How aware are people of food-related decisions they make and how the environment influences these decisions? Study 1 shows that 139 people underestimated the number of food-related decisions they made--by an average of more than 221 decisions. Study 2 examined 192 people who overserved and overate 31% more food as a result of having been given an…

Adolescent obesity has become a major health concern in the United States. An increased frequency of fast food restaurant dining is associated with higher intake of calories and calories from fat. The purpose of this study was to gain insight as to how food choices in a "simulated" fast food environment might be influenced by nutrition…

This dissertation evaluates the impact of elementary school policies on child health behaviors and obesity in the United States. Two chapters address nutrition policies, two chapters address physical activity policies, and a final chapter estimates the health care cost savings associated with a decline in childhood obesity prevalence. The use of…

Physical inactivity and lack of nutritious diets increase children's risk of obesity, especially children from low-income and ethnic minority groups. To address this risk, the school-based TAKE 10! program was implemented to increase the physical activity and improve the nutrition of K-6th grade students in one public urban school serving a…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reviews scientific evidence to determine which school-based policies and practices are most likely to improve key health behaviors among young people, including physical activity and healthy eating. In this document, the CDC identifies ten strategies to help schools prevent obesity by promoting…

Obesity rates for children, adolescents, and adults continue to escalate in the United States and globally. Educators, health specialists, psychologists, and sociologists are studying the complex problems related to early obesity. Like other health problems, prevention and early detection are the most effective strategies. The causes and…

An important first step in addressing any public health crisis is raising public awareness. However, getting everyone on board to help solve the underlying causes of that crisis is a daunting task. The childhood obesity epidemic poses such a challenge, particularly in terms of how to best engage and assist principals and other school leaders in…

Childhood obesity has become an alarming problem in this country. Risk factors associated with childhood obesity include having obese parents, a history of low or high birth weight, Black or Hispanic ethnicity, and low socioeconomic background. Although most healthy American infants and toddlers have adequate diets, many parents and health…

It has often been proposed that young (three to six years old) children's television viewing habits contribute to early-onset obesity. Three explanations that link television viewing patterns of young children with the development of obesity are considered. First, television viewing displaces time available for physical activity, reduces energy…

The prevalence of overweight in Mexican American children has been increasing at a steady rate over the past few years. People of Mexican origin make up the largest proportion of the Hispanic population, which has been reported by the U.S. Census Bureau to be the fastest growing ethnic group in the United States. The purpose of this integrative…

There are thousands of school gardens in the United States, and there is anecdotal evidence that school garden programs can enhance students' learning in academic, social, and health-related domains. There has been little rigorous research, however, on the effects of school gardens or on the factors that promote the sustainability of these…

Samuels & Associates, a research and evaluation firm based in Oakland, California, organized the National Evaluation and Measurement Meeting on School Nutrition and Physical Activity Policies, held on May 6 and 7, 2004 in San Francisco. The purpose of the meeting was to develop consensus regarding measures and tools to evaluate school-based…

Unhealthful eating patterns established early in life tend to be maintained into adulthood, and as a result, chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and obesity may develop. These nutrition-related problems could be reduced through dietary changes; and to facilitate these changes, nutrition education for youth that is delivered…

The purpose was to compare the differences in body mass index (BMI), energy balance (EB) and specific physical activity (SPA) between 30 CSULA college students (Y) and their respective parents (O) living in the same household at Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. Each student completed a 24-hour dietary record with SPA journal, and the same for…

In this era of increasing accountability and high-stakes testing in schools, a serious paradox has surfaced. Children are becoming overweight at an alarming rate, and mounting evidence points to a relationship between obesity and poor school performance. Ironically, pressure to improve children's academic achievement has led many schools to adopt…