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Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) represent the foremost cause of mortality worldwide, including Malaysia. In this study, we aim to gauge the level of knowledge, attitudes, and practices on NCDs using a validated questionnaire. A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among the general adult population in selected areas of Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia between October 2017 and February 2018. Of the 486 respondents, 57.4% (279) were from rural communities. The mean age of the respondents was 53.68 (SD:19.69). For both urban and rural respondents, more than half of the respondents showed good knowledge (78.7% vs 69.9%), good attitude (53.1% vs 93.2%), and moderate practice (63.8% vs 54.8%). In bivariate analysis, rural respondents have a significantly higher total attitude [66.01 (SD = 5.049) vs 57.18 (SD = 4.825), p < 0.001] and practice [7.65 (SD = 1.891) vs 7.24 (SD = 1.624), p = 0.013] scores than urban respondents with no significant difference in total knowledge scores. However, rural respondents had lower scores regarding general knowledge on NCDs [5.71 (SD = 2.288) vs 6.35 (SD = 1.587), p = 0.001] and diabetes mellitus diseases [2.91 (1.134) vs 3.24 (0.954), p = 0.001] compared to urban communities. This study identified that even with adequate knowledge, the attitude and practices towards NCDs were unsatisfactory, particularly among urban respondents. Considering the future burden of NCDs management and complication, efforts are needed to assess the factors that decrease the attitude and lifestyle practices in the prevention of NCDs, particularly among the urban community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eurycoma longifolia (EL) has been shown recently to protect against bone calcium loss in orchidectomised rats, the model for androgen-deficient osteoporosis. The mechanism behind this is unclear but it may be related to its ability to elevate testosterone levels or it may directly affect bone remodeling. The aim of this study is to determine the mechanism involved by investigating the effects of EL extract on serum testosterone levels, bone biomarkers, biomechanical strength and gene expression of Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL), Osteoprotegerin (OPG) and Macrophage-Colony Stimulating Factor (MCSF) in orchidectomised rats. Methods: Thirty-two male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into: Sham-operated group (SHAM); orchidectomised-control group (ORX); orchidectomised and given 15 mg/kg EL extract (ORX + EL) and orchidectomised and given 8 mg/kg testosterone (ORX + T). The rats were treated for 6 weeks. The serum levels of testosterone, osteocalcin and C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX) were measured using the ELISA technique. The femoral bones were subjected to biomechanical testing. The tibial bone gene expressions of RANKL, OPG and MCSF were measured using the branch DNA technique. Results: The post-treatment level of testosterone was found to be significantly reduced by orchiectomy (p < 0.05). Both ORX + EL and ORX + T groups have significantly higher post-treatment testosterone levels compared to their pre-treatment levels (p < 0.05). The bone resorption marker (CTx) was elevated after orchiectomy but was suppressed after treatment in the ORX + EL and ORX + T groups (p < 0.05). There was no significant finding for the femoral biomechanical parameters. The tibial OPG gene expression in the ORX group was significantly lower compared to the SHAM and ORX + EL groups (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Supplementation with EL extract elevated the testosterone levels, reduced the bone resorption marker and upregulated OPG gene expression of the orchidectomised rats. These actions may be responsible for the protective effects of EL extract against bone resorption due to androgen deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osteoporosis is considered a silent disease, the early symptoms of which often go unrecognised. Osteoporosis causes bone loss, reduces mineralised density, and inevitably leads to bone fracture. Hormonal deficiencies due to aging or drug induction are also frequently attributed to osteoporosis. Nevertheless, the phytochemical content of natural plants has been proven to significantly reduce osteoporotic conditions. A systematic review was conducted by this study to identify research specifically on the effects of Malaysian herbs such as Piper sarmentosum, Eurycoma longifolia and Labisia pumila on osteoporotic bone changes. This review consisted of a comprehensive search of five databases for the effects of specific herbs on osteoporotic bone change. These databases were Web of Science (WOS), Medline, Scopus, ScienceDirect and PubMed. The articles were selected throughout the years, were limited to the English language and fully documented. Duplication, irrelevant titles, different herbs and in vitro studies were excluded, including those that are not original research papers. A total of 399 potential studies were identified, but only 21 samples were accepted based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Six of the twenty one studies were on Piper sarmentosum, six on Eurycoma longifolia, and the remaining nine studies were on Labisia pumila. Overall, in three of the studies a glucocorticoid-induced model was used, while in 12 of the studies an ovariectomised model was used, and for the other six studies an orchidectomised model was used as the osteoporotic model. All of the studies reported varied results based on the type of herbs used, but in comparison to Eurycoma longifolia, Piper sarmentosum and Labisia pumila recorded better anti-osteoporotic effects, while the majority of studies on Eurycoma longifolia were unable to preserve bone strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]