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Abstract Light non-aqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) that infiltrate into the subsurface are commonly described in two distinct zones: the source zone and the plume zone. A precise differentiation between these zones is essential for constraining further migration and selecting an effective remediation method. In this study, we employ the induced polarization (IP) method to characterize the contaminants. Six time domain IP survey lines were conducted at a former chemical plant contaminated with LNAPLs. Even though the contaminated areas corresponding to BTEX concentration above 180 mg/kg are less than 5 mS/m, the source and plume zones cannot be distinguished by conductivity alone. However, a noticeable difference in phase ( $$\varphi$$ φ ) between the two zones is observed, and the threshold phase value corresponding to a critical concentration of 450 mg/kg is 20 mrad. Moreover, the normalized chargeability ( $$M_{n}$$ M n ) threshold for the source zone is 80 mS/m, and the corresponding $$M_{n}$$ M n differences between the source and plume zones are more significant than those in $$\varphi$$ φ . These results illustrate that changes in polarization characteristics associated with BTEX concentrations can aid in further distinguishing between the source and plume zones. Ultimately, it is concluded that IP imaging is a well-suited method for LNAPL investigations that permits an improved characterization of different contaminated zones, which can facilitate the optimization of drillings for further site assessment and remediation.

BackgroundTelemedicine has demonstrated efficacy as a supplement to traditional in-person care when treating certain diseases. Nevertheless, more investigation is needed to comprehensively assess its potential as an alternative to in-person care and its influence on access to care. The successful treatment of short stature relies on timely and regular intervention, particularly in rural and economically disadvantaged regions where the disease is more prevalent. ObjectiveThis study evaluated the clinical outcomes, health-seeking behaviors, and cost of telemedicine integrated into care for children with short stature in China. MethodsOur study involved 1241 individuals diagnosed with short stature at the pediatric outpatient clinic of Peking University Third Hospital between 2012 and 2023. Patients were divided into in-person care (IPC; 1183 patients receiving only in-person care) and telemedicine integrated care (TIC; 58 patients receiving both in-person and virtual care) groups. For both groups, the initial 71.43% (average of 58 percentages, with each percentage representing the ratio of patients in the treatment group) of visits were categorized into the pretelemedicine phase. We used propensity score matching to select individuals with similar baseline conditions. We used 7 variables such as age, gender, and medical insurance for the 1:5 closest neighbor match. Eventually, 115 patients in the IPC group and 54 patients in the TIC group were selected. The primary clinical outcome was the change in the standard height percentage. Health-seeking behavior was described by visit intervals in the pre- and post-telemedicine phases. The cost analysis compared costs both between different groups and between different visit modalities of the TIC group in the post-telemedicine phase. ResultsIn terms of clinical effectiveness, we demonstrated that the increase in height among the TIC group (ΔzTIC=0.74) was more substantial than that for the IPC group (ΔzIPC=0.51, P=.01; paired t test), while no unfavorable changes in other endpoints such as BMI or insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels were observed. As for health-seeking behaviors, the results showed that, during the post-telemedicine phase, the IPC group had a visit interval of 71.08 (IQR 50.75-90.73) days, significantly longer than the prior period (51.25 [IQR 34.75-82.00] days, P

Significance Fluid-solid interactions in reactive solute transport processes, governed by physical and chemical heterogeneities, dictate the evolution of subsurface geomaterials, resulting in nonlinear behaviours and multiscale features. It has become increasingly evident that examining the feedback between microscopic features and macroscopic behaviours in geomaterials is critical in various academic and industrial applications. Progress In this study, we introduce the concept and framework, mathematical and numerical models of the micro-continuum medium, as well as multiscale solvers and applications. Challenges in co-designed simulations and experiments are also discussed. Conclusion and Prospects Despite offering valuable insights into reactive transport processes, continuum-scale modelling or pore-scale modelling suffers from a gap between theoretical understanding and computational prediction. Recently, an alternative conceptualization of the multiscale problem involves the implementation of the Darcy-Brinkman-Stokes (DBS) equation in a single micro-continuum domain to identify reactive transport patterns across spatial scales under changing flow regimes. As fluid-solid interfaces cannot be explicitly resolved as in pore-scale models, the micro-continuum medium approach has the advantage of accommodating complex geometries or evolving interfaces without increasing computational costs.

Phthalates (PAEs) are synthetic compounds extensively employed in consumer products. Blood pressure (BP) in children can vary, the degree of visit-to-visit BP variability (VVV) is at least partially independent of BP. The interactions between PAEs exposure, pubertal-related genetic susceptibility and lifestyles on childhood VVV are not investigated. This study utilized data from a cohort collected from Oct 2017–2020 in Xiamen, China. Seven urine PAE metabolites were measured. The long-term VVV was characterized employing the standard deviation (SD) and average real variability. We constructed a genetic risk score (GRS) of pubertal-related genes and healthy lifestyle scores. Exposed to high levels of mono-2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl phthalate (MEHHP) (OR=1.43, 95 %CI=1.07, 1.92) and mono-2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl phthalate (OR=1.36, 95 % CI=1.01, 1.83) was related to increased SBP-SD, and the OR for high SBP-SD related to high GRS was 1.38 (95 % CI=1.02, 1.85). Compared to participants who had low GRS and low MEHHP exposure, participants exhibiting high GRS and MEHHP levels were more likely to experience high SBP-SD (OR=2.00, P

In a recent Cell Reports Sustainability article, Zhang et al. highlight the importance of greenspace in urban planning to mitigate climate change and air pollution’s effects on infectious diseases. Here, we emphasize that integrating greenspace helps reduce urban heat islands and environmental impacts on pathogen spread, promoting healthier, more resilient communities.

Summary: Background: The prevalence of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is rising precipitously among children, particularly in regions or countries burdened with high prevalence of obesity. However, identifying those at high risk remains a significant challenge, as the majority do not exhibit distinct symptoms of MASLD. There is an urgent need for a widely accepted non-invasive predictor to facilitate early disease diagnosis and management of the disease. Our study aims to 1) evaluate and compare existing predictors of MASLD, and 2) develop a practical screening strategy for children, tailored to local prevalence of obesity. Methods: We utilized a school-based cross-sectional survey in Beijing as the training dataset to establish predictive models for screening MASLD in children. An independent school-based study in Ningbo was used to validate the models. We selected the optimal non-invasive MASLD predictor by comparing logistic regression model, random forest model, decision tree model, and support vector machine model using both the Beijing and Ningbo datasets. This was followed by serial testing using the best performance index we identified and indices from previous studies. Finally, we calculated the potential MASLD screening recommendation categories and corresponding profits based on national and subnational obesity prevalence, and applied those three categories to 200 countries according to their obesity prevalence from 1990 to 2022. Findings: A total of 1018 children were included (NBeijing = 596, NNingbo = 422). The logistic regression model demonstrated the best performance, identifying the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR, cutoff value ≥0.48) as the optimal noninvasive index for predicting MASLD, with strong performance in both training and validation set. Additionally, the combination of WHtR and lipid accumulation product (LAP) was selected as an optimal serial test to improve the positive predictive value, with a LAP cutoff value of ≥668.22 cm × mg/dL. Based on the obesity prevalence among 30 provinces, three MASLD screening recommendations were proposed: 1) “Population-screening-recommended”: For regions with an obesity prevalence ≥12.0%, where MASLD prevalence ranged from 5.0% to 21.5%; 2) “Resources-permitted”: For regions with an obesity prevalence between 8.4% and 12.0%, where MASLD prevalence ranged from 2.3% to 4.4%; 3) “Population-screening-not-recommended”: For regions with an obesity prevalence

This research systematically investigates the influence of raw material particle size and calcium content on the geopolymerization process to gain insight into the physical and mechanical properties of geopolymer gels, including setting time, fluidity, pore structure, compressive strength, and leaching characteristics of encapsulated Cr3+ heavy metal ions. Utilizing a diverse range of particle sizes of metakaolin (MK; 3.75, 7.5, and 12 µm) and fly ash (FA; 18, 45, and 75 µm), along with varied calcium levels, this study assesses the dual impact of these factors on the final properties of both metakaolin- and fly-ash-based geopolymers. Employing sophisticated analytical techniques such as Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), the research meticulously documents alterations in chemical bonding, micro-morphology, and pore structures. Key findings reveal that reducing the size of MK and FA particles to 3.75 and 18 µm, respectively, enhances the compressive strength of their matrices by 128.37 and 297.58%, respectively, compared to their original values (63.59 and 33.87 MPa, respectively) at larger particle sizes. While smaller particle sizes significantly bolster compressive strength, they adversely affect slurry flow and reduce the leaching rates of Cr3+ from MK- and FA-based matrices, reaching 0.42 and 0.75 mg/L at 3.75 and 18 µm, respectively. Conversely, increased calcium content markedly enhances setting times and contributes to the formation of dense microstructures through the production of calcium aluminate silicate hydrate (C-A-S-H) gels, thus improving the overall curing performance and durability of the materials. These insights underline the importance of fine-tuning particle size and calcium content to optimize geopolymer formulations, offering substantial benefits for varied engineering applications and promoting more sustainable construction practices.

