Background Quantifying movement behaviours over 24-hours enables the combined effects of and inte... more Background Quantifying movement behaviours over 24-hours enables the combined effects of and interrelations between sleep, sedentary time and physical activity (PA) to be understood. This is the first study describing 24-hour movement behaviours in school-aged children and adolescents in SouthEast Asia. Further aims were to investigate between-participant differences in movement behaviours by demographic characteristics and timing of data collection during Ramadan and COVID-19 restrictions.
BACKGROUND Video and computer games are popular activities, with 72% of adolescents aged 13 to 17... more BACKGROUND Video and computer games are popular activities, with 72% of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years reporting video game use on either a computer, game console, or portable device. Despite high levels of video and computer game use in adolescence, relatively little scientific literature exists examining the association and effects of video and computer games on adolescents. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of video and computer game use among US adolescents and rates of positive screens for obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure (BP), and high cholesterol. METHODS A secondary data analysis was conducted using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) data, including adolescents aged 12 to 19 years between 1994 and 2018. RESULTS Respondents (n=4190) who played the most video and computer games had a significantly (P=.02) higher BMI and were more likely to self-report having at least one of the evaluated metabolic...
Introduction Digital technology-based interventions have gained popularity over the last two deca... more Introduction Digital technology-based interventions have gained popularity over the last two decades, due to the ease with which they are scalable and low in implementation cost. Multicomponent health promotion programmes, with significant digital components, are increasingly being deployed in the workplace to assess and promote employees’ health behaviours and reduce risk of chronic diseases. However, little is known about workplace digital health interventions in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). Methods Various combinations of keywords related to “digital health”, “intervention”, “workplace” and “developing country” were applied in Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, PsycINFO, Scopus and Cochrane Library for peer-reviewed articles in English language. Manual searches were performed to supplement the database search. The screening process was conducted in two phases and a narrative synthesis to summarise the data. The review protocol was written prior to undertaking the re...
Purpose of Review Although gut microbiota have been associated with the etiology of some diseases... more Purpose of Review Although gut microbiota have been associated with the etiology of some diseases, the influence of foods on gut microbiota, especially among pregnant women, remains unclear. Hence, a systematic review was performed to investigate the association between diet and gut microbiota and their influence on metabolic health in pregnant women. Recent Findings We performed the systematic review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 protocol to investigate the association between diet and gut microbiota and their influence on metabolic role in pregnant women. Five databases were searched for relevant peer-reviewed articles published in English since 2011. Two-staged screening of 659 retrieved records resulted in the inclusion of 10 studies. The collated findings suggested associations between nutrient intakes and four key microbes: Collinsella, Lachnospira, Sutterella, Faecalibacterium, and the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio...
Background and Objectives: Group-based lifestyle interventions reap social support benefits and h... more Background and Objectives: Group-based lifestyle interventions reap social support benefits and have been implemented among individuals with various chronic diseases. However, there is a lack of consolidated evidence on its approaches to prevent or manage metabolic syndrome (MetS). This scoping review aims to assess the group-based lifestyle interventional strategies for MetS and provide a strategic framework for future research in this area. Materials and Methods: Scholarly databases (OVID Medline, SCOPUS, PUBMED, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials) and reference lists of included publications were systematically searched using appropriate keywords and MeSH terms. Peer-reviewed articles published from the start of indexing to 31 December 2020 focused on individuals with or at risk for MetS were included. Results: Thirteen interventions were identified, with seven conducted among adults with MetS and six in the population at risk for MetS. Three stu...
Ectopic pregnancies (EPs) are potentially fatal if not recognized early. Evidence of an associati... more Ectopic pregnancies (EPs) are potentially fatal if not recognized early. Evidence of an association with chlamydial infection in South East Asia is lacking. This case-control study aims to (i) compare chlamydial infection in women with EP to women who delivered a full-term pregnancy, (ii) investigate classical factors associated with EP, and (iii) investigate rupture status in EP. Seventy-two women with a confirmed diagnosis of EP and sixty-nine who delivered a full-term pregnancy in a tertiary hospital in Malaysia were recruited from November 2019 to January 2022. Demographic and relevant clinical data and intraoperative findings were documented. Blood samples for testing IgG levels of chlamydia were obtained. Women with EP were more likely to have tested positive for chlamydia than those with a full-term delivery (34.7% vs. 13.0%, AOR = 4.18, 95% CI = 1.67–10.48, p = 0.002). The majority did not have the classic risk factors associated with EP. An amount of 52.8% presented with a ...
Personalized nutrition is an approach that tailors nutrition advice to individuals based on an in... more Personalized nutrition is an approach that tailors nutrition advice to individuals based on an individual’s genetic information. Despite interest among scholars, the impact of this approach on lifestyle habits and health has not been adequately explored. Hence, a systematic review of randomized trials reporting on the effects of personalized nutrition on dietary, physical activity, and health outcomes was conducted. A systematic search of seven electronic databases and a manual search resulted in identifying nine relevant trials. Cochrane’s Risk of Bias was used to determine the trials’ methodological quality. Although the trials were of moderate to high quality, the findings did not show consistent benefits of personalized nutrition in improving dietary, behavioral, or health outcomes. There was also a lack of evidence from regions other than North America and Europe or among individuals with diseases, affecting the generalizability of the results. Furthermore, the complex relation...
