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Abstract Background Earlier research regarding immigrants has shown that lifestyle and environmental factors are of importance for the risk of developing certain diseases. Food habits are one of these factors. As there is little research concerning immigrants and food habits, the aim of the present paper was to explore food habits operationalised as meal frequency and vegetable intake among a group of older immigrants in Sweden. Specifically, the following questions were explored: changes in food habits when migrating, missing food from the native country, gender differences in food habits and association between food habits and self-rated health and well-being. Method A total of 131 persons from the health-promoting study “Promoting Aging Migrants’ Capabilities” (PAMC) conducted in Gothenburg, Sweden, 2011–2014, were included in this exploratory secondary analysis of questionnaire data. Participants were 70 years or older, cognitively intact, and living in ordinary housing. They had all migrated to Sweden from Finland or the Western Balkan Region (Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia). Descriptive statistics as well as binary logistic regression were used to answer the research questions. Results Forty-eight percent of the participants in PAMC reported that they had changed their food habits when migrating, and 17% considered that they missed certain foods from their native country. Most of the participants migrated to Sweden more than 20 years ago. There was a significant difference in self-rated health in favour of the male participants (p = 0.02), but food habits, operationalised as meal frequency and vegetable intake, were not associated with self-rated health or life satisfaction. Conclusion Men rated their health as better than women did, but food habits operationalised as meal frequency or vegetable intake, were not associated with self-rated health or life satisfaction. Results from this secondary analysis were affected by methodological shortcomings. Further studies to understand the role of food habits in relation to health in a migration context are desired. Trial registration: NCT01841853, Registered April 29, 2013. Retrospectively registered.

This study aimed to explore the experiences of older migrants' (70+) access to and participation in different meeting places. Qualitative interviews were conducted with participants originating from Finland and four countries in the Western Balkans: Bosnia- Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The participants used everyday places in the neighborhood, which were not primarily meant to be meeting places, to create and uphold social contacts. These meeting places contributed to experiences of community and trust. Both everyday meeting places and organized meeting places were used to establish and develop relationships that could result in an exchange of both practical and emotional support. Perceptions of "not belonging", limited proficiency in Swedish, and a strained financial situation created barriers to accessing some meeting places. The results of this study demonstrate the significance of meeting places that are not purposefully aimed at older people in general or older people from a specific country.

Abstract Aim The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of a full‐scale implementation of a care process programme on life satisfaction among frail older people, as compared with those receiving usual care. Design The study includes participants from a full‐scale care process programme (N = 77) and participants from a historical control group (N = 66). The care process programme establishes a comprehensive continuum of care through components including case management, interprofessional teamwork and care‐planning meetings in the older people's own homes. Methods Questionnaires were used and data were collected at baseline, with follow‐ups at three, six and 12 months. Results The implementation of the full‐scale care process programme had a positive effect on life satisfaction among frail older people. From 6‐month–12‐month follow‐ups, a higher proportion of participants in the care process programme had positive life satisfaction outcomes, as compared with the historical control group.

A guidance document for the identification of endocrine disruptors (EDs) in the regulatory assessment of plant protection products (PPP) and biocidal products (BP) has been published by the European Chemical Agency (ECHA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The ECHA/EFSA guidance, mainly addressing EATS (estrogen, androgen, thyroid, steroidogenesis) modalities, is intended to guide applicants and assessors of the competent regulatory authorities on the implementation of the scientific criteria for the determination of ED properties pursuant to the recently implemented PPP (EU 2018/605) and BP (EU 2017/2100) EU Regulations. In this study, a search filter for targeted literature search in context of assessing if a substance can be identified as an ED relevant for human health was developed and validated. Development of the search filter was based on the search strategy presented in the ECHA/EFSA guidance and using the estrogenic chemical Bisphenol AF (BPAF) as a model substance. Information specialists from two independent institutions developed refined search filters based on the suggested original search strategy published (ECHA/EFSA guidance - Appendix F). Articles identified by a systematic literature search for BPAF were screened for relevance with inclusion and exclusion criteria by two independent reviewers obtaining positive (relevant) and negative (irrelevant) controls. The developed search filter was quantitatively evaluated in terms of sensitivity, specificity and precision based on the positive and negative controls. The developed filter was then validated for T modality by its application to the known thyroid-disruptor perchlorate. The result is a sensitive search filter with sufficient specificity, which can be applied for all chemicals where a targeted literature search is needed to assess and identify ED properties of chemicals with relevance for humans. Future application of the filter to a broader range of chemicals may identify further points of improvement.

The aim was to evaluate the 6-month and 1-year effects of a person-centered group-based health-promoting intervention on independence in daily activities and self-rated health. The study was an RCT with follow-ups at 6 months and 1 year. A total of 131 independent living people (70+) who have migrated to Sweden from Finland or Western Balkan region were included. Participants were independent in activities of daily living and cognitively intact. They were randomized to an intervention group receiving four weekly group-meetings and a follow-up home visit, or a control group (no intervention). An overall chi-squared test was performed and the odds ratio calculated. A high proportion of the participants maintained independence in activities of daily living and improved or maintained self-rated health. However, no significant differences were found between the groups. The result indicates that the intervention was offered too early in the aging process to be able to detect effects. Methodological challenges were met during both the recruitment and implementation phases. In response to lessons learned, a multicenter design is recommended for future research in order to strengthen the findings. Furthermore, this study has contributed with experiences on both opportunities and challenges in terms of research with and about older people aging in the context of migration, as is discussed.

