Union Efforts to Reduce COVID-19 Infections Among Grocery Store Workers.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Crowell NA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8107491 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description: Not available
| S-BSST563 | biostudies-other
Project description:ObjectiveHealthy-eating intentions of overweight individuals are often thwarted by the presence of attractive food temptations in grocery stores and the home environment. To support healthy-eating intentions, we tested the effectiveness of a simple health prime to reduce the purchases of energy-dense snack foods in a grocery store among overweight individuals.DesignThis field experiment had a 2 (condition: health prime vs control) × 2 (weight status: overweight vs normal weight) between-participants design.MethodCustomers of a grocery store were handed a recipe flyer that either contained a health and diet prime, or not. Participants' weight and height, as well as their attention to and awareness of the prime during shopping, were assessed by means of a questionnaire. The purchase of unhealthy snack foods was assessed by means of the receipt.ResultsResults showed that the health prime reduced snack purchases compared with the control condition among overweight and obese participants. When primed, overweight and obese participants bought almost 75% fewer snacks than when not primed. Additional analyses showed that although the prime worked only when customers paid initial attention to the flyer that contained the health prime, no conscious awareness of the prime during grocery shopping was necessary for these effects.ConclusionThese findings suggest that health priming can lead to healthier grocery shopping among overweight consumers, without relying on conscious awareness during shopping. This makes priming a highly viable intervention tool to facilitate healthy food choices. Such tools are especially relevant in the setting of grocery shopping, given that they have direct effects on eating in the home environment and thus for longer-term weight management.
| S-EPMC3982213 | biostudies-literature
Project description:RNA was extracted from whole blood of subjects collected in Tempus tubes prior to COVID-19 mRNA booster vaccination. D01 and D21 correspond to samples collected at pre-dose 1 and pre-dose 2 respectively. RNA was also extracted from blood collected at indicated time points post-vaccination. DB1, DB2, DB4 and DB7 correspond to booster day 1 (pre-booster), booster day 2, booster day 4 and booster day 7 respectively. The case subject experienced cardiac complication following mRNA booster vaccination. We performed gene expression analysis of case versus controls over time.
2023-03-20 | E-MTAB-12829 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:BackgroundDespite the high efficacy of the BNT162b2 messenger RNA vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), rare breakthrough infections have been reported, including infections among health care workers. Data are needed to characterize these infections and define correlates of breakthrough and infectivity.MethodsAt the largest medical center in Israel, we identified breakthrough infections by performing extensive evaluations of health care workers who were symptomatic (including mild symptoms) or had known infection exposure. These evaluations included epidemiologic investigations, repeat reverse-transcriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) assays, antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic testing (Ag-RDT), serologic assays, and genomic sequencing. Correlates of breakthrough infection were assessed in a case-control analysis. We matched patients with breakthrough infection who had antibody titers obtained within a week before SARS-CoV-2 detection (peri-infection period) with four to five uninfected controls and used generalized estimating equations to predict the geometric mean titers among cases and controls and the ratio between the titers in the two groups. We also assessed the correlation between neutralizing antibody titers and N gene cycle threshold (Ct) values with respect to infectivity.ResultsAmong 1497 fully vaccinated health care workers for whom RT-PCR data were available, 39 SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections were documented. Neutralizing antibody titers in case patients during the peri-infection period were lower than those in matched uninfected controls (case-to-control ratio, 0.361; 95% confidence interval, 0.165 to 0.787). Higher peri-infection neutralizing antibody titers were associated with lower infectivity (higher Ct values). Most breakthrough cases were mild or asymptomatic, although 19% had persistent symptoms (>6 weeks). The B.1.1.7 (alpha) variant was found in 85% of samples tested. A total of 74% of case patients had a high viral load (Ct value, <30) at some point during their infection; however, of these patients, only 17 (59%) had a positive result on concurrent Ag-RDT. No secondary infections were documented.ConclusionsAmong fully vaccinated health care workers, the occurrence of breakthrough infections with SARS-CoV-2 was correlated with neutralizing antibody titers during the peri-infection period. Most breakthrough infections were mild or asymptomatic, although persistent symptoms did occur.
| S-EPMC8362591 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Grocery store is usually considered to be a healthy food outlet as it provides access to a variety of healthy food, such as fruits and vegetables, which may potentially improve overall dietary quality and protect against obesity. However, findings of the association between grocery store and childhood obesity are controversial. This study aimed to systematically review the evidence on the association between access to grocery stores and childhood obesity. A literature search was conducted in the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science for articles published before January 1, 2019, using the combinations of three groups of keywords separately for grocery store, children and adolescents, and weight-related behaviours and outcomes. A total of 27 cross-sectional and eight longitudinal studies were identified. Controversial results existed among 24 studies, which examined the association between the access to grocery stores and weight-related outcomes. A null association was observed in almost all meta-analyses conducted by different measures of grocery stores and weight status, except the analysis between presence of grocery stores and overweight, which reached borderline significance. For weight-related behaviours, mixed findings were reported between grocery stores and dietary behaviours, and no significant associations were found for physical activity. This systematic review and meta-analysis suggested that access to grocery stores may have a rather small influence on child weight.
