University of Saskatchewan

About: University of Saskatchewan is a education organization based out in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Health care. The organization has 25021 authors who have published 52579 publications receiving 1483049 citations. The organization is also known as: USask.

Season and Ethnicity Are Determinants of Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations in New Zealand Children Aged 5–14 y

Abstract: New Zealand children, particularly those of Māori and Pacific ethnicity, may be at risk for low vitamin D status because of low vitamin D intakes, the country's latitude (35-46 degrees S), and skin color. The aim of this study was to determine 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and their determinants in a national sample of New Zealand children aged 5-14 y. The 2002 National Children's Nutrition Survey was designed to survey New Zealand children, including oversampling of Māori and Pacific children to allow ethnic-specific analyses. A 2-stage recruitment process occurred using a random selection of schools, and children within each school. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration [mean (99% CI) nmol/L] in Māori children (n = 456) was 43 (38,49), in Pacific (n = 646) 36 (31,42), and in New Zealand European and Others (NZEO) (n = 483) 53 (47,59). Among Māori, Pacific, and NZEO, the prevalence (%, 99% CI) of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency (<17.5 nmol/L) was 5 (2,12), 8 (5,14), and 3 (1,7), respectively. The prevalence of insufficiency (<37.5 nmol/L) was 41 (29,53), 59 (42,75), and 25 (15,35), respectively. Multiple regression analysis found that 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations were lower in winter than summer [adjusted mean difference (99% CI) nmol/L; 15 (8,22)], lower in girls than boys [5 (1,10)], and lower in obese children than in those of "normal" weight [6 (1,11)]. Relative to NZEO, 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations were lower in Māori [9 (3,15)] and Pacific children [16 (10,22)]. Ethnicity and season are major determinants of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D. There is a high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in New Zealand children, which may or may not contribute to increased risk of osteoporosis and other chronic disease. There is a pressing need for more convincing evidence concerning the health risks associated with the low vitamin D status in New Zealand children.

The social psychology of intergroup and international conflict resolution

Abstract: This volume on intergroup and international conflict resolution offers an overview of this social-psychological problem, and analyzes the factors involved in intergroup conflict.

Multiple Large Shareholders, Control Contests, and Implied Cost of Equity

Abstract: In this paper, we examine whether the presence of multiple large shareholders alleviates firm's agency costs and information asymmetry embedded in ultimate ownership structures. We extend extant corporate governance research by addressing the effects of multiple large shareholders on firm's cost of equity capital - a proxy for firm's information quality. Using data for 1,165 listed corporations from 8 East Asian and 13 Western European countries, we find evidence that the implied cost of equity decreases in the presence of large shareholders beyond the controlling owner. We also find that the voting rights, the relative voting size (vis-a-vis the first largest shareholder) and the number of blockholders reduces firm's cost of equity. Interestingly, we uncover that the presence of multiple controlling shareholders with comparable voting power lowers firm's cost of equity. We also find that the identity of the second largest shareholder is important in determining the risk of corporate expropriation in family-controlled firms. Our regional analysis reveals that, mainly in East Asian firms, multiple large shareholders structures exert an internal governance role in curbing private benefits and reducing information asymmetry evident in cost of equity financing, perhaps to sidestep deficiencies in the external institutional environment.

Rescaling environmental governance, rethinking the state: A three-dimensional review:

Abstract: In light of significant interest by scholars in environmental geography and in studies of social-ecological systems in the multiscalar, multistakeholder aspects of environmental decision-making, we...