Studies have shown high association between trauma exposure in childhood and adulthood, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorder (SUD). Women seeking treatment for SUD are more likely to have histories of sexual and physical abuse.

To study the effect of gender difference on the history of traumatic experiences and the mental health problems of the SUD patients.

Cross-sectional comparative study was conducted at the Addiction Treatment Center at El Maamoura psychiatric hospital. Two hundred adult inpatients were recruited and assessed using a structured interview questionnaire to collect sociodemographic data, substance-use history, and medical and psychiatric history. The semi structured psychiatric interview was applied, and psychometric assessment was performed using Arabic version of Trauma History Screen (THS) for assessment of trauma exposure, and the Arabic version of the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist, civilian version (PCL-C) for assessment of current PTSD.

One hundred and fifty-six were males (78.0%), 44 were females (22.0%). Females were significantly more likely to be exposed to sexual abuse at childhood (P = 0.002) and adulthood (P = 0.050), score higher on PCL-C (P = 0.002), to have major depressive disorder (MDD) (P = 0.028), and have suicidal plans and attempts (P = 0.001).

Females with substance use disorder are more likely to be victims of sexual trauma, to develop Post-traumatic stress disorder and to have more complicated psychiatric comorbidities than their male counterparts.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Women and men might experience psychological distress differently during a disaster. This study investigated gender differences in the factors associated with psychological distress among working-age people 1 to 2 years after the Great East Japan Earthquake.

A cross-sectional household survey of victims who remained living in their homes was conducted between May and December 2012 in Ishinomaki City, Japan. Psychological distress was defined as a Kessler Psychological Distress Scale ≥5, and gender differences were examined using a logistic regression analysis.

Data were obtained from 2593 individuals, and 1537 participants were included in the analyses. Psychological distress was observed in 28.0% of the participants. Living in a household without a salaried income and a low frequency of leaving the house were associated with psychological distress among women. Young age, lack of occupation and no informational support were associated with psychological distress among men. Income change due to the disaster and health complaints were associated with psychological distress in both genders.

For women, stable household income and frequently leaving the house can be protective factors. For men, intervention focusing on young people, occupational support, and informational support may be useful. Income change after the disaster and health complaints may be risk factors in both genders. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:487-496)

To estimate the prevalence of underweight and overweight among Bangladeshi adults and to determine if the double burden of underweight and overweight differs by gender and other socio-economic characteristics of individuals.

We used data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2011. Multinominal logistic regression was used to examine associations between the different nutritional statuses of individuals and related determinants. Interaction effect was checked between gender and various socio-economic factors.

Nationwide, covering the whole of Bangladesh.

Individuals aged >18 years (women, n 16 052; men, n 5090).

Underweight was observed among 28·3 % of men and 24·4 % of women, whereas overweight was observed among 8·4 % of men and 16·9 % of women. The odds of being overweight were significantly lower among urban men (OR=0·46; 95 % CI 0·37, 0·57) compared with urban women, whereas the odds of being underweight were significantly higher among urban men (OR=1·33; 95 % CI 1·07, 1·64) compared with urban women. The odds of being overweight were lower among higher educated men (OR=0·48; 95 % CI 0·39, 0·58) and men of rich households (OR=0·45; 95 % CI 0·37, 0·54) compared with higher educated women and women of rich households, respectively.

There are important gender differences in the prevalence of underweight and overweight among the adult population in Bangladesh. Women with higher education, in rich and urban households have higher chances of being overweight and lower chances of being underweight compared with their male counterparts.

The present study aimed to explore the associations between food away-from-home (FAFH) consumption and body weight outcomes among Chinese adults.

FAFH was defined as food prepared at restaurants and the percentage of energy from FAFH was calculated. Measured BMI and waist circumference (WC) were used as body weight outcomes. Quantile regression models for BMI and WC were performed separately by gender.

Information on demographic, socio-economic, diet and health parameters at individual, household and community levels was collected in twelve provinces of China.

A cross-sectional sample of 7738 non-pregnant individuals aged 18–60 years from the China Health and Nutrition Survey 2011 was analysed.

For males, quantile regression models showed that percentage of energy from FAFH was associated with an increase in BMI of 0·01, 0·01, 0·01, 0·02, 0·02 and 0·03 kg/m2 at the 5th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th and 95th quantile, and an increase in WC of 0·04, 0·06, 0·06, 0·04, 0·06, 0·05 and 0·07 cm at the 5th, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th and 95th quantile. For females, percentage of energy from FAFH was associated with 0·01, 0·01, 0·01 and 0·02 kg/m2 increase in BMI at the 10th, 25th, 90th and 95th quantile, and with 0·05, 0·04, 0·03 and 0·03 cm increase in WC at the 5th, 10th, 25th and 75th quantile.

Our findings suggest that FAFH consumption is relatively more important for BMI and WC among males rather than females in China. Public health initiatives are needed to encourage Chinese adults to make healthy food choices when eating out.

Depression is closely associated with quality of life (QOL) in older adults. Being elderly and exhibiting mild depressive symptoms may not lead to a depression diagnosis, but these attributes are clinically important. However, the extent to which these factors influence QOL and its determinants in older adults remains unclear.

