Childhood obesity and related health consequences are currently considered some of the most important health challenges in our nation today. Early intervention programs designed to teach healthy lifestyle choices and behaviors are imperative to addressing this issue. Evidence suggests that intervention programs offered at an earlier age may reduce…

Background: Over the last 3 decades, US obesity rates have increased dramatically as more children and more adults become obese. This study explores an innovative program, Active Generations, an intergenerational nutrition education and activity program implemented in out-of-school environments (after school and summer camps). It utilizes older…

World Diabetes Day (November 14) offers a wonderful opportunity to educate elementary children about the power they have to control their health. First lady Michelle Obama has urged Americans to educate themselves about childhood obesity, which is often associated with the onset of type II diabetes (Rabin 2010). The authors developed activities to…

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…

Research indicates that developing public health programs to modify parenting behaviors could lead to multiple beneficial health outcomes for children. Developing feasible effective parenting programs requires an approach that applies a theory-based model of parenting to a specific domain of child health and engages participant representatives in…

Health promotion programs benefit from an accompanying process evaluation since it can provide more insight in the strengths and weaknesses of a program. A process evaluation was conducted to assess the reach, implementation, satisfaction and maintenance of a school-based program aimed at the prevention of excessive weight gain among Dutch…

This document details the strategic plan of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to address disparities in health and developmental outcomes among Americans, particularly between and among racial and ethnic groups. Following a description of the plan's development, scientific areas of interest, and important themes, the…

As researchers continue to analyze the role of parenting both in the development of childhood overweight and in obesity prevention, studies of child nutrition and growth are detailing the ways in which parents affect their children's development of food- and activity-related behaviors. Ana Lindsay, Katarina Sussner, Juhee Kim, and Steven Gortmaker…

The Claxton Elementary School Health Program was developed to improve school/community health. Using the Community Oriented Primary Care process, a health advisory board was organized and a comprehensive needs assessment was implemented. Teachers, parents, students, and professionals agreed on perceived health problems. The board selected two…

In this study, it was tested whether attitudes, self-efficacy, social influences and the perception of the school and home environments had different associations with intentions for adolescent non-smokers, occasional smokers and daily smokers. A regression model allowing for separate slopes of social-cognitive and environment variables accounted…

This book examines the impact of HIV/AIDS on education in sub-Saharan African countries. It looks at the situation at both macro and micro levels and emphasizes the need to react quickly and to institutionalize the response of education systems to the negative consequences of the pandemic. Drawing on studies of a few countries in sub-Saharan…

Physical activity levels begin to decline in childhood and continue falling throughout adolescence, with girls being at greatest risk for inactivity. Schools are ideal settings for helping girls develop and maintain a physically active lifestyle. This paper describes the design and implementation of "Lifestyle Education for Activity Program", or…

Many adolescents' health problems arise from preventable behaviors, such as unprotected sexual intercourse and the use of tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs. The 1992 Washington State Survey of Adolescent Health Behaviors (WSSAHB) was created in order to collect information on a variety of health behaviors among students in the state of…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of V.I.K. (Very Important Kids), a school-based, multi-component intervention designed to prevent teasing and unhealthy weight-control behaviors among fourth through sixth grade students. The effectiveness of the V.I.K. intervention was evaluated using a pre-post…

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of a middle school physical activity and healthy eating intervention, including an environmental and computer-tailored component, and to investigate the effects of parental involvement. A random sample of 15 schools with seventh and eight graders was randomly assigned to one of three…