Untangling the conflation of ‘young adults’ and ‘young people’ in STI and sexual health policy and sex education

Young adults, aged 18–30 years, are disproportionally mentioned in sexually transmissible infection surveillance data both in Australia and internationally. This contributes to categorising young adults as an ‘at risk’ group in health policy. How young adults are framed in policy, and what informs this, have direct implications for policy priorities and responses, including the development of health promotion programmes. In this paper, we provide a case study of Australia’s National Strategies for Blood Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmissible Infections from 2005 to 2017. We identify how ‘young adults’ as a population are masked by, and subsumed within, the broader category of ‘young people’ within these strategies. As a result, young adults become framed by default as a ‘risk category’ that requires education to correct its deficits, regardless of personal experience. For health promotion to advocate, mediate and enable better sexual health outcomes, a policy environment is needed that reflects the changing social and cultural contexts and sexual independence that young adults experience. Sexual health policies should reflect the complexity and opportunities of young adulthood if we are to offer an enabling policy environment for innovative and nuanced health promotion strategies, including adult appropriate health education.     

Melatonin therapy for blunt trauma and strenuous exercise: A mechanism involving cytokines,NFκB,Akt, MAFBX and MURF-1

Muscle injury occurs due to trauma, strenuous exercise or sports activities; most people affected are athletes. Ineffectively treated muscle injury can negatively affect sports careers and quality of life after retirement from sports. Reports have indicated that the current therapeutic management of muscle injury, particularly anti-inflammatory drugs, are not necessarily effective. Therefore, better therapies are required. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated melatonin’s potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions against muscle pathology in sarcopenia or atrophy in systemic disease. However, the underlying mechanisms for the protective effect of melatonin in the context of trauma/strenuous exercise are multifactorial and not well described. This paper reviews data on melatonin’s impact on muscle injury and findings that points toward the mechanisms through which melatonin achieves muscle protection. The general concept described in this review is that melatonin inhibits NFκB, reduces cytokine expression, increases Akt that downregulates the ratio of MAF_BX and MURF-1 in order to limit the extent of muscle injury and promote muscle recovery post-injury. The work discussed in this review supports the notion that melatonin may be considered a possible therapy against trauma/sports related muscle injury. Inclusion of melatonin as a therapy in sports medicine could therefore provide a better treatment option for injured athletes and sports individuals.     

Different durations within the method of best practice affect the parameters of the speed–duration relationship

The aim of the study was to determine whether estimates of the speed–duration relationship are affected using different time-trial (TT) field-based testing protocols, where exhaustive times were located within the generally recommended durations of 2–15?min. Ten triathletes (mean?±?SD age: 31.0?±?5.7?years; height: 1.81?±?0.05?m; body mass: 76.5?±?6.8?kg) performed two randomly assigned field tests to determine critical speed (CS) and the total distance covered above CS (D?). CS and D? were obtained using two different protocols comprising three TT that were interspersed by 60?min passive rest. The TTs were 12, 7, and 3?min in Protocol I and 10, 5, and 2?min in Protocol II. A linear relationship of speed vs. the inverse of time (s?=?D??×?1/t?+?CS) was used to determine parameter estimates. Significant differences were found for CS (p?=?0.026), but not for D? (p?=?0.123). The effect size for CS (d?=?0.305) was considered small, while that for D? was considered moderate (d?=?0.742). CS was significantly correlated between protocols (r?=?0.934; p?D? (r?=?0.053; p?=?0.884). The 95% limits of agreement were ±0.28m?s^?1 and ±73.9?m for CS and D?, respectively. These findings demonstrate that the choice of exhaustive times within commonly accepted durations results in different estimates of CS and D?, and thus protocols cannot be used interchangeably. The use of a consistent protocol is therefore recommended, when investigating or monitoring the speed–duration relationship estimates in well-trained athletes.     

Audience support and choking under pressure: a home disadvantage?

This paper highlights the not-so-obvious but compelling reasons why the same supportive audiences that can help performers attain their highest potential also may increase performers' risk of choking under pressure. Drawing primarily from social psychology research and theory, we conclude that audience support magnifies performance pressure and induces performers to avoid failure rather than seek success during the most critical moments of performance contests. Although supportive audiences can inspire performers to excel when motivation would otherwise be lacking, audiences may also lead performers towards maladaptive self-monitoring and overcautiousness when the stakes are highest. The increased self-focus that supportive audiences induce can disrupt the automatic execution of the skills performers possess. Dispositional and situational moderators of the relationship between audience support and performance are reviewed.     

Developing an interdisciplinary collaboration center in an academic Health Sciences Library

This article describes the evolution of the Health Sciences Library's plans for an interdisciplinary, technology-enhanced collaboration center, from a technology-driven space to one with a vision of support for peer-to-peer learning and research. The center offers an exciting opportunity to be an essential partner in collaborative and interdisciplinary programs such as the new Carolina Center for Exploratory Genetic Analysis. The Library is a centrally located and neutral place, which helps minimize geographical and territorial obstacles to effective collaboration. The collaboration center raises the Library's visibility and allows staff to demonstrate the value of knowledge resources, services, technology expertise, infrastructure, and facilities for group study and collaboration.