BACKGROUND Despite evidence suggesting that perceptual body image measurements are strongly associated with depression, few studies examined the association between perceptual body image and depression in adults. This study aimed to investigate the association of different measures of perceptual body image measurements with depression. METHODS We analyzed data of 22,735 adults participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2005 and 2016. Depression was ascertained using the validated Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and depression was defined as PHQ score 10. The associations of measured body mass index (BMI) and body image (i.e., self-reported BMI, BMI discordance, perceived weight, and desired weight) with depression were assessed using logistic regression. RESULTS Women perceiving themselves as overweight or reporting their BMI as obese had significantly higher odds of depression (odds ratio [OR] 1.48, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17-1.72 and 1.29, 1.04-1.60, respectively) compared to women perceiving themselves as about the right weight or reporting their BMI as normal. The association between perceived overweight and depression was independent of measured BMI (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.09-1.72). Men perceiving themselves as underweight had higher odds of depression (OR 1.50, 95% CI 1.06-2.11) than men perceiving themselves as about the right weight. In women, but not in men, measured obesity was associated with higher odds of depression. LIMITATIONS The study's cross-sectional design and missing information on comorbidities. CONCLUSION Weight perception (in women and men), measured BMI and BMI discordance in women are associated with depression..

Head and neck cancer (HNC) represents a group of malignancies originating from several sites of the head and neck region: the pharynx (oropharynx, nasopharynx and hypopharynx), larynx and the oral cavity (Ferlay et al., 2019). HNC is the sixth leading cancer worldwide with approximately 600,000 new cases per year and a mortality rate of around 450,000 deaths per year (Ferlay

We aimed to assess the parathyroid hormone (PTH) concentration in pregnant women at the beginning of pregnancy (1st trimester) and within days before delivery (3rd trimester) and evaluate its determinants. From September 2014 through December 2015 in a cross-sectional study, 204 women in the 1st trimester of pregnancy and 203 women in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy were recruited. Blood samples were collected to measure PTH and circulating 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations. Lifestyle and demographic data were collected using a questionnaire. Serum 25(OH)D and PTH were inversely correlated in both early and late pregnancy. Our analyses suggest that in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy, a 25(OH)D level of 18.9 ng/mL (47.3 nmol/L) could serve as an inflection point for the maximal suppression of PTH. Statistically significant determinants of PTH concentrations in multiple regression were 25(OH)D concentrations, season, multiparity and education of the partner (all p < 0.05) in early pregnancy. In late pregnancy, 25(OH)D concentrations and country of origin were statistically significant determinants of PTH concentrations (all p < 0.05). These factors and their effect on PTH appear to be vastly determined by 25(OH)D; however, they might also affect PTH through other mechanisms besides 25(OH)D.

In Switzerland, there is a large seasonal variation in sunlight, and vitamin D deficiency is relatively common during winter. The season of diagnosis may be linked to cancer survival via vitamin D status. Using data from the Cancer Registry of Zurich, Zug, Schaffhausen, and Schwyz with more than 171,000 cancer cases registered since 1980, we examined the association of the season of diagnosis with survival for cancers including prostate (ICD10 code C61; International Categorization of Diseases, version 10), breast (C50), colorectal (C18-21), lung (C34), melanoma (C43), and all sites combined. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the differences in the all-cause mortality by the season of the diagnosis. Winter was used as the reference season. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for all the cancers combined (excluding nonmelanoma skin cancer) and for prostate (in men), breast (in women), colorectal, lung cancer, and melanomas, separately. A diagnosis in summer and/or autumn was associated with improved survival in all the sites combined for both sexes (men: HR 0.97 [95% CI 0.96–0.99]; women: HR 0.97 [95% CI 0.94–0.99]) and in colorectal (HR 0.91 [95% CI 0.84–0.99]), melanoma (HR 0.81 [95% CI 0.65–1.00]), and breast cancer (HR 0.91 [95% CI 0.94–0.99]) in women. Our study results suggest that a cancer diagnosis in summer and/or autumn is associated with a better prognosis. The improved seasonal survival coincides with the seasonal variation of sun-induced vitamin D, and vitamin D may play a protective and beneficial role in cancer survival.