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ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Recent cross-sectional studies suggest some adolescents who have never smoked cigarettes experience nicotine dependence (ND) symptoms and that exposure to second-hand smoke, social exposure to smoking, and alcohol use are plausible correlates. The aim of this study was to replicate and extend these findings by investigating possible predictors of ND symptoms longitudinally. METHOD: Participants included 847 secondary school students who had never smoked cigarettes enrolled in the Nicotine Dependence in Teens Study. Adolescents completed self-report questionnaires measuring smoking status, ND symptoms, and risk factors for ND in smokers (i.e., socio-demographic indicators, social exposure to smoking, psychosocial indicators, and substance use) in 20 survey cycles from 7 to 11th grade. Generalized estimating equations, which account for repeated measures within individuals, were used to test the predictors of ND symptoms. RESULTS: Consistent with previous research, 7.8% of never-smokers across all cycles endorsed at least one ND symptom. Younger age (p≤.001), country of birth (p≤.05), peer smoking (p≤.001), teacher smoking (p≤.05), depression (p≤.05), stress (p≤.001), lower self-esteem (p≤.05), impulsivity (p≤.05), and alcohol use (p≤.001) predicted greater ND symptoms in multivariable modeling. CONCLUSIONS: Replicating previous cross-sectional findings, peer smoking and alcohol use predicted ND symptoms among never-smoking adolescents. Extending these findings, previous predictors only observed among ever-smokers, including socio-demographic and psychosocial indicators, also predicted ND symptoms. This longitudinal investigation demonstrated the temporal relation of the predictors preceding ND symptoms. Future research should consider longer prospective studies with younger children to capture early onset of ND symptoms and with longer follow-up to detect eventual smoking uptake.
Drug and alcohol dependence 11/2012; · 3.60 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Heart rate variability (HRV) is a particularly valuable quantitative marker of the flexibility and balance of the autonomic nervous system. Significant advances in software programs to automatically derive HRV have led to its extensive use in psychophysiological research. However, there is a lack of systematic comparisons across software programs used to derive HRV indices. Further, researchers report meager details on important signal processing decisions making synthesis across studies challenging. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the measurement fidelity of time- and frequency-domain HRV indices derived from three predominant signal processing software programs commonly used in clinical and research settings. Triplicate ECG recordings were derived from 20 participants using identical data acquisition hardware. Among the time-domain indices, there was strong to excellent correspondence (ICC(avg)=0.93) for SDNN, SDANN, SDNNi, rMSSD, and pNN50. The frequency-domain indices yielded excellent correspondence (ICC(avg)=0.91) for LF, HF, and LF/HF ratio, except for VLF which exhibited poor correspondence (ICC(avg)=0.19). Stringent user-decisions and technical specifications for nuanced HRV processing details are essential to ensure measurement fidelity across signal processing software programs.
International journal of psychophysiology: official journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology 07/2012; 86(1):88-97. · 3.05 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Objective:To examine the association between physical activity (PA) opportunities at school and participation in PA outside of school
physical education (PE) classes among 9year old children.
Methods:Data were obtained in a representative sample of 1 267 students nested within 69 schools who completed questionnaires; principals
provided data on schools. Students’ PA frequency was defined as all reported episodes of past week PA, excluding PE class.
Schools were categorized as “high-opportunity” if they provided ≥4 of the following opportunities: PE class ≥2 times/week,
extracurricular sports animator, gymnasium, swimming pool, schoolyard equipped for games, and ≥1 outdoor sports playing
fields. Multilevel modelling techniques were used to investigate the association between school-level PA opportunity and student-level
PA frequency.
Results:No main effect of school-level PA opportunities on PA frequency was observed. However, overweight boys attending high-opportunity
schools were significantly more active than those attending low-opportunity schools.
Conclusions:The association between PA frequency and school-level PA opportunity differs by sex and weight status. Overweight boys in
particular may benefit from health promotion strategies providing greater opportunities for school PA.