Questionnaires were administered to people aged 65 years or older at community senior centers in Taiwan to collect socio-demographic information and to assess results from the brief version of the World Health Organization's Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL-BREF), Modified Barthel Index (MBI), 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Levels of depressive symptoms were classified as no depressive symptoms (NDS), lower level of depressive symptoms (LLDS), and higher level of depressive symptoms (HLDS), corresponding to GDS = 0, 1≦GDS≦5, and GDS>5, respectively. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to assess associations between the WHOQOL-BREF and its covariates for different levels of depressive symptoms.

A total of 454 older adults participated. The GDS and MBI scores significantly affected the WHOQOL-BREF physical and psychological domain scores in the LLDS group. Gender influenced the WHOQOL-BREF scores in the NDS group, and increased age demonstrated protective effects on the three domains in the HLDS group. Moreover, the association between the WHOQOL-BREF and its covariates varied for different levels of depressive symptoms.

Treatment for depressive symptoms is of high priority, and early recognition of and appropriate intervention for mild depressive symptoms may improve community-dwelling older adults’ QOLs.

This study investigated gender differences in the relationship between alcohol consumption and cognitive impairment among older adults in South Korea.

Using data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing, 2,471 females and 1,657 males were analyzed separately. Cognitive impairment was measured based on the Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Exam score. Logistic regression was conducted to examine the relationship between alcohol consumption and cognitive impairment among Korean older adults.

Multivariate analysis showed that compared to moderate drinkers, past drinkers were more likely to be cognitively impaired for women, while heavy drinkers were more likely to be cognitively impaired for men.

Findings suggest that the relationship between alcohol consumption and cognition varies with gender. Clinicians and service providers should consider gender differences when developing strategies for the prevention and treatment of alcohol-related cognitive decline among older adults.

Most studies reporting the gender difference in age at onset of schizophrenia show an earlier onset in males, but vary considerably in their estimates of the difference. This may be due to variations in study design, setting and diagnostic criteria. In particular, several studies conducted in developing countries have found no difference or a reversed effect whereby females have an earlier onset. The aim of the study was to investigate gender differences in age of onset, and the impact of study design and setting on estimates thereof.

Study methods were a systematic literature search, meta-analysis and meta-regression.

A total of 46 studies with 29218 males and 19402 females fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were entered into a meta-analysis. A random-effects model gave a pooled estimate of the gender difference of 1.07 years (95% confidence interval 0.21–1.93) for age at first admission of schizophrenia, with males having earlier onset. The gender difference in age at onset was not significantly different between developed and developing countries. Studies using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) criteria showed a significantly greater gender difference in age at onset than studies using International Classification of Diseases (ICD) criteria, the latter showing no difference.

The gender difference in age of onset in schizophrenia is smaller than previously thought, and appears absent in studies using ICD. There is no evidence that the gender difference differs between developed and developing countries.

To investigate the connection between overweight and first-episode schizophrenia spectrum as well as non-schizophrenia spectrum psychiatric disorders in adolescent male and female drug-naïve psychiatric inpatients, whose illness was early onset.

Three hundred twenty-three adolescents with no past or present psychiatric medication, 12–17 years of age, admitted to the psychiatric inpatient care (Oulu University Hospital, Northern Finland) between April 2001 and March 2006. DSM-IV diagnoses were based on the “Schedule for Affective Disorder and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children Present and Lifetime” (K-SADS-PL). An adolescent was defined as overweight if his or her BMI was greater than or equal to the 85th percentile.

Overweight values were highest in drug-naïve adolescent boys with first-episode schizophrenia spectrum (RR: 2.5, 95%CI: 1.08–4.29) and non-schizophrenia spectrum (RR: 2.80, 95%CI: 2.20–3.45) disorders. The RR in girls with non-schizophrenia spectrum disorders was 1.73 (95%CI: 1.31–2.23), but in those with first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorders RR did not differ from general population.

In our study sample of first-episode schizophrenia spectrum drug-naïve adolescents, overweight was shown to be prevalent in all diagnostic groups other than first-episode schizophrenia spectrum psychotic girls. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study in which overweight was analyzed and verified among drug-naïve adolescent boys, suffering from first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorder. To what extent our results are applicable to other regions and study groups, remains to be seen.

To explore why boys eat less fruit and vegetables (F&V) than girls, using longitudinal data following pupils from the age of 12.5 to 15.5 years, including perceived accessibility, modelling, intention, preferences, self-efficacy and knowledge of recommendations as potential mediators.

A longitudinal study, based on data collected among the control schools within the intervention project ‘Fruits and Vegetables Make the Marks’. This sample contains 896 6th and 7th graders from 20 randomly selected elementary schools within two Norwegian counties. Questionnaires were administered in May 2002 and May 2005 (when the participants were in 9th and 10th grade in 18 secondary elementary schools).

In single mediation analyses all determinants mediated parts of the gender difference, but only preferences decreased the gender difference to a level below statistical significance. Preferences alone explained 81% of the gender difference. In the multiple mediation analyses, the six mediators together explained 91% of the gender difference, but only preferences and perceived accessibility contributed uniquely to the explanation, with 25% and 10% respectively.

Preference appears as the strongest mediator of the difference in F&V intakes between boys and girls. Further research should explore why girls like F&V more than boys.