We examined possible factors related to the decrease in exercise habits observed under the restrictions implemented following the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Overall, 153 medical callege students participated in the study. A lack of exercise fear was associated with maintaining and increasing exercise habits. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the maintaining and increasing exercise habits group performed more exercise at/near home than the other group. In the group that was able to maintain and increase their exercise levels, the overall exercise habits may have been supplemented by exercise at home and near the home.

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a specialized tissue for non-shivering thermogenesis (NST) after cold exposure. Although BAT research has long been limited mostly in small rodents, the rediscovery of metabolically active BAT in adult humans has dramatically promoted the translational studies on BAT in health and diseases. In recent years, it has become clear that BAT cross-talks with some peripheral tissues and controls their functions and systemic homeostasis of energy and metabolic substrates. Moreover, it has been found that BAT contributes to NST after nutrient intake as well as cold exposure. Thus, BAT is a metabolic regulator beyond thermogenesis and a target against obesity and metabolic syndrome. This is supported by discovering that various paracrine and endocrine factors are secreted from BAT, called as BATkines. However, there is still few information about the genetic and environmental factors that determine the activity and amount of human BAT. Here, we review our current understanding on the pathophysiology of human BAT, including its seasonal and diurnal variations.

To organize previous findings, this study reviewed neuropsychological studies on the effects of reward on response inhibition. The evidence from these neuropsychological and physiological-psychological studies with healthy adults and children supports reward modulation of the inhibitory system and its developmental changes. The studies with children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), who had deficits in the reward system and inhibitory control, suggest positive effects of reward on ADHD and the significance of considering the characteristics of reward sensitivity among children with ADHD. Our review suggests the significance of exploring various neuropsychological mechanisms, including populations with diverse developmental stages, neurodevelopmental disorders, and other neuropsychological characteristics, to trace the path that reward takes to influence behavioral inhibition among individuals.