BackgroundBeyond the direct effect of COVID-19 infection on young people, the wider impact of the pandemic on other infectious diseases remains unknown. ObjectiveThis study aims to assess changes in the incidence and mortality of 42 notifiable infectious diseases during the pandemic among children and adolescents in China, compared with prepandemic levels. MethodsThe Notifiable Infectious Disease Surveillance System of China was used to detect new cases and fatalities among individuals aged 5-22 years across 42 notifiable infectious diseases spanning from 2018 to 2021. These infectious diseases were categorized into 5 groups: respiratory, gastrointestinal and enterovirus, sexually transmitted and blood-borne, zoonotic, and vector-borne diseases. Each year (2018-2021) was segmented into 4 phases: phase 1 (January 1-22), phase 2 (January 23-April 7), phase 3 (April 8-August 31), and phase 4 (September 1-December 31) according to the varying intensities of pandemic restrictive measures in 2020. Generalized linear models were applied to assess the change in the incidence and mortality within each disease category, using 2018 and 2019 as the reference. ResultsA total of 4,898,260 incident cases and 3701 deaths were included. The overall incidence of notifiable infectious diseases decreased sharply during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020) compared with prepandemic levels (2018 and 2019), and then rebounded in 2021, particularly in South China. Across the past 4 years, the number of deaths steadily decreased. The incidence of diseases rebounded differentially by the pandemic phase. For instance, although seasonal influenza dominated respiratory diseases in 2019, it showed a substantial decline during the pandemic (percent change in phase 2 2020: 0.21, 95% CI 0.09-0.50), which persisted until 2021 (percent change in phase 4 2021: 1.02, 95% CI 0.74-1.41). The incidence of gastrointestinal and enterovirus diseases decreased by 33.6% during 2020 but rebounded by 56.9% in 2021, mainly driven by hand, foot, and mouth disease (percent change in phase 3 2021: 1.28, 95% CI 1.17-1.41) and infectious diarrhea (percent change in phase 3 2020: 1.22, 95% CI 1.17-1.28). Sexually transmitted and blood-borne diseases were restrained during the first year of 2021 but rebounded quickly in 2021, mainly driven by syphilis (percent change in phase 3 2020: 1.31, 95% CI 1.23-1.40) and gonorrhea (percent change in phase 3 2020: 1.10, 95% CI 1.05-1.16). Zoonotic diseases were not dampened by the pandemic but continued to increase across the study period, mainly due to brucellosis (percent change in phase 2 2020: 0.94, 95% CI 0.75-1.16). Vector-borne diseases showed a continuous decline during 2020, dominated by hemorrhagic fever (percent change in phase 2 2020: 0.68, 95% CI 0.53-0.87), but rebounded in 2021. ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a marked decline in notifiable infectious diseases in Chinese children and adolescents. These effects were not sustained, with evidence of a rebound to prepandemic levels by late 2021. To effectively address the postpandemic resurgence of infectious diseases in children and adolescents, it will be essential to maintain disease surveillance and strengthen the implementation of various initiatives. These include extending immunization programs, prioritizing the management of sexually transmitted infections, continuing feasible nonpharmaceutical intervention projects, and effectively managing imported infections.

BackgroundAn accelerated epidemiological transition, spurred by economic development and urbanization, has led to a rapid transformation of the disease spectrum. However, this transition has resulted in a divergent change in the burden of infectious diseases between urban and rural areas. The objective of our study was to evaluate the long-term urban-rural disparities in infectious diseases among children, adolescents, and youths in China, while also examining the specific diseases driving these disparities.Methods and findingsThis observational study examined data on 43 notifiable infectious diseases from 8,442,956 cases from individuals aged 4 to 24 years, with 4,487,043 cases in urban areas and 3,955,913 in rural areas. The data from 2013 to 2021 were obtained from China's Notifiable Infectious Disease Surveillance System. The 43 infectious diseases were categorized into 7 categories: vaccine-preventable, bacterial, gastrointestinal and enterovirus, sexually transmitted and bloodborne, vectorborne, zoonotic, and quarantinable diseases. The calculation of infectious disease incidence was stratified by urban and rural areas. We used the index of incidence rate ratio (IRR), calculated by dividing the urban incidence rate by the rural incidence rate for each disease category, to assess the urban-rural disparity. During the nine-year study period, most notifiable infectious diseases in both urban and rural areas exhibited either a decreased or stable pattern. However, a significant and progressively widening urban-rural disparity in notifiable infectious diseases was observed. Children, adolescents, and youths in urban areas experienced a higher average yearly incidence compared to their rural counterparts, with rates of 439 per 100,000 compared to 211 per 100,000, respectively (IRR: 2.078, 95% CI [2.075, 2.081]; p < 0.001). From 2013 to 2021, this disparity was primarily driven by higher incidences of pertussis (IRR: 1.782, 95% CI [1.705, 1.862]; p < 0.001) and seasonal influenza (IRR: 3.213, 95% CI [3.205, 3.220]; p < 0.001) among vaccine-preventable diseases, tuberculosis (IRR: 1.011, 95% CI [1.006, 1.015]; p < 0.001), and scarlet fever (IRR: 2.942, 95% CI [2.918, 2.966]; p < 0.001) among bacterial diseases, infectious diarrhea (IRR: 1.932, 95% CI [1.924, 1.939]; p < 0.001), and hand, foot, and mouth disease (IRR: 2.501, 95% CI [2.491, 2.510]; p < 0.001) among gastrointestinal and enterovirus diseases, dengue (IRR: 11.952, 95% CI [11.313, 12.628]; p < 0.001) among vectorborne diseases, and 4 sexually transmitted and bloodborne diseases (syphilis: IRR 1.743, 95% CI [1.731, 1.755], p < 0.001; gonorrhea: IRR 2.658, 95% CI [2.635, 2.682], p < 0.001; HIV/AIDS: IRR 2.269, 95% CI [2.239, 2.299], p < 0.001; hepatitis C: IRR 1.540, 95% CI [1.506, 1.575], p < 0.001), but was partially offset by lower incidences of most zoonotic and quarantinable diseases in urban areas (for example, brucellosis among zoonotic: IRR 0.516, 95% CI [0.498, 0.534], p < 0.001; hemorrhagic fever among quarantinable: IRR 0.930, 95% CI [0.881, 0.981], p = 0.008). Additionally, the overall urban-rural disparity was particularly pronounced in the middle (IRR: 1.704, 95% CI [1.699, 1.708]; p < 0.001) and northeastern regions (IRR: 1.713, 95% CI [1.700, 1.726]; p < 0.001) of China. A primary limitation of our study is that the incidence was calculated based on annual average population data without accounting for population mobility.ConclusionsA significant urban-rural disparity in notifiable infectious diseases among children, adolescents, and youths was evident from our study. The burden in urban areas exceeded that in rural areas by more than 2-fold, and this gap appears to be widening, particularly influenced by tuberculosis, scarlet fever, infectious diarrhea, and typhus. These findings underscore the urgent need for interventions to mitigate infectious diseases and address the growing urban-rural disparity.

Abstract Background The relationship between lean body mass (LBM) and blood pressure (BP) is controversial and limited. This study investigated the associations between LBM indexes and BP in adults of different ages and with varying body fat distribution. Methods The data for the present analysis was obtained from a cross-sectional survey of 1,465 adults (50.7% males) aged 18–70 years conducted in Beijing, China. Regional LBM and fat distribution, including fat mass (FM) and android to gynoid fat ratio (AOI), were assessed using a dual-energy X-ray bone densitometer. Generalized Liner Model (GLM) was employed. Confounders, including age, sex, height, weight, smoking, and alcohol use, were evaluated through questionnaires and physical examinations. Results Males had higher rates of hypertension (11.19% vs. 4.92%) and prehypertension (21.57% vs. 14.59%) than females. The mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were 122.04 mmHg and 76.68 mmHg. There were no significant associations between LBM and DBP (p > 0.05). However, arms LBM (β = 1.86, 95% CI: 0.77, 2.94) and trunk LBM (β = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.73) were significantly associated with SBP. The association of LBM on DBP was stronger with increasing ages, and stronger in females than in males (p

Abstract Background Phthalate esters (PAEs) are known to have hormone-like properties, and there is a growing trend of children expressing a gender identity different from assigned sex. However, there has been limited research in the potential links between PAEs exposure and gender identity. Methods A total of 571 children (278 boys) completed the follow-up from Oct 2017 to Oct 2020 in Childhood Blood Pressure and Environmental Factors (CBPEF) cohort in Xiamen, China. Urinary PAE metabolites were measured at three time of visits using ultraperformance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The Children’s Sex Role Inventory scale was used to assess gender identity (masculinity, femininity, androgyny and undifferentiated), and Tanner definition was used to define puberty timing. Generalized linear models and log-binomial regression were used to assess the relationships between PAEs exposure, gender trait scores and gender identity. Results Overall, the concentration of most PAEs in more than 90% of participants was above the limit of detection values. In visit 1, there were 10.1% boys with femininity and 11.3% girls with masculinity; while these figures increased to 10.8% and 12.3% during follow-up, respectively. Early puberty onset accounted for 24.8% and 25.6% among boys and girls. Long-term exposure to mono-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (MEHP) (β = 1.20, 95%CI = 0.13, 2.28), mono-2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl phthalate (MEHHP) (β = 1.25, 95%CI = 0.22, 2.28) and mono-2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl phthalate (MEOHP) (β = 1.40, 95%CI = 0.24, 2.56) was associated with the increased differences of femininity trait scores in boys who enter puberty earlier, prolonged exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) might also have such a positive impact (β = 1.38, 95%CI = 0.36, 2.41). For gender identity, persistent exposure to low molecular weight phthalates (LMWP) was negatively associated with undifferentiated type among boys entering puberty earlier (RR = 0.18, 95%CI = 0.05, 0.75, P 1 for their femininity. Conclusion Long-term exposure to PAEs increase the femininity trait scores in boys with early onset of puberty. Although the mechanisms remain to be determined, environmental pollution might have subtle, yet measurable effects on childhood gender identity. Reducing these chemicals exposure has important public implications on gender development.