Exercising self-determination in daily life is highly valued by older people. However, being in the hands of other people may challenge the older people’s possibilities to exercise self-determination in their daily life. Among frail older people living in Sweden, risk for depression is highly predominant. There is a knowledge gap regarding if, and how having a risk of depression affects older people’s self-determination. The objective was, therefore, to explore if, and in that case how, frail older people’s self-determination is affected by the risk of depression. In this cross-sectional, secondary data analysis, with 161 communitydwelling frail older people, simple logistic regression models were performed to explore the association between self-determination, the risk of depression and demographic variables. The findings showed that risk for depression and reduced self-determination were significantly associated in the dimensions: use of time (P=0.020), social relationship (P=0.003), help and support others (P=0.033), and the overall self-determination item (P=0.000). Risk for depression significantly affected self-determination in use of time (OR=3.04, P=0.014), social relationship (OR=2.53, P=0.011), and overall self-determination (OR=6.17, P=0.000). This point out an increased need of strengthening healthcare professionals’ perspectives, and attitudes towards a self-determined, friendly, and person-centred dialogue.

This study is part of a project that aims to culturally adapt the Investigating Choice Experiments for the Preferences of Older People-CAPability Index (ICECAP-O) for use in research and health and social care in Sweden. The objective was to evaluate face and content validity and acceptability. Eighteen 70-year-old community-dwelling persons participated in cognitive interviews. A standardized classification scheme was used to quantify any identified response problems, and a thematic analysis was applied to capture participants’ perceptions of included attributes and experiences of completing the measure. The results show that three participants (18%) had problems completing ICECAP-O, and that judged problems occurred for five (6%) of participants responses in the standardized classification scheme. Most participants perceived the attributes as understandable even though the meaning of Control brought some uncertainty. ICECAP-O seems to measure what it is supposed to measure, quality of life (QoL) with a capability approach, and acceptability is satisfactory. ICECAP- O has potential for becoming a valuable addition to the supply of QoL measures in research and health and social care in Sweden. However, we recommend further research on more diverse groups of older persons.

Although the need to make health services more accessible to persons who have migrated has been identified, knowledge about health-promotion programs (HPPs) from the perspective of older persons born abroad is lacking. This study explores the design experiences and content implemented in an adapted version of a group-based HPP developed in a researcher–community partnership. Fourteen persons aged 70–83 years or older who had migrated to Sweden from Finland or the Balkan Peninsula were included. A grounded theory approach guided the data collection and analysis. The findings showed how participants and personnel jointly helped raise awareness. The participants experienced three key processes that could open doors to awareness: enabling community, providing opportunities to understand and be understood, and confirming human values and abilities. Depending on how the HPP content and design are being shaped by the group, the key processes could both inhibit or encourage opening doors to awareness. Therefore, this study provides key insights into how to enable health by deepening the understanding of how the exchange of health-promoting messages is experienced to be facilitated or hindered. This study adds to the scientific knowledge base of how the design and content of HPP may support and recognize the capabilities of persons aging in the context of migration.

This study is part of the Promoting Aging Migrants’ Capabilities programme that applied person-centred group meetings and one individual home visit to prolong independence in daily activities among people ≥70 years who had migrated to Sweden from Finland or the Western Balkan region. With the purpose to understand programme outcomes, the study aimed to explore the participants’ everyday experiences of using health-promoting messages exchanged during the programme. Using a grounded theory approach, 12 persons aged 70–83 years were interviewed six months to one year after their participation in the programme. The participants experienced how using health-promoting messages was a dynamic process of how to make decisions on taking action to satisfy health-related needs of oneself or others immediately or deferring action. Five sub-processes were also identified: gaining inner strength, meeting challenges in available resources, being attentive to what is worth knowing, approaching health risks, and identifying opportunities to advocate for others. The results suggest that the programme could develop personal skills to support older people who have migrated to overcome health-related challenges. They further demonstrate the importance of supporting their health literacy before personal resources hinder action, and call for research on programmes to overcome environmental barriers to health.

Background: While there is a plethora of Quality of Life (QoL) measures, the Investigating Choice Experiments for the Preferences of Older People—CAPability index (ICECAP-O) is one of the few that taps into the concept of capability, i.e., opportunities to 'do' and 'be' the things that one deems important in life. We aimed to examine test–retest reliability of the ICECAP-O in a Swedish context and to study item relevance. Methods: Thirty-nine 70-year-olds who took part in a population-based health study completed the Swedish version of the ICECAP-O on two occasions. We analyzed the test–retest reliability for the index and for the individual items. Participants also rated the relevance of each item on a visual analogue scale (0–100). Results: Test–retest reliability for the index score was in good agreement with an ICC of 0.80 (95% CI 0.62–0.90). However, Kappa was low for each item and ranged from 0.18 (control) to 0.41 (role). For attachment, we found a systematic disagreement with lower ratings at the second test occasion. Participants gave their highest relevance rating to attachment and lowest to enjoyment. Conclusion: The Swedish version of the ICECAP-O had good test–retest agreement, similar to that observed for the English version. Item level agreement was problematic, however, highlighting a need for future research.

We tested whether previous exposure to a toxic strain of cyanobacteria (Microcystis) affects survival, growth, and reproduction of a common herbivore, Daphnia magna. Samples from three natural populations of D. magna were each divided into two parts; one part was fed a mixture of toxic Microcystis and the non-toxic green alga Scenedesmus whereas the other part was fed only Scenedesmus. After four weeks, we compared the ability of these two populations to withstand the toxic Microcystis by assessing survivorship, growth, and reproduction. We found that the ability of D. magna to cope successfully with toxic Microcystis is improved if the animals have experienced previous exposure to toxic Microcystis. This suggests that the toxin may less affect the D. magna populations that are repeatedly exposed to toxic cyanobacteria in their natural habitat than populations lacking prior exposure. Since the ability to tolerate toxins is manifested in both improved survival and larger size of the animals, it may have considerable impact on zooplankton community composition in fresh-waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]