The effect of age on intimate partner violence (IPV) against women has received little attention. The objective of this study is to analyze the prevalence, risk factors and health impact of current IPV in different life stages. We analyzed a sub-sample of 8,935 ever-partnered women aged 16 years and older from the Spanish Macrosurvey on Gender Violence of 2014. Main outcomes: current physical/ sexual IPV and current psychological-only IPV. The impact of IPV on health was analyzed using the variables self-perceived health, mental health and activity limitations. Risk factors were assessed using the prevalence ratio (PR) from Poisson regression models with robust variance. Analyses were stratified by age (young people, adults, and elderly people). Abuse in childhood increases the likelihood of IPV in any life stage. A higher education level decreases the probability of physical/sexual IPV across all ages. Unemployment increases the probability of IPV in adult women (physical/sexual-IPV, PR:1.7; psychological-IPV, PR:1.3). Being an immigrant increases the likelihood of physical/sexual IPV in adult women (PRwomen:1.91). Women exposed to current physical/sexual IPV have a greater likelihood of reporting poor self-perceived health (PRyoungpeople:2.59; PRadults:1.68; PRelderly:1.28), poor mental health (PRyoungpeople:3.10; PRadults:2.61; PRedlerly:2.17) and activity limitations (PRyoungpeople:2.44; PRadults:1.98). For psychological IPV only, there is an increase in the probability of poor self-perceived health (PRadults:1.37; PRelderly:1.19), poor mental health (PRyoungpeople:2.24; PRadults:2.16; PRelderly:1.69), and activity limitations (PRadults:1.30; PRelderly:1.18). We found both common factors and differential factors when looking at IPV by age group. This shows the need to link gender violence prevention with the social circumstances of the population across different life stages.

To compare health services utilization between the immigrant and indigenous populations in Spain. We used information provided by the following four health surveys carried out around 2005: Catalonia 2005; city of Madrid 2005, Canary Islands 2004 and the Autonomous Community of Valencia 2005. The health services studied were general practice, specialist services, emergency services, hospitalization, and two preventive services: pap smear test and mammography. In general, most health services were less frequently used by the immigrant population than by the Spanish population. The health services showing the least differences between the two populations were general practice and hospitalization, while the greatest differences were found in the use of specialist and preventive services. The most heterogeneous results were found in general practice and hospitalization, since some immigrant groups showed a relatively high frequency of use in some geographical areas and a relatively low frequency in other areas. The results of the present study reproduce those found in other studies carried out in countries with similar social and economic characteristics to Spain. Like previous results, the present results are difficult to explain. Future research should aim to use other study designs and to test hypotheses not put forward by the scientific community to date.

Background: Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption is contributing to the obesity epidemic. On 28 March 2017, Catalonia enacted a law levying an excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages for public health reasons. The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of the tax on the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages in Catalonia (Spain). Methods: Before-and-after study to assess changes in the prevalence of consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages among 1929 persons aged 12 to 40 years residing in low-income neighbourhoods of Barcelona (intervention) and Madrid (control). Beverage consumption frequency was ascertained via a validated questionnaire administered during the month prior to the tax’s introduction (May 2017) and again at 1 year after it had come into force. The effect of the tax was obtained using Poisson regression models with robust variance weighted using propensity scores. Results: While the prevalence of regular consumers of taxed beverages fell by 39% in Barcelona as compared to Madrid, the prevalence of consumers of untaxed beverages remained stable. The main reason cited by more than two-thirds of those surveyed for reducing their consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages was the increase in price, followed by a heightened awareness of their health effects. Conclusions: The introduction of the Catalonian excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages was followed by a reduction in the prevalence of regular consumers of taxed beverages.

Preventing intimate partner violence or dating violence (DV) among adolescents is a public health priority due to its magnitude and damaging short and long-term consequences for adolescent and adult health. In our study protocol, we complement prior experiences in DV prevention by promoting protective factors (or assets) against gender violence such as communication skills, empathy and problem-solving capability through “Cinema Voice”, a participatory educational intervention based on adolescents’ strengths to tackle DV. A longitudinal quasi-experimental educational intervention addressed to boys and girls ages 13–17 years, enrolled in secondary education schools in Alicante (Spain), Rome (Italy), Cardiff (UK), Iasi (Romania), Poznan (Poland) and Matosinhos (Portugal). Both process and results evaluations will be carried out with 100–120 intervention and 120–150 control group students per city at three time periods: before, after and 6 months after the implementation of the following interventions: 1) Training seminar with teachers to promote knowledge and skills on the core issues of intervention; 2) Workshops with intervention groups, where participants produce their own digital content presenting their perspective on DV; and 3) Short film exhibitions with participants, their families, authorities and other stakeholders with the objective of share the results and engage the community. Outcome measures are self-perceived social support, machismo, sexism, tolerance towards gender violence, social problem-solving and assertiveness as well as involvement in bullying/cyberbullying. Other socio-demographic, attitudes and violence-related co-variables were also included. This study may provide relevant information about the effectiveness of educational interventions that combine a positive youth development framework with educational awareness about the importance of achieving gender equality and preventing and combating gender violence. To our knowledge, this is the first study that involves six European countries in an educational intervention to promote violence protective assets among enrolled adolescents in secondary schools. This study may provide the needed tools to replicate the experience in other contexts and other countries. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03411564 . Unique Protocol ID: 776905. Date registered: 18-01-2018.

Immigrants from developing countries who resided in one of the Health Areas of the Autonomous Community of Madrid (ACM) (Health Area 6), were older than 15 years of age, and had lived in Spain for more than three months were eligible to enter the study. Our research Area was selected because it had the largest share of immigrants in the ACM. The ACM host about one quarter of the immigrants of Spain, and about one fifth of them lived in our study Area. The southern part of the City of Madrid is part of the study Area and was also included as a potential site for recruitment. Stratified cluster sampling with replacement was used to select 300 immigrants. Twelve per cent of the persons who were approached refused to participate in the study and were replaced by other immigrants, therefore reaching the intended number of 300. In the first stage, 30 clusters were systematically assigned to towns with a probability proportional to the registered migrant population and 10 migrants were selected and interviewed in each cluster in the second stage. In the second stage, 10 migrants were systematically selected in each cluster. To select immigrants, interviewers had to direct themselves to a predefined area of the municipality, usually the centre of the town, and from there select randomly a direction that would then be followed. Eligible subjects were approached in the streets, or at the door of their homes or at the entrance of common meeting places. Health services and their immediate sorroundings were specifically excluded as potential places for recruitment. Immigrants were systematically approached for interviews irrespective of their nationality or sex. Interviews were conducted starting early in the morning and until late at night. Field work lasted for almost three months. Most often two or even three visits were required to each cluster to complete all the interviews. Survey questionnaire included sociodemographic information, health status and utilisation of health services. Persons who reported having ever been ill in Spain were asked whether they sought medical care for their last episode of illness. Severity of the episode was assessed by a blinded external examiner on the basis of reporting. Administrative legal status was ascertained by one open question: “what is your current administrative status in Spain?” Illegal status was defined as a person who did not have a valid residency permit. As most immigrants to Madrid come from Morocco our questionnaire was translated into Arabic using direct and inverse translation, and completed between February and May of 1997. Data were entered in Epiinfo 6.1, maximum likelihood estimates for odds ratios (ORs) (and 95% confidence intervals) to explore the likeliness of seeking care the last time the person was ill were estimated using the Csample Module. Multiple logistic regresion analyses were used in the final model to adjust for possible confounders using SPSS.