Both perceived stress and coping strategies may be associated with systemic inflammation in Japanese men, yet caution must be exercised before accepting the stress-inflammation-disease pathway.

BackgroundNon-participation in second surveys is reported to be associated with certain baseline characteristics; however, such data are unavailable for Japanese populations. Although disease incidence during follow-up might influence participation, few reports have addressed this possibility. This study sought to identify factors associated with non-participation in a second survey of a population-based cohort, and to evaluate the influence of self-reported disease incidence on non-participation.MethodsAfter excluding participants who left the area (n = 423), died (n = 163), and withdrew from the study (n = 9) among 12 078 participants in a baseline survey for the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study in the Saga region between 2005 and 2007, 11 483 people were invited by mail to participate in a face-to-face second survey between 2010 and 2012. The 5-year clinical health history of non-participants was assessed by mail or telephone. Baseline characteristics and self-reported clinical outcomes of non-participants were compared with those of participants.ResultsAmong 11 483 people, 8454 (73.6%) participated in the second survey, and 2608 out of 3029 non-participants answered mail or telephone health surveys. Female sex, youngest and oldest ages, lower education, lower occupational class, current smoking, lower physical activity level, shorter sleep time, obesity, and constipation were associated with non-participation. Light drinking (0.1–22.9 g ethanol/day) was associated with participation. Non-participants reported a significantly higher incidence of cancer and a significantly lower proportion of hypertension compared with participants.ConclusionsBoth baseline characteristics and disease incidence during the follow-up period had significant associations with non-participation in the face-to-face second survey.

BackgroundAccumulated evidence suggests a weak positive relationship between psychosocial stress and body mass index (BMI), but little is known about stress coping strategies and BMI.ObjectiveWe aimed to examine if perceived stress and coping strategies are related to BMI, with any of their mutual interactions on BMI.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 5,063 men and 6,982 women aged 40-69 years. A self-administered questionnaire ascertained perceived stress and 5 items of coping strategies (emotion expression, emotional support seeking, positive reappraisal, problem solving, and disengagement). Analyses were performed by gender with adjustment for age, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle factors.ResultsNo significant associations were detected between perceived stress and BMI in either men (P trend = 0.09) or women (P trend = 0.58). In men, however, ‘disengagement’ showed an inverse association with BMI (P trend < 0.001), and ‘positive reappraisal’ and ‘problem solving’ revealed a positive association with BMI (P trend = 0.04 and 0.007, respectively) even after controlling for perceived stress. A possible interaction between perceived stress and ‘disengagement’ on BMI was found in men (P interaction = 0.027); the inverse association between ‘disengagement’ and BMI was more evident in higher levels of stress (β = −0.13, P trend = 0.21 in low; β = −0.22, P trend = 0.01 in medium; and β = −0.24, P trend = 0.06 in high). In men, ‘disengagement’ was inversely associated with overweight/obesity (odds ratio 0.79, 95% confidential interval 0.67-0.95), and “positive reappraisal” was positively associated with it (1.25, 1.02-1.54).ConclusionsCoping strategies may have an important role in developing overweight/obesity, particularly in men.

To examine the orthostatic influence on heart rate and blood pressure variability in persons with tetraplegia playing wheelchair basketball, ten trained persons with tetraplegia, ten untrained persons with tetraplegia, and ten able-bodied participated in this study. Spectrum analysis of the ECG R-R interval and blood-pressure on a beat-by-beat basis during head-up tilt 60 degrees sitting were performed. The ratio of the high frequency to total frequency (HF/TF) in the R-R interval decreased from supine (0.5 +/- 0.2) to sitting (0.3 +/- 0.2), and the low frequency (LF) power in systolic blood pressure increased from 4.7 +/- 9.1 to 15.0 +/- 13.1 mmHg(2) only in the untrained persons with tetraplegia (P < 0.01). The decrease in the HF/TF ratio in the untrained persons with tetraplegia indicates attenuated parasympathetic activity to the orthostatic challenge and the similar increase in LF power indicate that parasympathetic activity was reduced and sympathetic activity increased only in these persons. These results suggest that training enhances cardiovascular stability in tetraplegic subjects.

Physical activity (PA) is recommended to both promote and maintain health and prevent cancer by improving the body's DNA repair system, which is considered a mechanism of cancer prevention. However, associations between PA and urinary levels of 8‐hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8‐OH‐dG), which reflects DNA damage, are unclear. This cross‐sectional study included 2370 men and 4052 women aged 45–74 years enrolled between 2010 and 2012. Habitual PA was assessed by single‐axis accelerometer and urinary 8‐OH‐dG levels by automated HPLC. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between log‐transformed urinary 8‐OH‐dG and total PA (TPA) and PA of moderate/vigorous intensity (MVPA; ≥3 metabolic equivalents), with adjustment for age, body mass index, energy intake, alcohol consumption, smoking status, daily coffee drinking, menopause status (in women), and TPA (for MVPA). On multivariate adjustment, urinary 8‐OH‐dG levels were inversely correlated with TPA (β = −0.020, P < 0.01) in women, and this correlation was not changed by PA intensity. Conversely, urinary 8‐OH‐dG levels were inversely correlated with MVPA (β = −0.022, P < 0.05) in men, although the correlation with TPA was non‐significant. This inverse correlation was clearer in current smokers than in never or former smokers, although the interaction between smoking status and MVPA on urinary 8‐OH‐dG levels was non‐significant. In conclusion, greater TPA in women and greater MVPA in men were correlated with reduction in urinary 8‐OH‐dG, suggesting sex‐specific effects of MVPA and TPA on protection from oxidative DNA damage. Increasing PA may mediate reduction in oxidative stress.