In Mississippi, about one-third of children under six years old are cared for in Family Child Care Homes (FCCHs). The purposes of this study are to: 1) assess the nutrition and physical activity practices and policies of FCCHs in Mississippi; 2) explore whether these policies differ by geographic region (rural vs. urban) and participation in More
The American Journal of Preventive Medicine published a special theme issue highlighting discussions and recommendations from the July 2013 Built Environment Assessment Training (BEAT) Institute meeting. The BEAT Institute was developed to train investigators to use observational and self-reported measures of nutrition and activity environments, integrating the disciplines of nutrition, physical activity, obesity prevention, urban More
This paper examines how the obesity status of different children within the same family is related to a parent or sibling’s obesity. Analyzing results of a 2011 national survey of adults in 10,244 U.S. households, researchers found that the likelihood of childhood obesity varied with the number of children in a household, as well as More
This paper examines the associations between the food and physical activity environment in schools and body mass index (BMI) for lower-income boys and girls when they were in the 8th grade during 2007. Analyzing secondary data from the nationally representative Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 (ECLS-K), researchers found that a number of More
The primary aim of this project is to revise and update the content and format of the WellSAT (Wellness School Assessment Tool, www.wellsat.org), an online quantitative measure for evaluating the quality of school wellness policies. Originally launched in 2009, the website has had thousands of visitors across all 50 states, and is used by policy-makers, More
This article assesses the nutritional quality of foods that are advertised with familiar children’s characters. It also examines how frequently familiar characters are paired with health messages in these advertisement. A total of 577 food advertisements that were aired on the most popular broadcast and cable channels during 2011 were included in the study. Researchers More
This study will evaluate nutrition and physical activity practices and policies of licensed child-care centers that enroll 3- to 5-year-old children in the three Southern states with the highest childhood obesity rates—Mississippi, Georgia, and Kentucky—and assess differences in practices and policies by geographic region (e.g., rural/urban), center characteristics (e.g., Child and Adult Care Food Program/non-Child More
Early care and education (ECE) programs are important settings for obesity prevention, but limited research provides insufficient evidence upon which to base policy decisions, practice guidelines, or mobilized efforts to improve healthy eating and physical activity in these settings. In September 2011, a multidisciplinary group of experts met to identify and prioritize research directions for More
This paper describes the development of voluntary healthy eating and physical activity quality standards (HEPAQS) for out-of-school time programs. The final HEPAQS were developed using a national, mixed-methods needs assessment, review of existing standards and expert recommendations, and a participatory process of discussion, review, and consensus engaging 19 service and policy organizations and agencies in More
Children’s and adolescents’ consumption of sports drinks is increasing. Given the already elevated levels of added sugar in the American diet and its detrimental impact on health, the increased consumption of sports drinks among youths in recent years is of growing concern for parents, health professionals, and public health advocates. This research review examines the More
Newsletter
Contact
