Background/Aim: To determine the association of physical activity and the metabolic syndrome in a large national-representative sample of children. Methods: This study was performed in 2003–2004 on 4,811 school students aged 6–18 years, selected by multi-stage random cluster sampling from six provinces in Iran. We assessed the level of physical activity using a standardized questionnaire, and categorized it to the tertiles. The metabolic syndrome was defined based on criteria analogous to those of the Adult Treatment Panel III. Results: The participants comprised 2,248 boys and 2,563 girls with a mean age of 12.07 ± 3.2 years. In all age groups, boys were more physically active than girls. The metabolic syndrome was detected in 14.1% of participants, and its prevalence was higher in those subjects in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd tertiles of physical activity, respectively (15.1 vs.14.2 and 13.1%, respectively, p <0.05). This difference was seen in boys, while no difference was found between girls in the 2nd and 3rd tertiles of physical activity. Physical activity was linked to a cluster of factors consisting of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and waist circumference, followed by triglycerides in boys, and of triglycerides, waist circumference and blood pressure in girls. In both genders, before and after adjustment for age and body mass index, low levels of physical activity significantly increased the risk of having the metabolic syndrome [in boys: OR: 1.8, 95% CI: 1.1, 2.1; and in girls, OR: 1.6 (1.1, 1.9)]. Conclusion: We found an association between physical activity and the metabolic syndrome, which was independent of body mass index and age. Children should be encouraged to have greater physical activity.

Sleep duration of 5 hours or less in individuals under age 60 years is associated with an increased prevalence of diabetes mellitus and an impaired glucose tolerance test. This finding should be confirmed in longitudinal studies.

To identify lifestyle-related determinants of hookah and cigarette smoking in Iranian adults, a total of 12,514 men and women aged >/=19 years in three counties in central Iran (Isfahan, Najafabad, Arak) were selected in multistage random sampling. Data on socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyle were collected in interviewer-administered questionnaires, as part of the baseline survey of the Isfahan Healthy Heart Program. Unhealthy lifestyle-related factors independently associated with cigarette and hookah smoking, were identified in sex-specific multivariate logistic regression analyses. High stress levels (OR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.35-1.78 for men; OR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.17-2.27 for women), family member smoking (OR: 1.61; 95% CI: 1.27-4.92 for men; OR: 2.49; 95% CI: 2.20-2.95 for women), and short/long sleep duration (OR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.01-1.39 for men; OR: 1.52; 95% CI: 1.10-2.35 for women) were associated with cigarette smoking in both men and women. Poor diet was also related to cigarette smoking in men (OR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.62-1.89). Family member smoking was associated with hookah smoking in both men (OR: 1.16; 95% CI: 1.05-3.12) and women (OR: 1.56; 95% CI: 1.02-4.92), and in addition high stress levels (OR: 2.87; 95% CI: 1.14-5.83) and short/long sleep duration (OR: 1.07; 95% CI: 1.02-2.41) were associated with hookah smoking in women. Unhealthy lifestyle-related factors co-occur with cigarette and hookah smoking in Iranian adults, likely increasing the risk for chronic health problems. Sex differences in the determinants of hookah and cigarette smoking may need to be taken into account in planning tobacco control strategies.

Introduction:Malnutrition in preschool children is a significant problem and has been identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the most lethal form of malnutrition, indirectly or directly causes an annual death of at least 5 million children worldwide. The object of this study was to estimated the rate of underweight, stunting and wasting among preschool children in northeast of Iran.Methods:A cross sectional population based study was conducted and 70339 children; 35792 males and 34547 females were recruited. The primary outcome variables were; weight, height, age and gender of the children. The sex and age specific rate and overall rate of underweight, stunting, and wasting were calculated.Results:The rate of underweight, stunting, and wasting were 7.5%, 12.5% and 4.4% respectively. There were significant differences in stunting and wasting rate between boys and girls. The overall rate of stunting was significantly higher than the overall rates of underweight and wasting. The rate of malnutrition increased with child's age.Conclusion:In compare to WHO criteria, the rate of malnutrition among this study population was low. According to the higher rate of stunting, the main goal of future research and interventions must be finding the causes of deficiency in height growth and improving it.

Background:Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a common cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The benefits and effects of renin–angiotensin system blocker drugs are obvious in decreasing albuminuria, but there is a need to find other drugs that can decrease albuminuria. The aim of our study is to evaluate the effect of short-term administration of curcumin on overt albuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).Materials and Methods:A randomized, double-blind clinical trial was performed on 46 patients with T2DM, overt albuminuria ≥300 mg/24 h, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥30 mL/min/1.73 m2. After the random allocation of the patients, they were divided into two groups. In the curcumin group, the patients received 500 mg (one capsule) of curcumin with each meal (three times/day after meal) for 16 weeks. Other variables including blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr), fasting blood sugar (FBS), 2-h postprandial blood sugar (2-h pp BS), lipid profile, 24-h urine analysis for albuminuria, serum albumin, and hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C) were checked at baseline and bimonthly too.Results:two groups at baseline were comparable in terms of basic characteristics (P > 0.05). Albuminuria decreased significantly from 900.42 ± 621.91 at the baseline to 539.68 ± 375.16 at the end of the study in the curcumin group (PTime = 0.002); however, no statistically significant changes were observed in the placebo group (519.94 ± 214.33 at the baseline vs. 444.00 ± 219.10 at the end of the trial; PTime = 0.43), and the decrease was significantly higher in the curcumin group than that of the placebo group (PIntervention = 0.01). No significant differences were observed between the placebo and curcumin in terms of changes in serum BUN, Cr, FBS, 2-h pp BS, HbA1C, lipid profile, and albumin.Conclusion:Our study showed that curcumin as an active turmeric metabolite was an effective adjuvant therapy for ameliorating macroscopic proteinuria in type 2 diabetic patients. Its effect may appear after 2 months of therapy and even in patients with a mild decrease in GFR. Further studies with larger sample size and longer duration are recommended.