No abstract

Aims/hypothesis. The increased oxidative stress in diabetes is known to contribute to the progression of diabetes and its complications. We have reported a significant relation between the content of 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodG), a product of oxidative DNA damage in urine or leukocytes and the severity of diabetic nephropathy and retinopathy [1]. We investigated whether 8-oxodG in urine or leukocytes is associated with the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Methods. We measured urinary 8-oxodG contents at entry and carried out a prospective longitudinal study to assess the progression of nephropathy over 5 years.Results. There was a significant progression of diabetic nephropathy in the patients with higher excretion of 8-oxodG in urine compared with the patients with moderate or lower excretion of 8-oxodG. There was no significant association between the leukocyte 8-oxodG contents and the development of nephropathy. The multivariate logistic regression analysis suggests that the urinary 8-oxodG was the strongest predictor of nephropathy among several known risk factors. Conclusion/interpretation. This study provides evidence that increased oxidative stress has a primary role in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy. A local enhancement of oxidative stress in diabetic kidney might explain the possible linkage between the increased urinary excretion of 8-oxodG and the development of nephropathy. 8-oxodG in urine is a useful clinical marker to predict the development of diabetic nephropathy in diabetic patients. Oxidative stress is one of the important mediators of vascular complications in diabetes including nephropathy. The hyperglycaemia-induced generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is linked by three pathological pathways to diabetic complications: activation of protein kinase C (PKC), the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGE), and sorbitol accumulation [4,5]. Normalising mitochondrial ROS production was reported to block these hyperglycaemia-mediated signalling pathways.8-oxodG is a product of oxidative DNA damage following specific enzymatic cleavage after ROSinduced 8-hydroxylation of the guanine base in mitochondrial and nuclear DNA [6]. 8-oxodG is known to be a sensitive marker of oxidative DNA damage and of the total systemic oxidative stress in vivo [7]. SevThe link between hyperglycaemia and the complications of diabetes is still not clear. Increased oxidative stress in diabetes might contribute to the pathogenesis of diabetic complications, including nephropathy [2,

Background Shinrin-yoku (experiencing the forest atmosphere or forest bathing) has received increasing attention from the perspective of preventive medicine in recent years. Some studies have reported that the forest environment decreases blood pressure. However, little is known about the possibility of anti-hypertensive applications of Shinrin-yoku. This study aimed to evaluate preventive or therapeutic effects of the forest environment on blood pressure.MethodsWe systematically reviewed the medical literature and performed a meta-analysis.Four electronic databases were systematically searched for the period before May 2016 with language restriction of English and Japanese. The review considered all published, randomized, controlled trials, cohort studies, and comparative studies that evaluated the effects of the forest environment on changes in systolic blood pressure. A subsequent meta-analysis was performed.ResultsTwenty trials involving 732 participants were reviewed. Systolic blood pressure of the forest environment was significantly lower than that of the non-forest environment. Additionally, diastolic blood pressure of the forest environment was significantly lower than that of the non-forest environment.ConclusionsThis systematic review shows a significant effect of Shinrin-yoku on reduction of blood pressure.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12906-017-1912-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Obesity rates continue to rise alarmingly, with dire health implications. One contributing factor is that individuals frequently forgo healthy foods in favor of inexpensive, high-calorie, unhealthy foods. One important mechanism underlying these choices is food craving: Craving increases with exposure to unhealthy foods (and food cues, such as advertisements) and prospectively predicts eating and weight. Prior work has shown that cognitive regulation strategies that emphasize the negative consequences of unhealthy foods reduce craving. In Studies 1 and 2, we show that cognitive strategies also increase craving for healthy foods by emphasizing their positive benefits, and change food valuation (willingness to pay) for both healthy and unhealthy foods. In Studies 3 and 4, we demonstrate that brief training in cognitive strategies (“Regulation of Craving Training”; ROC-T) increases subsequent healthy (vs. unhealthy) food choices. This was striking because this change in food choices generalized to nontrained items. Importantly, in Study 5, we show that brief training in cognitive strategies also reduces food consumption by 93–121 calories. Consumed calories correlated with changes in food choice. Finally, in Study 6, we show that the training component of ROC-T is necessary, above and beyond any effect of framing. Across all studies (NTOTAL = 1,528), we find that cognitive strategies substantially change craving and food valuation, and that training in cognitive strategies improves food choices by 5.4–11.2% and reduces unhealthy eating, including in obese individuals. Thus, these findings have important theoretical, public health, and clinical implications for obesity prevention and treatment.

