Volume 18 No.4 April, 2012

EMHJ is pleased to announce the publication of the April issue, Volume 18 Number 4. World Health Day on 7 April 2012 focused on ageing and health with the theme “Good health adds life to years”. As many health problems in older age result from unhealthy lifestyles in earlier life (e.g. smoking, unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle), it is important to understand and, if necessary, change the habits of the young; a paper from Damascus assessed the dietary patterns and oral health in schoolchildren and showed that consumption of healthy food groups was low, whereas consumption of sugars was high. Mental health is an integral part of health across the life course and it is important to have appropriate diagnostic tools. A study from Egypt reports on a reliable and valid Arabic version of the Major Depression Inventory, a brief tool for assessing the presence of a depressive disorder. The work environment and behaviours at work can significantly affect both mental and physical health as found by studies from Jordan and Egypt. Psychiatric problems increase the risk of suicide and an Iranian study determined mental health issues and suicidal behaviour in adolescent prisoners; it found that 70% of them had at least one current psychiatric disorder and 12% had attempted suicide, suggesting a need to screen adolescent offenders for such disorders.