In China, few people are aware of the amount and source of their salt intake. We conducted a survey to investigate the consumption and sources of dietary salt using the “one-week salt estimation method” by weighing cooking salt and major salt-containing food, and estimating salt intake during dining out based on established evidence. Nine hundred and three families (1981 adults and 971 children) with students in eight primary or junior high schools in urban and suburban Beijing were recruited. On average, the daily dietary salt intake of family members in Beijing was 11.0 (standard deviation: 6.2) g for children and adolescents (under 18 years old), 15.2 (9.1) g for adults (18 to 59 years old), and 10.2 (4.8) g for senior citizens (60 years old and over), respectively. Overall, 60.5% of dietary salt was consumed at home, and 39.5% consumed outside the home. Approximately 90% of the salt intake came from cooking (household cooking and cafeteria or restaurant cooking), while less than 10% came from processed food. In conclusion, the dietary salt intake in Beijing families far surpassed the recommended amounts by World Health Organization, with both household cooking and dining-out as main sources of salt consumption. More targeted interventions, especially education about major sources of salt and corresponding methods for salt reduction should be taken to reduce the risks associated with a high salt diet.

Background In China, childhood obesity is a growing health issue. Eating behaviors among children can be influenced by both the family and school environment. We examine the association between these environments and eating habits among children. Methods A total of 11 270 fourth to sixth grade school children, 11 270 of their fathers or mothers, and 1348 teachers from 48 schools were sampled using a multistage cluster random sampling method. Questionnaires collected information on eating behaviors among children, non-communicable chronic disease (NCD)-related health knowledge and behaviors among teachers, and education levels among parents. Mixed effect logistic regression models were used to describe the key associations between eating behaviors among children and teacher and parental characteristics. Results Health awareness, positive health attitudes, never-smoking and regular-exercise among teachers was positively associated with healthy eating behaviors among their students (having breakfast, vegetables and dairy products every day; P < 0.05), and negatively associated with the unhealthy behaviors (daily intake of fried foods and desserts and sugary beverages; P < 0.05). More than one parent having a high school level or above was positively related to healthy eating behaviors among their children (P < 0.05), but its associations with high-calorie eating habits were negative in urban and positive in rural areas (P < 0.05). Conclusions School-based interventions which target health-related awareness, attitude and behaviors among school teachers may help improve school-aged children’s eating behaviors. Parental education levels may help guide efforts to target children at higher risk of unhealthy eating habits.

Functionalized magnetic adsorbents (FMAs) were synthesized by a facile and surfactant-free one-pot solvothermal approach, using iron(III) chloride hexahydrate as the precursor, ethylene glycol as the reducing agent, ammonium acetate, and EDTA-2Na as an electrostatic stabilization agent. The self-assembly process of the functionalized magnetic adsorbents has been investigated and a plausible mechanism is proposed. The resulting functionalized magnetic adsorbents have relatively high specific surface areas (71.6 m(2) g(-1)), excellent magnetic properties and rich functional groups (carboxyl groups, hydroxyl groups and hydrophobic groups). Meanwhile, the resulting FMAs were employed in the adsorption of dyes and heavy metal ions from aqueous solution. Herein, we took two types of typical pollutants, dyes (methylene blue (MB) and malachite green (MG)) and toxic heavy metal ions (Cr(VI) and Pb(II)) as examples of organic and inorganic pollutants in environmental water. The excellent intrinsic properties of the FMAs led to a stronger adsorption ability than a solid Fe3O4 adsorbent for MB, MG, Cr(VI) and Pb(II). Especially, the simultaneous adsorption of the functionalized flower-like magnetic adsorbents for MG and Pb(II) was also determined in a binary system. Finally, it was demonstrated that the resulting flower-like magnetic adsorbents are expected to be a good candidate as an adsorbent for water treatment.

Previous research has suggested that children praised for ability are more likely to attribute their failure to low ability compared to those who are praised for effort. At the same time, self-worth theory suggests that when an individual’s self-worth is threatened, they are likely to use a self-serving attributional strategy and self-handicapping. From the perspective of self-worth theory, the present study investigated how ability and effort praise influenced children’s failure attribution, self-handicapping, and their subsequent performance compared to simple informational feedback. Fifth graders (N = 103, average age = 11.2 years, SD = 0.71) were randomly assigned to three praise conditions (ability, effort, or no praise). The results revealed that children praised for ability were more likely to attribute their subsequent failure to non-ability factors and indicate more claimed and behavioral self-handicapping than children who were praised for effort or not praised at all. As behavioral self-handicapping created actual obstacles to progress, children praised for ability made significantly less improvement in their performance than those in the other two groups. In addition, the findings showed that children praised for effort also adopted the claimed self-handicapping and defensive attributional strategies compared to those in the no-praise conditions. These results indicate that parents and teachers should not haphazardly administer praise. Implications for parents, teachers, and future research directions, including the replication of this study in diverse cultural settings, conditions of effort praise, and effects of other types of praise, are discussed.

No abstract