The family situation of seniors affected the level of quality of life. Living with their relatives may be expected to be favourable for seniors because it translates into better performance in physical, psychological and social domains. Loneliness, which frequently accompanies old age, leads to the deterioration of the quality of life.

Introduction. Ischemic stroke is caused by artery blockage, resulting in damage to brain tissue. A significant factor in the further treatment of a patient is not only the time to reach a specialist centre, but also the state of hydration of the organism. Clinical situations involving the excess or deficiency of water can have extremely serious consequences for the functioning of the body and subsequent stroke-related disorders. One of the increasingly common methods of evaluating the composition of the human body is by electrical bioimpedance. Objective. The aim of the study was to assess the state of human body hydration measured by bioimpedance in patients with an early stage of ischemic stroke. Methods and materials. The examination involved 81 patients with ischemic stroke in the Neurology Department, Subdivision of Stroke Treatment at the Province Specialist Hospital in Lublin, Poland, in 2015. Measurement of the composition and outer and intracellular space of the human body by the Whole Body Bioimpedance (WBIA) method was performed using the Body Composition Monitor (BCM) (Fresenius Medical Care GmbH, Bad Homburg, Germany). Results. A group of patients were been examined with the use of the BIA apparatus three times: on the first, seventh, and tenth day of hospital stay, to determine the level of body hydration. Comparative analysis of data showed that on the first day of hospitalization all the measurements of electrical bioimpedance parameters in the patients were significantly different from those of the control group. In the case of TBW, ECW, ICW, the patients' scores were significantly higher than those of the control group. Only with respect to the over-hydration index, the patients achieved a significantly lower score than the control group. Conclusions. Assessment of hydration status in patients with a diagnosed stroke indicates a slight dehydration in relation to the control group, but falling within the scope of normovolaemia, according to bioimpedance measurement standards.

Introduction and objective: Social support constitutes an important determinant of an elderly person’s health and of functioning in his or her living environment. It depends on available support networks and the type of help received. Measurement of social support should encompass both its structure and the functions it fulfills, which enables detailed assessment of the phenomenon. The aim of the study was to compare the perception of social support among rural area seniors provided with institutional care with those living in a home setting. Material and method: Using the diagnostic survey method and the technique of the distribution of a direct questionnaire, 364 respondents from rural areas were examined: those living in an institutional environment (n = 190) and those living in their home (natural) environment (n = 174). The respondents were selected on the basis of a combined sampling method: proportionate, stratified, and systematic. Variables were measured with the following questionnaires: Courage Social Network Index (CSNI) and Social Support Scale (SSS). Results: The living environment has been proved to differentiate average values of support both in the structural and functional dimensions in a statistically significant way (p < 0.001). An untypical phenomenon was higher average values pertaining to emotional bonds, frequency of direct contacts, and help received in the group of respondents living in an institutional environment. Conclusions: The living environment and demographic variables affect the perception of social support among elderly people. Full-time institutional care of a senior citizen leads to the deterioration of social support; therefore, keeping an elderly person in a home environment should be one of the primary goals of the senior policy.

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Religiosity is considered as one of the many factors shaping an individual’s health consciousness. The aim of the study is an analysis of the correlation between the religiosity of Jehovah’s Witnesses and their attitudes towards health and disease. A cross-sectional study was performed on the convenience sample of 171 Jehovah’s Witnesses from eastern Poland with the use of two research tools: the author’s questionnaire, focusing on attitudes towards health, disease, death and the use of stimulants, and the Duke University Religion Index (DUREL). The research involved 99 females (57.9%) and 72 males (42.1%), with an average age of 37.25 (SD = 12.59) years. On average, they have been a Jehovah’s Witness for 29.21 (SD = 13.22) years and are characterised by a high ratio of organisational religious activity (ORA) (M = 5.60; SD = 0.62) and intrinsic religiosity (IR) (M = 4.81; SD = 0.37). Those who had never smoked before becoming one of Jehovah’s Witnesses had a higher IR (Z = −2.822; p = 0.005), similarly to those respondents who smoked cigarettes before they became Jehovah’s Witnesses (Z = −2.977; p = 0.003) and those who did not abuse alcohol before they became Jehovah’s Witnesses (Z= −1.974; p = 0.048). Jehovah’s Witnesses are a group characterised by a high degree of consistency when it comes to religiosity, attitudes regarding health and disease and health behaviours. This means that they follow the teachings of their religion with regard to health issues. Knowledge about the association between religiosity and health behaviours is important to provide effective health education, health promotion and development of health prevention policy, specifically when dealing with more religious groups of clients.