This is one of the first studies that assess the association of CRF and MF with HRQoL while controlling for BMI. CRF and MF are closely related to HRQoL, in particular to physical well-being. Improving fitness could be a strategy of particular interest for improving the HRQoL of schoolchildren.

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OBJECTIVEWe used confirmatory factor analysis to test whether a single factor might explain the clustering of the metabolic syndrome (MS) components in children.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSWe studied 1,020 children aged 10–13 years from 20 schools in Cuenca, Spain. The single-factor model included: waist circumference (WC), fasting insulin, triglyceride to HDL cholesterol ratio (Triglyl/HDL-C), and mean arterial pressure (MAP). The standardized scores of the four variables in the model were used to develop a continuous MS index.RESULTSFactor loadings were 0.67 for WC, 0.68 for fasting insulin, 0.57 for Triglyl/HDL-C, and 0.37 for MAP. The single-factor model also showed a good fit to the data. As compared with Adult Treatment Panel III criteria, the MS index showed strong validity in the diagnosis of MS (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.98, 95% CI 0.96–0.99).CONCLUSIONSA single underlying factor has acceptable validity to represent MS in children.

Background: In developed countries, there is abundant information on the epidemic of childhood obesity, but only a few studies on trends in the dual burden of body weight (overweight and thinness). Objective: To examine trends in overweight and thinness among 9-10-year-old Spanish children in the last decade. Methods: Data were taken from cross-sectional studies on schoolchildren in Cuenca (Spain), conducted in 1992, 1996, 1998 and 2004 with similar methods. Weight and height were measured by trained personnel with standardized procedures. Overweight (including obesity) and thinness were defined according with the International Obesity Taskforce BMI cut-offs. Results: The overall prevalence of overweight increased from 24?4 % in 1992 to 30?9 % in 2004 (P 5 0?07), rising from 21?2 % in 1992 to 32?0 % in 2004 (P 5 0?03) among boys and from 27?7 % to 29?8 % (P 5 0?67) among girls. The overall prevalence of thinness was 2?7 % in 1992 and 9?2 % in 2004 (P , 0?001); in the same period, thinness prevalence rose from 1?9 % to 9?0 % (P 5 0?10) among boys and from 3?7 % to 9?5 % (P , 0?01) among girls. Conclusions: The dual burden of body weight has increased among children in Cuenca in the last decade. Population-based policies addressing childhood obesity, which is the most frequent problem, should not increase the risk of thinness.

This paper investigates the relationship between changes in interest rates and the Spanish stock market at the industry level over the period from January 1993 to December 2012 using a wavelet-based approach. The empirical results indicate that Spanish industries exhibit, in general, a significant interest rate sensitivity, although the degree of interest rate exposure differs considerably across industries and depending on the time horizon under consideration. In particular, regulated industries such as Utilities, highly indebted industries such as Real Estate, Utilities or Technology and Telecommunications, and the Banking industry emerge as the most vulnerable to interest rates. Further, the link between movements in interest rates and industry equity returns is stronger at the coarsest scales. This finding is consistent with the idea that investors with long-term horizons are more likely to follow macroeconomic fundamentals, such as interest rates, in their investment decisions.

This study examined the differences in quality of life (QoL) between active and sedentary schoolchildren and analyzed these differences by gender and weight status. A total of 1409 children, aged 11-13 years, from 20 schools located in 20 municipalities of the province of Cuenca were invited to participate in a cross-sectional study; 1073 children agreed (76.15% response rate), of which 536 (49.9%) were boys. QoL was measured with Child Health and Illness Profile-Child Edition (CHIP-CE), an instrument measuring children's perception of their own health using a Likert-type scale with five dimensions: satisfaction, comfort, resilience, risk avoidance, and achievement. Multivariate analysis of variance using the scores of the different CHIP-CE dimensions as dependent variables, physical activity, gender, and body mass index (BMI) category as fixed factors, and age as co-variate showed the following: (1) the scores of active children were significantly better than the scores of sedentary children for every dimension except risk avoidance; (2) there were no significant differences in QoL by BMI category; and (3) girls had better mean scores than boys for resilience, risk avoidance, and achievement, and worse scores for comfort. These results suggest that active children have a better QoL and that gender differences favoring boys diminish or even reverse to favor active girls.

This type of after-school program for recreational physical activity to prevent obesity are likely to be a cost-effective use of public funds and warrant careful consideration by policy makers and program planners.

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