Researchers developed a culturally-grounded intervention to promote healthy beverage consumption among Navajo children aged 2–5 years. This study, which took place from 2021–2023, evaluated prepost changes in beverage habits and caregiver knowledge and attitudes. This was a prospective cohort study with prepost evaluation. Children attending participating early child education sites and their primary caregivers were More

This study examines how removing synthetic dyes from the food supply impacts the nutritional quality of grocery purchases among families with children, focusing on the 7 dyes targeted by FDA for phase-out by the end of 2026 (some of which are required (i.e., red dye #3), while the removal of others are voluntary). Aim 1 More

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF) commitment to child obesity ends in December 2025, marking the conclusion of a two-decade investment in Healthy Eating Research (HER). As part of our RWJF legacy, HER is developing a national research agenda for policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) interventions and strategies to promote food and nutrition security, optimal More

The purpose of this scoping review is to identify what community engagement (CE) research approaches have been applied by researchers in the retail food environment (RFE) intervention literature and how they vary by type of retail settings, phase of intervention, year of intervention, and key domains of equity. A total of 98 RFE interventions reported More

Fruit drinks are the top sources of added sugar in young children’s diets, increasing their risk of chronic disease. It is unclear to what extent front-of-package (FOP) marketing and disclosures influence parents’ perceptions of fruit drinks and their intentions and decisions to purchase them. These data are needed to inform regulatory and legal action to More

Given the importance of beverage consumption throughout the lifespan and the need for comprehensive and consistent evidence-based recommendations, Healthy Eating Research (HER) convened an expert panel representing four key national health and nutrition organizations to develop recommendations for beverage consumption consistent with a healthy diet for children and adolescents ages 5 to 18 years. The More

As researchers increasingly utilize systems science simulation modeling (SSSM), little is known about how and by whom SSSMs are being leveraged to address inequities in access to healthy diets. We evaluated the extent to which studies (n = 66) employing SSSM to examine retail food environments (RFEs): included three pillars of equity (social position, human capital, socioeconomic More

The objectives of this study were to develop a shared understanding among multiple stakeholders about the structural and underlying, interconnected drivers of SSB and water consumption in the Washington, DC, metro area and to have them identify feasible and influential policy levers. A community-based system dynamics approach was used during a 2-day group model building More

Urban grocery stores are facing operational challenges due to crime and are instituting crime mitigation strategies. These strategies may have unintended consequences that limit healthy food access among families with children and create threats to social dignity. This community-driven study aims to: 1) quantify modifiable community characteristics associated with crime at grocery stores; 2) examine More

Drinking water instead of sugary drinks is key to reducing health disparities. Since beverage habits are shaped by complex personal, community, and environmental factors, community input is critical to design any intervention promoting water. The research team worked with community partners to design a program to promote healthy beverage habits among young Navajo children. The More