Hydraulic tomography (HT) is a promising technique for high-resolution imaging of subsurface heterogeneity, which addresses the limitations of traditional methods, such as borehole drilling and geophysical surveys. This study focuses on the application of HT to detect and characterize fractured zones in bedrock and addresses the gap in the understanding of the role of distributed flux data in the joint inversion of hydraulic head and flux data. By conducting synthetic injection tests and using sequential successive linear estimators for inversion, the study explores the effectiveness of combining limited head data with distributed temperature sensing (A-DTS)-derived flux data. The findings highlight the fact that integrating flux data significantly enhances the accuracy of identifying fracture permeability characteristics, even when head data is sparse. This approach not only improves the resolution of hydraulic conductivity fields but also offers a cost-effective strategy for practical field applications. The results underscore the potential of HT to enhance our understanding of groundwater flow and contaminant transport in fractured media, which has important implications for carbon capture, enhanced geothermal systems, and radioactive waste disposal.

Abstract Objective: The relationships between childhood weight self-misperception and obesity-related factors particularly health markers have not been extensively discussed. This study aims to examine the associations between weight self-misperception and obesity-related knowledge, attitudes, lifestyles and cardio-metabolic markers among Chinese paediatric population. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Data sourced from a national survey in Chinese seven provinces in 2013. Participants: Children and adolescents aged 5–19 years. Results: Of the total 14 079 participants, there were 14·5 % and 2·2 % participants over-estimated and under-perceived their weight, respectively. Multi-variable logistic regression was applied to calculate OR and 95 % CI (95 % Cl) of obesity-related behaviours and cardio-metabolic markers by actual and perceived weight status. Individuals who perceived themselves as overweight/obese were more likely to have prolonged screen time, insufficient dairy intake and over sugar-sweetened beverages consumption (all P < 0·05), regardless of their weight. Furthermore, actual overweight/obese individuals had higher odds of abnormal cardio-metabolic markers, but a smaller magnitude of association was found among weight under-estimators. Among non-overweight/obese individuals, weight over-estimation was positively associated with abdominal obesity (OR: 10·49, 95 % CI: 7·45, 14·76), elevated blood pressure (OR: 1·30, 95 % CI: 1·12, 1·51) and dyslipidemia (OR: 1·43, 95 % CI: 1·29, 1·58). Conclusions: Weight over-perception was more prevalent than under-estimation, particularly in girls. Weight over-estimators tended to master better knowledge but behave more unhealthily; both weight over-perception and actual overweight/obesity status were associated with poorer cardio-metabolic markers. Future obesity intervention programmes should additionally pay attention to the population with inaccurate estimation of weight who were easily overlooked.

Abstract Background Myopia and obesity in children and adolescents have become serious public health problems that endanger public health, especially in China. Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors are environmental drivers of both myopia and obesity. This protocol describes a study to evaluate the effectiveness of “22510SS”, that is 2 h of daytime outdoor activities (‘2’); Limit screen time to no more than 2 h per day (‘2’); Consume at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily (‘5’); Attain 1 h of physical activity daily (‘1’); Consume 0 sugar-sweetened beverages (‘0’); Reasonable sleep duration (‘S’); Regular supervision (‘S’). A school-based, multifaceted intervention strategy for myopia and obesity prevention, and to assess and explore the implementation of “22510SS” with regards to acceptability, feasibility, adoption, usage and maintenance. Methods and analysis This study aims to develop a comprehensive intervention strategy "22510SS" based on the socio-ecological model, and A two-arm cluster randomized trial with a parallel-group of a 1:1 allocation ratio in 36 primary and secondary schools to test its evidence-based intervention programs on the effects and implementation of myopia and obesity epidemics in children and adolescents in grades 4 and 7. The primary outcomes will include differences in visual acuity, body mass index, outdoor activity indicators, screen time, fruit and vegetable intake, high-quality protein intake, sugar-sweetened beverage intake, sleep duration, and level of monitoring among children and adolescents. Secondary outcomes will assess the acceptability, feasibility, uptake, use, and maintenance of the intervention. Effects on the primary and secondary outcomes will be analyzed using linear and logistic regression analyses, as well as difference-in-difference analysis, taking into account cluster effects and possible confounding factors. Process assessments will also be conducted through quantitative and qualitative analyses, including acceptability, feasibility, gender, adoption, implementation, and sustainability. Discussion This study will evaluate the effectiveness of “22510SS” and examine its implementation in the school-based network nesting family and clinic. Following this intervention study, the integrated intervention program focused on myopia and obesity among children and adolescents have great potential to be implemented in China to promote and support healthy lifestyle behavior change and reduce the risk of myopia and obesity in children and adolescents. Trial registration NCT05275959. Registered 23 Mach 2022.

The need for ferroelectric materials with both narrow bandgaps (Eg) and large remanent polarization (Pr) remains a key challenge to the development of high-efficiency ferroelectric photovoltaic (FPV) devices. In this work, [(K0.43Na0.57)0.94Li0.06][(Nb0.94Sb0.06)0.95Ta0.05]O3 (KNLNST)-based lead-free ceramics with narrow Eg and large Pr are obtained via Fe2O3 doping. By optimizing the level of Fe2O3 doping, a KNLNST+1.3% Fe2O3 ceramic is fabricated that simultaneously possesses a narrow Eg of 1.74 eV and a large Pr of 27.05 μC/cm2. These values are much superior to those of undoped KNLNST ceramics (Eg = 3.1 eV and Pr = 17.73 μC/cm2). While the large Pr stems from the increment of the volume ratio between the orthorhombic and tetragonal phases (VO/VT) in KNLNST ceramics by proper amount of Fe3+ doping, the narrow Eg is attributed to the coupling interaction between the Fe3+ dopants and the B-site Sb3+ host ions. Moreover, a switchable photovoltaic effect caused by the ferroelectric depolarization electric field (Edp) is observed in the KNLNST+1.3% Fe2O3 ceramic-based device. Thanks to the narrower Eg and larger Pr of the doped ceramic, the photovoltaic performance of the corresponding device (open-circuit voltage (Voc) = −5.28 V and short-circuit current density (Jsc) = 0.051 μA/cm2) under a downward poling state is significantly superior to that of an undoped KNLNST-based device (Voc = −0.46 V and Jsc = 0.039 μA/cm2). This work offers a feasible approach to developing ferroelectric materials with narrow bandgaps and large Pr for photovoltaic applications.

Abstract REY‐rich mud, consisting of deep‐sea sediments with high concentrations of rare‐earth elements and yttrium (REY), holds significant economic potential. Many studies have been conducted on biogenic apatite, ferromanganese micronodule, and phillipsite within these deposits to ascertain the REY enrichment mechanisms. However, the knowledge of clay minerals in REY‐rich mud, which is the predominant component of pelagic sediments, is still limited. In this study, two adjacent gravity cores (core GC02: REY‐rich mud; core GC03: typical sediments of equatorial Pacific) were collected from the Clarion‐Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCFZ) of the Eastern Pacific to study the role of different clay minerals in REY enrichment. The clay minerals in core GC03 and core GC02 are primarily illite (averaging 60%) and smectite (averaging 63%), respectively, and the smectite in core GC02 was mainly Fe‐rich, which was probably formed via the reaction between opal and FeOOH. Moreover, multiple studies have reported similar smectite enrichment in REY‐rich mud, suggesting that it is a common characteristic. The presumed hydrothermal or volcanic origination of smectite in REY‐rich layers of core GC02 indicates the essential role of hydrothermal and volcanic activities in REY‐rich mud formation during the Oligocene in the western CCFZ.

Background: The association of specific PM2.5 chemical constituents with childhood overweight or obesity (OWOB) remain unclear. Furthermore, the long-term impacts of PM2.5 exposure on the trajectory of children's body mass index (BMI) have not been explored. Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study among 1,450,830 Chinese children aged 6–19 years from Beijing and Zhongshan in China during 2005–2018 to examine the associations of PM2.5 and its chemical constituents with incident OWOB risk. We extracted PM2.5 mass and five main component exposure from Tracking Air Pollution in China (TAP) dataset. Cox proportional hazards models were applied to quantify exposure–response associations. We further performed principal component analysis (PCA) to handle the multi-collinearity and used quantile g-computation (QGC) approach to analyze the impacts of exposure mixtures. Additionally, we selected 125,863 children with at least 8 physical examination measurements and combined group-based trajectory models (GBTM) with multinomial logistic regression models to explore the impacts of exposure to PM2.5 mass and five constituents on BMI and BMI Z-score trajectories during 6–19 years. Results: We observed each interquartile range increment in PM2.5 exposure was significantly associated with a 5.1 % increase in the risk of incident OWOB (95 % confidence Interval [CI]: 1.036–1.066). We also found black carbon, sulfate, organic matter, often linked to fossil combustion, had comparable or larger estimates of the effect (HR = 1.139–1.153) than PM2.5. Furthermore, Exposure to PM2.5 mass, sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, organic matter and black carbon was significantly associated with an increased odds of being in a larger BMI trajectory and being assigned to persistent OWOB trajectory. Conclusions: Our findings provide evidence that the constituents mainly from fossil fuel combustion may have a perceptible influence on increased OWOB risk associated with PM2.5 exposure in China. Moreover, long-term exposure to PM2.5 contributes to an increased odds of being in a lager BMI and a persistent OWOB trajectories.

