Vaccination could be a key protective measure against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and it is important to understand the acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine among the general public. However, there is no study on the acceptance of a COVID-19 vaccine in Japan. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy situation in Japan and assess the factors associated with such issues. This was a cross-sectional study based on an internet survey completed by 2956 people. Participants were asked to indicate how likely they were to get vaccinated for COVID-19. In addition, the participants responded to questions regarding sociodemographic factors, attitudes, and beliefs regarding COVID-19 infection and vaccination. The proportion of participants with a high likelihood of getting a COVID-19 vaccine was 62.1%. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that vaccine acceptance was lower among several sociodemographic groups, such as women, adults aged 20–49 years, and those with a low-income level. Several psychological factors, especially the perceived effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine, and willingness to protect others by getting oneself vaccinated, were associated with vaccine acceptance. Our results indicate that the perceived effectiveness of the vaccine and willingness to protect others may play an important role in the acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine.

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BackgroundAlthough many studies have reported the association between neighborhood built environment (BE) and physical activity (PA), less is known about the associations for older populations or in countries besides the US and Australia. The aim of this paper is to examine the associations for older adult populations in Japan.MethodsOur analyses were based on cross-sectional data from the Aichi Gerontological Evaluation Study (AGES), conducted in 2003. The respondents were older adults, aged 65 years or over (n = 9,414), from 8 municipalities across urban, suburban, and rural areas. The frequency of leisure time sports activity and total walking time were used as the outcome variables. Using geographic information systems (GIS), we measured residential density, street connectivity, number of local destinations, access to recreational spaces, and land slope of the respondents' neighborhoods, based on network distances with multiple radii (250 m, 500 m, 1,000 m). An ordinal logistic regression model was used to analyze the association between PA and BE measures.ResultsPopulation density and presence of parks or green spaces had positive associations with the frequency of sports activity, regardless of the selected buffer zone. The analysis of total walking time, however, showed only a few associations.ConclusionsOur findings provide mixed support for the association between PA and the characteristics of BE measures, previously used in Western settings. Some characteristics of the neighborhood built environment may facilitate leisure time sports activity, but not increase the total walking time for Japanese older adults.

Poor dental status was associated with a higher risk of onset of functional disability in older Japanese people. Sociodemographic, behavioral, and health status covariates explained the association between eating ability and onset of disability.

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To clarify the implementation status of personal protective measures by ordinary citizens in Japan during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study based on internet-based survey. A total of 2400 people (50% male: 20-79 years) were selected between February 25 and 27, 2020, from registrants of an Internet research company, to complete a questionnaire. Participants were asked to indicate how often they implemented the following five personal protective measures recommended by the World Health Organization (hand hygiene, social distancing measures, avoiding touching the eyes, nose and mouth, respiratory etiquette, and self-isolation). In addition, the participants responded to questions regarding the daily frequency of hand hygiene events. Results: The prevalence of the five personal protective measures ranged from 59.8% to 83.8%, with the lowest being avoiding touching the eyes, nose, and mouth. In total, 34.7% implemented all personal protective measures. The median daily hand hygiene events were 5 per day (25th percentile, 75th percentile: 3,8). Conclusions: The protective measures implemented by ordinary citizens are insufficient and further public awareness activities are required.

BackgroundDespite evidence that neighbourhood conditions affect residents' health, no prospective studies of the association between neighbourhood socio-demographic factors and all-cause mortality have been conducted in non-Western societies. Thus, we examined the effects of areal deprivation and population density on all-cause mortality in Japan.MethodsWe employed census and survival data from the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study, Cohort I (n = 37,455), consisting of middle-aged residents (40 to 59 years at the baseline in 1990) living in four public health centre districts. Data spanned between 1990 and 2010. A multilevel parametric proportional-hazard regression model was applied to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) of all-cause mortality by two census-based areal variables —areal deprivation index and population density—as well as individualistic variables such as socioeconomic status and various risk factors.ResultsWe found that areal deprivation and population density had moderate associations with all-cause mortality at the neighbourhood level based on the survival data with 21 years of follow-ups. Even when controlling for individualistic socio-economic status and behavioural factors, the HRs of the two areal factors (using quartile categorical variables) significantly predicted mortality. Further, this analysis indicated an interaction effect of the two factors: areal deprivation prominently affects the health of residents in neighbourhoods with high population density.ConclusionsWe confirmed that neighbourhood socio-demographic factors are significant predictors of all-cause death in Japanese non-metropolitan settings. Although further study is needed to clarify the cause-effect relationship of this association, the present findings suggest that health promotion policies should consider health disparities between neighbourhoods and possibly direct interventions towards reducing mortality in densely populated and highly deprived neighbourhoods.