Background This study aimed to investigate overall and sex-specific excess all-cause mortality since the inception of the COVID-19 pandemic until August 2020 among 22 countries. Methods Countries reported weekly or monthly all-cause mortality from January 2015 until the end of June or August 2020. Weekly or monthly COVID-19 deaths were reported for 2020. Excess mortality for 2020 was calculated by comparing weekly or monthly 2020 mortality (observed deaths) against a baseline mortality obtained from 2015–2019 data for the same week or month using two methods: (i) difference in observed mortality rates between 2020 and the 2015–2019 average and (ii) difference between observed and expected 2020 deaths. Results Brazil, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, the UK (England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland) and the USA demonstrated excess all-cause mortality, whereas Australia, Denmark and Georgia experienced a decrease in all-cause mortality. Israel, Ukraine and Ireland demonstrated sex-specific changes in all-cause mortality. Conclusions All-cause mortality up to August 2020 was higher than in previous years in some, but not all, participating countries. Geographical location and seasonality of each country, as well as the prompt application of high-stringency control measures, may explain the observed variability in mortality changes.

Background Understanding the impact of the burden of COVID-19 is key to successfully navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of a larger investigation on COVID-19 mortality impact, this study aims to estimate the Potential Years of Life Lost (PYLL) in 17 countries and territories across the world (Australia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cyprus, France, Georgia, Israel, Kazakhstan, Peru, Norway, England & Wales, Scotland, Slovenia, Sweden, Ukraine, and the United States [USA]). Methods Age- and sex-specific COVID-19 death numbers from primary national sources were collected by an international research consortium. The study period was established based on the availability of data from the inception of the pandemic to the end of August 2020. The PYLL for each country were computed using 80 years as the maximum life expectancy. Results As of August 2020, 442,677 (range: 18–185,083) deaths attributed to COVID-19 were recorded in 17 countries which translated to 4,210,654 (range: 112–1,554,225) PYLL. The average PYLL per death was 8.7 years, with substantial variation ranging from 2.7 years in Australia to 19.3 PYLL in Ukraine. North and South American countries as well as England & Wales, Scotland and Sweden experienced the highest PYLL per 100,000 population; whereas Australia, Slovenia and Georgia experienced the lowest. Overall, males experienced higher PYLL rate and higher PYLL per death than females. In most countries, most of the PYLL were observed for people aged over 60 or 65 years, irrespective of sex. Yet, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Israel, Peru, Scotland, Ukraine, and the USA concentrated most PYLL in younger age groups. Conclusions Our results highlight the role of PYLL as a tool to understand the impact of COVID-19 on demographic groups within and across countries, guiding preventive measures to protect these groups under the ongoing pandemic. Continuous monitoring of PYLL is therefore needed to better understand the burden of COVID-19 in terms of premature mortality.

