotation schedules. The results also suggested that missing napping opportunities during night work, long nighttime working hours, and the delay of circadian rhythms are associated with the occurrence of SWD among shiftworking nurses on rapid-rotation schedules. (Author correspondence: yuinoue@tokyo-med.ac.jp)

The Effort-reward Imbalance Model : Experience in Japanese Working Population

The Effort‐reward Imbalance Model: Experience in Japanese Working Population: Akizumi Tsutsumi, et al. Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine and Dentistry—The validity of Siegrists effort‐reward imbalance model was examined in Japanese workers: 105 dental technicians, 902 employees of production companies, and 2,827 selected from staff of hospitals. After controlling for possible confounders, levels of the two stress measures, ‘effort‐reward imbalance’ and ‘overcommitment’, were similar for both genders. The effort‐reward imbalance was most prevalent in the 25‐ 30 age employees and then decreased with age, but the level of overcommitment increased with age. Those with lower educational attainment and others who reported working long hours were more often exposed to effort‐reward imbalance and those in the private sector reported higher overcommitment levels than their respective counterparts. Hospital staff (predominantly nurses) had almost twice as high a level of effort‐reward imbalance as production workers. A review of empirical studies confirmed validity of the criterion with respect to a self‐reported health outcome and the responsiveness of the measures to organizational changes. Nevertheless, the low prevalence of an effort‐reward imbalance (originally formulated by Siegrists group on European samples) in Japanese employees seemed to reduce the statistical power of these tests. A subsequent change in exposure prevalence by defining the top quintile of the distribution of the logarithmic‐transformed effort‐ reward ratio resulted in an improvement in the statistical fit. The Japanese evidence indicates promising applicability of the effort‐reward imbalance model, particularly if statistical approaches that measure the models core notion are extended, and recommendation of repeated measures for exposure. Cross‐cultural research on occupational stress is instructive in terms of health science.

Differences in HDL Cholesterol Concentrations in Japanese, American, and Australian Children

BACKGROUND Mortality from coronary heart disease is relatively low in Japan compared with other developed countries and has remained low despite an increasing standard of living and an apparent increase in mean plasma cholesterol concentration in adults over the past three decades. Important differences in childhood plasma lipoprotein profile might contribute to some of the difference in coronary heart disease mortality seen between Japan and both Australia and North America. METHODS AND RESULTS Plasma HDL cholesterol and total cholesterol were surveyed in representative populations of schoolchildren in Australia, Japan, and Bogalusa, La. The mean concentration of plasma HDL cholesterol (but not total cholesterol) was higher for Japanese schoolchildren than for Australian or US schoolchildren (P<.001). In addition, the difference in plasma HDL cholesterol between the ages of 8 to 10 years and 12 to 15 years was much greater for Australian (boys, 15.2%; girls, 2.6%) and US (boys, 9.1%; girls, 2.7%) children than for their Japanese counterparts (boys, 4.2%; girls, 1.9%). An examination of potential explanatory factors revealed little difference in body mass index between samples, higher physical activity levels for the Japanese compared with the Australians, and substantial differences in dietary intake between Japanese and Australian schoolchildren. CONCLUSIONS The relatively high ratio of plasma HDL cholesterol to total cholesterol in Japanese schoolchildren and the relatively small negative difference of plasma HDL cholesterol with age may help to explain why the coronary heart disease mortality rate in Japan is low compared with that in other developed countries.

Resistance Exercise Enhances Cognitive Function in Mouse

Physical exercise has been shown to increase adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus and to enhance synaptic plasticity. It has been demonstrated that these neuroprotective effects can be observed following aerobic exercise. However, it remains unknown whether plasticity molecules, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB), are expressed in the hippocampus following resistance exercise. We applied voluntary progressive-resistance wheel exercise (RE) for 14 days, and measured BDNF and CREB in the hippocampus. The Morris water maze was also performed to estimate learning and memory. Furthermore, we measured RE effects on mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and 70-kDa ribosomal protein S6 kinase (p70S6K) mediating muscle protein synthesis in the soleus. As a result, we found that RE enhanced cognition and elevated BDNF and CREB expressions in the hippocampus. Also, RE activated the mTOR-p70S6K signaling pathway in the soleus. We found that phosphorylated mTOR and p70S6K were significantly positively correlated with BDNF expression. Our results indicated that resistance exercise drove the protein synthesis signaling pathway in the soleus and enhanced hippocampal synaptic plasticity-related molecules. These results suggest the beneficial effects of resistance exercise on cognitive function.

Development of a short questionnaire to measure an extended set of job demands, job resources, and positive health outcomes: the new brief job stress questionnaire.

This study aimed to investigate the reliability and construct validity of a new version of the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (New BJSQ), which measures an extended set of psychosocial factors at work by adding new scales/items to the current version of the BJSQ. Additional scales/items were extensively collected from theoretical job stress models and similar questionnaires in several countries. Scales/items were field-tested and refined through a pilot internet survey. Finally, an 84-item questionnaire (141 items in total when combined with the current BJSQ) was developed. A nationally representative survey was administered to employees in Japan (n=1,633) to examine the reliability and construct validity. Most scales showed acceptable levels of internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Principal component analyses showed that the first factor explained 50% or greater proportion of the variance in most scales. A scale factor analysis and a correlation analysis showed that these scales fit the theoretical expectations. These findings provided a piece of evidence that the New BJSQ scales are reliable and valid. Although more detailed content and construct validity should be examined in future study, the New BJSQ is a useful instrument to evaluate psychosocial work environment and positive mental health outcomes in the current workplace.

Effect on Mental Health of a Participatory Intervention to Improve Psychosocial Work Environment: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial among Nurses

Effect on Mental Health of a Participatory Intervention to Improve Psychosocial Work Environment: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial among Nurses: Ayako UCHIYAMA, et al. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Tokyo Medical University, Japan—

Sociodemographic variation in the perception of barriers to exercise among japanese adults

Background The perception of barriers to exercise is an important correlate of exercise participation. However, only a limited number of studies—mostly from Western countries—have attempted to describe the perceptions of barriers to exercise in specific population groups. This study examined the associations between sociodemographic attributes and perceived barriers to exercise in Japanese adults. Methods A population-based cross sectional study of 865 participants (age: 20–69 years old, men: 46.5%) was conducted in 4 cities in Japan. Nine sociodemographic attributes (sex, age, location of residence, educational attainment, marital status, employment status, presence of dependents in the household, self-rated health, body mass index), along with exercise frequency and perception of barriers to exercise (discomfort, lack of motivation, lack of time, lack of social support, poor environment) were assessed by self-administered questionnaire. Results The most strongly perceived barrier was lack of time. Five of 9 sociodemographic attributes were significantly related to certain types of perceived barriers. Participants who more strongly perceived barriers were younger, more highly educated, more likely to be employed, and had relatively poor self-rated health and a high BMI. The specific types of barriers that were strongly perceived varied with the sociodemographic attributes of the participants. Conclusions The results show that the perception of barriers to exercise varies among specific population groups, which indicates the importance of targeting exercise promotion strategies to specific populations.