areas for shrimp farming and higher returns. In this study, we examine the impacts of mangrove coverage of mixed mangrove-shrimp ponds using the production and profit functions. Our analyses show that mangrove density has no impacts on shrimp farming. However, mangrove coverage affects productivity and profit of shrimp farming. The optimal mangrove coverage for shrimp farming is found to be approximately 60%. This implies that maintaining the level of mangrove coverage of 60% does not only to comply with the policy, but also bring about the highest level of output and profit for shrimp farmers. Timber Trafficking in Vietnam: Crime, Security and the Environment. Ngoc Anh Cao. Palgrave Studies in Criminology, 2017. Abstract: This book is the first systematic investigation into the problem of timber trafficking in Vietnam, providing a detailed understanding of the typology of, victimization from, and key factors driving this crime. The book first reveals a multifaceted pattern of timber trafficking in Vietnam, comprising five different components: harvesting, transporting, trading, supporting, and processing. It then assesses the crime’s victimization from timber trafficking. Thanks to the employment of a broad conceptual framework of human security, Cao reveals that timber trafficking has substantial harmful impacts on all seven elements of human security: economic, food, health, environmental, personal, community, and political; whilst being closely interconnected, they vary between different groups of victims. Cao concludes by offering five solutions to better control of timber trafficking in the context of Vietnam, which crucially involve refining the current policy framework of forest governance and improving the efficiency of law enforcement. A wide-ranging and timely study, this book will hold particular appeal for scholars of green criminology and environmental harm. Interplay between land-use dynamics and changes in hydrological regime in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Thuy Ngan Le, Arnold K. Bregt, Gerardo E. van Halsema, Petra J. G. J. Hellegers and Lam-Dao Nguyen. Land Use Policy, 2018, volume 73, pp. 269-280. Abstract: Policies supporting rice production and investments in water infrastructure enabled intensification and diversification of farming systems in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) over the past 20 years. Yet, demands of food security, economic development, and climate change continue to pose diverging and often conflicting challenges for water resources
Health care Factors Associated with Perceived Health Status of the Vietnamese Older People. Long Thanh Giang, Dat Van Duong and Yeop Jeong Kim. Journal of Population Ageing, 2018. Abstract: This using data from the Vietnam Aging Survey (VNAS) in 2011 with 2789 persons aged from 60 to 108, explored the factors associated with the perceived health status of the Vietnamese older people. Using logistic regression analysis, the study found that there were no statistically significant differences between older people in their perceived health status in terms of age group, gender, marital status, and living area. In contrast, however, the study also found that reading ability, working status, morbidity, activities in daily living, experience of domestic violence, household income, and satisfaction with housing conditions were strongly correlated with older people’s perceived health status. Based on these findings, the study provided a set of recommendations for developing and implementing policies in order to enhance health status of the Vietnamese older people. Childhood overweight and obesity amongst primary school children in Hai Phong City, Vietnam. Hoang Thi Duc Ngan, Le Danh Tuyen, Pham Van Phu and Smita Nambiar. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr, 2018, volume 27, number 2, pp. 399-405. Abstract: BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Childhood obesity is a rising health concern in Vietnam, however, research in this area is not extensive. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity, and to study associations between weight status and selected lifestyle factors, such as diet and physical activity levels, among children aged 6-10 years in Hai Phong City, Vietnam. METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN: Two hundred and seventy-six children from an urban and a rural primary school participated in this study. Data on weight, height and waist circumference were used to calculate BMI, and waist-height ratio to determine the proportion of children who were overweight, obese and had high central adiposity. Information on diet, physical activity and socioeconomic status of families was collected using questionnaires. RESULTS: Prevalences of overweight, obesity and high abdominal adiposity were 11.2%, 10.1% and 19.9%, respectively. Children who completed >=60 minutes of physical activity daily were 50% and 80% less likely to be overweight and have high abdominal adiposity, respectively. Computer usage increased the odds of overweight and