Background Chronic diseases and the associated risk factors are preventable with lifestyle change... more Background Chronic diseases and the associated risk factors are preventable with lifestyle changes such as eating a healthier diet and being more physically active. In Malaysia, the prevalence of chronic diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, and heart diseases, has risen. In the present study, we explore the potential of co-designing and implementing a digital wellness intervention to promote socially-driven health knowledge and practices in the workplace in Malaysia, drawing on social cognitive theory, social impact theory, and social influence theory. Objective This study aims to co-design and assess the feasibility of a socially-driven digital health intervention to promote healthy behavior and prevent chronic diseases in a workplace in Malaysia. Methods This study involves two phases: (i) identifying the barriers and facilitators to healthy behaviors at work and co-designing the intervention activities with the employees, (ii) implementing and evaluating the intervention’s...
Demographically and socio-culturally appropriate care is critical for empowering people with meta... more Demographically and socio-culturally appropriate care is critical for empowering people with metabolic syndrome (MetS) to self-manage their condition. This focus group study aimed to explore the understanding of nutrition and lifestyle behaviors (NLBs) of Malaysians with MetS. Adults with MetS (N = 21) participated in four focus groups at a university’s research clinic in Malaysia. A thematic framework analysis approach was applied to the focus group data using an initial coding framework developed from the Health Belief Model. Six main themes were identified on perceived motivations, barriers, and threats toward healthy NLBs. Motivations to adopt healthy NLBs were body image, personal experience of adverse complications, and family and social support. The perception that healthcare is a business model, the idea that changes in NLBs are difficult and expensive, and cultural influence on food intake were identified as barriers to healthy NLBs. Inadequate knowledge of MetS was identif...
Background Quantifying movement behaviours over 24-hours enables the combined effects of and inte... more Background Quantifying movement behaviours over 24-hours enables the combined effects of and interrelations between sleep, sedentary time and physical activity (PA) to be understood. This is the first study describing 24-hour movement behaviours in school-aged children and adolescents in SouthEast Asia. Further aims were to investigate between-participant differences in movement behaviours by demographic characteristics and timing of data collection during Ramadan and COVID-19 restrictions.
BACKGROUND Video and computer games are popular activities, with 72% of adolescents aged 13 to 17... more BACKGROUND Video and computer games are popular activities, with 72% of adolescents aged 13 to 17 years reporting video game use on either a computer, game console, or portable device. Despite high levels of video and computer game use in adolescence, relatively little scientific literature exists examining the association and effects of video and computer games on adolescents. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of video and computer game use among US adolescents and rates of positive screens for obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure (BP), and high cholesterol. METHODS A secondary data analysis was conducted using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) data, including adolescents aged 12 to 19 years between 1994 and 2018. RESULTS Respondents (n=4190) who played the most video and computer games had a significantly (P=.02) higher BMI and were more likely to self-report having at least one of the evaluated metabolic...
Introduction Digital technology-based interventions have gained popularity over the last two deca... more Introduction Digital technology-based interventions have gained popularity over the last two decades, due to the ease with which they are scalable and low in implementation cost. Multicomponent health promotion programmes, with significant digital components, are increasingly being deployed in the workplace to assess and promote employees’ health behaviours and reduce risk of chronic diseases. However, little is known about workplace digital health interventions in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). Methods Various combinations of keywords related to “digital health”, “intervention”, “workplace” and “developing country” were applied in Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL Plus, PsycINFO, Scopus and Cochrane Library for peer-reviewed articles in English language. Manual searches were performed to supplement the database search. The screening process was conducted in two phases and a narrative synthesis to summarise the data. The review protocol was written prior to undertaking the re...
Purpose of Review Although gut microbiota have been associated with the etiology of some diseases... more Purpose of Review Although gut microbiota have been associated with the etiology of some diseases, the influence of foods on gut microbiota, especially among pregnant women, remains unclear. Hence, a systematic review was performed to investigate the association between diet and gut microbiota and their influence on metabolic health in pregnant women. Recent Findings We performed the systematic review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 protocol to investigate the association between diet and gut microbiota and their influence on metabolic role in pregnant women. Five databases were searched for relevant peer-reviewed articles published in English since 2011. Two-staged screening of 659 retrieved records resulted in the inclusion of 10 studies. The collated findings suggested associations between nutrient intakes and four key microbes: Collinsella, Lachnospira, Sutterella, Faecalibacterium, and the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio...