| S-EPMC7988589 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectivesTo evaluate the effectiveness of widespread adoption of masks or face coverings to reduce community transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.MethodsWe created an agent-based stochastic network simulation using a variant of the standard SEIR dynamic infectious disease model. We considered a mask order that was initiated 3.5 months after the first confirmed COVID-19 case. We varied the likelihood of individuals wearing masks from 0-100% in steps of 20% (mask adherence) and considered 25% to 90% mask-related reduction in viral transmission (mask efficacy). Sensitivity analyses assessed early (by week 13) versus late (by week 42) adoption of masks and geographic differences in adherence (highest in urban and lowest in rural areas).ResultsIntroduction of mask use with 50% efficacy worn by 50% of individuals reduces the cumulative infection attack rate (IAR) by 27%, the peak prevalence by 49%, and population-wide mortality by 29%. If 90% of individuals wear 50% efficacious masks, this decreases IAR by 54%, peak prevalence by 75%, and population-wide mortality by 55%; similar improvements hold if 70% of individuals wear 75% efficacious masks. Late adoption reduces IAR and deaths by 18% or more compared to no adoption. Lower adoption in rural areas than urban would lead to rural areas having the highest IAR.ConclusionsEven after community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has been established, adoption of mask-wearing by a majority of community-dwelling individuals can meaningfully reduce the number and outcome of COVID-19 infections over and above physical distancing interventions.HighlightsThis paper shows the impact of widespread adoption of masks in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with varying levels of population adherence, mask efficacy, and timing of mask adoption.The paper's findings help inform messaging to policymakers at the state or local level considering adding or keeping mask mandates, and to communities to promote widespread adoption of high-quality masks.Adoption of masks by at least half of the population can reduce cumulative infections and population deaths by more than 25%, while decreasing peak prevalence by about 50%. Even greater marginal improvements arise with adoption rates above 70%. The benefits of adopting high-quality masks is above that achieved by mobility changes and distancing alone.Rural and suburban areas are at higher relative risk than urban areas, due to less distancing and lower adoption of masks.
| S-EPMC7852241 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The objective of this study was to test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a store-based dietary education intervention against traditional clinic-based advice. Patients with obesity (n = 55, mean [standard deviation, SD] age 44.3[9.2] years, 64% women, 87% non-Hispanic Black) were randomized to receive dietary counselling either in a grocery store or a clinic. Change between groups (analysis of covariance) was assessed for outcomes including: dietary quality (Healthy Eating Index--2005 [0-100 points]), and nutritional knowledge (0-65-point knowledge scale). Both groups reported improved diet quality at the end of the study. Grocery participants had greater increases in knowledge (mean [SD] change = 5.7 [6.1] points) than clinic participants (mean [SD] change = 3.2 [4.0] points) (P = 0.04). Participants enjoyed the store-based sessions. Grocery store-based visits offer a promising approach for dietary counselling.
| S-EPMC4676909 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We examine how operational changes in customer flows in retail stores affect the rate of COVID-19 transmission. We combine a model of customer movement with two models of disease transmission: direct exposure when two customers are in close proximity and wake exposure when one customer is in the airflow behind another customer. We find that the effectiveness of some operational interventions is sensitive to the primary mode of transmission. Restricting customer flow to one-way movement is highly effective if direct exposure is the dominant mode of transmission. In particular, the rate of direct transmission under full compliance with one-way movement is less than one-third the rate under two-way movement. Directing customers to follow one-way flow, however, is not effective if wake exposure dominates. We find that two other interventions-reducing the speed variance of customers and throughput control-can be effective whether direct or wake transmission is dominant. We also examine the trade-off between customer throughput and the risk of infection to customers, and we show how the optimal throughput rate drops rapidly as the population prevalence rises.
| S-EPMC7980443 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Crystallography is a multidisciplinary field that links divergent areas of mathematics, science and engineering to provide knowledge of life on an atomic scale. Crystal growth, a key component of the field, is an ideal vehicle for education. Crystallization has been used with a 'grocery store chemistry' approach and linked to high-throughput remote-access screening technologies. This approach provides an educational opportunity that can effectively teach the scientific method, readily accommodate different levels of educational experience, and reach any student with access to a grocery store, a post office and the internet. This paper describes the formation of the program through the students who helped develop and prototype the procedures. A summary is presented of the analysis and preliminary results and a description given of how the program could be linked with other aspects of crystallography. This approach has the potential to bridge the gap between students in remote locations and with limited funding, and access to scientific resources, providing students with an international-level research experience.
| S-EPMC3238385 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Grocery stores provide essential services to communities all over the world. The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated better understanding of the transport and dynamics of aerosolized viruses, particularly for the assessment of infection transmission risk within grocery stores and for other providers of essential services. In this study, a 3D computational fluid dynamics model was developed for a medium-sized grocery store in the United States using Ansys Fluent software. Different cases were simulated of a single infected person releasing viral aerosols with and without wearing a face mask. Results showed characteristic airflow and temperature distribution patterns inside the store that can drive the indoor dispersal of viral aerosols. Unsteady spatial distribution of mean age of air was used as a metric to indirectly quantify areas of higher risk of infection. Several factors affected the localization of suspended viral aerosols. Major recirculation patterns in certain locations of the store caused by persistent eddies were primarily attributed to increased mean age of air. The maximum mean age of air in the grocery store was found to be less than 30 min. Simulation results indicate that, without wearing a face mask, the aerosol particles released from a coughing infected person can be spread throughout nearly one-quarter of the grocery store in less than 6 min. The source-control strategy with a face mask showed significant reduction of viral aerosols being dispersed indoors.
| S-EPMC8656192 | biostudies-literature