Public health systems are concerned with the commensurate rise of metabolic syndrome (MetS) incidence across populations worldwide, due to its tendency to amplify greater risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases within communities. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of MetS and its associated risk factors among staffs in a Malaysian public university. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 538 staffs from the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) between April and June 2019. MetS was defined according to JIS “Harmonized” criteria. A questionnaire that consisted of items on socio-demographics, lifestyle risk behaviors and personal medical history information was administered to participants. Subsequently, a series of physical examination and biochemical assessment was conducted at the hall or foyer of selected faculties in the university. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted using SPSS version 22.0. Multivariate models were yielded to determine the risk factors associated with MetS. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. The overall prevalence of MetS was 20.6%, with men having greater prevalence than women (24.9% vs. 18.3%). Prevalence of MetS increased with age. Factors contributed to MetS in the overall sample were BMI, hypertension, diabetes and physical activity of moderate intensity. Diabetes and hypertension were significantly associated with MetS in men, whereas BMI, diabetes and hyperlipidemia were significantly associated with MetS in women. Lifestyle behaviors and cardio-metabolic risk factors were associated with MetS for the overall sample, and across genders.

A substantial body of evidence supports Lerner and colleagues’ 5Cs model of positive youth development (PYD) in the United States (U.S.). Nonetheless, it remains unclear whether the 5Cs can be used to identify positive development in the under-researched Asian contexts, such as Malaysia. Thus, this study examined the 5Cs of PYD (competence, confidence, character, connection, and caring) and their importance to purpose in life, hope, and well-being in a sample of emerging adult undergraduate university students in Malaysia. Data were collected from 400 participants from 15 Malaysian universities (132 males, 268 females; ages ranged from 18 to 26 years old, M = 22). A hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that two of the 5Cs of PYD (confidence and connection) as well as hope were important to explaining variation in well-being. The findings imply that there are strong links between PYD, especially confidence and connection, and well-being, while purpose in life and hope were indirectly related to the 2Cs (confidence and connection) of PYD and well-being. Therefore, mental health professionals are encouraged to review and redefine their treatment design to include confidence, connection, purpose in life and hope when working with Malaysian emerging adult university students.

The Mindful Eating Questionnaire is a reliable tool for the assessment of mindful eating behavior among the general population. This study aimed to determine the reliability and validity of The Malay Mindful Eating Questionnaire (MEQ-M) in a sample of overweight and obese adults. This is a cross-sectional survey which involved 144 overweight and obese adults in a selected public university. After linguistic validation of the Malay version of the MEQ, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with varimax rotation was performed on the scale constructs. The psychometric properties of the MEQ were assessed through Cronbach’s alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) analysis. The EFA of the MEQ produced a seven-dimensional model (58.8% of overall variances). The concurrent validity analysis between total MEQ scores and total Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) scores indicated a weak non-significant correlation (p = 0.679). The internal consistency reliability of the MEQ was reasonable (Cronbach’s α = 0.64). The agreement stability of the MEQ over eight weeks was poor (ICC = 0.10). In conclusion, the psychometric properties of the Malay-translated MEQ are acceptable through construct validity and internal consistency reliability tests. This instrument may be used for assessing mindful eating habits in the Malaysian population, especially among overweight and obese adults.

This study aimed to assess the knowledge, self-efficacy, and preventive behaviors against coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) in Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was conducted during the second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak using an online self-administered questionnaire. A high percentage of the respondents had high knowledge and perceived self-efficacy scores. Most of them performed the government-recommended preventive measure such as hand washing for 20 seconds, wearing a face mask, use of hand disinfectant, avoid touching eyes, nose, and mouth, cover mouth when coughing, staying home when sick, and not travelling abroad, as these are effective preventive measures to prevent the spread of the disease. However, less than half of the participants believed social distancing, self-quarantine, and avoiding crowded places were effective preventive measures. Enhancing social distancing along with other preventive measures help prevent the spread of COVID-19 transmission.

The surge prevalence of suicidal behavior among Malaysian attracts attention for prevention and intervention. More recent plates measure suicide behavior per se and predict the tendency of future suicide behavior. However, in Malaysia, such scales were understudied and cause a massive lack of scales and instruments to measure suicidal behavior among Malaysian who was converse in Malay. This study aims to examine the psychometric properties of the translated the Revised-Suicide Ideation Scale (R-SIS) Malay version adapted from the Revised-Suicide Ideation Scale (R-SIS) developed by Rudd (1989). The scales were translated using the back-translation technique once the researcher gets approval for translation from the original author and reviewed by Medical Research Ethics Committee (MREC). The data obtained from a home-to-home survey around Citizen's Housing Project in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor using purposive random sampling. Overall, a sample of 263 adolescents participated by answering two scales measuring suicidal behavior in this study. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, reliability, and factorial analyses. The results yielded excellent reliability of the Malay translated Revised-Suicide Ideation Scale (R-SIS) and moderate concurrent validity with Beck Suicide Ideation (BIS). Meanwhile, the item-total correlation also shows an excellent discriminant validity. The factorial analysis produces only one factor, and the entire items are loaded into one component. This finding suggests that the Malay version of the Revised-Suicide Ideation Scale (R-SIS) is reliable for measuring suicide ideation and is appropriate for predicting suicide tendencies, particularly in Malaysian adolescents. Further studies are required to examine R-SIS Malay version construct among clinical samples.