Objective: To investigate the correlation between the consumption of refined carbohydrates and fats and the prevalence of obesity in the state capitals of Brazil. Design: An ecological evaluation of obesity and dietary risk factors was carried out in twenty-six state capitals of Brazil. Setting: Analysis was based on the age-standardized prevalence of obesity (BMI $ 30?0 kg/m 2 ) among adults aged 20-59 years. Both intake and obesity prevalence were obtained from the last National Family Household Budget Survey (HBS). The survey was conducted from July 2002 to June 2003, based on a probabilistic national sample of 48 470 households. In each household, during seven consecutive days, all monetary and non-monetary expenses for food and beverages for family consumption were transformed into energy. The relative contribution of foods and food groups was expressed as the proportion (%) of total energy. Fruits and vegetables were also measured by the quantity bought in grams. Results: Prevalence of obesity varied from 5?1 % to 13?6 % among women and from 5?2 % to 17?6 % among men. For women, there were statistically significant correlations between obesity and intake of sugar and soft drinks (r S 5 0?60; P 5 0?001), ready-to-eat meals (r S 5 0?39; P 5 0?05) and potatoes (r S 5 0?40; P 5 0?04). For men there were no such associations. Conclusions: Increasing intake of refined carbohydrates, mainly soft drinks, may play a role in the prevalence of obesity among women in Brazil. Effecting changes in family purchase patterns may be a strategy to reduce obesity. Keywords Ecological study Obesity Food intake Household budget surveyThe whole world is experiencing an obesity epidemic, affecting individuals of all ages, in all social strata and ethnic groups (1,2) . Although obesity is related to genetic, metabolic, behavioural and environmental influences, its rapid increase suggests that behavioural and environmental influences, rather than biological changes, are the major underlying cause (1-3) .There has been a marked shift recently in the composition of the diet, with an increase in per capita energy availability, higher consumption of soft drinks and larger portion sizes (2) , as well as higher intakes of fat and added sugar, accompanied by a dramatic fall in total cereal and fibre intakes (1,4) .Rice and beans used to be the staple foods in Brazil, but recent data show a decrease in their intake, whereas there has been a 400 % increase in the consumption of industrialized products such as soft drinks (5) . Trends between 1974 and 2003 in Brazil also indicated high consumption of sugar, total fat and saturated fat, and insufficient intakes of vegetables and fruits (5) . During the same period, the prevalence of obesity in Brazil rose from 2?8 % to 8?8 % among adult men, and from 7?8 % to 12?7 % among women (6) .Ecological studies in the USA have found a strong positive association between the intake of refined carbohydrates in the form of corn syrup and the prevalence of type 2 diabetes and obesity, and a negativ...

Resumo Introdução Apesar do conhecimento sobre a etiologia multifatorial do crescimento intrauterino restrito, há escassez de estudos nacionais. Objetivo Estimar a adequação do peso ao nascer para idade gestacional e investigar fatores associados ao recém-nascido pequeno para idade gestacional (RN-PIG), com destaque para tabagismo e pré-natal. Método Estudo seccional em maternidades públicas no Rio de Janeiro e em Niterói, em 2011, com 1.771 nascidos vivos. Foram realizadas entrevistas com puérperas e consultas em prontuários. Estimaram-se prevalências e intervalos de confiança (IC95%) de recém-nascido pequeno para idade gestacional (RN-PIG), recém-nascido adequado para idade gestacional (RN-AIG) e recém-nascido grande para idade gestacional (RN-GIG), usando a curva INTERGROWTH-21st , segundo características maternas, da gestação e do recém-nascido. Utilizou-se regressão de Poisson, com o desfecho sendo nascer PIG. Resultados As prevalências foram de 9,3% para PIG e de 15,9% para GIG. Cor parda (RP = 1,4), baixa escolaridade (RP = 1,3), inadequação de pré-natal (RP = 1,3), tabagismo (redução/cessação: RP = 1,7; continuidade: RP = 2,4) e hipertensão arterial (RP = 1,3) foram associados ao PIG na análise univariada (p < 0,20), e apenas tabagismo manteve-se associado no modelo final (redução/cessação: RP = 1,7 e continuidade: RP = 2,3; p < 0,05). Conclusão A prevalência de PIG mostrou um efeito dose-resposta com o tabagismo. Estratégias populacionais antitabaco devem intensificar a prevenção direcionada às mulheres em idade fértil e, particularmente, às gestantes, com ações específicas para estímulo à cessação no pré-natal.

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate the association between mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian State capitals.MethodsAn ecological study was conducted, using data from the National Household Budget Survey conducted in July 2002 through June 2003, including a representative sample of 48.470 households. Pearson’s correlation and linear regression coefficients were estimated in order to define the relationships of mean BMI and sex-specific, age standardized obesity prevalence (BMI ≥ 30.0 kg/m2) in adults aged 20 to 59 years.ResultsStronger correlations between BMI and prevalence of obesity were observed in women (r = 0.9; p < 0.001) than in men (r = 0.6; p = 0.001) in all analyzes. A reduction of one unit in mean BMI predicted a decline in the prevalence of obesity of about 4.0% (95% CI: 1.7 - 6.3) in men, and 3.4% (95% CI: 2.6 – 4.3) in women.ConclusionWe found a correlation between BMI and prevalence of obesity, particularly among women, suggesting that population-based strategies would be effective to reduce the prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian state capitals.

