Eating patterns and dyslipidemia in adolescents from a capital in northeastern Brazil: A causal inference analysis Bruna Renata Fernandes Pires, Cecília Cláudia Ribeiro, Ana Karina Teixeira da Cunha França, Elisa Santos Magalhães Rodrigues, Janete Daniel de Alencar Alves, et al. Nutrition and Health, 2026 Purpose: To analyze the association between dietary patterns and dyslipidemia in adolescents. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted with 363 adolescents of both genders, aged 17–18 years, from public schools in Sao Luis, in the state of Maranhão, Brazil. Adolescents with alteration in at least one of the following conditions were considered to have dyslipidemia: total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL-c), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-c), triglycerides (TG), Castelli I and II Indices, and non-HDL-c. Food consumption was assessed through the food frequency questionnaire, and dietary patterns were identified using the principal component analysis. The directed acyclic graph was elaborated to select the variables that were controlled in the analysis of the effect of dietary patterns on dyslipidemias, and the final sample of the study was weighted by the inverse probability of selection for these variables, using a doubly robust method. Results: Adolescents were 17.3 ± 0.5 years, mostly women (55.6%), brown (66.6%), with one to three minimum wages (38.3%), and maternal education from 8 to 12 years (46.4%). Three dietary patterns were identified: Western, Healthy, and Traditional. Most adolescents had dyslipidemia, and inadequate HDL-c levels were the main dyslipidemia found (44.9%). There was no significant difference in the occurrence of dyslipidemia among the three dietary patterns identified (healthy: −0.015; CI: −0.11; 0.08; p = 0.773; traditional: 0.04; CI: −0.06; 0.13; p = 0.542; Western: −0.064, CI: −0.16; 0.03; p = 0.201). Conclusions: The prevalence of dyslipidemia is high among adolescents from one city in a poor Brazilian region, but it was not explained by the dietary patterns identified in this study.
Low socioeconomic status, insulin resistance, asthma, and depression: A syndemic framework in Brazilian adolescents Aline Sousa Falcão, Lorena Lúcia Costa Ladeira, Susilena Arouche Costa, Rosângela Fernandes Lucena Batista, Claudia Maria Coelho Alves, et al. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 2026 Background Adolescence is a critical developmental stage during which environmental, metabolic, and psychosocial factors co‐occur and may interact, influencing health and creating a syndemic context that remains insufficiently explored. Objective We analyzed a syndemic model, considering socioeconomic determinants and metabolic risk associated with asthma and depression in adolescents. Methods This population‐based study ( n = 2515) utilized data from the RPS Brazilian Consortium Cohorts at follow‐up of 18–19 years in São Luís, Brazil. A theoretical model analyzed the association among socioeconomic determinants, metabolic risk, asthma, and depression using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Low Socioeconomic Status was a distal determinant. The metabolic risk included the TG/HDL ratio, as an insulin resistance marker, as well as obesity. Asthma was a latent variable based on wheezing, asthma history, medical diagnosis, and frequency of wheezing. Depression was diagnosed based on major and recurrent episodes using the M.I.N.I. Results Low socioeconomic status was associated with higher insulin resistance precursor (TG/HDL ratio) (standardized coefficient, SC = 0.064; p = .027) and with higher levels of depression (SC = 0.084; p = .001). Higher insulin resistance precursor was associated with asthma (SC = 0.069; p = .042). Asthma was associated with depression (SC = 0.078; p < .001). Lower insulin resistance precursor levels were observed in girls (SC = −0.254; p < .001); meanwhile, obesity (SC = 0.124; p < .001) and depression (SC = 0.165; p < .001) had higher values for them. Conclusion Our findings underscore interconnected issues of low socioeconomic status, metabolic risk, asthma, and depression in adolescents. Recognizing the syndemic framework can lead to more effective health policies to prevent long‐term physical and mental health consequences.
Intersectionalities in primary health care during the COVID-19 pandemic: work, gender, and class Francisca Laura Ferreira de Sousa Alves, Ruth Helena de Souza Britto Ferreira de Carvalho, Douglas Moraes Campos, Francenilde Silva de Sousa, Erika Bárbara Abreu Fonseca Thomaz, et al. Interface Communication Health Education, 2026 O estudo analisou os desafios laborais (profissional e doméstico) enfrentados por profissionais da Atenção Primária à Saúde durante a Covid-19, utilizando abordagem interseccional. Foram realizados seis grupos focais com 42 profissionais, resultando em duas categorias empíricas. "Se vira nos 30 na UBS", revelou a sobrecarga de trabalho especialmente para mulheres. As hierarquias profissionais modificaram as experiências de trabalho. As médicas mantiveram suas funções exclusivas como enfermeiras e agentes comunitárias e assumiram também funções operacionais. "Malabarismo na segunda jornada", destacou o aumento das responsabilidades domésticas para todas as mulheres, independentemente da profissão ou da condição de classe. As articulações entre classe social e gênero mostraram que, no espaço profissional, as diferenças de classe se traduziram em hierarquia; no doméstico, produziram desigualdades na distribuição do cuidado. A crise social e sanitária global não alterou a naturalização de opressões nas relações de gênero e classe.
