Diet interventions have suggested an association between plant-based diets and improvements in psychological well-being, quality of life and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) control in populations with diabetes. The aims of this review are to systematically analyze the available literature on plant-based diet interventions targeting diabetes in adults and to clearly define the benefits on well-being of such interventions. This is a systematic review of controlled trials. A computerized systematic literature search was conducted in the following electronic databases: Allied and Complementary Medicine, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, E-Journals, Excerpta Medica Database, MEDLINE, Health Management Information Consortium, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO, PubMed, SocINDEX and Web of Science. The search strategy retrieved 1240 articles, of which 11 met the inclusion criteria (n=433; mean sample age 54.8 years). Plant-based diets were associated with significant improvement in emotional well-being, physical well-being, depression, quality of life, general health, HbA1c levels, weight, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, compared with several diabetic associations’ official guidelines and other comparator diets. Plant-based diets can significantly improve psychological health, quality of life, HbA1c levels and weight and therefore the management of diabetes.

A review of recent literature (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006) has been undertaken to investigate the role of sex education within the family context, in order to engage with the problems of sexual health in British society. The fi ndings which emerged were categorized under the following fi ve themes: (1) Parental roles regarding sex education; (2) The importance of effect ive communication in the family; (3) Parent-child interaction: differences in gender and communication style; (4) Content of sex education; and (5) Parents as primary sexual educators. The fi ndings highlighted the importance of communication, and showed a tendency of children and adolescents wanting to learn about sexual matters from their parents. Studies on communication of sexual issues emphasized the role of gender, psychological factors and family dynamics in the effectiveness of sex education. Although the majority of communication on sexual subjects has been found to come from the mother, boys feel that the content is mainly steered towards the experience of girls. Consequently, boys use other sources (peers, the media and the Internet) to educate themselves about sexual related issues. Even though parents want to talk to their children about topics related to sexual behaviours, they feel embarrassed, uncomfortable and have neither the skills nor the knowledge to do so. A need for sex and relationship education (SRE) parent programmes has

(word count: 228)Purpose: There is a lack of research on adolescent's preferences for Sex and Relationship Education (SRE) and predictors of these preferences. The aim of the current study was to examine adolescents' perceptions of the quality of an SRE intervention, their preferences for sources of SRE and how these vary as a function of gender, school's faith and school type. Methods:The participants (N = 759 adolescent girls (57%) and boys (43%)), who had attended an SRE intervention and had previously been given formal SRE within the school they attended, completed a survey on their preference for aspects of SRE.Results: Adolescents judged the sex-education intervention to be of high quality and enjoyed being taught by sexual-health workers. Preferred sources of SRE included sexual-health workers, parents and peers as well as the media. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that gender, school's faith (Church of England or catholic) and school type (mainstream, special needs) were predictors of preference for various aspects of SRE. Conclusion:The results highlight the crucial role of experienced qualified SRE educators, but also the supplementary role of parents and peers as well as the auxiliary role of Internet sites, magazines, phone lines and schools. Stereotypical preferences of boys and girls outside SRE seem to be perpetuated in SRE and special-needs and mainstream adolescents' preferences are consistent with their communication and education outside SRE.

Mixed reality environments represent a new approach to creating technology-mediated experiences. However, there is a lack of empirical research investigating users' actual experience. The aim of the current exploratory, non-experimental study was to establish levels of and identify factors associated with presence, within the framework of Schubert et al.'s model of presence. Using questionnaire and interview methods, the experience of the final performance of the Desert Rain mixed reality environment was investigated. Levels of general and spatial presence were relatively high, but levels of involvement and realness were not. Overall, intrinsic motivation, confidence and intention to re-visit Desert Rain were high. However, age was negatively associated with both spatial presence and confidence to play. Furthermore, various problems in navigating the environment were identified. Results are discussed in terms of Schubert's model and other theoretical perspectives. Implications for system design are presented.

Much of the literature on the causes and management of diabetes focuses on biomedical and lifestyle factors, with little attention given to the role of social issues in diabetes management. This study aimed to explore the influence of social issues on type 1 diabetes management from the perspectives of people with diabetes and of health care professionals (HCPs), and to identify strategies to enhance the clinic services.Semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with eight people with type 1 diabetes and with 15 HCPs. Recruitment was through the patients' HCPs for this service evaluation project.Findings highlighted the importance of considering the influence of social issues on diabetes management. The dominant themes that emerged from the thematic analysis were: housing situations, divorce, stress, literacy issues, social stigma and financial issues. HCPs suggested ways to improve services by: putting informational boards (e.g. related to benefit services) in the waiting area; providing a peer support platform (to discuss and gain support related to social issues); having a service directory (to refer people to the social services); working at multi-settings (to understand the effect of social issues); and having open clinics at weekends (to support those who are unable to get time off during the week). People with diabetes suggested that bringing in a welfare officer and providing information about benefits could improve the clinic services.In conclusion, including a systematic assessment of social parameters in health care records might improve the ability of clinicians and the health system to tackle social issues early. This is likely to improve self-management and biophysical outcomes.