This study aims to explore the association between restrained eating, body image, and dietary intake among Chinese college students. This cross-sectional study included 1301 college students at two universities in Hunan Province. Electronic questionnaires were used to collect information including students’ demographic characteristics, restrained eating, perception of body weight, body satisfaction, and dietary intake. Anthropometric measurements were collected to calculate body mass index (BMI). The prevalence of high restrained eating was 52.8%. Students who were dissatisfied with their bodies or overestimated their body weight showed a higher tendency toward high restrained eating (p < 0.05). Students with high restrained eating tended to eat fruits and eggs more frequently, while the frequency of eating domestic animals and poultry, sugar-sweetened beverages, and fast food were the opposite. Moreover, high restrained eating was a risk factor for low dietary diversity (odds ratio (OR) = 1.384, 95% confidence interval: 1.002~1.912). The high incidence of restrained eating among Chinese college students and its energy-restricted diets that may lead to possible health implications require attention. Further studies are needed to investigate the characteristics of college students’ restrained eating to tailor appropriate interventions for forming positive body images and promoting healthy eating behaviors, thus, improving dietary quality.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between anxiety, depression, and gut microbiota in elderly patients with FC. Methods: in this cross-sectional study, a total of 198 elderly participants (85 male and 113 female) aged over 60 years were recruited. The study was conducted in Changsha city, China. The participants completed an online questionnaire, including The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), The Patient Assessment of Symptoms (PAC-SYM), and The Patient Assessment of Quality of Life (PAC-QoL). We selected the 16S rDNA V3 + V4 region as the amplification region and sequenced the gut microbiota using the Illumina Novaseq PE250 high-throughput sequencing platform. Results: in total, 30.3% of patients with constipation had depression, while 21.3% had anxiety. The relative abundance of intestinal microbiota in the normal group was higher than that in the anxiety and depression group. According to LEfSe analysis, the relative abundance of g_Peptoniphilus and g_Geobacter in the people without depression and anxiety was higher. The relative abundance of g_Pseudoramibacter-Eubacterium and g_Candidatus-Solibacter in the depression group was lower, and the relative abundance of g_Bacteroides and g_Paraprevotella, g_Cc_115 in the anxiety group was higher. In addition, according to the correlation analysis, g_Aquicella and g_Limnohabitans were negatively correlated with constipation symptoms, anxiety, and depression. Conclusions: this study found that gut microbiota composition may be associated with a higher incidence of anxiety and depression in patients with FC, thus providing insight into the mechanisms that ameliorate mood disorders in patients with FC.

Background: Pediatric overweight and obesity has become a major public health problem in China. The goal of this study is to understand overweight and obesity in preschool children in Changsha City in the context of their sleep and physical activity. These results offer feasible proposals to reduce levels of overweight and obesity among preschool children. Methods: A total of 112 preschoolers aged three to six years old were investigated using multiple stage stratified cluster sampling and simple random sampling. Questionnaires were used to collect general information about children and their families. Body mass index (BMI) was used as an indicator of overweight and obesity. Age- and sex-specific cutoff values for Chinese children and adolescents were used to determine child weight status. Children’s sedentary time was reported by caregivers, while physical activity and sleep were recorded using fitness bracelets (Misfit Shine 2). Results: The prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity were 15.2% and 9.8% respectively. Preschool-aged children travelled 11,111 ± 3357 and 10,350 ± 2973 steps per day on weekdays and weekends respectively. The number of daily steps was not statistically different between weekdays and weekends. The amount of time spent daily doing vigorous activity on weekdays and weekends was significantly different, with an average time of 20.5 ± 31.6 min and 10.3 ± 15.3 min respectively (p = 0.002). Furthermore, 10.7% and 50.9% of children used screens for more than two hours on weekdays and weekends respectively (p < 0.001). Children slept for significantly longer on weekends (8.3 ± 0.9 h) than on weekdays (8.1 ± 0.7 h) (p = 0.037). A significantly higher proportion of students also fell asleep before 10:00 p.m. on weekends (26.8%) compared to weekdays (15.2%) (p < 0.001). Parent’s BMI values were positively correlated with child BMI, the monthly household income was negatively associated with child BMI. Male children were more likely to have a higher BMI than female children. Children who were obese were also more likely to have shorter sleep times compared to children of normal weight (p = 0.047). Conclusions: There was a high prevalence of overweight and obesity among the Chinese preschool children in this study. Students also demonstrated poor sleep and physical activity habits. Future research is necessary to explore the relationship between sleep, physical activity and weight status for young children in China.

