Policymakers' understanding of and ability to reduce health disparities are pivotal for health promotion worldwide. This study aimed to verify the behavioral pathways leading to oral health disparities. Oral examinations were conducted for 1782 randomly selected preschoolers (3-6 yrs), and 1576 (88.4%) participants were followed up after 12 months. Parents were surveyed on their knowledge (K), attitude (A), and practices (P) regarding their children's oral health homecare (infant feeding, diet, and oral hygiene) and dental attendance. Structural equation modeling substantiated the links between specific KAs and corresponding practices, while generic KA did not affect practices. KAP pathways partly explained the ethnic and socio-economic disparities in oral health. Deprivation had a direct effect (not mediated by KA) on dental attendance, but not on oral health homecare. Ethnicity directly influenced oral health homecare practices, but not dental attendance. These behavioral pathways, furthering our understanding of health disparity, may have practical implications for health promotion and policy-making.
Anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) have emerged as a promising alternative to proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) due to their adaptability to low-cost stack components and non-noble-metals catalysts. However, the poor alkaline resistance and low OH- conductivity of anion exchange membranes (AEMs) have impeded the large-scale implementation of AEMFCs. Herein, the preparation of a new type of AEMs with crown ether macrocycles in their main chains via a one-pot superacid catalyzed reaction was reported. The study aimed to examine the influence of crown ether cavity size on the phase separation structure, ionic conductivity and alkali resistance of anion exchange membranes. Attributed to the self-assembly of crown ethers, the poly (crown ether) (PCE) AEMs with dibenzo-18-crown-6-ether (QAPCE-18-6) exhibit an obvious phase separated structure and a maximum OH- conductivity of 122.5 mS cm-1 at 80 °C (ionic exchange capacity is 1.51 meq g-1). QAPCE-18-6 shows a good alkali resistance with the OH- conductivity retention of 94.5% albeit being treated in a harsh alkali condition. Moreover, the hydrogen/oxygen single cell equipped with QAPCE-18-6 can achieve a peak power density (PPD) of 574 mW cm-2 at a current density of 1.39 A cm-2.