Latest research.
A closer look at everyday life.

Authors: Han Zhang, Muhizam Mustafa, Zihao Cao, Yongchun Mao, Karima Hussein Abdulhaleem Hemida, Xiaomei Song

In the ongoing efforts of architectural heritage renovation, ornamental motifs serve not only as aesthetic embellishments but also as carriers of cultural symbolism. However, how their visual perception influences public aesthetic judgments and conservation intentions remains underexplored. This study focuses on two types of culturally embedded motifs – the native Chinese dragon and the imported lion – and examines their impact under two visual forms (2D and 3D) within a 2 × 2 experimental framework. A combination of eye-tracking measures and questionnaire assessments was employed with a sample of 80 participants to investigate the effects of iconographic category and visual form on four dependent variables: aesthetic pleasure, conservation intention, fixation time, and time to first fixation. Results revealed significant main effects of both iconographic category and visual form across all outcome variables. Notably, significant interactions were found in conservation intention and time to first fixation. This study advances understanding of how iconographic meaning and visual form jointly shape visual attention, aesthetic evaluation, and conservation intention in architectural heritage contexts.

Source: PLOS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0359522. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Siavash Shirzadeh Barough, Behnam Saeidi, Fateme Binayi, Mina Salimi, Fatemeh Siavoshi, Roxana Karbaschi, Mehdi Hedayati, Homeira Zardooz

Early life stress (ELS) significantly contributes to metabolic and psychological disorders by triggering oxidative stress and disrupting the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis. This research examined ELS effects on redox status, along with anxiety-like behavior, in adolescent male Wistar rats, also assessing saffron (Crocus sativus L.) extract’s potential benefits. Rats were exposed to foot shock stress from postnatal days 15–19, with treatment groups receiving saline or saffron extract (10 mg/kg) via intraperitoneal injection. Control groups were maintained without stress exposure. Elevated Plus Maze (EPM) and Open Field Test (OFT) were used to evaluate anxiety-like behaviors. Corticosterone, glucose, and insulin levels, oxidative stress markers [malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH), and catalase activity] in the plasma, pancreas, and amygdala were determined, and the HOMA-β index was estimated. Saffron extract markedly restored ELS effects by reducing fasting plasma glucose and corticosterone levels, while increasing insulin levels and the HOMA-β index in adolescent offspring. Additionally, saffron extract inhibited oxidative stress, evidenced by reduced MDA, normalized catalase activity, and augmented GSH levels in the plasma, pancreas, and amygdala. Behaviorally, saffron extract-treated rats exhibited diminished anxiety-like behaviors, characterized by increased time spent in the open arms of the EPM and the center zone in the OFT. This study suggests that ELS induces disturbances in glucose metabolism and anxiety-like behavior, accompanied by oxidative stress and increased HPA axis activity. The protective role of saffron extract underscores its capability to serve as a medicinal compound for preventing and treating stress-induced metabolic and anxiety disorders.

Source: PLOS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0359395. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Soarov Chakra Borty, Maiya G. Block Ngaybe, Angela E. Apeagyei, Divya Bhagianadh, Monica H. Swahn, Nazmus Sakib

Dementia is a growing public health challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where population aging is expected to substantially increase the regional burden of dementia in the coming decades. Rapidly changing demographics, underdeveloped health infrastructure, and limited awareness of dementia symptoms and care pathways contribute to delayed diagnosis, treatment, and care. This scoping review examined literature published from 2021 to 2025 to identify gaps in dementia care across four key domains: environmental and social factors, technological capacity, community-based caregiving, and financial and economic factors. First, social and ecological factors, including low health literacy, rural residence, and weak primary care infrastructure, influence disease diagnosis and access to care. Second, technological capacity remains limited, including scarce access to neuroimaging and diagnostic tools, limited telemedicine coverage, weak electronic health information systems, and insufficient digital health solutions for early detection, management, and monitoring. Third, evidence from community-based care highlights heavy reliance on informal caregivers who often lack training and institutional support, resulting in substantial emotional, physical, and financial burden. Finally, inadequate public financing for dementia care, coupled with limited insurance coverage, further restricts access to dementia care services and support. Overall, this review highlights critical gaps in policy, evidence generation, cost-effective technology investment, caregiver support, and health systems strengthening across all levels of care. Addressing these multidimensional challenges is crucial to improving the quality of life for people living with dementia and their caregivers across SSA.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0007265. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Joyce Aputere Ndago, Paul Adjorlolo, Martin Nyaaba Adokiya, Micheal Boah

