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Associations between parents' perception of neighbourhood environments and safety with physical activity of primary school children in Klang, Selangor, Malaysia

Tung SE, Ng XH, Chin YS, Mohd Taib MN

Child Care Health Dev, 2016 Jul;42(4):478-85.
PMID: 27272607 DOI: 10.1111/cch.12355

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate parental perception of neighbourhood environments and safety in association with children's physical activity among primary school children in Klang, Selangor, Malaysia.
METHODS: A total of 250 children (9-12 years of age) and their parents participated in this cross-sectional study. Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children and Neighbourhood Environmental Walkability Scale as well as questions on constrained behaviours (avoidance and defensive behaviours) were used to assess the children's physical activity and parental perception of neighbourhood environment and safety, respectively.
RESULTS: More than one-third (36.0%) of the children were physically inactive compared with only a small percentage (4.8%) who were physically active, with boys achieving higher physical activity levels than girls (t = 2.564, P = 0.011). For the environmental scale, parents' perception of land-use mix (access) (r = 0.173, P = 0.006), traffic hazards (r = -0.152, P = 0.016) and defensive behaviour (r = -0.024, P = 0.143) correlated significantly with children's physical activity. In multiple linear regression analysis, child's gender (β = -0.226; P = 0.003), parent's education (β = 0.140; P = 0.001), household income (β = 0.151; P = 0.024), land-use mix (access) (β = 0.134; P = 0.011) and defensive behaviour (β = -0.017; P = 0.038) were significantly associated with physical activity in children (R = 0.349, F = 6.760; P

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment*
Association of co-occurring psychosocial health conditions and HIV infection among MSM in Malaysia: Implication of a syndemic effect

Ng RX, Guadamuz TE, Akbar M, Kamarulzaman A, Lim SH

Int J STD AIDS, 2020 05;31(6):568-578.
PMID: 32299293 DOI: 10.1177/0956462420913444
Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment
Fulltext Association of body weight status and socio-demographic factors with food habits among preschool children in Peninsular Malaysia

Norimah, A.K., Mohd Nasir, M.T., Hazizi, A.S., Suraya, I., Nurliyana, A.R.

Malays J Nutr, 2014;20(3):303-315.
MyJurnal

Introduction: Otanges in children's food habits are largely attributed to changes in the family and social environment. 1bis cross-sectional study was carried out to determine the association of socio-demographic factors with food habits among preschool children in Peninsular Malaysia. Methods: A total of 1,933 preschool children aged 4-6 years old participated in the study. Parents or guardians were interviewed on the socio-demographic characteristics and food habits of their children. Height and weight of the preschoolers were measured; BMI-for-age, weight-for-age and height-for-age were determined. Results: The mean monthly household income was RM3,610 with 59.6% of parents having attained secondary education. The prevalence of possible risk of overweight, being overweight and obesity were 3.9%, 7.9% and 8.1%, respectively while the prevalence of underweight and stunting was 8.0% and 8.4%. A majority of the preschoolers consumed breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, with the proportion of children skipping their main meals at about 15.0%. Parents' education level and household income were significantly associated with intakes of fruits, vegetables, milk and dairy products, as well as fast food. However, there was no significant association between children's body weight status and frequency of main meals intake, fruits, vegetables, milk and dairy products, and fast food intake. Conclusion: The preschoolers demonstrated moderately healthy food habits; nevertheless even at this young age, they were inclined towards fried foods, snacking and fast foods intake. Parents and guardians should play a more significant role in educating and promoting good nutrition and food habits among preschoolers.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment
Fulltext Aquaponics recirculation system: a sustainable food source for the future water conserves and resources

Azizah Endut, Fathurrahman Lananan, Ahmad Jusoh, Wan Norsani Wan Nik, Nora'aini Ali

Malaysian Journal of Applied Sciences, 2018;1(1):1-12.
MyJurnal

The current and escalating extent of soil degradation, water scarcity and environmental concern
plaguing agricultural productivity, demands re-assessing the direction of food production. Aquaponics
is a concept relatively new to modern food production methods and can contribute to food security.
This study was conducted to establish sustainable aquaculture systems that maximize benefits and
minimize the accumulation of detrimental compounds and other types of negative impacts on both
natural and social environments. This study carried out at an average inflow rate of 1.28 m/day to
evaluate the operation of the aquaponics recirculation system (ARS) on nutrients removal and growth
and yield of African catfish as well as water spinach. A special design of ARS was used to provide
nitrification of fishery wastewater, where the combination of sands and gravels in hydroponics trough,
providing both surfaces for biofuel development and cultivation area for plants. Removal efficiencies
of 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), total suspended solids (TSS), total ammonia nitrogen
(TAN), nitrite-nitrogen (NO2-N), nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N), and orthophosphate (PO4
3-
) were 82%, 89%,
93%, 94%, 81%, and 80%, respectively. The feed conversion ratio (FCR) and specific growth rate
(SGR) of African catfish were 1.08 and 3.34% day-1
, respectively. The average water spinach
production was 3.56 kg per m2
. This study showed that ARS is a method of producing crop along with
a healthy protein source and among the best alternatives for achieving economic and environmental
sustainability.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment
An examination of the factor structure of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 in Malaysia