As alterações que vêm ocorrendo no cenário epidemiológico brasileiro, nas últimas décadas, resultam de profundas modificações sociais e econômicas que incluem, entre outros aspectos, mudanças nos hábitos de alimentação. No Brasil, o único estudo que investigou o consumo alimentar da família com abrangência nacional foi o Estudo Nacional sobre Despesa Familiar, em 1974-1975. Embora sejam de utilidade incontestável, estudos nacionais de consumo alimentar são onerosos e poucos países conseguem desenvolvê-los regularmente. Por outro lado, as pesquisas de orçamentos familiares são importantes fontes de dados de disponibilidade de alimentos no domicílio, a qual é inferida a partir do registro da compra de produtos alimentícios. As recentes modificações nos hábitos de consumo, particularmente, a realização de refeições fora do domicílio constituem limitações para a utilização de dados das pesquisas brasileira de orçamentos familiares como estimativa do consumo alimentar. Assim, o governo brasileiro propôs que a próxima pesquisa de orçamento familiar, a ser desenvolvida em 2008-2009, incluísse um módulo de consumo alimentar individual. As informações sobre o consumo dietético individual serão utilizadas para completar os dados sobre compra de alimentos. O objetivo deste trabalho é relatar a construção e o desenvolvimento da metodologia a ser utilizada no módulo de consumo alimentar individual da pesquisa de orçamento familiar 2008-2009. Os dados a serem obtidos serão combinados com as informações de disponibilidade de alimentos no domicílio para estimar o consumo alimentar usual individual.

ABSTRACT:Objective: To describe the methodological features of a study on the association between restricted intrauterine growth and prevalence of overweight, obesity and hypertension in school aged children. Methods: The study was conducted in two stages in two public schools in Niterói (RJ), from June through December 2010. All students aged 6 to 14 years were eligible to participate. The first stage consisted of an interview to collect information on demographic variables, diet and other variables. A sample was selected for the second stage, in order to conduct an equivalent of a case-cohort study. There was an interval of about 15 days between the two stages. Cases were overweight students, defined as a Z-score for BMI/age/sex > +1.00 in the first stage. Controls were selected by using a random schedule in which the sample frame was the whole cohort. Bioelectrical impedance analysis, carotid ultrasound to measure intimal-medial thickness, blood measurements and interviews were obtained. Gestational age and weight at birth were used to define proxy variables of restricted intrauterine growth. Early health information was obtained from medical registers. Results: The study participation was 76.4% (n = 795) out of 1,040 eligible to participate). 85.1% of parent's questionnaires were returned. 62.5% of the eligible children participated in the case-control study (case: control ratio = 1:1.8). Early life health information was obtained from 292 children. Conclusion: The present study has the potential to provide important information about multiple outcomes and exposures related to restricted intrauterine growth and metabolic abnormalities.

Objective: to analyze the temporal trend of Food and Nutrition Surveillance System (Sistema de Vigilância Alimentar e Nutricional - SISVAN) coverage and the nutritional status of older adults, and its correlation with indicators of social inequality in Brazil between 2008-2019. Methods: this was an ecological study using records from SISVAN, related to the population aged 60 years and older; the temporal trend of coverage and the correlation between indicators of social inequality and increment rate of nutritional status were analyzed; slope index of inequality and concentration index were used to measure absolute and relative inequalities. Results: 11,587,933 records were identified; national coverage increased from 0.1% (2008) to 2.9% (2019), with a statistically significant upward trend; a moderate inverse correlation with an annual increment rate of overweight between human development index and gross domestic product per capita, was found. Conclusion: there was an increasing trend in SISVAN coverage; the increase in overweight was associated with social inequality.