Access to and use of improved water sources and sanitation facilities in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) remains a significant public health concern, with notable variations across countries. Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals related to water and sanitation require evidence on current levels of access and factors that shape them. This study examined household access to and use of improved water sources and sanitation facilities, as well as the determinants of their use in SSA. Demographic and Health Survey data from 465,208 households across 30 SSA countries conducted between 2014 and 2025 was used for this study. Descriptive analyses examined access levels. Multivariable Poisson regression with robust variance was used to identify the factors associated with reported use. Overall, 76.3% of households had access to and use of improved water sources, 56.7% had access to improved toilets, and 35.4% had access to basic sanitation facilities (unshared improved toilet facilities), with wide variations across countries. Significant factors associated with access and use of improved toilet and sanitation facilities included wealth and residence, while educational attainment was significantly associated with access to and use of improved water sources. The findings highlight that disparities in access to water and sanitation exist in the SSA region, with household wealth, place of residence, and education significantly associated with households’ access and use of improved water sources and sanitation facilities. Governments in SSA should prioritize improving access to water and sanitation, particularly in underserved areas. Additionally, targeted strategies are needed to address disparities driven by socioeconomic and demographic factors.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0006195. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Mmeli Dube, Fiona Anciano, Alesia D. Ofori, Lindokuhle Mabaso, Dani J. Barrington

Container based sanitation (CBS) is marketed as an innovative ‘improved’ service with potential to provide ‘safely managed’ sanitation for people living in low resource settings. Yet little research has investigated this claim regarding the most marginalised individuals within these populations, many of whom experience myriad intersectional vulnerabilities. This paper examines and compares whether household CBS (in the form of portable flush toilets, PFTs) and shared sanitation users in a South African informal settlement are able to realise their Human Right to Sanitation (HRtS). Thirteen residents of BM Section, Cape Town, were purposively selected to understand how sanitation service types, age, gender, (dis)ability, income and personal shocks shape experiences. Data was collected using Photovoice and analysed using Winkler’s interpretation of the normative contents of the HRtS and Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality. In this context, the adoption of household CBS and its ability to function as a private, dignified, safe (hygienic and physical) form of sanitation depends on users’ capacity to adapt it to overcome the technology’s limitations. Users with limited or no capacity to adapt their PFTs face limitations in accessing sanitation safely, privately and with dignity. This in turn, worsens disparities in sanitation outcomes among vulnerable PFT users, underscoring that technical provision alone is insufficient to realise the HRtS. Shared sanitation remains functionally limited or unsafe for many. When the HRtS and intersectionality are considered, household CBS may have the potential to be ‘safely managed’ in theory, but in reality, barely meets the needs of the most vulnerable users.

Source: PLOS Water. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pwat.0000524. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Nikita Surani, Nathalia Carolina Fernandes Fagundes, Harmanpreet Kaur, Rebecca Gokiert, Arnaldo Perez-Garcia, Maryam Amin

Children experience significant oral health problems, compromising learning and quality of life. Schools are effective in promoting children’s overall health, within which oral health can be integrated. This scoping review aimed to map integration of oral health within primary school health programs. The review was guided by Arksey and O’Malley’s framework and adhered to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extensions for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis was referred to for data extraction. A systematic search was performed across six databases with no restrictions on dates and locations. The review included 31 articles published between 1981 and 2025. Over 70% studies were concentrated exclusively in high-income and upper-middle income regions. Quantitative methods were reported in twenty-one studies. All studies reported programs targeting children. Only 12 included parents or guardians, mostly as passive recipients. Most common intervention delivery agents were teachers, identified in 25 studies. Unhealthy diet and poor hygiene were frequently targeted common risk factors, identified in 18 and 11 studies respectively. Tobacco use, stress, and injury were largely overlooked. Twenty-seven studies reported activity-based learning to promote general health. Classroom education, followed by interest holder engagement and structured toothbrushing were used to promote oral health, focusing on student skill-building and empowerment, alongside teacher involvement. None of the studies applied integration-specific or implementation science frameworks or models. Twenty-six studies assessed child-level oral health outcomes. In contrast, only seven reported changes in knowledge, attitudes, and practices among educators and parents. Ten reported program-related outcomes. Structured programs engaging children, targeting risk factors related to hygiene and diet alongside interest holder engagement and curriculum integration hold promise. This review highlights the need for theoretically informed, comprehensive, policy-focused, multi-level, multi-risk factor approaches to support sustainable integration of oral health into school health programs.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0007390. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: L. Marcela Montilla Rodríguez, Jorge Alejandro Obando Bastidas, Hugo Andrés Rodríguez Fajardo, Astrid Magaly Mora López, Shirley Viviana Tique Aragón, Dora Patricia Rozo Cruz, Edgar Calderón Vega, Norma Cristina Pavas Escobar, Laura Nathalia Obando Vargas, Jean Paul Farfán, Marina Sthella Gonzalez Robayo

