Background: There is little longitudinal evidence on the impact of specific living arrangements (ie, who individuals live with) on mental health among older adults, and no studies have examined the modifying effect of residential social cohesion level on this association. We aimed to examine the association between living arrangements and depressive symptoms and whether this association varies with residential neighborhood social cohesion level among 19,656 men and 22,513 women aged 65 years and older in Japan.

Methods: We analyzed the association between baseline living arrangements in 2010 and depressive symptoms in 2013. We calculated gender-specific odds ratios (ORs) of living arrangements for depressive symptoms using a logistic regression and conducted subgroup analyses by neighborhood social cohesion level.

Results: Among men (but not women), living alone (OR 1.43; 95% confidence intervals [CI], 1.18–1.73) and living with spouse and parent (OR 1.47, 95% CI, 1.09–1.98) were associated with increased odds of depressive symptoms compared with living with a spouse only. Living with spouse and child was a risk for men in the young age group but a protective factor for women. We also identified that the negative impact of living arrangements on depressive symptoms was attenuated in neighborhoods with higher levels of social cohesion.

Conclusions: Living arrangements are associated with risk of depressive symptoms among men and women; these associations differ by gender and neighborhood social cohesion level. Our results suggest the need to pay more attention to whether individuals live alone, as well as who individuals live with, to prevent depressive symptoms among older adults.

Background: The northeast has the lowest incidence of breast cancer of all regions in Thailand, although national rates are increasing. The heterogeneity in subnational trends necessitates a comprehensive evaluation of breast cancer incidence trends and projections to provide evidence for future region-specific strategies that may be employed to attenuate this growing burden.

Methods: Joinpoint regression and age-period-cohort modeling were used to describe trends from 1988–2012. Data was projected from three separate models to provide a range of estimates of incidence to the year 2030 by age group.

Results: Age-standardized rates (ASRs) increased significantly for all women from 1995–2012 by 4.5% per year. Rates for women below age 50 increased by 5.1% per year, while women age 50 years and older increased by 6% per year from 1988–2012. Projected rates show that women age 50 years and older have the largest projected increase in ASRs by 2030 compared to younger women and all women combined.

Conclusions: Breast cancer trends in Khon Kaen are presently lower than other regions but are expected to increase and become comparable to other regions by 2030, particularly for women ages 50 years and older.

Background: Lower birth weight (BW) is associated with increased chronic disease risk later in life. Previous studies suggest that this may be mediated principally via physical activity (PA). However, the association between BW and PA in children has not been clarified. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between BW and PA in school-aged children in Japan.

Methods: Participants were children from a prospective birth cohort study (Project Koshu) who were born from 1996 through 2002 in rural Japan. BWs were obtained from the Maternal and Child Health Handbook. Data on PA during childhood were collected using a self-reported questionnaire when participants were 9–15 years of age in July 2011. Analysis of covariance was used to evaluate exercise duration; Poisson regression analysis was used to evaluate if the recommended PA amount was met.

Results: Data from 657 children (boys: 54.8%, follow-up rate: 77.6%) were analyzed. Compared with the normal BW group, only girls in the low-BW group had significantly lower PA level (normal BW, 11.4 [standard error, 1.0] hours/week; low BW, 5.8 [standard error, 3.6] hours/week, P = 0.010), and were more likely to not meet the recommended PA level (prevalence ratio 1.57; 95% CI, 1.14–2.16).

Conclusion: Low BW was associated with a lower PA level in school-aged girls but not boys. Earlier consideration of BW may be an important public health strategy to prevent physical inactivity in school-aged girls.

Background: Evidence linking working hours and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is limited and inconsistent in Asian populations. No study has addressed the combined association of long working hours and sleep deprivation on T2DM risk. We investigated the association of baseline overtime work with T2DM risk and assessed whether sleep duration modified the effect among Japanese.

Methods: Participants were Japanese employees (28,489 men and 4,561 women) aged 30–64 years who reported overtime hours and had no history of diabetes at baseline (mostly in 2008). They were followed up until March 2014. New-onset T2DM was identified using subsequent checkup data, including measurement of fasting/random plasma glucose, glycated hemoglobin, and self-report of medical treatment. Hazard ratios (HRs) of T2DM were estimated using Cox regression analysis. The combined association of sleep duration and working hours was examined in a subgroup of workers (n = 27,590).

Results: During a mean follow-up period of 4.5 years, 1,975 adults developed T2DM. Overtime work was not materially associated with T2DM risk. In subgroup analysis, however, long working hours combined with insufficient sleep were associated with a significantly higher risk of T2DM (HR 1.42; 95% CI, 1.11–1.83), whereas long working hours with sufficient sleep were not (HR 0.99; 95% CI, 0.88–1.11) compared with the reference (<45 hours of overtime with sufficient sleep).

Conclusions: Sleep duration modified the association of overtime work with the risk of developing T2DM. Further investigations to elucidate the long-term effect of long working hours on glucose metabolism are warranted.