International Journal of Public Health 04/2012; 54(3):150-157. · 2.54 Impact Factor
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Marie Lambert,
Andraea Van Hulst,
Jennifer O'Loughlin,
Angelo Tremblay,
Tracie A Barnett,
Hugues Charron,
Vicky Drapeau,
Josée Dubois,
Katherine Gray-Donald,
Mélanie Henderson, [......],
Nancy C Low,
Sean Mark,
Marie-Ève Mathieu,
Katerina Maximova, Jennifer J McGrath,
Belinda Nicolau,
Catherine Pelletier,
Paul Poirier,
Catherine Sabiston,
Gilles Paradis
International Journal of Epidemiology 07/2011; · 6.41 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Recent studies evidenced that adolescent never-smokers exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS) endorsed nicotine dependence symptoms. Other studies showed that SHS exposure measured with biomarkers among never-smokers independently predicted withdrawal sensations and prospective smoking initiation. The aim of the present study was to replicate and extend these findings by investigating whether social and pharmacological measures of SHS exposure predicted precursors to smoking among never-smoking adolescents.
Participants included 327 never-smokers aged 11-15 years attending sixth or seventh grade in French language schools in Montréal, Canada. They completed self-report questionnaires measuring their smoking status, social smoke exposure (number of smokers in their environment and number of situations where SHS exposure occurs), and precursors to smoking initiation (smoking expectancies, perceived nicotine dependence, and smoking susceptibility). Each participant provided a saliva sample from which cotinine biomarkers were derived to measure pharmacological exposure to SHS.
When predictors were modeled individually, number of smokers predicted perceived nicotine dependence (p ≤ .05), smoking susceptibility (p ≤ .001), and expected benefits (p ≤ .05), whereas number of situations predicted smoking susceptibility (p ≤ .01). When predictors were modeled simultaneously, number of smokers predicted perceived nicotine dependence (p ≤ .01), smoking susceptibility (p ≤ .01), and expected benefits (p ≤ .05).
Social smoke exposure was a predictor for smoking precursors. Pharmacological exposure to SHS did not predict smoking precursors, which may be partly attributable to the low cotinine values observed in our sample. Suggestions for improved pharmacological measurement of SHS and implications for public health are discussed.
Nicotine & Tobacco Research 06/2011; 13(10):926-33. · 2.58 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To extend previous observations that secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS) is associated with nicotine markers in children, we investigated if SHS exposure is associated with self-reports of nicotine dependence (ND) symptoms among young never-smokers.
Data on number of persons who smoke inside the home, number of days exposed to SHS in a motor vehicle in the past week, number of parents, siblings, and friends who smoke, and ND symptoms, were collected from 10-12 year-old students in self-report questionnaires. The association between SHS and ND symptoms among young never-smokers was assessed in logistic regression models.
Sixty-nine of 1488 never-smokers (5%) reported one or more ND symptom. After controlling for sibling and peer smoking, and susceptibility to initiating smoking, exposure to SHS in a motor vehicle was independently associated with ND symptoms (OR, 95% CI=1.2, 1.0-1.4). The OR for number of persons who smoke inside the home was 1.1 (0.9-1.4).
SHS exposure in motor vehicles may be associated with ND symptoms among young never-smokers. If replicated, this finding provides support for interventions that promote non-smoking in motor vehicles.
Addictive behaviors 08/2008; 33(12):1557-63. · 2.25 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: There are few data on the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors in population-based samples of overweight and obese youth.
To compare the prevalence of individual and multiple cardiometabolic risk factors across body mass index (BMI) categories in a population-based sample of youth.
In 1999, a school-based survey of a provincially representative sample of youth nine, 13 and 16 years of age was conducted in Quebec (1778 boys, 1835 girls). Overweight was defined as BMI in the 85th percentile or higher and lower than the 95th percentile of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2000 growth charts, and obesity was defined as BMI in the 95th percentile or higher. Levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, glucose, C-reactive protein and systolic blood pressure were categorized as desirable, borderline or unfavourable.
The proportions of overweight and obese participants were 14% and 10% in boys, and 14% and 7% in girls, respectively. With the exception of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in girls, and glucose in both sexes, the prevalence of all investigated risk factors (borderline or unfavourable) was significantly higher among overweight and obese participants. Almost one-third of obese participants had unfavourable levels of at least two of seven risk factors (apolipoprotein B, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, glucose, C-reactive protein and systolic blood pressure) compared with 3% of normal weight participants (adjusted OR 15 and 18 in boys and girls, respectively). Thirty-four per cent of obese youth did not have unfavourable levels of any risk factor.
