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Obesity in Pregnancy and its Effects: Utah 1993-2020

Background Obesity is a growing health problem that can adversely affect many aspects of health, including pregnancy. It is a common, serious, and costly disease that is more prevalent in disadvantaged and marginalized groups.1 Along with the many associated public health implications of obesity, some are specifically important in pregnancy and pediatric health, posing a …

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Do Interventions Targeting Women Impact Children’s Health Behaviors?

Abstract Objectives: Women play an important role in promoting healthy eating and physical activity within their households, influencing the current and life-long health behaviors of children. The purpose of this study is to describe changes in fruit/vegetable consumption and physical activity among children living with racially and ethnically diverse women participating in a lifestyle-change intervention. …

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Intellectual Health During Pregnancy

Problem Statement A pregnant person’s brain experiences incredible changes during and after pregnancy. Although there are numerous physical changes to the body during pregnancy, the intellectual changes impact brain structure and are not visibly noticeable. These structural changes related to the domain of intellectual health. Intellectual health includes a pregnant person’s processing and memory abilities …

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Menstrual Cycle’s Effect on Women’s Intellectual Health

Problem Statement Menstruation affects girls and women starting as young as ten years old and can involve various aspects of a girl’s life. Some of the most common symptoms of the menstrual cycle are bloating, bleeding, mood swings, feeling irritable, and more.1 These symptoms vary in intensity and frequency; no two periods are the same. …

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Reproductive Health Literacy Among Adolescent Women in Utah

Problem Statement The adolescent brain is not fully developed until at least 25 years of age.1, 2, 3 This is especially apparent for the parts of the brain that control judgment and impulsiveness.1 As this relates to reproductive health, inadequate reproductive health literacy is a concern for female adolescents ages 12–18 in Utah. If adolescents …

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Women in Post-Secondary Education: Utah Fails to Thrive

Problem Statement This commentary will outline the education levels of women in Utah including trends, failures to progress, and confounding factors. Utah has one of the largest graduate degree gender gaps in the country.1 While the definition of education can be rather subjective, for the purposes of this commentary we will divide educational attainment among …

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Socio-Demographic Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 Illness Severity; Utah, 2020 

Abstract Objectives: To describe differences in COVID-19 illness severity by race, ethnicity, age, and gender in a Utah population-based sample by examining the likelihood of severe outcomes along an expanded illness severity index. Methods: This cross-sectional study uses clinical records of individuals tested for SARS-CoV-2 between March 10, 2020, and July 10, 2020, at University …

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Period Poverty

Problem Statement Period poverty is defined as the inability to access affordable and clean sanitary products, adequate hygiene facilities, and sufficient menstrual hygiene education.1 It also includes the lack of safe and private spaces for cleaning and means for disposal of used menstrual hygiene products.2 Recent estimates show nearly 500 million women and girls globally …

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The Consequences of Menopause on Women’s Cognitive Functioning

Problem Statement All women undergo the menopause transition. According to Mosconi et al, menopause is a “neuro-endocrinological process that impacts aging trajectories of multiple organ systems including the brain.”1 The authors describe how menopause is both a reproductive transition state and a neurological transition “as evidenced by the fact that many menopausal systems are neurological …

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