BackgroundDepression is a common mental disorder. Several studies suggest that lifestyle and health status are associated with depression. However, only a few large-scale longitudinal studies have been conducted on this topic.MethodsThe subjects were middle-aged and elderly Japanese adults between the ages of 40 and 69 years. A total of 9,650 respondents completed questionnaires for the baseline survey and participated in the second wave of the survey, which was conducted 7 years later. We excluded those who complained of depressive symptoms in the baseline survey and analyzed data for the remaining 9,201 individuals. In the second-wave survey, the DSM-12D was used to determine depression. We examined the risks associated with health status and lifestyle factors in the baseline survey using a logistic regression model.ResultsAn age-adjusted analysis showed an increased risk of depression in those who had poor perceived health and chronic diseases in both sexes. In men, those who were physically inactive also had an increased risk of depression. In women, the analysis also showed an increased risk of depression those with a BMI of 25 or more, in those sleeping 9 hours a day or more and who were current smokers. A multivariate analysis showed that increased risks of depression still existed in men who had chronic diseases and who were physically inactive, and in women who had poor perceived health and who had a BMI of 25 or more.ConclusionsThese results suggest that lifestyle and health status are risk factors for depression. Having a chronic disease and physical inactivity were distinctive risk factors for depression in men. On the other hand, poor perceived health and a BMI of 25 or more were distinctive risk factors for depression in women. Preventive measures for depression must therefore take gender into account.

This study provides evidence that social networks are an important predictor of mortality risk for middle-aged and elderly Japanese men and women. Lack of participation, for men, and being single and lack of meeting close relatives, for women, were independent risk factors for mortality.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined the association of perceived health with socio-economic status, especially income, and social isolation and support in Japan. The purpose of this study is to clarify the associations among perceived health, lifestyle, and socio-economic status, as well as social isolation and support factors, in middle-aged and elderly Japanese. METHODS: Subjects were 9,650 participants aged 47-77 years who completed a self-administered questionnaire in 2000 in the second survey of a population-based cohort (the Komo-Ise study). The questionnaire included items on sociodemographic and socio-economic factors, social isolation and support, lifestyle, past history of chronic disease and perceived health. Perceived health was dichotomized into excellent or good health and fair or poor health. A logistic regression analysis was used to determine the odds ratios of socio-economic status, social characteristics and lifestyle in relation to self-reported fair or poor health. RESULTS: We found that household income, physical activity, sleeping, smoking habit, and BMI had a strong association with self-reported fair or poor health in middle-aged and elderly Japanese men and women. Male subjects tended to report fair or poor health as household income decreased. The results for women differed in that social isolation and low social support had a stronger association for self-reported fair or poor health than low household income. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that perceived health was associated with socio-economic and social characteristics among middle-aged and elderly residents in Japan.

The Japan Nurses' Health Study (JNHS) is a prospective occupational cohort study investigating the effects of lifestyle and healthcare practices on women's health. It was initiated in 2001, with a six-year entry period and a proposed ten-year follow-up. Participants comprise female registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, public health nurses, and midwives, aged 25 yr or over at the baseline survey. Participants were recruited in cooperation with the Japanese Nursing Association and the Japan Menopause Society. A self-administered baseline questionnaire was distributed, requesting demographic information, lifestyle factors, pharmaceutical drug use, physical condition, reproductive health, and disease history. A total of 49,914 women from all 47 prefectures in Japan responded to the baseline survey. Among them, approximately 18,000 agreed to be followedup, and returned signed informed-consent sheets, together with their completed baseline questionnaires. Changes in lifestyle, healthcare, incidence of disease, and health outcomes over time will now be studied. The cohort receives annual JNHS newsletters and biennial follow-up questionnaires by mail.