BackgroundSanitation, cleanliness, and access to clean water are essential for maintaining human health and wellbeing. Poor water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practices are linked to diseases that lead to poor health outcomes, such as pneumonia and diarrhea, trachoma, infestations of soil-transmitted helminths, respiratory tract infections, and pulmonary tuberculosis. The aim of this study is to evaluate household WASH practices in the rural and urban field practice areas of the Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College and Hospital, Perambalur, India, and identify the factors that influence them. MethodologyWe conducted a five-month cross-sectional survey with 278 households in the rural and urban field practice areas of a tertiary care center in Perambalur district. We gathered data using the core questions developed by the World Health Organization-United Nations Children's Fund (WHO-UNICEF) Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP), which is affiliated with UN-Water. Data analysts used a Pearson chi-square test to assess the relationship between WASH practices and several independent covariates, and we regarded P < 0.05 to be statistically significant. ResultsAmong the 278 households, 118 respondents were from rural areas and 160 (57.7%) from urban areas. For drinking water, 31.4% of rural households used tube wells or boreholes, while 56.8% of those used public taps. In metropolitan areas, 25.6% of people used bottled water and 54.4% used water from tanker trucks. In terms of sanitation, 25.2% of households lacked a toilet and 72.7% used the flush/pour flush technique. Water, sanitation, and hygiene practices have been found to be associated with a population's socioeconomic status and place of residence. The Pearson chi-square test revealed that the rural population has 99.1% more improved drinking water sources than the urban population, which was statistically significant (P < 0.001). ConclusionIn rural areas, nearly 92% of households used improved sources of drinking water compared to only 55% of households in urban areas. On the other hand, just 47.5% of households in the rural area had improved sanitation compared to 95% of households in the urban area. Therefore, the Indian government should take steps to enhance urban drinking water quality and rural sanitation infrastructure.

BackgroundSugar is a ubiquitous element in processed meals and is a major source of the energy we derive from them. The risk of obesity and other chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, tooth destruction, as well as dental cavities, increases proportionally with the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). This study intends to determine the prevalence of SSB intake among adults in the Perambalur area of Tamil Nadu, India, as well as the factors that influence it. MethodologyWe surveyed 1007 individuals using a cross-sectional design from June to November 2022. We included residents who were at least 18 years old and less than 80 years old. Using a convenience sample method, we gathered responses from the public in the urban and rural field practice areas of a teaching medical college in the district of Perambalur, India. We conducted in-person interviews to get data regarding the consumption of SSBs. Among other socio-demographic information, the participants' names, ages, religions, levels of education and employment, household incomes, family compositions, marital statuses, lifestyle behaviors, and comorbid conditions were also gathered. We measured the SSB consumption frequency and duration, and we also considered the contexts in which they consumed SSBs. We examined the factors that play a role in SSB consumption and questioned the participants' familiarity with SSBs' constituents, adverse effects, and cumulative toll. Besides examining the effects of SSB use, the research also explores the possibility of reducing or stopping it altogether. ResultsThe prevalence of SSB use among the current study population was 96.3%. Half of the population has consumed SSBs, between 100 and 200 ml, for over 10 years. Taste and peer pressure are the primary reasons for facilitating SSBs, whereas the media has a minor impact. Most of the population (69%) began consuming SSBs, mostly during vacations and at parties. About one-fifth of the population experiences negative consequences after ingesting SSBs, while only half of the population is aware of the contents of SSBs. Likewise, just 50% of the population is aware of the long-term implications of SSBs. Nearly 16.7% of the population attempted to stop using SSBs. Being overweight, belonging to a high socioeconomic class, and dwelling in a rural location are risk factors related to the consumption of SSBs. ConclusionThe prevalence of SSB use among the current study population is exceptionally high. Being overweight, belonging to a high socioeconomic class, and dwelling in a rural location are risk factors related to the consumption of SSBs. There is a need to educate the public about the short-and long-term negative effects of consuming SSBs. Government and non-government entities must work together to generate public behavior change communication.

BackgroundThe global COVID-19 pandemic has been incredibly destructive, especially for mental health. The lockdown measures required people to stay in their homes. This lifestyle caused them to become sedentary, which could have an impact on both their physical and mental well-being. We used the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) to measure the physical activity (PA) and mental health of adults in Perambalur, India, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methodsThe researchers conducted a cross-sectional investigation among people ages 15-60 years old from September 2021 to February 2022. In this study, we included 400 individuals through the method of convenient sampling. We conducted a population-based survey in which a semi-structured questionnaire was used to gather information on the age, gender, weight, height, physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire {IPAQ}), and mental health (General Health Questionnaire-12 {GHQ-12}) of the participants. We conducted an analysis of the data using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 20 (IBM SPSS Statistics, Armonk, NY). ResultsMost of the participants (65.8%) were female, and 69.5% belonged to the age group of 20-24 years; their mean age was 23 years. Physical activity was scored using the IPAQ, and we divided the participants into three categories: 37%, insufficient; 58%, sufficient; and 5%, high activity. The GHQ-12 assessment revealed that around half of the participants (47.8%) had psychological distress. In a bivariate analysis, those in the 15-19 and 24-29 age groups reported more distress than those in the other age groups (p = 0.006). Those who engaged in sufficient physical activity (54.7%) reported more distress than those who engaged in high (25%) or insufficient activity (p = 0.002). ConclusionNearly half of the participants experienced psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those who were engaging in sufficient physical activity experienced higher levels of distress than those with high and insufficient activities.

Background Distracted driving is a major public health concern. Distraction results in reduced speed control, lateral lane position, reduced situational awareness, and impaired response times to roadway hazards. Visual, cognitive, and manual distractions impair drivers in different ways. With the above background, this study was conducted with the objective of estimating the proportion of distracted driving behavior and its predictors among the adult population in the Perambalur district, Tamil Nadu, India, by using the Total Distracted Driving Scale. Materials and methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 403 adults aged 18 years and above by convenience sampling technique in the Perambalur district for six months. A pretested, semi-structured proforma was used to collect data on socio-demographic characteristics such as age, sex, education, and occupation. To quantify distracted driving behavior, the Total Distracted Driving Scale was used. This scale contains seven questions about talking on the phone, five questions about texting, and five questions about using specific devices while driving. Data were entered into Microsoft Excel and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 21. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the distracted driving behavior with respect to each variable, and to find out the significance, a corresponding statistical test was employed. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results The mean age of the study participants was 24.86 ± 10.63 years. More than half of the study subjects (52.4 percent) were females, and around 87.3 percent of them were Hindu by religion. Among the study participants, around 66.74 percent mentioned that they had used a cell phone while driving. Around 38 percent of the study participants admitted that they had been in or were near-crash circumstances during the past year. Around 87 percent of the study participants who had a crash or near-crash in the past year admitted that they had been distracted while driving. On primary analysis, religion of individuals and increased driving frequency had a statistically significant association with a history of distracted driving. Study participants who were using three- and four-wheelers and those who used cellphones while driving had a statistically significant association with a history of distracted driving. According to the regression, cell phone users are 3.915 times more distracted than those who do not use cellphones (p = 0.001). Subjects with a history of crashes or near-crashes were 56.96 times more distracted than those without a history (p < 0.001). Conclusion In the present study, three-fourths of the study population used a cell phone while driving. More than three-fourths of the study participants admitted that they had been in a crash or near-crash circumstances during the past year. Distracted driving was responsible for four-fifths of all c...