Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is thought to be the most common endocrine disorder found in women. Common symptoms include irregular menstrual cycle, polycystic ovaries, and hirsutism, as well as an increased risk for a multitude of conditions, including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and infertility. The prevalence of polycystic ovarian syndrome is generally thought to be between 3% and 10% but it is widely unknown for specific subpopulations based on geographical location and race/ethnicity. Based on the high degree of variability and inconsistencies between the different diagnostic criteria, there is a unique challenge that exists when determining the prevalence of this syndrome. There are a large percentage of individuals that remain undiagnosed even after visiting multiple health care providers. Most studies conducted across the world are limited by small sample size, selection bias, and lack of comparability across studies. There have been very few studies that have examined the prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome across the United States. Based on the National Institutes of Health (NIH)’s diagnostic criteria, there is a similar prevalence of PCOS documented across the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Greece, Australia, and Mexico. Other studies have shown some differences between geographical location and race. The existing data is not conclusive enough to determine whether or not there is any significant differences in the prevalence of PCOS across geographical location, racial or ethnic groups. This review will seek to determine the prevalence of polycystic ovarian syndrome based on geographical location and race/ethnicity.

Young adults in Appalachia may face poor nutritional status due to low access to healthy food and high mental health symptoms attributed to high stress and the college environment. A cross-sectional design was used to investigate the relationship between diet intake and mental health status of this population via surveys. Participant responses (n = 1956) showed students’ mean number of depressed days over the past 30 days was 9.67 ± 8.80, and of anxious days, 14.1 ± 10.03. The mean fruit and vegetable intake was 1.80 ± 1.27 times per day and the mean added sugars intake was 1.79 ± 1.26 times per day. 36.7% of students were found to be food insecure. One-way ANOVA and Chi-Squared analyses were used to determine relationship between variables. Significant variables were placed into a full logistic regression model. Food insecurity and fruit and vegetable intake remained significant predictors of depression in males (odds ratio (OR) = 2.33 95% CI 1.47–3.71 and OR = 68 95% CI 50–89, respectively) and in females food insecurity remained a significant predictor of depression (OR = 2.26 95% CI 1.67–3.07). Food insecurity and added sugars intake were significant predictor of anxiety in males (OR = 2.33 95% CI 1.47–3.71 and OR = 1.09 95% CI 0.91–1.3, respectively) and for anxiety in females, added sugars intake and food insecurity were significant predictors (OR = 1.18 95% CI 1.05–1.32 and OR = 1.65 95% CI 1.27–2.16, respectively). Improving college student’s diet intake through increased access to healthy foods could improve the mental health and well-being of students.

Purpose of ReviewWorldwide, diabetes has increased steadily and in recent years, drastically. The majority of diabetes cases are type 2 (T2DM), caused by modifiable risk factors such as diet. Vegetarian diets have been studied over the past few decades for their preventative and therapeutic effects on diabetes and may be more beneficial than medication for diabetes management.Recent FindingsA vegetarian diet characterized by whole plant foods is most beneficial for diabetes prevention and management.SummaryVegetarian diets are inversely associated with risk of developing diabetes independent of the positive association of meat consumption with diabetes development. Vegetarian diets range from vegan (no animal products), lacto-ovo-vegetarian (no animal meat, but consumes milk and eggs), pesco-vegetarian (consumes fish), and semi-vegetarian (occasional meat consumption). There has been an observed difference in the extent of preventative and therapeutic effects of these different types of diets. The most important aspect of any of these types of diets is emphasizing whole grains, fruits and vegetables, legumes, and nuts and reducing saturated and trans fats.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted normalcy for college attending young adults which resulted in a loss of the campus environment and classroom setting. This change in setting may interfere with a student’s personal and academic wellbeing. This study used an online survey to evaluate college students’ academic and psychosocial frustrations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from March–April 2020 at a land-grant university in the Appalachian region. Data were available from 2643 undergraduate and graduate students. There was a 65.8% and 15.7% increase in the number of students who reported their learning and health as fair, poor, or very poor after the COVID-19 pandemic, respectively. Qualitative responses were coded and 8 themes and 24 subthemes emerged. College students expressed frustrations regarding technology, classwork, research, family, social, emotional, behavioral, and financial aspects of life. These results can be used by higher education administration, faculty, and staff when planning for online courses. Ensuring that student frustrations and barriers to success are recognized and considered may help prevent students departing from higher education during this time.

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), with common symptoms of irregular menstrual cycles, ovarian cysts, and hirsutism, is thought to be the most common endocrine disorder found in women, and use of multidisciplinary teams has been shown to be effective. The purpose of this review is to determine the future need for specialized, comprehensive, multidisciplinary treatment for PCOS and the current description and efficacy of existing multidisciplinary clinics. The literature was searched using PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Medline, and the Cochrane Library. Keywords included treatment efficacy, polycystic ovary syndrome, treatment and collaboration. Results showed that while an increasing number of studies continue to come out expressing the need for multidisciplinary approaches to and clinics for the treatment of PCOS, there is still a large gap in the literature documenting actual multidisciplinary PCOS treatment facilities. The limited literature documenting the efficacy of multidisciplinary PCOS clinic have demonstrated increased weight loss, high patient satisfaction, and high retention compared to single-care providers. Data showed that these teams are most commonly made up of a combination of endocrinologists, psychologists, dietitians, gynecologists, and endocrine-specialized nurses. Data showed that there is a high degree of variability and rates of diagnosis between types of single-care providers, such as: endocrinology, dermatology, gynecology, and fertility. Individuals with PCOS are in need for specialized, individualized, and focused care from a diverse team of healthcare providers to treat PCOS comprehensively.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic can cause in increase in stress experienced by college students and consequently, potentially adversely affect their health behaviours. Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate how COVID-19 impacted college-attending young adults diet quality and physical activity. Methods: Students attending an Appalachian university in spring 2020 participated in this cross-sectional study. Participants were surveyed on their eating habits, diet quality, and physical activity before and since COVID-19. Frequencies of responses were analyzed and Bowker's test was used to determine differences in responses before and since COVID-19. Alpha was set at 0.05. Results: Almost one third (32.6%) of students reported eating somewhat more since COVID-19 and 67.9% of these students stated it was due to boredom. Students showed a significant increase in frequency of eating and in consumption of almost every food group. The number of students engaging in low physical activity increased from 27.8% to 51.9% and the number of students engaging in high physical activity decreased from 59.5% to 34.0% (p < .0001) and many switched to the use of at-home workouts. Conclusion: Results indicate the effects of campus closure on college student's lifestyles and the risk of developing health problems due to the COVID-19 pandemic, potentially inhibiting their academic progress and well-being.

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Use of systems science can improve the dissemination and implementation (D&I) process. However, little is known about use of systems science in nutrition D&I research. The purpose of this article is to synthesize the ways in which systems science methodology is applied in nutrition D&I research. Scoping review methodology involved searching six academic databases for full-text, peer-reviewed, English articles between 1970–2020 that employed systems science within nutrition D&I research. Data extraction included intervention type, population, study aim, methods, theoretical approach, outcomes, and results. Descriptive statistics and qualitative thematic analysis preceded. Thirty-four retained articles qualitatively identified benefits (successful planning and organization of complex interventions) and challenges (limited resources, trainings, and lack of knowledge) to utilizing systems science in nutrition D&I research. Future research should work towards building knowledge capacity among nutrition practitioners by increasing available trainings and resources to enhance the utilization of systems science in nutrition D&I research.