Low Birth Weight and Bruxism Among Brazilian Children: A Prospective Cohort Study Erika Bárbara Abreu Fonseca Thomaz, Elisa Miranda Costa, Érica Martins Valois, Magda Lyce Rodrigues Campos, Cecília Cláudia Costa Ribeiro, et al. Journal of Oral Rehabilitation, 2026 BackgroundBruxism in childhood is a multifactorial condition, involving socioeconomic status (SES), psychological conditions and lifestyle habits capable of acting, interacting or mediating the development of oral health outcomes. The link between perinatal factors, like low birth weight (LBW) and bruxism remains unclear. Identifying early risk factors may offer a key opportunity for intervention.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effects of LBW on bruxism in childhood, considering adjustment for SES and mediation by exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for 6 months, pacifier use and mental health problems.MethodsThis Brazilian prospective cohort included 673 live birth children followed up at 7–9 years old. LBW (< 2500 g) was obtained from the medical record after childbirth. Bruxism was reported by the children's parents/guardians as the habit (current or previous) of clenching or grinding teeth during the day or night. The analyses used structural equation modelling, estimating standardised coefficients (SC) (α = 5%).ResultsLBW showed a total (SC = 0.199; p = 0.045) and direct effect (SC = 0.207; p = 0.037) on childhood bruxism. EBF had a direct effect (SC = −0.190; p = 0.043) and an indirect effect on bruxism, mediated by pacifier use (SC = 0.082; p = 0.028). The construct showed all adequate (SC > 0.3) and significant (p< 0.001).ConclusionLBW is a potential risk factor for bruxism in childhood, but this relationship is not explained by EBF, pacifier use or mental health problems. Shorter EBF duration and pacifier use are direct risk factors for bruxism in schoolchildren. Prevention should focus on prenatal care, promoting EBF for 6 months and avoiding pacifier use.
Dental Caries and Systemic Inflammation in Adolescents: Findings from a Population-Based Study Susilena Arouche Costa, Cecilia Claudia Costa Ribeiro, Aretha Lorena Fonseca Cantanhede Carneiro, Luciano Tavares Ângelo Cintra, Cláudia Maria Coelho Alves, et al. Caries Research, 2026 Introduction: Dental caries, the most prevalent noncommunicable disease (NCD) in adolescence, may represent a hidden link to systemic inflammatory processes, a common underlying mechanism shared by all major NCDs. Accordingly, this study investigated whether dental caries was associated with systemic inflammatory burden in adolescents. Methods: This population-based study utilized data from the RPS Brazilian Birth Cohort Consortium, specifically the 18–19-year follow-up conducted in São Luís, Brazil (n = 441). The main exposures included the visible plaque index (VPI), number of decayed teeth, DMFT index (decayed, missing, and filling), and PUFA index. The outcome was the allostatic inflammatory load, calculated as the sum of biomarkers – IL-6, IL-18, IL-1β, TNF-α, and C-reactive protein (CRP) – that fell within the high-risk range (≥75th percentile of the sample distribution). Each biomarker contributed one point, resulting in a total score ranging from 0 to 5. Crude and adjusted coefficients were estimated using regression models. Results: The number of decayed teeth (β = 0.031, p = 0.015) and the VPI (β = 0.006, p = 0.001) were positively associated with higher allostatic inflammatory load scores. Among individual biomarkers, both the number of decayed teeth (β = 8.95, SE = 4.09, p = 0.02) and the VPI (β = 1.09, SE = 0.50, p = 0.03) were positively associated with IL-18 levels, whereas no significant associations were observed for the DMFT or PUFA indices (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Dental caries was associated with systemic inflammation in adolescence, possibly reflecting shared underlying risk factors and highlighting the relevance of integrating oral health into strategies addressing common risk factors for non-communicable diseases.
Factors associated with the occurrence of upright birth in Brazil Carlos Martins Neto, Cleber Lopes Campelo, Janielle Ferreira de Brito Lima, Karla Danielle Silva Marques Mendes, Leandro Saldanha Nunes Mouzinho, et al. Revista Brasileira De Epidemiologia, 2022
Systemic alterations and their oral manifestations in pregnant women Camilla Silva de Araujo Figueiredo, Cíntia Gonçalves Carvalho Rosalem, Andre Luis Costa Cantanhede, Érika Bárbara Abreu Fonseca Thomaz, Maria Carmen Fontoura Nogueira da Cruz Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research, 2017
