The importance of Female heads of households in providing the basic needs of household members on the one hand and the limitations they face in most socio-economic fields have made it necessary to pay attention to the issues of Female heads of households in most societies including our country. The purpose of this study is to use the systematic review method to review and evaluate the policy proposals that have been proposed in Iran for women heads of households. A total of 296 articles and 5 reports were identified. In the review and eligibility phase, the total number of selected texts was considered to be 79 texts, of which 62 studies used the quantitative method and 17 studies used the qualitative method. Based on the studies that proposed policy proposals, the characteristics of Female heads of the household, the axes of vulnerability, the evaluation of policies and proposals were determined. The findings showed that more policy proposals were made based on the characteristics of low literacy, being unemployed, and being middle-aged. Based on the axes of vulnerability, women heads of households are more vulnerable psychologically and socially than they are materially vulnerable in many cases. The evaluation of policies for women heads of households showed that the most interventions for the empowerment of women heads of households were focused on the economic field and were mainly pursued in the form of financial payments and did not pay enough attention to other aspects of women's empowerment, while the empowerment of women heads of households was successful when It is expected to simultaneously pay attention to their mental health and improve their social and economic status.

Background & Aims: To increase the adolescents’ health, parents are required to share the needed information about reproductive health with them and answer their questions in a timely manner. Ignoring this need due to different reasons leads to getting information from unhealthy sources. This study was performed in the city of Tehran to determine parents' views about teaching contraceptive methods for their Female students.Material & Methods: It was a descriptive, cross-sectional study. The research population consisted of all Iranian parents of 10-19 years old high school girls living in Tehran in 2013. Cluster sampling was used to select a sample size of 400. Data was gathered using a questionnaire containing three parts of demographic characteristics, parents' views about teaching contraceptive methods and appropriate time, method and sources for teaching contraceptive methods and was analyzed by descriptive statistics and Chi- square test using SPSS-PC (v. 18).Results: According to the findings, 66.7% of parents believed that talking with their daughters has a positive effect on her heath. Chi- square test showed that there is a significant relationship between mothers’ positive perspective about talking with their daughters and mothers’ job (p<0.05). At the meanwhile, 58.2% of parents disagreed on talking with their daughters about contraceptive methods. Chi- square test showed a positive significant relationship between mother ‘education and their positive perspective about contraceptive methods education (p<0.001). A total of 35.3% of the parents believed that the best time for teaching is at the time of marriage. A total of 41.8% of the parents believed that teaching in classroom is the best method and 56.7% mentioned schools as the best source for teaching. Majority of the parents (98%) disagreed with learning this issue by word wide web.conclusion: According to findings, it seems that the parents are not still prepared to teach the issues related to reproductive health to their daughters and do not easily let other sources such as health centers to talk about these topics. The findings can be used by policy makers of Ministry of Health and Medical Education and other related organizations. It seems that doing similar studies considering viewpoints of adolescents and teachers can be very helpful.

Early life events influence life-long patterns of emotionality and stress responsiveness and alter the rate of brain and body aging.  Much research attention has focused on the programming effects of the hypothalamus pituitary axis (HPA) in early life and on understanding HPA function in response to stressors in adulthood. In comparison, there has been relatively little research on adolescence, a time of significant brain development particularly in the frontal lobe and a time which is of great importance for mental and physical health. The hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex undergo stress-induced structural remodeling, which alters behavioral and physiological responses. During adolescence, HPA function is characterized by a prolonged activation in response to stressors compared to adulthood, which may render ongoing development of the brain vulnerable. Stress reactivity is markedly influenced by both the pubertal maturation and the experience of the individual. The frequency of the pulses is increased in chronic stress, since the neuroendocrine system is such a good candidate for mediators of many diseases linked to chronic stress. The activity of HPA axis  in life time of Female,  sex maturity, pregnancy or lactation is a plasticity of the diurnal rhythm of pulse amplitude; chronic stress can change this program for   formation disorder in behavioral and physiological responses.

Objective(s): Nowadays, Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is widely used in different kinds of commercial products as a plasticizer. Previous studies have revealed that exposures to DEHP could be associated with precocious puberty in teenagers, but the exact mechanism is yet to be known. Materials and Methods: In this study, 48 prepubertal Wistar Female rats were randomly apportioned into 4 groups and orally treated with 0, 250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg/d DEHP from postnatal day 21 up to 4 weeks. Subsequently, we examined the indicators related to the initiation of sexual development. Results: DEHP was able to shorten the vaginal opening time and prolong the estrous cycles of Female rats. IGF-1 expression was significantly upregulated by 1000 mg/kg/d DEHP in the hypothalamus, and the hypothalamic, as well as serum levels of GH, were also upregulated by DEHP. It also caused decrements in serum levels of FSH, LH, and T and the increment in level of progesterone. Meanwhile, DEHP was able to exert its effect on the mRNA and protein expression levels of Kiss-1, GPR54, and GnRH in the hypothalamus in pubertal Female rats. Conclusion: These findings are revealing that DEHP exposure more likely causes imbalances of hypothalamus functioning in pubertal Female rats and thus induces precautious puberty in these animals.

Introduction: Hirsutism is a common disorder of excess growth of terminal hair in an androgen-dependent male distribution in women, including the chin, upper lip, breasts, back, and abdomen. It is very important to identify the etiology of hirsutism and adequate treat is prior to any cosmetic therapy.Case Presentation: The case was a 17-year-old Female with severe hirsutism, oligomenorrhea, and obesity. She was evaluated to identify the etiology and diagnosed as a case of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), nonclassic congenital adrenal hyperplasia (NC-CAH), and hyper androgenic insulin-resistant acanthosis nigricans (HAIR-AN) syndrome, which is a rare combination of hirsutism etiology. She was successfully treated according to the underlying pathology, and laser photo epilation was used as the preferred hair removal method.Discussion: Establishing the etiology, using the evidence–based strategies to improve hirsutism, and treating the underlying disorder, are essential for proper management of women with hirsutism.

Background: Among various factors influencing mood disorders, the impact of micronutrients deficiencies especially zinc has attracted a great attention which considered playing a crucial role in onset and progress of mood disorders in different stages of life. The main objective of this study was to assess the correlation between serum zinc levels and mood disorders scores in high school Female students.Methods: This cross-sectional study conducted on a random sample of 100 students. Serum zinc status was assessed using flame atomic absorption spectrometry. Mood disorders were estimated by calculating the sum of two tests scores including Beck depression inventory (DBI) and Hospital Anxiety Depression Scales (HADS) tests. General linear model (GLM) and Pearson’s Regression were applied to show the effectiveness of serum zinc levels on mood disorders scores, and the correlation between zinc serum levels and DBI score, respectively.Results: The mean of zinc serum levels were 105.5±31mg/ dL. The mean scores of depression and anxiety tests were 18.2±10.42 and 9.7±4.3, respectively. Serum zinc levels were inversely correlated with DBI and HADS scores (p<0.05). Increasing each 10 mg/dL in serum zinc levels leaded to 0.3 and 0.01 decrease in depression and anxiety scores, respectively (p<0.05).Conclusion: Serum zinc levels are inversely correlated with mood disorders including depression and anxiety in adolescent Female students. Increasing serum levels of zinc in Female students may improve their mood disorders.