Food safety is an important component of global public health, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to identify factors associated with microbiological non-compliance in ready-to-eat (RTE) foods using seven years of official surveillance data from the Colombian Orinoquía region. RTE foods were defined as foods intended for immediate consumption without additional cooking or thermal processing. A retrospective analysis was conducted on 1,868 samples collected between 2017 and 2023, of which 1,846 were included in inferential analyses. Microbiological non-compliance, defined as failure to meet at least one regulatory microbiological criterion, was the primary outcome. Associations were assessed using multivariable logistic regression, complemented by descriptive and exploratory analyses, including heatmaps and principal component analysis. Microbiological non-compliance was identified in 39.5% of the evaluated samples. Hygiene indicators predominated, particularly total coliforms (29.0%), aerobic mesophilic bacteria (12.7%), and Escherichia coli (12.3%), whereas foodborne pathogens were infrequently detected. Raw or highly handled foods had higher odds of microbiological non-compliance than thermally processed foods (OR = 8.40; 95% CI: 6.59–10.72). Higher odds were also observed for samples from rural or dispersed municipalities (OR = 1.31; 95% CI: 1.01–1.70) and samples collected in 2020 (OR = 1.78; 95% CI: 1.16–2.74). Exploratory analyses revealed heterogeneous microbiological profiles across temporal, territorial, operational, and food-related dimensions, with a consistent predominance of hygiene indicators. Overall, microbiological non-compliance was mainly associated with food matrix type, territorial characteristics, and sampling year. The predominance of hygiene indicators supports incorporating hygienic quality and process control alongside pathogen detection into microbiological surveillance. These findings provide evidence to support risk-based food safety surveillance and targeted prioritization strategies in tropical low- and middle-income settings.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0006492. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Edmund Yirenkyi

This study examines how communities in Atlantic Canada recognize, value, and integrate local knowledge into climate change adaptation, focusing on the enabling and constraining roles of funding, governance, and institutional structures. Guided by the Socio-Ecological Systems (SES) framework, the research forms part of a larger transdisciplinary project on collaborative governance in financing climate adaptation and mitigation. Using qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews with municipal representatives, NGOs, funders, and community leaders, and participant observation, the study identifies both barriers and opportunities for embedding local knowledge in adaptation planning. Findings reveal that local knowledge is central to building climate resilience, not peripheral. Communities achieve the strongest climate action outcomes when flexible, multi-year funding is paired with supportive local policies, collaborative governance, and mechanisms for co-producing knowledge with technical experts. Successful examples emphasize grassroots project design, participatory governance, and place-based approaches tailored to community priorities. However, systemic barriers, including rigid, short-term funding programs, top-down policy frameworks, and bureaucratic institutional requirements, continue to limit the consistent and equitable use of local knowledge. From an SES perspective, the most effective adaptation strategies emerge from feedback loops between community experience, institutional support, and environmental change. The study concludes that policy shifts are needed to institutionalize long-term, locally controlled funding, formalize community participation in decision-making, and embed equity-centered, co-productive approaches into adaptation frameworks. Such measures would move beyond symbolic acknowledgment of local knowledge toward its substantive integration, ensuring climate action that is adaptive, context-specific, and grounded in the lived realities of Atlantic Canadian communities.

Source: PLOS Sustainability and Transformation. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pstr.0000291. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Basil H. Aboul-Enein, Suha Ballout, Patricia J. Kelly

Maternal mental health (MMH) remains a critical public health issue across Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Despite the high burden, access to culturally appropriate and evidence-based mental health interventions remains limited. This scoping review examines interventions targeting mental health outcomes for pregnant and postpartum women across SSA countries. Guided by PRISMA-ScR and Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, a comprehensive search was conducted across 14 electronic databases for peer-reviewed intervention studies published in English between 2000 and March 2026. A total of 57 studies across 18 SSA countries were identified with interventions primarily focused on the individual or mother-infant level. The majority used strong research methods, with widely varying intervention content, including cognitive-behavioral therapy, problem-solving therapy, psychoeducation, and community-based programs, often delivered by community health workers, focusing on problem-solving skills, and involving cash transfers. While most studies reported reductions in depressive symptoms and improved psychosocial outcomes, few addressed scalability, health system integration, or cost-effectiveness. Few studies worked with health professionals or included technology interventions. A wide range of mental health interventions show promise in addressing perinatal mental health in SSA. However, gaps remain in scaling up sustainable, culturally relevant, and system-integrated interventions. Future efforts should prioritize provider education, health system strengthening, and evaluation of economic impact to enhance MMH outcomes across the region. To have a significant impact on perinatal mental health, future interventions that focus on cost-effectiveness, scalability, health professions education, and integration of technology are needed.

