For the past 20 years, the New Zealand Deprivation Index (NZDep) has been the universal measure of area-based social circumstances for New Zealand (NZ) and often the key social determinant used in population health and social research. This paper presents the first theoretical and methodological shift in the measurement of area deprivation in New Zealand since the 1990s and describes the development of the New Zealand Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD).We briefly describe the development of Data Zones, an intermediary geographical scale, before outlining the development of the New Zealand Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD), which uses routine datasets and methods comparable to current international deprivation indices. We identified 28 indicators of deprivation from national health, social development, taxation, education, police databases, geospatial data providers and the 2013 Census, all of which represented seven Domains of deprivation: Employment; Income; Crime; Housing; Health; Education; and Geographical Access. The IMD is the combination of these seven Domains. The Domains may be used individually or in combination, to explore the geography of deprivation and its association with a given health or social outcome.Geographic variations in the distribution of the IMD and its Domains were found among the District Health Boards in NZ, suggesting that factors underpinning overall deprivation are inconsistent across the country. With the exception of the Access Domain, the IMD and its Domains were statistically and moderately-to-strongly associated with both smoking rates and household poverty.The IMD provides a more nuanced view of area deprivation circumstances in Aotearoa NZ. Our vision is for the IMD and the Data Zones to be widely used to inform research, policy and resource allocation projects, providing a better measurement of area deprivation in NZ, improved outcomes for Māori, and a more consistent approach to reporting and monitoring the social climate of NZ.

The timeline or track of any individual, mobile, sentient organism, whether animal or human being, represents a fundamental building block in understanding the interactions of such entities with their environment and with each other. New technologies have emerged to capture the (x, y, t) dimension of such timelines in large volumes and at relatively low cost, with various degrees of precision and with different sampling properties. This has proved a catalyst to research on data mining and visualizing such movement fields. However, a good proportion of this research can only infer, implicitly or explicitly, the activity of the individual at any point in time. This paper in contrast focuses on a data set in which activity is known. It uses this to explore ways to visualize large movement fields of individuals, using activity as the prime referential dimension for investigating space—time patterns. Visually central to the paper is the ringmap, a representation of cyclic time and activity, that is itself quasi spatial and is directly linked to a variety of visualizations of other dimensions and representations of spatio-temporal activity. Conceptually central is the ability to explore different levels of generalization in each of the space, time and activity dimensions, and to do this in any combination of the (s, t, a) phenomena. The fundamental tenet for this approach is that activity drives movement, and logically it is the key to comprehending pattern. The paper discusses these issues, illustrates the approach with specific example visualizations and invites critiques of the progress to date.

This systematic review summarised and evaluated the evidence for associations between green space and adolescents’ mental well-being. The PRISMA statement guidelines were followed for reporting systematic reviews. Fourteen articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. Synthesis suggests beneficial associations between green space exposure and reduced stress, positive mood, less depressive symptoms, better emotional well-being, improved mental health and behaviour, and decreased psychological distress in adolescents. Several studies found the relationship varied by demographic and socio-economic factors. The limited number of studies and the risk of bias were the main limitations, together with heterogeneity regarding green space and mental well-being assessments. Overall, this review highlights the potential contribution of green space in schoolyards. Improving the availability, accessibility and quality of green space is likely to generate positive impacts on adolescents’ mental well-being. More consistent evidence on the use of different types of green space and perceptions of features are needed in the future.

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Summary Childhood obesity is one of the most pressing public health issues nowadays. The environmental factors have been identified as potential risks for obesity, as they may influence people's lifestyle behaviours. Lack of access to supermarkets that usually provide healthy food options has been found to be a risk factor for childhood obesity in several studies. However, findings remained inconclusive. We aimed to systematically review the association between access to supermarkets and childhood obesity. A literature search was conducted in the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase for studies published before 1 January 2019. Twenty‐four studies conducted in four countries were identified, from which data on the basic characteristics of studies and participants, measures of access to supermarkets, and associations between access to supermarkets and weight‐related behaviours and outcomes were extracted. The median sample size was 1858 participants. Half of the included studies indicated a negative association, one fourth reported a positive association, and the remaining one fourth did not find a significant association. Better designed studies are necessary to achieve a robust understanding of this epidemiological relationship in the future.

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has recently spread dramatically worldwide, raising considerable concerns and resulting in detrimental effects on the psychological health of people who are vulnerable to the disease. Therefore, assessment of depression in members of the general public and their psychological and behavioral responses is essential for the maintenance of health. Objective This study aimed to assess the prevalence of depression and the associated factors among the general public during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Methods A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted from February 11 to 16, 2020, in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. A self-administrated smartphone questionnaire based on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and psychological and behavioral responses was distributed to the general public. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to explore the associated factors of depression.aA cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted from February 11 to 16, 2020, in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. A self-administrated smartphone questionnaire based on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and psychological and behavioral responses was distributed to the general public. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to explore the associated factors of depression. Results The prevalence of depression (PHQ-9 score ≥10) among the general public during the COVID-19 pandemic was 182/1342 (13.6%). Regression analysis indicated that feeling stressed, feeling helpless, persistently being worried even with support, never feeling clean after disinfecting, scrubbing hands and items repeatedly, hoarding food, medicine, or daily supplies, and being distracted from work or study were positively associated with depression, while social support and being calm were negatively associated with depression. Conclusions The general public suffered from high levels of depression during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, COVID-19–related mood management and social support should be provided to attenuate depression in the general public.

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