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During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in the incidence of overweight and obesity in children was observed. It appears that unhealthy food choices, an unbalanced diet, and a sedentary lifestyle, as well as experiencing stress related to the pandemic, may be contributing to this disturbing trend. Chronic stress is a significant factor contributing to eating disorders and obesity in youngsters, involving medical, molecular, and psychological elements. Individuals under chronic stress often focus on appearance and weight, leading to negative body image and disrupted relationships with food, resulting in unhealthy eating behaviors. Chronic stress also impacts hormonal balance, reducing the satiety hormone leptin and elevating the appetite-stimulating hormone ghrelin, fostering increased hunger and uncontrolled snacking. Two systems, the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis and the sympathetic system with the adrenal medulla, are activated in response to stress, causing impaired secretion of noradrenaline and cortisol. Stress-related obesity mechanisms encompass oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, insulin resistance, and neurohormonal and neurotransmission disorders. Stress induces insulin resistance, elevating obesity risk by disrupting blood sugar regulation and fat storage. Stress also affects the gut microbiome, potentially influencing chronic inflammation and metabolic processes linked to obesity. In conclusion, chronic stress is a multifaceted risk factor for eating disorders and obesity in children, necessitating a comprehensive understanding of effective preventive and intervention strategies amid the escalating prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity.

Haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is a treatment option for many haematological conditions in patients of all ages. Nutritional support is important at each stage of treatment, but particular nutritional needs and dictated support occur during the preparatory (conditioning regimen) and post-transplant periods. Patients may require nutritional treatment by the enteral or parenteral route. The quantitative and qualitative composition of meals may change. Vitamin requirements, including vitamin D and vitamin C, might also be different. An adequately composed diet, adapted to the needs of the patient, may influence the occurrence of complications such as graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), gastrointestinal disorders, infections, and reduced survival time. Haematological diseases as well as transplantation can negatively affect the intestinal flora, with negative consequences in the form of mucosal inflammation and disorders of a functional nature. Currently, aspects related to nutrition are crucial in the care of patients after HSCT, and numerous studies, including randomized trials on these aspects, are being conducted. This study serves the critical analysis of current scientific evidence regarding nutritional support for patients after HSCT.

Correlations and clustering are of great importance in the study of the Nuclear Equation of State. Information on these items/aspects can be obtained using heavy-ion reactions which are described by dynamical theories. We propose a dataset that will be useful for improving the description of light cluster production in transport model approaches. The dataset combines published and new data and is presented in a form that allows direct comparison of the experiment with theoretical predictions. The dataset is ranging in bombarding energy from 32 to 1930 A MeV. In constructing this dataset, we put in evidence the existence of a change in the light cluster production mechanism that corresponds to a peak in deuteron production.

This paper describes some insights on applicability of a Selective Laser Melting and Direct Metal Laser Sintering technology-manufactured turbine blade models for aerodynamic tests in a wind tunnel. The principal idea behind this research was to assess the possibilities of using ‘raw’ DLMS printed turbine blade models for gas-flow experiments. The actual blade, manufactured using the DLMS technology, is assessed in terms of surface quality (roughness), geometrical shape and size (outline), quality of counterbores and quality of small diameter holes. The results are evaluated for the experimental aerodynamics standpoint. This field of application imposes requirements that have not yet been described in the literature. The experimental outcomes prove the surface quality does not suffice to conduct quantitative experiments. The holes that are necessary for pressure measurements in wind tunnel experiments cannot be reduced below 1 mm in diameter. The dimensional discrepancies are on the level beyond acceptable. Additionally, the problem of ‘reversed tolerance’, with the material building up and distorting the design, is visible in elements printed with the DLMS technology. The results indicate the necessity of post-machining of the printed elements prior their experimental usage, as their features in the ‘as fabricated’ state significantly disturb the flow conditions.

Ensuring adequate profitability of production, which can be ensured by optimal investments, can encourage farmers to be more caring about sustainable development. Several existing studies indicate that technical efficiency in agriculture varies regionally. Investments comprise a basic way to increase efficiency and thus reduce polarisation between regions. However, contrary to established assumptions, not every investment leads to increased efficiency, which entails a phenomenon of overinvestment. Investments should, by definition, be positively correlated with efficiency. However, existing studies indicate the existence of a significant problem of overinvestment, where increased efficiency may not occur. While for about 40% of farms in Poland the scale of investments can be assessed as optimal, more than quarter of farms exhibited absolute overinvestment and nearly one in five farms is underinvested. In response to this problem, this study aimed to identify regional differences in Poland with regard to overinvestment in farms, as well as to determine changes in farm efficiency depending on the region and level of overinvestment. The source material used in the following article consisted of unpublished Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) microdata derived from the DG AGRI of the European Commission. The study covered the period 2004–2015. For an original classification of farms according to their level of overinvestment the technical efficiency, using the stochastic frontier analysis approach, was used for determining regional differences that occurred as a result of overinvestment. Stochastic frontier analysis shown noticeable differences in the average technical efficiency for different overinvestment groups. As expected, underinvested farms are the least efficient (general in Poland and in all analyzed regions) and average technical efficiency did not increase. Interestingly, optimally investing farms do not have the highest technical efficiency. Higher efficiency was achieved by both relatively and absolutely overinvested farms. This is due to the fact that in order to produce efficiently in agriculture, it is necessary to at least maintain the level of tangible assets provision, and preferably to increase it as well. In terms of overinvestment levels, farm structure does not differ significantly between individual regions in Poland. However, there are differences between regions in terms of farm efficiency within each group. In all regions, only the underinvested farms did not increase their efficiency over the period under review and the highest efficiency growth rate was in regions where farms were least efficient at baseline.

Improvements in sustainability at the farm level are the basic driver of agricultural sustainability at the macro level. This is a challenge that can only be met by farms which efficiently process inputs into products. The increase in the efficiency of European farms is largely conditioned by measures taken under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), especially its second pillar. The purpose of this study was to determine the net effect of pro-investment instruments available under the second pillar of the CAP in selected Central and Eastern European countries. Unpublished Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) microdata provided by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) were used as the source material. The study presented in this paper is unique in that the research tasks are based on unpublished microdata of selected Central and Eastern European farms. The study relied on the Propensity Score Matching approach; the net effect of pro-investment mechanisms was analyzed using productivity and profitability indicators calculated for farms which have been keeping FADN records for a continuous period of no less than 6 years. As shown by the study, structural funds available under the CAP clearly provided an investment incentive for farms. The conclusion from the assessment of changes in the availability of productive inputs is that the beneficiaries reported a greater increase in fixed asset value and in farm area in all countries except for the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The comparative analysis of countries covered by this study failed to clearly confirm that labor is substituted with capital to a significant extent. Every country covered by this study experienced a noticeable negative net effect on both the productivity and profitability of capital. When considering all the countries, the beneficiary group has no clear advantage over the control group in terms of changes in land and labor productivity and profitability (a statistically significant positive effect was recorded for land productivity and profitability in Slovenia). As regards labor, a statistically significant positive net effect (a difference in growth rate between the beneficiary group and the control group) was recorded in Slovenia, but also in Poland, where beneficiary farms reported a greater increment in labor profitability and reduced the negative difference in labor productivity.