The hardness of hard-brittle materials is high, which results in the low lapping efficiency of traditional silicon carbide magnetic abrasive and short abrasive life. In view of this situation, a magnetic abrasive with diamond particle as lapping grit was developed. Using high purity iron powder as iron-based phase and diamond particle as abrasive, diamond magnetic abrasives were prepared by resin bonding method. K9 glass was chosen as the part being machined. The service life and processing efficiency of magnetic lapping K9 glass were compared between with diamond magnetic abrasives and with silicon carbide magnetic abrasives. The lifespan of diamond magnetic abrasive is 60.00 min, and the number of work-piece which can be machined is 4.6 pieces in the service life. The average surface roughness of K9 glass reaches 0.036 μm. However, the service life of the silicon carbide magnetic abrasive particles is only 40 min, and the average surface roughness of the K9 glass workpiece can only be processed to 0.222 μm. Besides, the number of workpieces that can be processed during the service life is 3.6 pieces. Diamond magnetic abrasives can effectively improve the service life, the processing capacity of magnetic abrasives, and the processing efficiency of magnetic grinding.

Abstract Background Infectious diseases pose a significant risk to the health and well-being of children and adolescents, and can even be life-threatening. Thus, our study aimed to explore the effectiveness of health education based on the social-ecological model in improving the knowledge of infectious diseases among this vulnerable population. Methods This study was a school-based intervention conducted in seven Chinese provinces in 2013, involving a total of 26,591 children and adolescents in the intervention group and 24,327 in the control group. The intervention group received a comprehensive health intervention based on the social-ecological model (SEM) over six months, which included a supportive environment, health education on infectious diseases, guidance on self-monitoring infectious disease-related behaviors, and other measures. Data on infectious disease-related knowledge and other characteristics were collected through questionnaires. The main outcome measure will be the difference in the effectiveness of health education regarding infectious diseases in children and adolescents between baseline and post-intervention. A mixed-effects regression model was used to calculate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) to assess the impact of infectious disease-related interventions on the participants. Results We utilized a socioecological model as the foundation for a six-month health education program on infectious diseases targeting children and adolescents in the intervention group. At the individual and community levels, the correct rate of health behavior related to infectious diseases in the intervention group was higher than that in the control group (P

Magnetic grinding has the characteristics of conformal machining. However, when a small grinding head is used to magnetically grind a workpiece with a large twist, the difference in the gap between the grinding head at different positions of the workpiece poses a challenge to the magnetic grinding process. In order to improve the surface quality of magnetic grinding and further reduce the influence of the gap difference between the grinding head and the workpiece on the surface roughness, an elastic magnetic pole grinding head with polyurethane elastomer as the magnetic pole carrier was designed, and its magnetic field simulation analysis and verification were carried out. In the experiment, the self-made diamond magnetic abrasive was used to compare the grinding performance of the polyurethane elastic magnetic pole grinding head and the ordinary magnetic pole grinding head under different machining gaps. The influence of the process parameters such as spindle speed, feed rate and abrasive particle size on the surface roughness of the workpiece was studied experimentally. The experimental results show that under the same process parameters, the processing performance of the polyurethane elastic magnetic pole grinding head is better than that of the ordinary magnetic pole grinding head under different machining gaps. Using polyurethane elastic grinding head, when the spindle speed is 800 r/min, the machining gap is 2.0 mm, the feed speed is 5 mm/min, and the abrasive particle size is 62 to 90 μm, the magnetic grinding effect is the best. After 12 minutes of grinding, the surface roughness Ra of TC4 titanium alloy can be reduced from the initial 0.350 μm to 0.039 μm, and the surface roughness improvement rate reaches 89%. The results verify the effect of the elasticity and profiling characteristics of the polyurethane elastic layer on the quality of the machined surface.

Herein, the morphological characteristics of submarine archipelagic aprons were presented for five guyots, Suda, Arnold, Lamont, Niulang, and Zhinyv, which are over 80 Ma years old and are located in the Marcus–Wake seamount group, northwestern Pacific Ocean. Nearly 28 landslide deposits were recognized using the bathymetry and backscatter intensity data collected from the studied guyots. Landslides and their deposits that surround seamounts are mostly related to the morphology of debris avalanches, scarps, gullies/channels, and bedforms. The morphology of the archipelagic aprons of the studied guyots indicates mutual landslide processes, including slump and distinct debris avalanches arising from a cohesive or cohesionless landslide material flow. The superimposition of debris flows and sedimentation dominates the recent stages of the studied guyots. The archipelagic aprons corresponding to convex-arc-shaped scarps exhibit larger domains compared to the invagination-arc-shaped scarps with similar lateral lengths. The scarp morphologies of the studied guyots are predominantly of the complex-arc shape, indicating multiple landslide events. Parallel and convergent gullies and channels are mostly found on the elongated landslide deposits, whereas divergent and radial gullies and channels are mostly distributed on the fan-shaped aprons. Ubiquitous sediment waves occurred on the bedforms of the distal archipelagic apron across the studied guyots because of sediment creep. Small-scale sediment waves were only observed in the channels on the aprons of the Suda guyot.

Abstract Background In the context of climate change, it has been well observed that short-term temperature variability (TV) could increase the overall and cause-specific mortality and morbidity. However, the association between long-term TV and a broader spectrum of diseases is not yet well understood, especially in the elderly. Methods Our study used data from the fourth Urban and Rural Elderly Population (UREP) study. Long-term TV was calculated from the standard deviation (SD) of daily minimum and maximum temperatures within the study periods (2010–2014, 2011–2014, 2012–2014, 2013–2014, and 2014). Ten self-reported diseases and conditions were collected by questionnaire, including cataract, hypertension, diabetes, cardio-cerebrovascular diseases, stomach diseases, arthritis, chronic lung disease, asthma, cancer, and reproductive diseases. The province-stratified logistic regression model was used to quantify the association between long-term TV and the prevalence of each disease. Results A total of 184,047 participants were included in our study. In general, there were significant associations between TV and the prevalence of most diseases at the national level. Cardio-cerebrovascular disease (OR: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.13, 1.20) generated the highest estimates, followed by stomach diseases (OR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.19), asthma (OR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.06, 1.22), chronic lung diseases (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.13), arthritis (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.05, 1.11), and cataract (OR: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.10). Moreover, the associations varied by geographical regions and across subgroups stratified by sex, household income, physical activity, and education. Conclusions Our study showed that long-term exposure to TV was associated with the prevalence of main diseases in the elderly. More attention should be paid to the elderly and targeted strategies should be implemented, such as an early warning system.

Abstract Background The increasing of exchange activities among public health institutes and experts globally calls for a standardized operation to construct public health field investigation and short-term study hub (Field Study Hub). This can funcion as a platform to share experience in public health development in an accurate and comprehensive manner that would benefit global practices. This research aims to establish a supportive indicator system to guide the construction work. Methods Delphi method including two rounds of surveys were conducted among 82 senior public health experts. A structured questionnaire was designed to collect the opinions of the experts on the necessity of setting and feasibility of measurement for proposed 5 dimensions of 49 indicators and 7 additionally proposed ones. Percentage and score were used to describe the assessments, χ2 and t tests to compare differences, Kappa and Cronbach’s alpha values to assess intra-rater and inter-rater reliabilities. Significance level α was 0.05. Bonferroni adjustment was used in the comparison of experts’ judgment basis. Results The percentages of experts choosing “Very good” or “Good” for necessity and feasibility in rounds 1 and 2 were 73.1–97.6% (85.8% ± 7.5%), 64.6–93.9% (82.8% ± 6.7%), 73.8–100% (91.0% ± 6.2%) and 72.5–100% (89.2% ± 7.3%) respectively. The scores of necessity were higher than those of feasibility, and the differences in the dimensions of “Key experience”, “Capacity for logistic support” and the total were statistically significant (t11 = 2.920, t12 = 3.035, t31 = 4.448, t32 = 2.664, tt1 = 3.794, tt2 = 3.007, P

Background: Early onset of puberty could have significant impacts on childhood health, but the extent to which it was affected by phthalate esters (PAEs) and sex hormone disruption was not understood. The aim of this study is to investigate the associations between exposure to PAEs and sex hormone disruption and early onset of puberty in children. Methods: A longitudinal cohort study was conducted in China from May 2017 to Oct 2020, involving 740 children during consecutive visits. The onset of puberty was evaluated using Tanner definition, and early puberty was defined as an onset age less than the first 25 %, with cut-offs of 10.33 and 8.97 years for boys and girls, respectively. Serum testosterone (TT), estradiol (E2) and urinary PAE metabolites were measured during three visits. Generalized linear models were used to explore the associations between PAE and sex hormones with the age of puberty onset, while log-binomial regressions were applied to assess the associations of persistent exposure to PAEs and sex hormones with early pubertal onset. Results: Approximately 86.0 % of boys and 90.2 % of girls completed puberty onset from pre-puberty, and more than 95 % of participants had PAE concentrations higher than the limit of detection. Boys showed higher exposure to PAE pollutants and higher TT levels. Persistent exposure to PAEs was positively associated with early pubertal onset in girls (ARR = 1.97, 95 %CI = 1.12, 3.46). Moreover, persistent exposure to PAEs and E2 had synergistic associations with early pubertal onset in both boys (ARR = 4.77, 95 %CI = 1.06, 21.54) and girls (ARR = 7.07, 95 %CI = 1.51, 33.10). However, PAEs and TT had antagonistic associations only in boys (ARR = 0.44, 95 %CI = 0.07, 2.58). Conclusion: Long-term exposure to PAEs might increase the risk of early pubertal onset, and it appears to work in synergy with E2, while in antagonism with TT in boys’ early pubertal onset. Reducing PAEs exposure might promote pubertal health.

