The relationship among nutritional intake status, stress and infant birthweight was examined using questionnaire-based analyses in pregnant women in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. In Survey 1, a Food Frequency Questionnaire Based on Food Groups (FFQg) was administered to 26 pregnant women at around 12, 26, and 36 weeks of gestation and the results were analyzed. The group that experienced stress had significantly lighter birthweight and tended to have lower energy intake in early pregnancy and higher energy intake in late pregnancy than the group that felt little or no stress. In Survey 2, a self-administered diet history questionnaire was given to 84 pregnant women at 12 weeks of gestation. The results showed that birthweight was not significantly different between the high and low stress groups, whereas women in the former group consumed significantly more energy with adequate PFC balance. Collectively, PFC balance maintained within recommended range might reduce the influence of stress on infant birthweight.

Nordic walking (NW) is introduced as a feasible form of exercise that can be performed by anybody. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of NW for 6 months in a small sample of the patients with hip osteoarthritis (OA). Nine female patients with mild-to-severe hip OA were recruited from an outpatient clinic of a university hospital. Patients were encouraged to perform NW for 6 months. Outcomes, including Harris Hip Score (HHS), 10 meter walking time, Timed Up & Go Test, and muscle strength were assessed at 3 and 6 months after intervention. Clinical evaluation and walking ability improved at 3 months and were maintained up to 6 months. Although hip abductor muscle strength did not improve significantly, knee extensor in involved side improved at 3 months significantly. NW improved walking ability and function of the joints in patients with hip OA.

The under-recognition of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) among general physicians might be one of the biggest hindrances to an accurate diagnosis of COPD. The international primary care airways group (IPAG) questionnaire is known to be useful for screening COPD, but its specificity is not high enough to screen Japanese cases. We carried out spirometry and interviews at general physicians’ offices to determine the COPD prevalence and evaluate the usefulness of the COPD diagnostic questionnaire. A total of 882 cases were enrolled into the study. As a result of a multiple logistic analysis of the original IPAG questionnaire, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was found to be 0.765. However, when comparing the four items of age, smoking history, wheezing, and dyspnea on effort, the area increased to 0.786. The validated IPAG questionnaire might be a promising screening tool for Japanese older COPD cases.