Mark David Walker

Excessive and inappropriate alcohol consumption remains an important public health issue, being associated with a wide range of medical (Pruckner et al., 2019) and social problems (Moss, 2013). The...

Socioeconomic conditions shape cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, yet how patterns of inequality differ across nations remains insufficiently examined. In this cross-sectional study using country‑level indicators related to heart and circulatory problems, income, education and unemployment from the European Social Survey (ESS), we derived standardised prevalence estimates and summary measures of dispersion, including Gini coefficients, to characterise how unevenly heart‑problem prevalence is distributed within each country. The results revealed a distinct East-West gradient with substantial differences between Mediterranean nations which showed lower overall prevalence but greater dispersion in heart‑problem prevalence, whereas Eastern European countries exhibited higher prevalence but more uniform distributions. These findings highlight the complexity of the relationship between socioeconomic conditions and cardiovascular health, and demonstrate the value of social indicators and inequality metrics for understanding population well-being and quality of life across nations.

Today computers are ubiquitous, and both our working and leisure hours are increasingly being spent in sedentary fashion online. Lack of physical activity is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, but few studies examine the link between computer use and health. The European Social Science survey questions as to daily internet use, allowing study of the association with cardiovascular problems. Mean daily internet use was compared between those with self-reported heart and circulation problems and high blood pressure and those without. The nature of the relationship was studied with Generalized Additive Modelling (GAM). There was no difference in mean internet use between those with high blood pressure or heart problems and those without. GAM showed the association between internet use and heart problems alters with age; risk was raised in younger ages, but lower when older. BMI was found to be important in mediating the influence of internet use in the young. Socio-economic factors mediated the age effect. The influence of BMI for young ages suggests a link with weight, activity and diet. For older people, the influence of socio-economic factors suggests that the social and cognitive benefits of internet use may offer protection. There may be a link with higher health literacy and thus better heart health. Internet use should be considered a causative risk factor of itself.

Carbon labeling involves placing written or pictorial information on packaging, menus, or price tags to inform consumers about the carbon (CO2) emissions associated with the entire life cycle of a product or service, thereby empowering them to make environmentally conscious purchasing choices. Various carbon labeling practices are in use, but there is limited understanding about their effectiveness in impacting consumer choice. Method: A preliminary review examining the effectiveness of carbon labeling was conducted by searching major scientific literature databases. Quantitative studies on data on the reduction in CO2 emissions achieved through the provision of carbon labeling of meals were searched and examined. Results: Twelve studies were identified, six utilized computer-based virtual consumer choice simulation and six were conducted in real-world retail environments. Studies utilizing virtual simulations demonstrated potential double-digit reductions in CO2 output, but real-life studies identified far much modest reductions of only 2-5%. Labeling using rating-based systems, such as with traffic lights, was identified as more effective in directing consumer choice. Discussion: This preliminary literature review demonstrates that carbon labeling has the potential to direct consumers toward purchasing lower-carbon emission products. However the relatively small number of studies on this topic indicates the need for further research. Clearly, greater business engagement, and possible government intervention, is needed to advocate for carbon labeling and ensure its wider use. Received: 19 January 2025 | Revised: 21 April 2025 | Accepted: 23 July 2025 Conflicts of Interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to this work. Data Availability Statement Data are available on request from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Author Contribution Statement Håkan Lane: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Writing - original draft, Writing - review and editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project administration. Oksana Pokutnia: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Investigation, Writing - original draft, Visualization. Mark David Walker: Writing - original draft, Writing - review and editing. Jayanna Killingsworth: Conceptualization, Writing - original draft. Michal Valko: Writing - original draft, Writing - review and editing. Ana Rita Farias: Conceptualization, Writing - original draft.

Background & objectives: Although associated with conflict, epidemic typhus was endemic across Europe into the modem period. The extent of the problem it caused is uncertain as record keeping in the most affected socioeconomic groups was rare. Google Ngram Viewer details the frequency of word usage in written language over time. The objective was to examine whether use of the word typhus reflected potential patterns in epidemic typhus. Methods: The frequency of the word ‘typhus’ was used in British English was studied between 1800 and 2019 and trends were examined. Results: Clear differences in word usage were apparent; use increased throughout the 19^th century corresponding to increasing industrialization. Peaks coinciding with World Wars 1 and 2 were apparent. Strong correlations with the words “conflict”, “warfare” and “industry” were seen. Mean shifts corresponded to public health legislation in the UK and the introduction of antibiotics. Interpretation & conclusion: This study illustrates how examination of word usage can illuminate aspects of disease occurrence where official data sources are lacking.

We examined internet searches on psoriasis in Germany and found that in weeks with high search volume, mean temperature and humidity were lower and sunshine level was higher compared to weeks with low search volume.