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Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyse the association between resting heart rate (RHR) and type 2 diabetes and hypertension in Korean adults.Methods: A total of 5124 participants, who participated in the exercise programme at the National Health Promotion Center between 2007 and 2010 (male=904, female=4220) were analysed in this study. Anthropometrics, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP) and RHR were measured, and blood samples were collected after fasting for at least 12 hours.Results: To investigate the association between RHR and metabolic parameters, participants were divided into quartiles. Participants in the fourth quartile (RHR >80 beats per minute (bpm) showed significantly higher systolic and diastolic BP and glucose compared with participants in the first quartile (RHR <69 bpm). When logistic regression analyses were performed, participants in the fourth quartile of RHR had 2.76 times (95% CI 2.03 to 3.77; absolute risk (AR): 12.1% (166/1371)) higher odds of type 2 diabetes and 1.27 times (95% CI 1.04 to 1.55; AR: 22.2% (304/1371)) higher odds of hypertension compared with those in the first quartile of RHR (type 2 diabetes AR: 5.3% (71/1346); hypertension AR: 18.9% (254/1346)). Multiple regression analyses showed that both BMI and RHR were significantly associated with glucose and mean arterial pressure.Conclusions: RHR is significantly associated with type 2 diabetes and hypertension independent of age, gender, BMI, smoking, drinking and family history of disease. RHR in combination with BMI, and multiple linear regression analyses emphasise the importance of the association of RHR with type 2 diabetes and hypertension in Korean adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to identify the factors influencing Korean college students academic success. To address this aim, 46 Korean students, all juniors in their Bachelors of Arts, who earned a GPA of above 4.0/4.3 were interviewed. The interview questions included: What factors relate to your academic success? and What is the most important factor that contributes to successful academic performance? Student responses were analyzed by the program Krkwic (Korean Key Words In Context). The Krkwic program analyzes the narrative data and calculates word frequency to find major themes in the interviews. As a result, the top three concepts that most frequently appeared in the interviews were 1) self-regulation and time management, 2) note taking, and 3) goal orientations. Identifying these factors can be useful for college students, faculties, and higher education administrators in providing a helpful guide that will maximize the chances that college students will be successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of Sagunja-tang on the lipid related disease in a rat model of menopausal hyperlipidemia and lipid accumulation in methyl-β-cyclodextrin-induced HepG2 cells. In in vivo study using menopausal hyperlipidemia rats, Sagunja-tang reduced retroperitoneal and perirenal fat, serum lipids, atherogenic index, cardiac risk factor, media thickness, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis score, when compared to menopausal hyperlipidemia control rats. In HepG2 cells, Sagunja-tang significantly decreased the lipid accumulation, total cholesterol levels, and low-density/very-low-density lipoprotein levels. Moreover, Sagunja-tang reversed the methyl-β-cyclodextrin-induced decrease in the protein levels of critical molecule involved in cholesterol synthesis, sterol regulatory element binding protein-2, and low-density lipoprotein receptor and inhibited protein levels of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase as well as activity Phosphorylation level of AMP-activated protein kinase was stimulated by Sagunja-tang. These results suggest that Sagunja-tang has effect on inhibiting hepatic lipid accumulation through regulation of cholesterol synthesis and AMPK activity in vitro. These observations support the idea that Sagunja-tang is bioavailableboth in vivo and in vitro and could be developed as a preventive and therapeutic agent of hyperlipidemia in postmenopausal females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]