Objective: Despite the fact that the total energy intake of Japanese people has decreased, the percentage of obese people has increased. This suggests that the timing of meals is related to obesity. The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between the timing of meals and obesity, based on analyses of physical measurements, serum biochemical markers, nutrient intake, and lifestyle factors in the context of Chrononutrition.Participants and Methods: We analyzed data derived from 766 residents of Toon City (286 males and 480 females) aged 30 to 79 years who underwent detailed medical examinations between 2011 and 2013. These medical examinations included. (1) physical measurements (waist circumference, blood pressure, etc.); (2) serum biochemical markers (total cholesterol, etc.); (3) a detailed questionnaire concerning lifestyle factors such as family structure and daily habits (22 issues), exercise and eating habits (28 issues), alcohol intake and smoking habits; (4) a food frequency questionnaire based on food groups (FFQg); and (5) a questionnaire concerning the times at which meals and snacks are consumed.Results: The values for body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference were higher for participants who ate dinner less than three hours before bedtime (<3-h group) than those who ate more than three hours before bedtime (>3-h group). The Chi-square test showed that there was a significant difference in eating habits, e.g., eating snacks, eating snacks at night, having dinner after 8 p.m., and having dinner after 9 p.m., between the <3-h group and the >3-h group. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that skipping breakfast significantly influenced both waist circumference (β = 5.271) and BMI (β = 1.440) and that eating dinner <3-h before going to bed only influenced BMI (β = 0.581).Conclusion: Skipping breakfast had a greater influence on both waist circumference and BMI than eating dinner <3-h before going to bed.

Characteristics of breeding sites, nest trees and holes of two woodpecker species, Dendrocopos major and D. minor, were investigated in woods and parks in the urban and rural areas of Obihiro, eastern Hokkaido from April to September 1993. In D. major the numbers of nest and birds counted per 30 minutes census increased with area size, but those of D. minor did not vary. Fledging date ranged from June 23 to July 25 with an average of July 2 for D. major and from July 3 to 20 with an average of July 11 for D. minor. Neither D. major nor D. minor showed any preference in vegetation types of nesting site. Of 42 D. major nests including those found out of study areas, 22 were in woods and 20 out of woods. On the other hand, of 9 D. minor nests, 8 were found in woods and only one nest out of woods. Nest tree height, nest height, DBH (diameter at breast height) and DNH (diameter at nest height) were 13.6m, 3.7m, 35.7cm and 28.2cm respectively for D. major, and 8.0m, 3.0m, 11.0cm and 26.6cm respectively for D. minor. D. major used both live and dead trees for nesting, while D. minor used only dead trees with several holes. The minimum DNH was 19 cm for D. major and 17cm for D. minor respectively. Values indicating nest sizes and volumes of D. major were larger than those of D. minor. Conditions required for nesting of two Dendrocopos species are 1)minimum area of 1.5 ha where they nested, 2) live and dead trees of more than 21 cm in DBH for D. major and 3) dead trees of more than 18cm in DBH for D. minor.

Oligo(1,5-dialkoxynaphthalene-2,6-diyl)s were synthesized by Ni(cod) 2 (cod 5 1,5-cyclooctadiene)-promoted condensation reactions of 1,5-dialkoxy-2,6-dibromonaphthalenes. The UV-Vis, photoluminescence (PL), and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements suggested that the oligomers have a self-assembling ordered structure in the solid state. The oligomers underwent electrochemical oxidation (p-doping), which occurred at lower potentials for films than for acetonitrile solutions containing [Et 4 N]BF 4 . This effect is caused by the longer p-conjugation lengths of the oligomers in films, which was attributed to molecular self-assembly leading to ordered structures in the solid state. The electrochemical reaction of the oligomers was accompanied by electrochromism.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate regional differences in the standard mortality ratio (SMR) and risk factors (including dietary habits) for stroke across the three regions of Ehime Prefecture – Toyo (east), Chuyo (central), and Nanyo (south).Participants and methods: We obtained medical records derived from 956,979 medical examinations carried out at JA Ehime Kouseiren Medical Examination Centers between April 1994 and March 2006. We analyzed data from 132,090 subjects (Toyo - 47,654, Chuyo - 38,435, Nanyo - 46,001) who underwent their first medical examination during this period. To analyze differences between the three regions, we first calculated the SMR for stroke based on data from the Basic Residential Registers and Health Statistics Bureau. Secondly, we calculated significant differences in body mass index, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), blood glucose (Glu), and total cholesterol (T-CHO). Thirdly, we used the Chi-square test to calculate significant differences in the percentage of subjects who consumed the following foods on a daily basis: rice, bread, eggs, fish, meat, vegetables, dairy products, and fruit juice.Results: Despite the fact that regional differences in the SMR for stroke have been decreasing, in both men and women in Nanyo, the mean values for SBP and DBP were significantly higher and the mean value for T-CHO was significantly lower than in Toyo and Chuyo. In Nanyo, the percentage of subjects who consumed rice and fish (men and women), meat (men), and juice (women) on a daily basis was higher than in Toyo and Chuyo.Conclusion: In Nanyo, higher SMR for stroke may be related to high SBP and DBP and low T-CHO. As background to these results, it is also thought that regional differences in dietary habits may have an influence.