There is marked heterogeneity in the association between excess weight and cardiometabolic risk factors. Nonetheless, the present study highlights a high prevalence of multiple risk factors in a population-based sample of overweight and obese youth.
The Canadian journal of cardiology 08/2008; 24(7):575-83. · 3.36 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To investigate the association between smoking behavior among secondary school students and school smoking policies.
Cross-sectional provincially representative study.
Quebec secondary schools.
Complete data were available for 763 of 1058 students aged 13 years in 50 schools and for 768 of 1160 students aged 16 years in 57 schools. School principals provided data on school smoking policies. Main Exposure School smoking policies. Outcome Measure Student tobacco use.
Of students aged 13 years, 3.8% of boys and 7.1% of girls smoked daily; 21.0% of boys and 25.2% of girls aged 16 years smoked daily. Of schools, 28.0% permitted staff to smoke indoors, 84.1% permitted staff to smoke outdoors on school grounds, and 83.2% permitted students to smoke outdoors on school grounds. Daily smoking was not associated with policies targeting student smoking or those targeting indoor smoking by staff. In multilevel analyses, girls aged 13 years were almost 5 times more likely to be daily smokers if they attended schools at which staff were permitted to smoke outdoors.
Younger girls may be more susceptible to social influences at school related to tobacco use. School policies banning smoking by teachers and other school personnel within and outside the school should be an important component of comprehensive adolescent smoking prevention programs.
Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine 10/2007; 161(9):842-8. · 4.14 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Socioeconomic status (SES) disparities are linked to increased cardiovascular disease risk. Although typically considered an individual or family indicator, SES alternatively can be derived from neighborhood characteristics. Previous research has found both family and neighborhood SES predict laboratory blood pressure responses in youth. The question remains as to whether this SES gradient predicts blood pressure during daily living situations. We evaluated individual versus neighborhood SES and race as predictors of ambulatory blood pressure and heart rate. Participants were recruited from two schools in Pittsburgh, diverse in terms of both race and SES. Adolescents' (N=212, 14.5 years, 50% black) cardiovascular responses were measured at school and home. Individual (parent education, household income) and neighborhood SES indices (derived from 78 census tracts: percentage with high school degree or less, percentage below poverty) were assessed. A neighborhood index of race based on the proportion of blacks in the census tract was also derived as a counterpart to individuals' race. Multi-level modeling indicated neighborhood income predicted systolic blood pressure. Individual race predicted diastolic blood pressure. Individual income and education, and neighborhood race each predicted heart rate. These results have important public health implications as they suggest individual and neighborhood SES and race are linked to cardiovascular risk disparities as early as adolescence.
Social Science [?] Medicine 10/2006; 63(6):1442-53. · 2.70 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To investigate the association of sleep duration with adiposity and to determine if caloric intake and physical activity mediate this relationship.
The Quebec Adiposity and Lifestyle Investigation in Youth (QUALITY) study is an ongoing longitudinal investigation of Caucasian children with at least one obese biological parent. Children (n = 550) with an average age of 9.6 years (SD = 0.9) who provided complete data at baseline were included in the cross-sectional analyses. Objective measures of adiposity (BMI Z-score, waist circumference, percent body fat measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), sleep duration and physical activity (accelerometer over 7 days), and diet (24-hour food recalls) were collected. Children were categorized into 4 groups according to sleep duration: < 10 hours, 10-10.9 hours, 11-11.9 hours, and > or = 12 hours of sleep per night.
We observed a U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and all adiposity indices. None of energy intake, snacking, screen time or physical activity intensity differed significantly between sleep categories. After adjusting for age, sex, Tanner stage, highest educational level of the parents, total annual family income, and parental BMI, only short-duration sleepers (< 10 hours) had an increased odds of overweight/obesity (OR 2.08, 95% CI 1.16-3.67). Addition of total energy intake and physical activity to the model did not change the association substantially (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.15-3.63).
The present study provides evidence that short sleep duration is a risk factor for overweight and obesity in children, independent of potential covariates. These results further emphasize the need to add sleep duration to the determinants of obesity.
Canadian journal of public health. Revue canadienne de santé publique 102(5):369-74. · 1.02 Impact Factor