Source: PLOS Mental Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmen.0000739. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Nicholas Yee Liang Hing, Yew Kong Lee, Hyung Joon Kim, Nurhyikmah M. Lothfi, Elizabeth Wong, Joan Costa-Font

The COVID-19 infodemic highlighted the need to identify the extent to which health information messengers were perceived as reliable by the public in supporting effective public health communication. A question that remains is whether there are differences across ethnic groups in information processing. This study examines the perceived reliability of three formal sources (healthcare workers, scientists, and non-governmental organisations [NGOs]) and four informal sources (religious leaders, community leaders, interpersonal sources, and influencers) among Malaysia’s multi-ethnic population through a cross-sectional online survey conducted between April and June 2021. Logistic regression was used to identify the perceived reliability of different information sources in steering vaccination intentions. We further examine the extent to which there were ethnic differences in the perceived reliability of these sources across education levels and age groups. Adjusted predicted probabilities were estimated to illustrate these differences. Among 5,784 participants, formal sources were consistently perceived as the most reliable across all ethnic groups and, together with community leaders, were identified as the main information sources influencing vaccination intention. We find large predicted probabilities of perceiving healthcare workers and scientists as reliable across most groups (≥ 80%), except among Indigenous groups who exhibit lower education attainment and are older (≤ 78%). Across education levels and age groups, Indians and Chinese exhibit higher predicted probabilities of perceiving NGOs as reliable, averaging approximately 80% and 75%, respectively, compared with approximately 65–70% among Malays and Indigenous groups. In contrast, predicted probabilities of perceiving community leaders as reliable were moderate across all ethnicities at the lowest education level and youngest age group (45 – 55%). This pattern remained relatively stable across higher education levels and age groups among Malays and Indigenous groups, but generally decreased among Chinese and Indian respondents. These results suggest that healthcare workers and scientists ought to remain central to health communication strategies, while NGOs and community leaders may play complementary roles. Multi-messenger approaches may enhance the effectiveness of public health responses during health crises.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0007397. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Pooja Yerramilli, Mickey Chopra

Global health is facing unprecedented upheaval, with significant donor disruptions requiring a reconfiguration of the global health landscape. While recently proposed frameworks for the next phase of global health represent meaningful progress in grappling with this context, their central weakness is not technical but normative. In this Essay, we argue that if the new global health architecture is defined without meaningful interrogation of its central purpose, then the system will reproduce the very problems it aims to solve. On the other hand, explicitly centering health equity as the organizing principle of the new “global health” brings to the foreground the shared struggles and movements of marginalized communities worldwide. In doing so, it demands a more fundamental, global reckoning with the structural determinants – politics and power - that produce ill health across and within countries. From this logic flows substantive shifts in global health functions, predicated on a social-ecological model: from substitution to mutual aid; from technical assistance to knowledge sharing; from global public goods to multisectoral common goods for all; and from mechanisms that facilitate global coordination to ones that also critically address the distribution of power and resources.

Source: PLOS Global Public Health. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0007379. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.

Authors: Lauren D’Mello-Guyett, Neelina Jaggarwal, Jane Wilbur, Belen Torondel, Meghna Ranganathan

Menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) encompasses access to menstrual materials; water, sanitation, and disposal facilities; privacy and safety; accurate information; supportive social environments; access to care for menstrual discomfort and disorders; enabling people to manage menstruation with dignity and choice. Climate change is disrupting these interlinked domains, disproportionately affecting women, girls, and people who menstruate. This review synthesises evidence on how climate change affects MHH across diverse climate hazard contexts. We conducted a global mixed-methods systematic review of studies published in English between 1947 and 2025, examining associations between climate-related hazards and MHH. We conducted searches in Medline, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science. Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods studies were eligible. Given the heterogeneity in exposures, outcomes, and designs, findings were synthesised narratively. From 3,890 records, 25 studies met inclusion criteria, covering floods (n = 7), air pollution (n = 6), cyclones (n = 3), droughts (n = 3), saltwater intrusion (n = 3), and multiple hazards (n = 4). Flood- and cyclone-related studies reported disrupted access to menstrual materials, damaged water and sanitation infrastructure, reduced privacy and safety, limited access to care for menstrual disorders, and unsupportive social environments characterised by stigma and restricted mobility. Drought and salinity intrusion constrained hygiene practices through reduced water availability and quality, affecting comfort, dignity, and infection risk. Across hazards, studies documented adverse physical outcomes, including dermatological irritation and reproductive or urinary tract infections, alongside psychosocial consequences such as shame, anxiety, and harassment. Air pollution studies linked exposures with earlier menarche and menstrual cycle irregularities. Evidence on extreme heat and several MHH domains, including access to information, was limited. Climate-related hazards undermine multiple, interconnected domains of MHH. The evidence base remains fragmented across hazards, geographies, methods, underscoring the need to integrate MHH into climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, and humanitarian response frameworks and to address critical research gaps related to extreme heat, slow-onset hazards, and equity.

Source: PLOS Climate. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pclm.0001083. Abstract from the publisher’s feed; HTML formatting and repeated author line removed.