Deep-sea sediments enriched in rare earth elements and yttrium (REY-rich sediments) are widely distributed on the deep-sea floor, and their formation mechanism remains elusive. Although studies have recognized the link between seamounts and REY-rich sediments, in-depth analysis of the specific roles and effects of seamounts in the formation of REY-rich sediments is lacking. In this study, we analyzed surface sediments from the Marcus-Wake Seamounts for grain size, geochemistry, and mineral composition and classified the samples into three types: samples with moderate REY content and dominated by terrestrial detritus; samples with high REY and authigenic mineral content; and samples rich in CaCO3 but poor in REY. The REY in the sediments of the study area partly originate from Asian dust input and partly from seawater and/or pore water, and are mainly enriched in REY carrier particles including bioapatite fossils and micronodules. The amount of REY carrier particles influences the REY content in the sediments. The current field, primary productivity, weathering process, and depositional environment around seamounts are different from those of abyssal plains, which are conducive to the formation of REY-rich sediments. Strong bottom currents may exist in the southeastern direction of some large seamounts (e.g., Niulang Guyot), leading to the selective accumulation of REY-rich bioapatite fossils and micronodules, resulting in the formation of REY-rich sediments.

Abstract. Background:. Non-transport unintentional injuries (NTUIs) are major public concerns, especially among children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries. With environmental and cognitive changes, a recent systematic description of global trends and regional differences concerning NTUIs is urgently needed for the global agenda of relevant policy-making and intervention target findings. Methods:. We used mortality, population, and socio-demographic-index (SDI) data from Global Burden of Disease 2019 to analyze the trends of NTUIs mortality. We applied the slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII) to measure the absolute and relative inequality between countries and territories. The concentration curve and concentration index (CI) were also used to measure the inequality. We conducted a sensitivity analysis to make our findings credible. Results:. In 2019, there were 205,000 deaths due to NTUIs among children and adolescents aged 5 to 24 years, which decreased from 375,000 in 1990. In 2019, the age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) was 8.13 per 100,000, ranging from the lowest in the Netherlands (0.90 per 100,000) to the highest in the Solomon Islands (29.34 per 100,000). The low-middle SDI group had the highest ASMR of NTUIs, while the low SDI group had the slowest decrease. After excluding the death caused by “exposure to forces of nature” and “other unintentional injuries”, drowning accounted for the most deaths in almost every SDI group, gender, and age group, but the major causes of death varied in different subgroups. For example, animal contact was a major cause in low and low-middle SDI groups but less in high SDI groups, while high and high-middle SDI groups had a higher proportion of deaths for foreign body and poisonings. The SII showed a declining trend, but the RII and CI did not, which might indicate that inequality was persistent. Similar results were found in the sensitivity analysis. Conclusions:. Despite the declining trend of the mortality rate and the narrowing gap between countries, there were still a large number of children and adolescents dying from NTUIs, and those experiencing social-economic disadvantages remained at high mortality. Embedding the prevention of NTUIs into sustainable development goals might contribute to the progress of reducing death and inequalities, which ensures that no one is left behind.

Objectives To investigate incident cataract surgery and to investigate determinants of cataract surgery uptake in Chinese adults.Design This nationally representative longitudinal study recorded self-reported incident cataract surgery, and measured biological, clinical and socioeconomical characteristics at baseline and endline.Setting In the first stage, 150 county-level units were randomly chosen with a probability-proportional-to-size sampling technique from a sampling frame containing all county-level units. The sample was stratified by region and within region by urban district or rural county and per capita gross domestic product. The final sample of 150 counties fell within 28 provinces of China.Participants Urban and rural Chinese persons aged 45 years and older.Primary and secondary outcome measures Incident cataract surgery (primary outcome) and the factors associated with incident cataract surgery (secondary outcome).Results Among 16 663 people enrolled in 2011, 13 705 (82.2%) attended follow-up in 2015. Among these, 167 (1.22%) reported incident cataract surgery. Those receiving surgery were significantly older (66.2±8.79 vs 58.3±9.18, p≤0.001) and more likely to report: illiteracy (44.9% vs 27.1%, p

IntroductionWe aimed to investigate the association between greenness around schools, long-term gaseous air pollution exposure (SO2 and CO), and blood pressure in children and adolescents.MethodsFrom 2006 to 2018, a total of 219,956 Chinese children and adolescents aged 7–17 years in Beijing and Zhongshan were included in this longitudinal study. Annual average concentrations of SO2 and CO and the mean values of normalized difference vegetation index around schools were calculated. We used the generalized estimation equation model, restricted cubic spline model, and Cox model to analyze the health effects.ResultsAmong all the subjects, 52,515 had the first onset of HBP. During the follow-up, HBP's cumulative incidence and incidence density were 23.88% and 7.72 per 100 person-year respectively. Exposures to SO2 and CO were significantly associated with SBP [β = 1.30, 95% CI: (1.26, 1.34) and 0.78 (0.75, 0.81)], DBP [β = 0.81 (0.79, 0.84) and 0.46 (0.44, 0.48)] and HBP [HR = 1.58 (1.57, 1.60) and 1.42 (1.41, 1.43)]. The risks of HBP attributed to SO2 and CO pollution would be higher in school-aged children in the low greenness group: the attributable fractions (AFs) were 26.31% and 20.04%, but only 13.90% and 17.81% in the higher greenness group. The AFs were also higher for normal-BMI children and adolescents in the low greenness group (AFs = 30.90% and 22.64%, but 14.41% and 18.65% in the high greenness group), while the AFs were not as high as expected for obese children in the low greenness group (AFs = 10.64% and 8.61%), nor was it significantly lower in the high greenness group (AFs = 9.60% and 10.72%).DiscussionGreenness could alleviate the damage effects of SO2/CO exposure on the risks of HBP among children and adolescents, and the benefit is BMI sensitivity. It might offer insights for policymakers in making effective official interventions to prevent and control the prevalence of childhood HBP and the future disease burden caused by air pollution.

Pore structure features govern the capacity of gas storage and migration in shales and are highly dependent on the types of pores, i.e., interparticle (InterP) pores, intraparticle (IntraP) pores and organic matter (OM)-hosted pores. However, fractal features in terms of pore types and their respective contributions to permeability have been rarely addressed. On the basis of high-resolution imaging, fractal dimensions (Ds) have been determined from both pore size distributions and digital rock to quantify the heterogeneity in pore morphology and spatial textures. Overall, OM-hosted pores are smaller in size and more abundant in quantity, corresponding to a relatively high D, while IntraP pores are mainly isolated and scarce, translating into lower D values. Additionally, crack-like InterP pores with a moderate level of porosity and the D can play a pivotal role in shale seepage potential. A comparison of the estimated permeability among different pore types highlights that the contribution of interconnected OM pores to the overall permeability remains constrained unless they can link neighboring pore clusters, as commonly observed in organo-clay composites. Furthermore, the pore morphology and fractal features of shale rocks can exhibit noteworthy variations subjected to sedimentology, mineralogy, diagenesis and OM maturation.

Abstract The present study aimed to distinguish different hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotypes and relevant risks of developing fatty liver and abnormal glycometabolic profiles in overweight/obese adults. A total of 1221 Chinese adults with mean (standard deviation [SD]) age of 37 (9) years, 37.3% males and 62.7% females, body mass index (BMI) of 29.0 (4.0) kg/m2, triglyceride (TG) 2.04 (1.45) mmol/L, and waist circumference (WC) 95.8 (10.7) cm were included and classified into four phenotypes: normal TG & normal WC (N-N); normal TG & high WC (N-WC); high TG & normal WC (TG-N); high TG & high WC (TG-WC). Participants in TG-WC group had the highest BMI, WC, blood pressure (BP), insulin, Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), and fatty liver. Participants within N-WC group had a significantly higher risk of fatty liver (adjusted OR 3.50 [95% CI 2.05–5.97]), as well as TG-N (adjusted OR 2.59 [95% CI 1.61–4.16]) and TG-WC (adjusted OR 4.12 [95% CI 2.28–7.46]). The risk of elevated HOMA-IR was significantly higher in TG-N (adjusted OR 2.16 [95% CI 1.33–3.50]) and TG-WC (adjusted OR 2.04 [95% CI 1.22–3.40]). The risk of elevated HbA1c was significantly higher in the TG-WC (adjusted OR 2.79 [95% CI 1.47–5.31]). Hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotype can be a potential and cost-effective method to identify individuals with a high risk of fatty liver and glycometabolic disorders.

Groundwater flow in mountainous areas is controlled by climate conditions, topography, geological structure, and other factors.Due to the restrictions such as data acquisition, the groundwater flow pattern and control mechanism in mountainous areas are still not clearly understood.Taking Beishan area as an example, which locates the pre-selected area of the Geological Repository for High-Level radioactive Waste in China, groundwater flow pattern is of great significance for the safety of the repository on the ten-thousand-year time scale.In this study, characteristics of the hydrogeological structure and permeability in Beishan area, Hexi Corridor, and Qilian Mountains were obtained based on regional remote sensing interpretation, geological structure evolution analysis, geophysical exploration, and hydrogeological drilling.A conceptual model was proposed through comprehensive hydrogeological survey, hydrogeochemical and isotope analysis.In addition, regional groundwater flow numerical models and multi-scenario simulations were used to understand the groundwater flow patterns in the Beishan-Hexi Corridor-Qilian Mountains in Gansu.Results show that topography plays a dominant role in the groundwater flow pattern in the area.Groundwater from Qilian Mountains is difficult to pass through the Hexi Corridor to discharge in the Beishan Mountains.With the lowest altitude in the region, the Hexi Corridor can be regarded as the boundary of the groundwater system between the Qilian Mountains and the Beishan Mountain.Under the control of topography and lithology, the groundwater in Beishan mountain area only develops local flow systems and the flow velocity is small.At the same time, due to the blocking effect of the faults in this area, the groundwater from Xinchang, the key pre-selected high level radioactive waste disposal site in Beishan, cannot flow directly to the south into the Huahai Basin.In addition, its length of the flow path is greatly increased.Only the groundwater on the south side of the F95 fault can discharge to the Huahai Basin, but due to the limited catchment basin, slow flow velocity and poor circulation condition, the discharge is weak.This study investigates the mountain-basin groundwater circulation pattern, and provides a scientific basis for the site evaluation of the geological repository for high-level radioactive waste in Beishan, Gansu.