Background and Objectives: Group-based lifestyle interventions reap social support benefits and h... more Background and Objectives: Group-based lifestyle interventions reap social support benefits and have been implemented among individuals with various chronic diseases. However, there is a lack of consolidated evidence on its approaches to prevent or manage metabolic syndrome (MetS). This scoping review aims to assess the group-based lifestyle interventional strategies for MetS and provide a strategic framework for future research in this area. Materials and Methods: Scholarly databases (OVID Medline, SCOPUS, PUBMED, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials) and reference lists of included publications were systematically searched using appropriate keywords and MeSH terms. Peer-reviewed articles published from the start of indexing to 31 December 2020 focused on individuals with or at risk for MetS were included. Results: Thirteen interventions were identified, with seven conducted among adults with MetS and six in the population at risk for MetS. Three stu...
Ectopic pregnancies (EPs) are potentially fatal if not recognized early. Evidence of an associati... more Ectopic pregnancies (EPs) are potentially fatal if not recognized early. Evidence of an association with chlamydial infection in South East Asia is lacking. This case-control study aims to (i) compare chlamydial infection in women with EP to women who delivered a full-term pregnancy, (ii) investigate classical factors associated with EP, and (iii) investigate rupture status in EP. Seventy-two women with a confirmed diagnosis of EP and sixty-nine who delivered a full-term pregnancy in a tertiary hospital in Malaysia were recruited from November 2019 to January 2022. Demographic and relevant clinical data and intraoperative findings were documented. Blood samples for testing IgG levels of chlamydia were obtained. Women with EP were more likely to have tested positive for chlamydia than those with a full-term delivery (34.7% vs. 13.0%, AOR = 4.18, 95% CI = 1.67–10.48, p = 0.002). The majority did not have the classic risk factors associated with EP. An amount of 52.8% presented with a ...
Personalized nutrition is an approach that tailors nutrition advice to individuals based on an in... more Personalized nutrition is an approach that tailors nutrition advice to individuals based on an individual’s genetic information. Despite interest among scholars, the impact of this approach on lifestyle habits and health has not been adequately explored. Hence, a systematic review of randomized trials reporting on the effects of personalized nutrition on dietary, physical activity, and health outcomes was conducted. A systematic search of seven electronic databases and a manual search resulted in identifying nine relevant trials. Cochrane’s Risk of Bias was used to determine the trials’ methodological quality. Although the trials were of moderate to high quality, the findings did not show consistent benefits of personalized nutrition in improving dietary, behavioral, or health outcomes. There was also a lack of evidence from regions other than North America and Europe or among individuals with diseases, affecting the generalizability of the results. Furthermore, the complex relation...
Background Chronic diseases and the associated risk factors are preventable with lifestyle change... more Background Chronic diseases and the associated risk factors are preventable with lifestyle changes such as eating a healthier diet and being more physically active. In Malaysia, the prevalence of chronic diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, and heart diseases, has risen. In the present study, we explore the potential of co-designing and implementing a digital wellness intervention to promote socially-driven health knowledge and practices in the workplace in Malaysia, drawing on social cognitive theory, social impact theory, and social influence theory. Objective This study aims to co-design and assess the feasibility of a socially-driven digital health intervention to promote healthy behavior and prevent chronic diseases in a workplace in Malaysia. Methods This study involves two phases: (i) identifying the barriers and facilitators to healthy behaviors at work and co-designing the intervention activities with the employees, (ii) implementing and evaluating the intervention’s...
Demographically and socio-culturally appropriate care is critical for empowering people with meta... more Demographically and socio-culturally appropriate care is critical for empowering people with metabolic syndrome (MetS) to self-manage their condition. This focus group study aimed to explore the understanding of nutrition and lifestyle behaviors (NLBs) of Malaysians with MetS. Adults with MetS (N = 21) participated in four focus groups at a university’s research clinic in Malaysia. A thematic framework analysis approach was applied to the focus group data using an initial coding framework developed from the Health Belief Model. Six main themes were identified on perceived motivations, barriers, and threats toward healthy NLBs. Motivations to adopt healthy NLBs were body image, personal experience of adverse complications, and family and social support. The perception that healthcare is a business model, the idea that changes in NLBs are difficult and expensive, and cultural influence on food intake were identified as barriers to healthy NLBs. Inadequate knowledge of MetS was identif...
Diet therapy, the cornerstone of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) management aims to promote a... more Diet therapy, the cornerstone of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) management aims to promote adequate weight gain and ensure glycaemic control in the pregnant mother. Achievement of these maternal goals improves pregnancy and neonatal outcomes. The advocacy of low-GI foods is based on slower rate of carbohydrate absorption of these foods, which subsequently lowers postprandial glycaemic and insulinaemic responses. Glycaemic load (GL), a concept that merges carbohydrate quality and quantity of foods, accurately predicts postprandial glycaemia for single foods or mixed meals. Low-GI/GL diets have shown to improve management of body weight, glycaemia and cardiovascular risks, especially in hyperinsulinaemic and insulin-resistant populations. A 15% reduction in dietary GI bestows clinically significant health benefits, and this magnitude of GI reduction is made possible by substituting usual high-GI staples with lower GI alternatives, while maintaining their prescribed serving size. In this review, we assess the evidence for the treatment of GDM, a condition closely associated with hyperinsulinaemia and insulin resistance, with low-GI/GL diets.
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