Search

Abstract: Objective: Immigration from Third World countries to the developed world is characterized by modification of lifestyle and acculturation to local customs. This study investigated changes in nutritional status and eating behaviors in female Ethiopian immigrants in Israel. Methods: Personal interviews, two 24-h dietary recalls, and anthropometric measurements were carried out in a random sample of 53 women 32 ± 6 y of age. Results: After living in Israel for an average of 14 y, body mass index was similar to the general Israeli population, with 42% of participants with a body mass index greater than 24.9 kg/m2, including 11% categorized as obese. This is in stark contrast to the body mass index measured at arrival in Israel (∼19–20 kg/m2). Less than optimal consumption of dietary fiber, calcium, folate, and B12 was documented. Analysis by food groups showed that intake of dairy products, fruits, and vegetables was negligible, whereas simple sugar intakes were high. The women continued to prepare traditional Ethiopian foods but also incorporated local, less healthy foods into their diets. Compared with the high energy expenditure in rural Ethiopia, participants reported minimal physical activity in Israel. Conclusions: This immigrant community is at high risk for developing nutrition-related chronic diseases. Culturally sensitive nutrition education programs are urgently needed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Travelers to tropical areas may be susceptible to illness or injuries. This study aims to assess morbidity among travelers during their travel and compare those who became ill or were injured with those who did not., Methods: This prospective study included 400 travelers who were counselled by a physician in pre-travel clinics in central Israel between 2017 and 2018. Participants were interviewed within a month after their return regarding morbidity during travel, including health problems that started one week following their return., Results: Most travelers (N = 320, 80%) reported at least one illness or injury. Illnesses/injuries were more common among females than males (84.9% vs. 75.1%, p = 0.01), travel periods longer than 30 days (87.7% vs. 77.2%, p = 0.03), and travelers accompanied by their friends or solo travelers compared with those who traveled with their family/partner (83.8% and 70.0%, respectively, p = 0.002). The most common complaint was diarrhea (N = 159, 49.6%), followed by high-altitude sickness (N = 118, 36.9%) and fever (N = 100, 31.2%). Altitude sickness symptoms were more common in females than in males (58.9% vs. 41.0%, p = 0.006) and in those who ascended rapidly in comparison to those who ascended gradually (58.7% vs. 44.6%, p = 0.04). Animal injury was reported by 30 (7.5%) participants yet only eight (27.0%) received medical care, seven of whom (23.3%) were vaccinated against rabies., Conclusions: Being a female, traveling with friends or alone and longer travel periods were associated with illness/injury. Practitioners at pre-travel clinics should inform travelers of the possible risks including the potential severe consequences of rabies and altitude sickness., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Syndromic surveillance systems have been developed for early detection of bioterrorist attacks, but few validation studies exist for these systems and their efficacy has been questioned., Objectives: To assess the capabilities of a syndromic surveillance system based on community clinics in conjunction with the WSARE algorithm in identifying early signals of a localized unusual influenza outbreak., Methods: This retrospective study used data on a documented influenza B outbreak in an elementary school in central Israel. The WSARE algorithm for anomalous pattern detection was applied to individual records of daily patient visits to clinics of one of the four health management organizations in the country., Results: Two successive significant anomalies were detected in the HMO's data set that could signal the influenza outbreak. If data were available for analysis in real time, the first anomaly could be detected on day 3 of the outbreak, 1 day after the school principal reported the outbreak to the public health authorities., Conclusions: Early detection is difficult in this type of fast-developing institutionalized outbreak. However, the information derived from WSARE could help define the outbreak in terms of time, place and the population at risk.