Digital rock twins are widely used to obtain hydraulic properties of porous media by simulating pore-scale fluid flow. Multifractal characteristics of pore geometry and flow velocity distribution have been discovered with two-dimensional (2D) images and three-dimensional (3D) models, whereas the dependency of results on the resolution is not well known. We investigated resolution-dependent multifractal properties of 3D twin models for a sandstone sample with originally 3 μm resolution images. 3D pore-scale water flow was simulated with the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). As indicated by multifractal analyses, the generalized dimension spectra, the Hölder exponent spectra, and singularity spectra of the flow velocity are similar to that of the pore geometry but different in ranges and sensitivities to the change in the model resolution. Nonlinear dependencies of 2D/3D porosity, holistic/slice permeability, equivalent pore radius squared, and multifractal parameters on the resolution were discussed.

BackgroundCardiovascular health (CVH) in children and adolescents, which might be largely influenced by parental behaviors, may affect the incidence of cardiovascular diseases in adulthood. However, few studies have been conducted to explore the associations between parental behaviors and CVH status of offspring in China.MethodsData were obtained from a cross-sectional survey conducted in Chinese children and adolescents aged 7–18 years old, with a total of 10,043 parent–offspring pairs included. Parental behaviors included moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), dietary behaviors, and weight status. The CVH status of offspring was consulted by The American Heart Association, including seven factors. The associations between parental behaviors and CVH status of offspring were evaluated by multilevel logistic regression. Stratified analyses were conducted to explore the potential modifying influence of sociodemographic factors.ResultsMost of the offspring had five ideal CVH factors; only 21.04% had six to seven ideal CVH factors. Parental unhealthy behaviors were associated with high odds of nonideal CVH status of offspring. Parental overweight/obesity, insufficient MVPA, and unhealthy dietary behaviors could increase the odds of owning one to three ideal CVH factors in offspring, with corresponding odds ratios (ORs) (95% confidence interval) of 1.61 (1.32–1.96), 1.31 (1.10–1.56), and 2.05 (1.43–2.94), respectively. There was a dose–response relationship between parental single unhealthy behavior and the odds of nonideal CVH status in offspring (P-trend

Abstract Aimed to investigate the associations between different growth patterns with high blood pressure, and further examine the mediation effect of BMI between growth patterns and high blood pressure among children and adolescents. A total of 31581 children and adolescents aged 7–18 years were selected based on the stratified cluster sampling method. Logistics regression models were used to calculate the odds rations (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (95%CI) of the association between different growth patterns and high blood pressure. Mediation effect analyses were applied to estimate the effect of BMI on the increase of blood pressure levels in different growth patterns. In different sex and ages, compared to reference group of normal growth, blood pressure levels and prevalence of high blood pressure of the catch‐up growth were higher, but that of the catch‐down growth were lower. The prevalence of high blood pressure was 11.69%, 16.06%, and 9.68% in normal growth, catch‐up growth, and catch‐down growth, respectively. In total, compared with the normal growth pattern, the ORs (95%CI) of high blood pressure, high systolic blood pressure and high diastolic blood pressure in the catch‐up growth were 1.171(1.073,1.280), 1.110(1.001,1.230) and 1.141(1.025,1.270) (p

Abstract With the proliferation of smartphones and an increasing number of services provisioned by clouds, mobile edge computing (MEC) is emerging as a complementary technology of cloud computing. It could provide cloud resources and services by local mobile edge servers, which are normally nearby users. However, a significant challenge is aroused in MEC because of the mobility of users. User trajectory prediction technologies could be used to cope with this issue, which has already played important roles in service recommendation systems with MEC. Unfortunately, little attention and work have been given in service recommendation systems considering users mobility. Thus, in this paper, we propose a mobility-aware personalized service recommendation (MPSR) approach based on user trajectory and quality of service (QoS) predictions. In the proposed method, users trajectory is firstly discovered by a hybrid long-short memory network. Then, given users trajectories, service QoS is predicted, considering the similarity of different users and different edge servers. Finally, services are recommended by a center trajectory strategy through MPSR. Experimental results on a real dataset show that our proposed approach can outperform the traditional recommendation approaches in terms of accuracy in mobile edge computing.

ObjectivesTo analyze sex differences in the prevalence of obesity phenotypes and their risk factors among children and adolescents aged 7-18 years in China.MethodsWe enrolled 15,114 children and adolescents aged 7-18 years into the final analysis. Obesity phenotypes were classified by body mass index (BMI) and metabolic status as metabolically healthy or unhealthy obesity. In addition, we collected four possible influencing factors on obesity phenotypes through questionnaires, including demographic, parental, early life, and lifestyle indicators. Multinomial logistic regression analysis in a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) was selected to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for identifying risk factors and control the cluster effects of schools. More importantly, the interaction terms of sex and each indicator were established to demonstrate the sex differences.ResultsThe prevalence of metabolically healthy obesity (MHO), metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUO), metabolically healthy overweight and obesity (MHOO), and metabolically unhealthy overweight and obesity (MUOO) were 3.5%, 5.6%, 11.1%, and 13.0% respectively, with higher prevalence in boys (5.3% vs. 1.6%, 7.9% vs. 3.1%, 14.3% vs. 7.7%, 15.6% vs. 10.1%). In addition, younger ages, single children, parental smoking, parental history of diseases (overweight, hypertension, diabetes), caesarean, premature, and delayed delivery time, high birth weight, insufficient sleep time, and excessive screen time were considered as important risk factors of MHO and MUO among children and adolescents (p < 0.05). More notably, boys were at higher risks of MUO when they were single children (boys: OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.24-1.96; girls: OR = 1.12, 95% CI: 0.82-1.54), while girls were more sensitive to MUO with parental smoking (girls: OR = 1.34, 95% CI: 1.02-1.76; boys: OR = 1.16, 95% CI: 0.97-1.39), premature delivery (girls: OR = 3.11, 95% CI: 1.59-6.07; boys: OR = 1.22, 95% CI: 0.67-2.22), high birth weight (girls: OR = 2.45, 95% CI: 1.63-3.69; boys: OR = 1.28, 95% CI: 0.96-1.70), and excessive screen time (girls: OR = 1.47, 95% CI: 1.06-2.04; boys: OR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.79-1.20), with significant interaction term for sex difference (pinteraction < 0.05).ConclusionsMHO and MUO are becoming prevalent among Chinese children and adolescents. Significant sex differences in the prevalence of obesity phenotypes as well as their environmental and genetic risk factors suggest it might be necessary to manage obesity phenotypes problems from a sex perspective.

Background: The structural similarity between sex hormones and exogenous phthalates (PAEs) enabled them as disrupters in regulating childhood blood pressure (BP). We aim to explore the association of sex hormones homeostasis and PAEs metabolites with childhood high BP (HBP). Methods: A cohort study was conducted with 1416 children aged 7–13 years at baseline and with 824, 819, and 801 children completing three waves' follow up. Serum testosterone (TT) and estradiol (E2) in children during three consecutive waves of surveys were measured by radioimmunoassay, and then TT/E2 ratio calculated as TT divided by E2 were used to represent sex hormones homeostasis. Seven urinary PAEs metabolites were measured in children of first wave. The BP Z-Scores and HBP across waves were obtained by sex, age, and height specific percentiles. Log-binomial regression models with adjusted risk ratios (aRR) after adjusting for confounders were utilized. Results: The prevalence of HBP at the baseline survey was 25.5%, and increased from 26.3% in the first wave of survey to 35.0% in the third wave of survey. PAEs were negatively correlated with E2, while positively correlated with TT and TT/E2 ratio. A positive association of the serum TT levels, TT/E2 ratio, and total PAEs was found with HBP prevalence (in wave 1, 2 and 3 with TT (aRR): 1.63, 1.37 and 1.45; with TT/E2: 1.63, 1.42 and 1.20; with PAEs: 1.40, 1.32 and 1.32), persistent HBP (with TT (aRR): 2.19; TT/E2: 2.16; PAEs: 2.57), occasional HBP (with TT (aRR): 1.94; TT/E2: 1.72; PAEs: 1.38), and new HBP incidence (with TT (aRR): 1.44; TT/E2: 1.57; PAEs: 1.67), but E2 had a negative association with HBP phenotypes (HBP prevalence in wave 1, 2 and 3 (aRR): 0.77, 0.93, and 1.10; persistent HBP: 0.47; occasional HBP: 0.96; new HBP incidence: 0.81). The E2 and PAEs had antagonistic effects on HBP risks in children, particularly in girls and those with high BMI group, but the TT levels, TT/E2 ratio and PAEs had synergistic effects on HBP risks in children, particularly in boys and those with high BMI group. Conclusion: Exogenous PAEs exposure and endogenous sex hormones homeostasis disruption independently increase the risks of HBP. Moreover, the exogenous PAEs exposure could disrupt the endogenous sex hormones homeostasis in children, thereby combinedly increased risks of childhood HBP.

