Educational disadvantage associated with very low birth weight persists into early adulthood.

In a younger population, overall and abdominal obesity are associated with increased prevalence of periodontal disease, while underweight (BMI < 18.5) is associated with decreased prevalence. Obesity could be a potential risk factor for periodontal disease especially among younger individuals. Promotion of healthy nutrition and adequate physical activity may be additional factors to prevent or halt the rate of progression of periodontal disease.

Purpose-To compare two different parenting practices (parental monitoring and negotiated unsupervised time) and perceived parental trust in the reporting of health risk behaviors among adolescents.Methods-Data were derived from 692 adolescents in 9th and 10th grades (X̄ = 15.7 years) enrolled in health education classes in six urban high schools. Students completed a selfadministered paper-based survey that assessed adolescents' perceptions of the degree to which their parents monitor their whereabouts, are permitted to negotiate unsupervised time with their friends and trust them to make decisions. Using gender-specific multivariate logistic regression analyses, we examined the relative importance of parental monitoring, negotiated unsupervised time with peers, and parental trust in predicting reported sexual activity, sex-related protective actions (e.g., condom use, carrying protection) and substance use (alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana).

VLBW females catch up in growth by 20 years of age whereas VLBW males remain significantly shorter and lighter than controls. Since catch-up growth may be associated with metabolic and cardiovascular risk later in life, these findings may have implications for the future adult health of VLBW survivors.

In very-low-birth-weight infants, perinatal growth failure, as evidenced by a subnormal head circumference at eight months of age, is associated with poor cognitive function, academic achievement, and behavior at eight years of age.

Indoor tanning is prevalent, particularly among female adolescents, and aligns with other risk behaviors, appearance-related factors, and intentional sunbathing. The risks of artificial tanning need increased emphasis among adolescents, especially in the Midwest and South where extremes in the availability of natural light appear to send intentional tanners indoors.

The lack of health insurance is associated with an increased risk of a decline in overall health among adults 51 to 61 years old.

This study explored open-ended responses regarding attributions underlying health appraisals made by older adults, resulting in five categories (physical health, attitudinal/behavioral, externally focused, health transcendence, nonreflective). The older the respondents, the less likely they were to focus on physical aspects of their health. Health optimists were the most likely to make attitudinal/behavioral or health transcendent attributions, while poor-health realists were most likely to mention physical health aspects and least likely to make attitudinal or behavioral attributions. While poor-health realists were at the highest risk of dying within a three-year period, health optimists were significantly less likely to die than poor-health realists, in spite of sharing similar health status. Respondents who were unable to identify underlying attributions were significantly more likely to die than were those identifying any other attribution. In conclusion, health attributions provide unique insight into the complex relationship between older adults' health appraisals, health status, and mortality.