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Significant Positive Effects (significant + positive_effects)
Selected AbstractsChanges in per capita alcohol sales during the partial privatization of British Columbia's retail alcohol monopoly 2003,2008: a multi-level local area analysisADDICTION, Issue 11 2009Tim Stockwell ABSTRACT Aim To investigate the independent effects on liquor sales of an increase in (a) the density of liquor outlets and (b) the proportion of liquor stores in private rather than government ownership in British Columbia between 2003/4 and 2007/8. Design The British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch provided data on litres of ethanol sold through different types of outlets in 89 local health areas of the province by beverage type. Multi-level regression models were used to examine the relationship between per capita alcohol sales and outlet densities for different types of liquor outlet after adjusting for potential confounding social, economic and demographic factors as well as spatial and temporal autocorrelation. Setting Liquor outlets in 89 local health areas of British Columbia, Canada. Findings The number of private stores per 10 000 residents was associated significantly and positively with per capita sales of ethanol in beer, coolers, spirits and wine, while the reverse held for government liquor stores. Significant positive effects were also identified for the number of bars and restaurants per head of population. The percentage of liquor stores in private versus government ownership was also associated significantly with per capita alcohol sales when controlling for density of liquor stores and of on-premise outlets (P < 0.01). Conclusion The trend towards privatisation of liquor outlets between 2003/04 and 2007/08 in British Columbia has contributed to increased per capita sales of alcohol and hence possibly also to increased alcohol-related harm. [source] The effects of cigarette costs on BMI and obesityHEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2009Article first published online: 4 FEB 200, Charles L. Baum Abstract About 30% of Americans are currently obese, which is roughly a 100% increase from 25 years ago. Public health officials have consequently become alarmed because recent research indicates that societal costs of obesity now exceed those of cigarette smoking and alcoholism. Cigarette taxes may have exacerbated the prevalence of obesity. In 1964, the US Surgeon General issued its first report relating smoking and health, and since that time, federal and state governments have increased cigarette taxes in a successful effort to reduce cigarette smoking. However, because cigarette smoking and obesity seem inversely related, cigarette taxes may have simultaneously increased obesity. This paper examines the effects of cigarette costs on BMI and obesity and finds that they have significant positive effects. This paper attempts to reconcile conflicting evidence in the literature by controlling more carefully for correlation with state-specific time trends using panel data. Results indicate that the net benefit to society of increasing cigarette taxes may not be as large as previously thought, though this research in no way concludes that they should be decreased to prompt weight loss. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Assessing horizontal equity in medication treatment among elderly Mexicans: which socioeconomic determinants matter most?HEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 10 2008Jürgen Maurer Abstract Many low- and middle-income countries are currently undergoing a dramatic epidemiological transition, with an increasing disease burden due to degenerative noncommunicable diseases. Inexpensive medication treatment often represents a cost-effective means to prevent, control or cure many of these health conditions. Using micro-data from the 2001 Mexican Health and Aging Study, we assess horizontal inequity in medication treatment among older Mexicans before the introduction of Popular Health Insurance in Mexico. In doing so, we investigate the role of various dimensions of socioeconomic status for obtaining indicated medication treatment within a comparatively fragmented health-care system that features relatively high out-of-pocket expenditures. Our empirical analysis suggests health insurance coverage as a key socioeconomic determinant of indicated medication use with large and statistically significant positive effects on take-up. The effects of insurance status thereby clearly dominate any other possible effects of socioeconomic status on medication treatment. Our results thus highlight the importance of access to reliable health care and comprehensive coverage for rational medication use in the management of degenerative diseases. In light of this evidence, we expect that recent Mexican health-care reforms, which expand health insurance coverage to the previously uninsured population, will alleviate socioeconomic gradients in medication treatment among older people in need. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The Effect of Community Gardens on Neighboring Property ValuesREAL ESTATE ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2008Ioan Voicu Cities across the United States that have considerable vacant land are debating whether to foster community gardens on that land, while cities with land shortages are debating when to replace gardens with other uses. Meanwhile, many cities are looking for new ways to finance green spaces. Little empirical evidence about the neighborhood impacts of community gardens is available, however, to inform the debate or to help cities design financing schemes. This article estimates the impact of community gardens on neighborhood property values, using rich data for New York City and a difference-in-difference specification of a hedonic regression model. We find that gardens have significant positive effects, especially in the poorest neighborhoods. Higher-quality gardens have the greatest positive impact. [source] Gut passage effect of the introduced red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) on germination of invasive plant species in MauritiusAUSTRAL ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2009JANNIE F. LINNEBJERG Abstract In Mauritius, many of the worst invasive plant species have fleshy fruits and rely on animals for dispersal. The introduced red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) feeds on many fleshy-fruited species, and often moves from invaded and degraded habitats into higher quality native forests, thus potentially acting as a mediator of continued plant invasion into these areas. Furthermore, gut passage may influence seed germination. To investigate this, we fed fleshy fruits of two invasive plant species, Ligustrum robustum and Clidemia hirta, to red-whiskered bulbuls. Gut passage times of seeds were recorded. Gut-passed seeds were sown and their germination rate and germination success compared with that of hand-cleaned seeds, as well as that of seeds in whole fruits. Gut passage and hand-cleaning had significant positive effects on germination of both species. Gut-passed seeds of both C. hirta and L. robustum germinated faster than hand-cleaned seeds. However, for L. robustum, this was only true when compared with hand-cleaned seeds with intact endocarp; when compared with hand-cleaned seeds without endocarp, there was no difference. For overall germination success, there was a positive effect of gut passage for C. hirta, but not for L. robustum. For both C. hirta and L. robustum, no seeds in intact fruits geminated, suggesting that removal of pulp is essential for germination. Our results suggest that, first, the initial invasion of native forests in Mauritius may not have happened so rapidly without efficient avian seed dispersers like the red-whiskered bulbul. Second, the bulbul is likely to be a major factor in the continued re-invasion of C. hirta and L. robustum into weeded and restored conservation management areas. [source] Overview of the relationship between ischemia and congestive heart failureCLINICAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue S4 2000PH.D., Willem J. Remme M.D. Abstract Ischemic heart disease is the principal etiology of heart failure in the Western world. Myocardial ischemia is important in cardiac remodeling, a process that leads to a progressive change in the shape and size of the heart and significantly worsens the prognosis of patients with heart failure. Preventing ischemic events, therefore, is an important goal in the management of patients with coronary artery disease. Statins have been shown to reduce the number of ischemic events in these patients, whereas the benefit of beta-blocker and aldosterone antagonist therapy on ischemic causes of heart failure remains unclear. Several large trials involving patients with asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction after myocardial infarction or heart failure have shown that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors reduce the incidence of progressive heart failure, death, and ischemic events, thus establishing ACE inhibitors as first-line therapy for these patients. Other lines of evidence have suggested that ACE inhibitor therapy may also benefit patients with preserved left ventricular function, a hypothesis that is being evaluated in three large, controlled, randomized trials. One of these trials, the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE) study, was terminated prematurely because it demonstrated the significant positive effects of the ACE inhibitor ramipril on cardiovascular outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease and preserved left ventricular function. A growing body of data confirms the relationship between ischemia and heart failure and the benefits of ACE inhibitor treatment in a broad range of high-risk patients. [source] | ||||||||||