The prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors has increased in Slovakian adolescents as a result of serious lifestyle changes. This cross-sectional study aimed to assess the prevalence of insulin resistance (IR) and the associations with cardiometabolic and selected lifestyle risk factors in a sample of Slovak adolescents. In total, 2629 adolescents (45.8% males) aged between 14 and 18 years were examined in the study. Anthropometric parameters, blood pressure (BP), and resting heart rate were measured; fasting venous blood samples were analyzed; and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA)-insulin resistance (IR) was calculated. For statistical data processing, the methods of descriptive and analytical statistics for normal and skewed distribution of variables were used. The mean HOMA-IR was 2.45 ± 1.91, without a significant sex differences. IR (cut-off point for HOMA-IR = 3.16) was detected in 18.6% of adolescents (19.8% males, 17.6% females). IR was strongly associated with overweight/obesity (especially central) and with almost all monitored cardiometabolic factors, except for total cholesterol (TC) and systolic BP in females. The multivariate model selected variables such as low level of physical fitness, insufficient physical activity, breakfast skipping, a small number of daily meals, frequent consumption of sweetened beverages, and low educational level of fathers as significant risk factors of IR in adolescents. Recognizing the main lifestyle risk factors and early IR identification is important in terms of the performance of preventive strategies. Weight reduction, regular physical activity, and healthy eating habits can improve insulin sensitivity and decrease the incidence of metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD).

OBJECTIVE: The study was aimed to assess risky behavioral factors in the sample of Slovak adolescents. BACKGROUND: Health-risk behavior contributes to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Youth and Parents Risk Factor Behavior Survey (YABS), based on bilateral US-Slovak project, is an ongoing cross-sectional school-based survey initiated in Bratislava as a model region. There were 798 questionnaires for students distributed; the response rate was 64 %. The sample involved 525 adolescents aged 15-19 years from eight selected secondary schools in Bratislava, 38 % boys and 62 % girls. More than 90 % of fathers and mothers were employed, but some families nevertheless experienced a lack of fi nances (48.1 %), almost 70 % of students were from complete families. RESULTS: The study revealed a very high prevalence of risky behavioral characteristics in this pilot sample of adolescents signifi cantly related to age, gender, type of school, completeness of the family and lower parental education. CONCLUSION: The most important health risk behaviors were identifi ed (tobacco, alcohol, drug consumption, violence, risky sexual behavior, inadequate sleep, physical inactivity, and excessive IT devices use). Targeted intervention proposals will be suggested in future (Tab. 5, Ref. 42).

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Environmental (community) noise, particularly road traffic noise, has attracted widespread attention in recent decades as a major environmental health concern. The aim of the study was to determine the impact of environmental noise on psychosocial well-being of young healthy individuals and to follow the time trends of exposure in the period of 10, 15, 20, 25 years. The validated methodology was used to assess noise annoyance, interference with activities and sleep disturbance; the objectification of noise levels was done by direct measurement using sound level analyzer with a module for frequency analysis. The results revealed the sharp increase during the years 1989 and 1999 (the period of political and socio-economic transformation and the changes in traffic management) and the decrease in the year 2013. The findings of our study indicate the need for preventive measures to reduce environmental noise exposure in residential areas and to emphasize the importance of the elaboration of methods for environmental noise exposure risk assessment.

Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure has been shown in general as a major environmental risk factor and deserves attention in vulnerable population groups. The aim of the project is to analyze the relationships among the ETS and behavior and health in 6−15-year-old children in Slovakia. The status of physical and mental health of children in relation to exposure to tobacco smoke was examined in a representative group of 1478 school children. The methods used, included anonymous questionnaires filled in by parents, Columbia Impairment Scale (CIS), Behavior Problem Index (BPI) and anthropometry. The prevalence of ETS exposure is the highest in the capital (27%) and southern cities. A significant association was found between ETS and age, socio-economic status, incompleteness of the family, level of mother’s education and a higher prevalence of respiratory diseases (26.7%). The relationships of ETS with emotional (CIS scores ≥ 16) and behavioral functions (BPI score ≥ 14) were significant in children exposed to mother’s or father’s smoking at home. In the multivariate analysis these associations were not significant; the factors such as income and completeness of the family were dominant. The results showed mostly the predominant impact of social factors on the physical and mental health status of Slovak school children.