No abstract

Researchers in Taiwan studying regular adult physical activity found that among married women aged 26 to 55 years, 56% participated in physical activity, and that the convenience and safety of the activity were major factors contributing to their willingness to exercise. Muscle weakness and poor trunk flexibility are closely related to some chronic diseases in women. In this cross-sectional survey, we used the Polestar Pilates™ method to explore the effects of a 12-week Pilates course on the physical fitness of women living in the community. Fifty-three members of the experimental group (mean age: 42.30 ± 9.97) and 43 of the control group (mean age: 41.23 ± 9.83) were included. We confirm that a convenient Pilates exercise intervention can significantly improve muscle strength and trunk flexibility in women. Our findings serve as an important reference for health authorities in Taiwan and provide higher awareness of women's health and physical fitness, which can help prevent chronic and cardiovascular diseases.

The blended essential oil exhibited greater dual benefits on improving both QOL and sleep quality compared with the interventions of lavender essential oil and acupressure massage in career women. These results suggest that aromatherapy and acupressure massage improve the sleep and QOL and may serve as the optimal means for career women to improve their sleep and QOL.

This study revealed the various perspectives of maternity staff regarding the resource demands of implementing the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. These perspectives may serve as a reference for decision-makers in prioritizing resource allocation.

This study investigated the effects of playing soccer on the quality of gross motor skills in preschoolers. A 2-group, pretest-posttest design was adopted, comprising both an experimental and a control group. The participants were recruited from 2 public kindergartens located in New Taipei City, Taiwan. The approval of the legal representatives of the 101 preschoolers enrolled in these kindergartens and aged between 4 years and 6 years and 11 months was obtained, and purposive grouping was subsequently conducted. The experimental group comprised 44 participants from the first kindergarten, whereas the control group comprised 43 participants from the second kindergarten. After the recruitment, the experimental group received a soccer program intervention: a 10-week soccer program with two 40-minute sessions per week. Before and after the experiment, the gross motor quality of both groups was measured using the Preschooler Gross Motor Quality Scale, which covers tests for locomotion, object manipulation, and balance. The results of the 10-week intervention showed significantly higher scores for locomotion, object manipulation, balance, and overall gross motor quality in the experimental group than in the control group. This study confirmed that a 10-week soccer program is beneficial for gross motor development in preschoolers. The research results can serve as a reference for gross motor development in preschool education.