Search

Background: Today, one of the most serious causes of mortality and disability among youth is the traffic accidents. Regarding its importance, this paper aimed to investigate the community-based program to promote the safe traffic behaviors among youth., Methods: This was a quasi-experimental conducted on 5000 youth in five Iranian cities named Lanjan, Gomishan, Fasa, Tehran, and Zahedan in 2015-2016. The questionnaire was based on the constructs of the theory of planned behavior as well as a questionnaire of pedestrian behavior and driving behavior, which was completed before and after the intervention. The educational intervention was carried out based on the theory of planned behavior. Finally, the obtained data were analyzed using STATA software., Results: Six months after the intervention, the mean score of the theory of planned behavior and safe driving behavior in different cities was significantly increased. Here, regarding the safe crossing of the street, the most behavioral changes were observed in Gomishan ( P = 0.000), Fasa ( P = 0.001), and Tehran ( P < 0.0001). The mean score of driving behaviors in Gomishan ( P < 0.000), Fasa ( P = 0.016), Lanjan ( P = 0.047), and Tehran ( P < 0.0001) scores was significantly higher., Conclusions: In most of the studied cities, it can be concluded that education based on the theory of planned behavior can improve the safe driving behaviors among youth. Therefore, it is recommended to be implemented this program in other cities using the theory of planned behavior., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2021 International Journal of Preventive Medicine.)

Background: Low physical activity (PA) is increasing public health problem. The present study aimed to determine socioeconomic inequality in PA among children aged 10-12 years old in Kurdistan, west of Iran in 2015., Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 2506 children aged 10-12 in Sanandaj, Iran, in 2015. Data on the children's level of PA were collected using the Modifiable Activity Questionnaire. The concentration index was used to measure inequality and the Oaxaca decomposition to examine the different determinants of the inequality. The data were analyzed in Stata 13 and SPSS 20., Results: Of the 2506 participants, 40.90% (38.97-42.82) had insufficient PA. Girls had a lower level of PA than boys (odds ratio [OR] = 0.34; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.28-0.41) and it is directly related to maternal education (OR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.18-2.47), the family's Socioeconomic status (SES) (OR = 2.18; 95% CI: 1.56-3.05), and the place of residence (OR = 1.68; 95% CI: 1.16-2.44). The concentration index for insufficient PA was -0.25 (95 CI: -0.30 to -0.21), revealing an insufficient PA in the group with a low SES. The prevalence of insufficient PA is 51.38% (95% CI: 48.45-54.31) in poor group and 28.40% (95% CI: 22.80-33.99) in the wealthier group. The Oaxaca decomposition showed maternal education and the place of residence was the most important determinants of inequality., Conclusions: According to the findings, most of the children especially in the poor groups didn't have sufficient PA and socioeconomic factors could have the important role., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Background: Obesity is a major problem in both developed and underdeveloped countries. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of a physical education program (PEP) on promoting health belief model (HBM) scores, increasing physical activity (PA), and reducing obesity among Iranian high school students., Methods: This quasi-experimental study was accomplished at four high schools that were randomly divided into two groups of experiment (forty) and control (forty) male students in junior high schools in Urmia, Iran. Students in the experimental group received a PEP during 6 months. The essential parameters were used for evaluating the effects of educational program on HBM, PA, and body mass index (BMI) of students., Results: After the intervention of 3 and 6 months, the experimental group showed a significant difference on the results of HBM constructs. According to the result of repeated-measures ANOVA, there is a significant difference between the experimental and control groups about the components of PA constructs. Analysis of covariance showed that although BMI reduced in 6 months after intervention, there was no significant difference in BMI., Conclusions: Results of the study revealed that implementation of PEP was effective on increasing the score of the components of HBM and PA of students.

Background: This study aimed at investigating the impact of an educational intervention based on transtheoretical model to increase physical activity and improve metabolic syndrome indicators in women., Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 142 women with metabolic syndrome were randomly assigned to the case and control group (each group 71 participants). SECQ (Marcus), processes of change (Marcus), decisional balance (Bandura) and self-efficacy (Nigg) questionnaires and International Physical Activities Standard Questionnaire in preintervention, 3 and 6 months after intervention were completed. Furthermore, abdominal obesity, triglycerides (TG), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) were measured. Physical activity intervention based on transtheoretical model (TTM) was performed in the case group. Finally, data were analyzed by SPSS (16) (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) and repeated measure ANOVA, independent t-test and Freidman was used. A two-tailed P value, lower than 0.05, was considered to be statistically significant., Results: After the intervention, physical activity level increased in the intervention group, and they also progressed in stages of change, but the people in the control group had regressed. All changes in TTM constructs were significant in the intervention group during the time and differences in pros and cons were not significant in the control group. Abdominal obesity and TG has significantly reduced, and HDL has increased in the intervention group. In the control group, there was a significant increase in TGs and a decrease in HDL., Conclusions: Physical activity training based on TTM can improve physical activity and metabolic syndrome indicators in women.

Background: Considering the importance and prevalence of obesity and the desire to lose weight, especially among women, this study intended to investigate the relationship between Body Mass Index, body satisfaction, and weight control behavior among women employees in Isfahan., Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted among 408 women who were selected by stratified random sampling method among employees at Isfahan University and Isfahan University of Medical Sciences during 2012. The data collection tool was a multidimensional questionnaire which comprised two sections: Demographic Tool and Body Satisfaction Tool (7 items), Weight Control Behavior Scale (18 items)., Results: Age, marital status, educational level, and multiparity were significantly correlated with body size satisfaction. Seventy-five participants were dissatisfied with their weight and 60.5% reported a desire to lose weight; 92.15% of women studied had participated in a healthy dieting behavior and 10.8% of them had participated in an unhealthy one during the past six months. There was an inverse correlation between body satisfaction and Body Mass Index (BMI) (r = -0.64, P = 0.001). Ninety percent of participants had at least one of the dieting behaviors. There was an inverse significant relationship between body satisfaction and dieting behaviors (r = -0.19, P = 0.001)., Conclusions: Due to the importance of the prevention of obesity and the necessity of having a normal BMI in order to prevent subsequent complications, precise self-evaluation of body size can be used to focus on designing and conducting public health programs, especially for women.