A growing body of epidemiological literature suggests that problematic Internet use (PIU) is associated with a range of psychological health problems in adolescents and young adults. This study aimed to explore socio-demographic and behavioural correlates of PIU and examine its association with psychological distress. A total of 573 graduate students from Dhaka University of Bangladesh responded to a self-administered questionnaire that included internet addiction test (IAT), 12-items General Health Questionnaire and a set of socio-demographic and behavioural factors. The study found that nearly 24% of the participants displayed PIU on the IAT scale. The prevalence of PIU significantly varied depending on gender, socioeconomic status, smoking habit and physical activity (p < 0.05). The multiple regression analyses suggested that PIU is strongly associated with psychological distress regardless of all other explanatory variables (adjusted OR 2.37, 95% CI 1.57, 3.58). Further research is warranted to confirm this association by employing prospective study designs.

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The large-scale international migration in the 21st century has emerged as a major threat to the global health equity movement. Not only has the volume of migration substantially increased but also the patterns of migration have become more complex. This paper began by focusing on the drivers of international migration and how health inequalities are linked to migration. Situating migration within the broader structural contexts, the paper calls for using the unharnessed potential of the intersectionality framework to advance immigrant health research. Despite coming from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds and facing disparities in the host society, the immigrants are often paradoxically shown to be healthier than the native population, although this health advantage diminishes over time. Studies on immigrant health, however, are traditionally informed by the acculturation framework which holds the assimilation of unhealthy lifestyles primarily responsible for immigrant health deterioration, diverting the attention away from the structural factors. Although the alternative structural framework came up with the promise to explore the structural factors, it is criticised for an overwhelming focus on access to healthcare and inadequate attention to institutional and societal contexts. However, the heterogeneity of the immigrant population across multiple dimensions of vulnerability demands a novel approach that can bring to the fore both premigratory and postmigratory contextual factors and adequately capture the picture of immigrant health. The paper concludes by questioning the acculturation perspective and pushing the structural paradigm to embrace the intersectionality framework which has the potential to address a wide range of vulnerabilities that intersect to produce health inequalities among the immigrants.

BackgroundAlthough a large body of studies documents that women’s autonomy in the household is associated with better reproductive health outcomes, these studies typically examined autonomy only from women’s point of view. The current study employs husband’s and wife’s perspectives together to examine the relationship between the decision-making arrangements in the household and the women’s use of modern contraceptives in Bangladesh.MethodsThe study used the couple dataset of 2007 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey. The sample was comprised of 3336 married couples. Binary logistic regression models were used to examine the associations between the selected items on household decision-making and the use of modern contraceptives.ResultsOur results indicate that the couples disagree considerably as to who in the household exercises the decision-making power. The pattern of decision-making regarding visiting family and relatives emerged as an important predictor of use of modern contraceptives in the multivariate regression analysis. The results suggest that compared to the couple’s concordant joint decision-making, the husband-only decision-making is associated with lower odds of contraceptives use (OR 0.49; 95% CI 0.28–0.85). Only a small part of this association is explained by spousal communication about family planning issues while the socio-demographic correlates hardly affected the association. On the contrary, the wife-only decision-making did not result in increased contraceptives use (OR 0.71; 95% CI 0.45–1.13).ConclusionsThe study findings imply that women’s greater autonomy may not necessarily result in improved reproductive health behavior, and therefore, a balance of power in the spousal relationship is warranted.

Men are usually considered to be the stronger sex. However, when it comes to health, they are evidently weaker than their female counterparts. In almost all countries around the world, men consistently live shorter lives than women. The gender gap in longevity has once again been evident during the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which kills men disproportionately. Drawing on the relevant scientific literature and updated information, this article aimed to provide useful insights into the biological and social mechanisms that potentially underlie the gender gap in life expectancy.