Life-threatening and daily-life stress show two different patterns of influence on mental health. These results provided a preclinical model for understanding, and preventing, human stress-related psychiatric disorders in the future.

Background: The aim of this study was to explore the impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) on health care workers in Taiwan. The possible predisposing and perpetuating factors in developing mental symptoms were investigated. Methods: Participantsconsisted of 135 health care workers who had had contact with or took care of patients who were probable or suspected SARS cases, during the SARS outbreak, at a teaching hospital in southern Taiwan. All participants completed questionnaires, including the Chinese Health Questionnaire, Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and Parental Bonding Instrument. Results: Twenty-two participants (17.3%) developed significant mental symptoms, and 105 participants (82.7%) showed no obvious symptoms. The structural equation model showed that maternal care (β = –0.18, p = 0.011) and neuroticism (β = 0.54, p < 10^–6) directly influenced the ability of health care workers to deal with the impact of SARS. Maternal overprotection (β = 0.30, p < 10^–4) had an indirect influence on the ability to cope with the impact of SARS. Conclusion: Both neuroticism and maternal attachment influenced the mental health of health care workers during the SARS epidemic. The results can be a helpful reference for intervention and prevention programs for health care workers facing disasters in the future.

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Few studies have examined the relation between passive smoking and dietary intake in a large population. This report examines the nutrition and behavioral characteristics of 3,896 nonsmoking women from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) population in relation to exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. The data indicate that nonsmoking women who were exposed to husbands who smoked were more likely to be older, have lower education, live in the city, and have other health behaviors that could increase their risk of lung cancer compared with nonsmoking women with husbands who did not smoke. The nonexposed women were more likely to take vitamin supplements, to not drink alcohol, and to consume higher levels of dietary vitamin A, vitamin C, and calcium. The exposed and nonexposed women showed no difference in the levels of fatty acid intake nor in the levels of several other foods from the food frequency list after correction for age. Many of the differences that the authors observed between the women who were exposed and nonexposed to passive smoking could affect the risk of cancer. Therefore, they recommend that future studies of nonsmokers examine the influence of both passive smoking and diet on the risk of disease rather than examine the influence of a single factor.