Swami V

Body Image, 2009 Mar;6(2):129-32.
PMID: 19249260 DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2009.01.003

The present study examined the factor structure of a Malay translation of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 among a community sample of 554 Malaysian women. Results of an exploratory factor analysis revealed the existence of four factors, two of which (Information and Internalization-Athlete) mirrored those found among Western samples. An additional factor was an amalgamation of two factors reported in the West, namely Pressure and Internalization-General. A fourth factor consisted of six items, four of which cross-loaded onto previous factors, and was consequently dropped from analyses. Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the three retained factors were all above .82, and the three factors were significantly correlated with each other and with participants' body mass index. The results of this study stress the need for locally developed scales in the study of body image and a shift away from reliance on scales developed in the West.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment*
Alternative systems in Malaysian drug rehabilitation: organization and control in comparative perspective

Lee RL

Soc Sci Med, 1985;21(11):1289-96.
PMID: 4095582

This paper examines four drug rehabilitation systems in Malaysia from an organizational perspective. It focuses on authority structures in rehabilitation centres and their impact on rehabilitees' identities. The findings show that there are important differences between government-run and private centres in terms of administration and approach to therapy. Some policy implications are derived from a comparison of these systems.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment
Fulltext Age-Friendly Environments in ASEAN Plus Three: Case Studies from Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand

Tiraphat S, Buntup D, Munisamy M, Nguyen TH, Yuasa M, Nyein Aung M, et al.

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2020 06 23;17(12).
PMID: 32586034 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17124523

Promoting age-friendly environment is one of the appropriate approaches to support quality of life toward ageing populations. However, the information regarding age-friendly environments in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three countries is still limited. This study aimed to survey the perceived age-friendly environments among ASEAN Plus Three older populations. This study employed cross-sectional quantitative research using multistage cluster sampling to select a sample of older adults in the capital cities of Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam and Thailand. The final sample was composed of 2171 older adults aged 55 years and over, including 140 Japanese, 510 Thai, 537 Malaysian, 487 Myanmarese, and 497 Vietnamese older adults. Data collection was conducted using a quantitative questionnaire with 20 items of perceived age-friendly environments with the rating scale based on the World Health Organization (WHO) standard. The score from the 20 items were analyzed and examined high-risk groups of "bad perception level" age-friendly environments using ordinal logistic regression. The research indicated the five highest inadequacies of age-friendly environments including: (1) participating in an emergency-response training session or drill which addressed the needs of older residents; (2) enrolling in any form of education or training, either formal or non-formal in any subject; (3) having opportunities for paid employment; (4) involvement in decision making about important political, economic and social issues in the community; and (5) having personal care or assistance needs met in the older adult's home setting by government/private care services. Information regarding the inadequacy of age-friendliness by region was evidenced to guide policy makers in providing the right interventions towards older adults' needs.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment
A psychometric investigation of Brazilian Portuguese versions of the Caregiver Eating Messages Scale and Intuitive Eating Scale-2

da Silva WR, Neves AN, Ferreira L, Campos JADB, Swami V

Eat Weight Disord, 2020 Feb;25(1):221-230.
PMID: 30076529 DOI: 10.1007/s40519-018-0557-3

The Caregiver Eating Messages Scale (CEMS) was developed to assess perceived restrictive or critical caregiver messages in relation to food intake and pressure to eat, whereas the Intuitive Eating Scale-2 (IES-2) measures one's tendency to follow internal cues of hunger and satiety when making eating-related decisions. Both scales are useful in the arsenal of eating behaviour scholars. Here, we developed Brazilian Portuguese translations of both scales and assessed their psychometric properties in Brazilian adults. A total of 288 participants (men = 52.8%) completed the CEMS, IES-2, Body Appreciation Scale (BAS), and a demographic questionnaire. The results of confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the factor structure of both scales had adequate fit following the elimination of items and addition of covariances. Evidence of adequate factorial, convergent and discriminant validity, as well as reliability was identified. Furthermore, correlations of CEMS and IES-2 with BAS scores and body mass index were obtained. Both instruments' models were found to be invariant across sex, with men having significantly higher scores on three subscales of the IES-2 only. These results provide evidence for the psychometric properties of the CEMS and IES-2 in Brazilian Portuguese-speaking adults.Level of Evidence: V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

Matched MeSH terms: Social Environment