Background: The consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains (FVWG) has been associated with decreased risk of chronic disease, yet over 80% of U.S. adults do not meet dietary recommendations for FVWG. Purpose: This study explored the effectiveness of a teaching kitchen intervention upon consumption of FVWG and overall dietary patterns.…

Background: Poor complementary feeding practices can expose young children to increased burdens of undernutrition, morbidity, and poor health outcomes in adulthood. Parents and caregivers, who feed the children, are shaped by socio-cultural beliefs and pervasive socioeconomic realities. Also, parental values are influenced by their perceptions and…

Objective: African Americans in the USA experience a disproportionate burden of chronic disease. Healthy lifestyle promotion programmes can help decrease this disease risk. This study determined the feasibility of using dyadic peer support to augment an existing healthy lifestyle programme in African American churches. Design: A prospective…

Healthful dietary intakes are crucial for stemming the current childhood obesity epidemic. We examined the dietary intakes of 392 Michigan children aged 1-12 years. About 70% and 58% of children ate fruits and vegetables, respectively, each day; 26% drank sugar-sweetened beverages; and 31% ate with a television on. Children's vegetable intakes…

Food is essential to human existence. What we eat and how we eat says who we are. There has long been interest in describing and explaining our connections to food as well as understanding the different ways food shapes our lives. In the last decades, there has been an explosion of interest on food issues. Best-selling books such as "The…

We evaluated the effects of a multicomponent intervention to address food selectivity issues of 3 preschoolers with developmental disabilities. The intervention comprised strategies evidencing ecological validity in both research and practice. All sessions took place during typical mealtimes in children's classroom or lunchroom, with peers…

Cooking attitudes and behaviors among college students--and related implications to dietary quality--are largely unexplored. This study assessed the relationship between college students' fruit and vegetable intakes and cooking attitudes, confidence, and frequency (N = 448) using a cross-sectional survey. Hierarchical linear regression models…

Background: Evidence suggests that schools play an important role in student health; however, little is known about variability in teachers' use of food-related classroom practices. In this study, we examined associations between teacher demographic and individual factors and their food-related practices and modeling in the classroom. Methods: We…

Background: Adults with intellectual disabilities living in residential houses have a high prevalence of obesity which is related to poor dietary habits. Aim: The aim of this study was to assess supporting staff`s thoughts and experiences on factors influencing their opportunities to promote a healthy diet in adults with intellectual disabilities.…

In this fast-pace life the easiest foods are usually prepackaged, salt-enriched, and carb-loaded. While these foods may temporarily satisfy hunger, youth athletes need essential nutrients to excel in their sport. Nutrition is important for parents, coaches, and athletes to understand since inadequate nutrition has temporary and long-lasting…

Linking Education and Farming (LEAF) Education uses food, farming and nature to reach out to children in new and imaginative ways across the science curriculum. Their work at a grass roots level, with teachers, children and farmers, shows just how powerful farming and nature can be in helping develop a lifelong love for science and fuelling…

Background: Mealtime support has a direct bearing on the diet-related health of men and women with intellectual disabilities as well as opportunities for expressing dietary preferences. Method: Semi-structured interviews with a sample of direct support staff providing mealtime support to adults with intellectual disabilities. Results: When…

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between perceived weight change since high school and perceived factors contributing to weight change, or lack thereof, among college students. Students from a large university in the Northeast of the United States self-reported socio-demographic characteristics, and perceived factors…

Education for sustainable nutrition will only succeed if society is given direct access and experience to the obvious benefits of a sustainable lifestyle. An earlier personal and positive association to a sustainable lifestyle makes a dietary shift most likely. Here, the training future teachers plays a central role as a multiplicator.…

Kids SIP"smart"ER is a 6-month behavioral and health literacy intervention effective at reducing sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake among middle school students and their caregivers in the rural Appalachian region. This exploratory mixed methods study utilized a convergent parallel design to assess participant acceptability of a…