Polymer-based waveguide amplifiers are essential components in integrated optical systems, as their gain bandwidths directly determine the operating wavelength of optical circuits. However, development of the wideband gain media has been challenging, making it difficult to fabricate devices with broadband amplification capability. Rare earth ion-doped nanoparticles (NPs) are a key component in the gain media, and their full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the emission peak decides the final gain bandwidth of the gain media. Here, KMnF3: Yb, Er, Ce@KMnF3: Yb NPs with the broad full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the emission peak covering the S+C band was prepared. The NPs were synthesized using a hydrothermal method, and the FWHM of the emission peak of NPs reached 76 nm under the excitation of a 980 nm laser. The introduction of Ce3+ ions and a core-shell structure coating greatly enhanced the emission intensity of NPs at C band. Since KMnF3: Yb, Er, Ce@KMnF3: Yb NPs have exceptional broadband luminescence properties at C band, KMnF3: Yb, Er, Ce@KMnF3: Yb NPs can be the potential gain medium in the future polymer-based waveguide amplifiers.

Abstract Blood pressure (BP) increased with age and height development, but little was known about the effect of pubertal development on blood pressure in children. A cross‐sectional study was performed among 4146 children aged 7–12 years old in China. Pubertal development was assessed based on breast stages and testicular volume. The associations of pubertal development with BP levels and the rate of elevated blood pressure (EBP) were quantified using multiple linear and logistic regressions. We found that pubertal developmental level was positively correlated with BP, and children who experienced puberty onset and early pubertal timing had higher BP levels and prevalence of EBP. After adjusting for covariates, children experienced puberty onset had 3.84 and 2.24 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure, and 70%, 53%, and 62% increased odds of EBP, ESBP, and EDBP, respectively, compared with those without puberty onset. Similar results were observed for children who had early pubertal timing. The change of BP in puberty is greater and the association between pubertal development and BP is stronger in girls than boys. These findings suggested that pubertal development could be an important independent factor and one critical period for the EBP progress. Monitoring and management of pubertal development are necessary particularly among girls.

BackgroundChange in obesity risk could be related to shift in high blood pressure (HBP) risk, while individualized influence of weight change on high blood pressure is in need of exploration.MethodsA total of 16,446 children (53.47% boys) and 13,9021 effective annual measurements from 2006 to 2020 were recruited. Children's weight status, both at baseline and endpoint, was categorized as underweight, normal, overweight, and obese according to the age and sex-specific Body Mass Index z scores. HBP at late adolescence was defined with the last two measurements for each child. Populational attributable risk (PAR) of weight trait on HBP risk was calculated.ResultsCompared to children who maintained normal weight during follow-up, staying obese was associated with the highest HBP risk with OR of 6.39 (95% CI: 4.46, 9.15; p < 0.001) and PAR of 28.71% (95% CI: 21.58, 35.54) in boys, and OR of 6.12 (95% CI: 2.80, 13.37; p < 0.001) and PAR of 12.75% (95% CI: 4.29, 21.02) in girls. Returning from obese to normal weight was associated with lowered HBP risk, with ORs of 1.07 (95% CI: 0.69, 1.66; p = 0.771) in boys and 0.73 (95% CI: 0.25, 2.12; p = 0.566) in girls.ConclusionWeight loss program could be effective to reduce HBP risk during school age, while the underlying mechanism needs further exploration.

BackgroundThis study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the trial of national multicentric school-based health lifestyles intervention toward childhood obesity on the KBP at individual, family and schools' levels.MethodsThe national trial was a multi-centered, cluster-controlled trial, which was conducted in seven provinces from September 2013 to February 2014, aiming at preventing childhood overweight and obesity. Integrated intervention strategies focused on changing specific practice related to energy intake and expenditure, such as decreasing the consumption of sweetened fizzy drinks, increasing the consumption of vegetables, ensuring proper protein intake, reducing sedentary practice including screen time, and maintaining at least 1 h of moderate to vigorous physical activity. A total of 27,477 children and adolescents in the control group and 30,997 in the intervention group were recruited with a mean follow-up period of 6.7 months. The binomial response mixed-effects model was used for assessing the effects of the national school-based health lifestyles intervention on obesity-related KBP at students individual, parents' and schools' levels.ResultsChildren and adolescents in the intervention group mastered better obesity-related knowledge, and they had higher correct response rates to all questions about obesity-related knowledge compared to the control group (P < 0.05). In terms of obesity-related belief, individuals in the intervention group was more motivated than the control group, participants in the intervention group had higher correctness of 71.18, 52.94, and 56.60% than the control group of 68.61, 49.86, and 54.43%, (P < 0.05). In addition, healthier habits of eating breakfast and drinking milk every day were observed in the intervention group. For the beliefs toward obesity, parents of the intervention group had higher correctness than the control group. At the same time except for the fruit consumption, other obesity-related practice in the intervention group were healthier than the control group (P < 0.05). Except for some beliefs and practice, the intervention effect at the parent level was not significant in other aspects.ConclusionThe obesity-related knowledge and beliefs of children and adolescents got improved significantly. However, the effects on the knowledge, beliefs and certain practices of their parents and school administrators failed to reach significance.

BackgroundMetabolically healthy obesity (MHO) is a group of subjects with overweight/obesity who present a metabolically healthy profile; however, associated factors are complex and are far from completely understood. The aim of the current study was to estimate the prevalence of different metabolic body size phenotypes and investigate the associated factors in Chinese children and adolescents.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted of 12,346 children and adolescents aged 7–18 years from seven provinces in China in 2013. Anthropometric, blood pressure, and biochemical measurements were obtained. A multi-component questionnaire covering demographic, neonatal, and lifestyle characteristics was administered. The classification of metabolic body size phenotype based on three definitions was compared. With metabolically healthy with normal weight (MHNW) as a reference group, logistic regression analyses were used to estimate the potential effects of associated risk factors, with adjustment for age, sex, single-child status, and residence area.ResultsThe prevalence of MHNW, MHO, metabolically unhealthy with normal weight (MUNW), and metabolically unhealthy overweight/obesity (MUO) phenotype was 68.6%, 2.0%, 26.4%, and 3.0%, respectively. There were 39.3% MHO and 60.7% MUO among obese participants and 72.2% MHNW and 27.8% MUNW among those with normal weight. Compared to cardiometabolic risk factor (CMRF) criteria and metabolic syndrome (MetS) component definition, the application of the 2018 consensus-based definition may identify more children with abnormal cardiovascular risks, independent of weight status. Compared to younger children, older-aged adolescents were positively associated with higher risks of MUNW (odds ratio (OR) = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.27–1.50) and MUO (OR = 1.29, 95% CI = 1.04–1.60), while factors positively associated with MHO were younger age, single-child status, urban residence, high birth weight, prolonged breastfeeding duration, parental overweight/obesity status, long screen time, and less physical activity.ConclusionThere were still a high proportion of children and adolescents at high cardiometabolic risk in China. Our findings reinforce the need for cardiometabolic risk prevention in children and adolescents irrespective of their weight statuses, such as parental educational programs and healthy lifestyle interventions.

BackgroundCardio-metabolic risk factors (CMRFs) represent the accumulation of metabolic abnormalities, significantly increasing the likelihood of cardiovascular diseases. Although studies assessed the independent association of single-child status and lifestyle risk factors with components of CMRFs or clustered CMRFs, little has been known about the combined effect of single-child status and lifestyles on clustered CMRFs as well as sex differences.Materials and methodsData was collected from a cross-sectional survey conducted in September 2013 in China. A total of 13,859 children and adolescents aged 7–18 years with blood samples were included. Anthropometric measurements and serum biochemical indexes were collected to assess clustered CMRFs, while questionnaires were used to obtain single-child status, lifestyle information, and characteristics of children and their parents. Mixed effect logistic regression was applied to analyze the independent and the combined effects of single-child status and ideal lifestyle category on clustered CMRFs.ResultsThe prevalence of clustered CMRFs was 3.4%, with a higher prevalence in boys (4.0%) than girls (2.7%). Children and adolescents with clustered CMRFs had a higher proportion of single children (76.6 vs. 69.7%) and unfavorable lifestyles (62.1 vs. 29.2%) compared with their peers with non-clustered CMRFs. Both single children (OR = 1.67, 95% CI: 1.32–2.11) and unfavorable lifestyles (OR = 9.03, 95% CI: 6.26–13.02) were associated with an increased risk of clustered CMRFs. The risk of clustered CMRFs increased significantly (OR = 12.79, 95% CI: 6.67–24.52) when single children and an unfavorable lifestyle were combined, which was almost neutralized (OR = 1.33, 95% CI: 0.63–2.82) when single children adhered to a favorable lifestyle. However, no sex differences were observed in this study.ConclusionSingle children with unfavorable lifestyles were associated with an obvious risk of clustered CMRFs, which might be partially offset by expanding family size (the number of siblings) or establishing a favorable lifestyle. A birth-friendly social environment as well as a family environment with a favorable lifestyle are encouraged in China.