This study aims to explore associations between emotional eating, depression and laryngopharyngeal reflux among college students in Hunan Province. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 1301 students at two universities in Hunan. Electronic questionnaires were used to collect information about the students’ emotional eating, depressive symptoms, laryngopharyngeal reflux and sociodemographic characteristics. Anthropometric measurements were collected to obtain body mass index (BMI). Results: High emotional eating was reported by 52.7% of students. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 18.6% and that of laryngopharyngeal reflux symptoms 8.1%. Both emotional eating and depressive symptoms were associated with laryngopharyngeal reflux symptoms (AOR = 3.822, 95% CI 2.126–6.871 vs. AOR = 4.093, 95% CI 2.516–6.661). Conclusion: The prevalence of emotional eating and depressive symptoms among Chinese college students should be pay more attention in the future. Emotional eating and depressive symptoms were positively associated with laryngopharyngeal symptoms. The characteristics of emotional eating require further study so that effective interventions to promote laryngopharyngeal health among college students may be formulated.

Left-behind children (LBC) are a newly emerged social group in China. Poor nutritional status is particularly prominent in this population. However, their food insecurity tends to attract very little attention. This study aims to investigate the relationship between food insecurity and undernutrition (stunting and anaemia) in 3 to 5-year-old LBC in rural China. Face-to-face interviews were administered to 553 LBC caregivers in 40 rural villages of Hunan Province, China. The Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was used to assess household food insecurity (HFI). Dietary diversity score (DDS) and food group consumption frequency were measured by 24 h-recall and food frequency questionnaires (FFQ). Hemoglobin tests and anthropometric measurements including height and weight were measured by trained health professionals. Logistic regression was constructed to assess the association between household food insecurity and dietary diversity, stunting, and anaemia. A high prevalence of household food insecurity was determined (67.6%). The weighted prevalence of stunting and anaemia were 16.6% and 26.5%, respectively. Food insecurity was positively associate with LBC stunting (severe HFI: OR = 6.50, 95% CI: 2.81, 15.00; moderate HFI: OR = 3.47, 95% CI: 1.60, 7.54), and anaemia (severe HFI: OR = 1.91, 95% CI: 1.02, 3.57). LBC with food insecurity had significantly lower dietary diversity than those who were food-secure (p < 0.001). The prevalence of household food insecurity among LBC in poor rural China is high and is associated with low DDS, stunting, and anaemia. Nutritional intervention programs and policies are urgently needed to reduce household food insecurity and undernutrition for this vulnerable population.

China’s three-child policy was implemented in May 2021 to stimulate a rise in fertility levels. However, few previous studies have explored fertility intentions to have a third child and have only focused on childless or one-child populations, resulting in a gap in findings between fertility intention and fertility behavior. Thus, we conducted a nationwide cross-sectional study on 1308 participants with two children. Results showed that only 9.6% of participants reported planning to have a third child and 80.2% of the population had heard of the policy but had no idea of the detailed contents. Participants with two daughters (OR = 3.722, 95% CI = 2.304–6.013) were willing to have one more child. Instrumental values (OR = 1.184, 95% CI = 1.108–1.265) and policy support (OR = 1.190, 95% CI = 1.124–1.259) were the facilitators. Perceived risk (OR = 0.883, 95% CI = 0.839–0.930) and higher educational level (OR = 0.693, 95% CI = 0.533–0.900) were the leading barriers to having one more child. Therefore, the government should deepen parents’ understanding of the “three-child policy” and devise ways of reducing the negative impacts of having a third child to boost the intention to have more children. Our proposed approach can also be used to better understand the reasons for low fertility rates in other countries.