Suicide is a serious public health problem that causes immeasurable pain, suffering, and loss to individuals, families, and communities nationwide. Many people may be surprised to learn that suicide was one of the top 10 causes of death in the United States in 2009. And death is only the tip of the iceberg. For every person who dies by suicide,…

A study on autism spectrum disorders is conducted because its early onset, lifelong persistence, and high levels of associated impairment is turning it into a major public health concern. Results show that psychiatric disorders are common in children with autism spectrum disorders but there were few associations between putative risk factors and…

With Americans fatter and more malnourished than ever--almost two-thirds of the population is considered overweight or obese compared with 56 percent in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and people of color and the poor are the most obese of all--federal and university researchers and outreach workers from various anti-obesity organizations aim to…

Objectives: Although, the relationship between childhood physical abuse and adult heart disease has been documented, very few studies have controlled for many of the known risk factors for heart disease. The objective of the current study, therefore, was to investigate the association between childhood physical abuse and adult heart disease while…

Approximately 4.5 million Americans have an intellectual or developmental disability. Concern is increasing about these individuals' nutrition-related behavior and its implications for their health. This article reports on a systematic search of the current literature listed in the "PsycINFO" and "PubMed" databases related to nutritional status of…

The 2009 Institute of Medicine report on prevention of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders (National Research Council & Institute of Medicine, 2009b) presented evidence that major depression can be prevented. In this article, we highlight the implications of the report for public policy and research. Randomized controlled trials have shown…

Recent studies have highlighted the progressively increasing number of children prescribed psychotropic medication, while findings have illustrated significantly greater usage among child welfare-involved children. These findings have raised serious concerns among mental health and child welfare professionals as well as the general public. To…

Anemia is known to be a significant public health problem in many countries. Most of the available information is incomplete or limited to special groups such as people with intellectual disability. The present study aims to provide the information of anemia prevalence and associated risk factors of children and adolescents with intellectual…

Although widely misunderstood, Lyme disease is the most prevalent vector borne disease in the United States. Children are the most at-risk group for Lyme disease, which can impact every system in the body. It can produce the musculo-skeletal, neurologic, psychiatric, opthalmologic, and cardiac symptoms. The symptoms of Lyme disease can have a…

Using prospect theory and the extended parallel process model, this study examined the effect of gain/loss message framing on perceptions of severity, susceptibility, response efficacy, and self efficacy (derived from the extended parallel process model), as well as perception of message effectiveness and behavioral intention in a community based…

Sixty-six percent of American adults are overweight or obese, and a new study by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health says it is only going to get worse. They predict the figure will be 75 percent by 2015. A report last year by the Cities, Counties and Schools Partnership cited that nearly 30 percent of children and teens…

This study explores the prevalence and correlates of past-year physical violence against women in slum and nonslum areas of urban Bangladesh. The authors use multivariate logistic regression to analyze data from the 2006 Urban Health Survey, a population-based survey of 9,122 currently married women aged between 15 and 49 who were selected using a…

"Catalyst" is a publication of the U.S. Department of Education's Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention. This issue contains the following articles: (1) From Competition To Collaboration College Alcohol Prevention in an Era of Competing Risks; (2) A Public Health Approach to Mental Health…

The fact that today's children are projected to be the first generation in centuries to live sicker and shorter lives than their parents, due to the obesity epidemic, makes it imperative to identify early warning signs in children who may need a more comprehensive health evaluation. The CDC has been tracking the progress of the nation with regard…

The probability of death resulting from a suicidal act as a function of age is explored. Until recently, data on suicide attempts in the United States were not available, and therefore the relationship between attempts and completed suicide could not be systematically investigated. Now, with new surveillance of self-harm data from the Centers for…