IntroductionThe relationship between the characteristics of puberty growth and the stature (height and overweight and obesity) in late adolescence was not clear. We aimed to explore the effects of puberty growth patterns on the stature in late adolescence.MethodsA total of 13,143 children from a longitudinal cohort from 2006 to 2016 in Zhongshan city of China were included. The Preece–Baines growth curve was fitted for each individual child, and the age at peak height velocity (APHV), peak height velocity (PHV), and age at take-off (TOA) were obtained from the Preece–Baines model. To compare the difference in height in late adolescence (at 18 years old) at different pubertal height growth patterns (height spurt timing, intensity, and duration), the height at baseline was matched by using the propensity score matching. The log-binomial model was applied to assess the association between the three pubertal height growth patterns (timing, intensity, and duration) and overweight and obesity status in late adolescence, controlling the urbanity and body mass index (BMI) at baseline.ResultsAfter matching the baseline height, boys and girls in three pubertal patterns with early timing (P < 0.01), small intensity (P < 0.01), and short duration (P < 0.01) of height spurt had the lowest final height in the late adolescence. A 16% increase and 45% increase of risk for overweight and obesity were significantly associated with the early APHV in boys and girls, respectively, relative risk (RR) in boys, 1.16(95% confidence interval, CI: 1.03–1.30), P = 0.011; RR in girls, 1.45(1.21–1.75), P < 0.001. A 21% increase and 59% increase of risk for overweight and obesity were significantly associated with small PHV in boys and girls, respectively, RR in boys, 1.21(1.07–1.36), P < 0.001; RR in girls, 1.59(1.30–1.95), P < 0.001; and an 80% increase of risk for overweight and obesity with small spurt duration in girls (RR = 1.80; 95% CI: 1.49, 2.18; P < 0.001).ConclusionPubertal growth patterns, including earlier puberty onset timing, smaller puberty intensity, and shorter puberty spurt duration, had a positive association with lower height risks and higher overweight and obesity risks in late adolescence.

Abstract Background We aimed to assess the associations between adiposity distribution and cardiometabolic risk factors among overweight and obese adults in China, and to demonstrate the sex differences in these associations. Methods A total of 1221 participants (455 males and 766 females) were included in this study. Percentage of body fat (PBF) of the whole body and regional areas, including arm, thigh, trunk, android, and gynoid, were measured by the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry method. Central adiposity was measured by waist circumference. Clustered cardiometabolic risk was defined as the presence of two or more of the six cardiometabolic risk factors, namely, high triglyceride, low high density lipoprotein, elevated glucose, elevated blood pressure, elevated high sensitivity C-reactive protein, and low adiponectin. Linear regression models and multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the associations between whole body or regional PBF and cardiometabolic risk factors. Results In females, except arm adiposity, other regional fat (thigh, trunk, android, gynoid) and whole-body PBF are significantly associated with clustered cardiometabolic risk, adjusting for age, smoking, alcohol drinking, physical activity, and whole-body PBF. One-SD increase in Z scores of the thigh and gynoid PBF were significantly associated with 80 and 78% lower odds of clustered cardiometabolic risk (OR: 0.20, 95%CI: 0.12–0.35 and OR: 0.22, 95%CI: 0.12–0.41). Trunk, android and whole-body PBF were significantly associated with higher odds of clustered risk with OR of 1.90 (95%CI:1.02–3.55), 2.91 (95%CI: 1.75–4.85), and 2.01 (95%CI: 1.47–2.76), respectively. While in males, one-SD increase in the thigh and gynoid PBF are associated with 94% (OR: 0.06, 95%CI: 0.02–0.23) and 83% lower odds (OR: 0.17, 95%CI: 0.05–0.57) of clustered cardiometabolic risk, respectively. Android and whole-body PBF were associated with higher odds of clustered cardiometabolic risk (OR: 3.39, 95%CI: 1.42–8.09 and OR: 2.45, 95%CI: 1.53–3.92), but the association for trunk PBF was not statistically significant (OR: 1.16, 95%CI: 0.42–3.19). Conclusions Adiposity distribution plays an important role in the clustered cardiometabolic risk in participants with overweight and obese and sex differences were observed in these associations. In general, central obesity (measured by android PBF) could be the best anthropometric measurement for screening people at risk for CVD risk factors for both men and women. Upper body fat tends to be more detrimental to cardiometabolic health in women than in men, whereas lower body fat is relatively more protective in men than in women.

ImportanceGirls in East Asia have a higher myopia prevalence than boys. Less research has been done on whether girls' earlier puberty could explain this sex difference.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between myopia and puberty and the role of puberty in explaining the sex disparity in adolescent myopia prevalence.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsIn this nationwide cross-sectional study, data came from five consecutive national surveys from 1995 to 2014 in China. We included 338,896 boys aged 11–18 and 439,481 girls aged 9–18.Main Outcomes and MeasuresMyopia was defined according to unaided distance visual acuity and subjective refraction; puberty status was defined dichotomously as menarche or spermarche status. The association between myopia and puberty was evaluated by robust Poisson GEE regression. Mediation analyses were used to quantify how much of the sex disparity in myopia could be explained by puberty.ResultsPost-menarche girls and post-spermarche boys showed 29–41% and 8–19% higher risk of myopia than pre-menarche girls and pre-spermarche boys, respectively. The association remained significant in girls [prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.07, 95%CI:1.04–1.10] but disappeared in boys (p > 0.05) after adjusting for potential confounders. Girls had a 12–23% higher risk of myopia than boys. A total of 16.7% of the sex disparity in myopia could be explained by girls' earlier puberty, whereas 11.1% could be explained by behavioral factors.Conclusion and RelevancePuberty status is independently associated with myopia in girls but not in boys. A significant proportion of the sex disparity in adolescent myopia could be explained by girls' earlier puberty, suggesting the need to consider sex-differentiated strategies for myopia prevention and treatment.

Natural gas hydrates as sustainable energy resources are inherently affected by mineral surfaces and confined spaces in reservoirs. However, the habits of hydrates in geological sediments are still an open question. In this work, we systemically studied the process of hydrate formation and dissociation in sediments from the Shenhu area of the South China Sea to examine the evolution of hydrate saturation and permeability in sediments and their relationship. Characterization of samples indicates that sediments of the Shenhu area are mainly composed of clay and fine sand grains and provide a large number of nanopores for hydrate accumulation. For in situ observations enabled by low-field nuclear magnetic resonance methods, the formation of hydrates shows a different kinetic behavior with an induction time compared to hydrate dissociation. Estimated by variations of hydrate saturation (%) over time, the rate of hydrate formation is around 12%/min, while the dissociation rate increases to 3%/min with the higher temperature. With the presence of hydrates, pore space and thus permeability of sediments decreased obviously by one and three orders of magnitude when the hydrate saturation is 20 and 45%, respectively. Compared to models with the assumption of grain-coating and pore-filling hydrates, the tendency of permeability evolution from NMR measurements is between fitted lines from models. It highlights that the existing models considering a single pattern of hydrate growth cannot precisely describe the relationship between permeability and hydrate saturation. Hybrid hydrate habits coexist in sediments resulting from heterogeneous pore structures and thus complex gas–water distributions.

BackgroundRare studies investigated the associations between sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption with depressive and social anxiety symptoms among children and adolescents, particularly in different stratification of body composition, which was our purpose.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of children and adolescents aged 7–17 years was conducted in Beijing, China, in 2020, with an average age of 12.07 (SD: 3.09) years. Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) questionnaires and social anxiety scale for children (SASC) were completed in the baseline questionnaires. SSB consumption and body composition were assessed using child-reported questionnaires and a GE Healthcare Lunar iDXA dual-energy X-ray bone densitometer. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the associations between SSB consumption with depressive and social anxiety symptoms. Confounders were evaluated by child-reported and parental questionnaires, including age, sex, parental educational attainment, maternal smoking status, single-child status, BMI, incomes, fruit consumption, physical activity, screen time, and the frequency of fried food consumption. Stratified analyses were performed to explore whether the associations were influenced by body composition.ResultsA total of 1,311 children and adolescents, including 658 boys and 653 girls, were included in the final analysis. There were 13.96 and 29.75% of the study population with depressive and social anxiety symptoms, respectively. Overall, about 63.77% of the children and adolescents consumed SSB, and the average SSB intake was 0.35 servings per day. In the fully adjusted model, compared to participants who did not consume SSB each day, SSB consumption of ≥1 servings/day was positively associated with depressive symptoms [odds ratio (OR) = 2.28, 95% CI = 1.30–4.01] and social anxiety (OR = 1.10, 95% CI = 0.69–1.77), though the latter did not reach statistical significance. When individuals had higher body fat or lower fat-free mass (FFM) or muscle, the ORs of depressive symptoms were more evident among children and adolescents who drank SSB for ≥1 servings/day (P < 0.05).ConclusionHigher consumption of SSB could be associated with increased OR of depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. The association remained robust, especially in groups with higher body fat or lower fat-free mass or muscle.

Abstract Background Abdominal obesity is becoming an increasingly serious public health challenge in children and adolescents, there remains controversial opinions on birth weight and risk of childhood abdominal obesity. This study aims to assess the association between birth weight and the risk of abdominal obesity in childhood, as well as to compare the associations among different sex and age groups. Methods A total number of 30,486 (15,869 boys and 14,617 girls) participants aged 6–17 years old were included in this study. Participants were classified into five groups according to their birth weight. Waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) was used to define abdominal obesity. Fractional polynomial regression model was used to assess the association between birth weight and WHtR, and a multi-variable logistic regression model was applied to evaluate the risk of abdominal obesity in different birth weight groups. Results A J-shaped association was observed between birth weight and WHtR. Compared with birth weight of 2500–2999 g, high birth weight was associated with increased risk of abdominal obesity [OR (95% CI) for 3000–3499 g: 1.12(1.00–1.24); 3500–3999 g: 1.19(1.07–1.34); ≥4000 g: 1.42(1.24–1.62)]. No significant correlation was observed in children with birth weight ≤ 2499 g. Similar patterns were observed across different age groups. Abdominal obesity risk for high birth weight was particularly pronounced in boys compared to girls. Conclusions Birth weight ≥ 3000 g, especially for boys, was associated with an elevated risk of abdominal obesity in childhood and may benefit from intervention to mitigate this risk.