When it comes to excelling in the classroom, it turns out the air students are breathing is just as important as the lessons they are learning. Studies show poor indoor air quality (IAQ) can lessen the comfort of students as well as staff--affecting concentration, attendance and student performance. It can even lead to lower IQs. What's more, poor…

Music teachers are in a class all their own when it comes to voice use. These elite vocal athletes require stamina, strength, and flexibility from their voices day in, day out for hours at a time. Voice rehabilitation clinics and research show that music education ranks high among the professionals most commonly affected by voice problems.…

Churches or, as they are now more commonly referred to in some circles, faith-based organizations (FBOs), have a rich tradition of providing not only religious but educational and social service opportunities for their congregations and local community. Social service agencies, health care agencies, and educational institutions have long realized…

The school year is back in full swing for millions of students across the nation trying to remember the names of their new teachers, what time lunch is served, and how to navigate the hallways and stairwells to get from one classroom to the next. Meanwhile, those responsible for keeping those education facilities clean, safe and well-maintained…

Advocacy for health policies and programs can impact large segments of the population with the goal of promoting and protecting the nation's health. Historically, advocacy has not been viewed as seriously as other components of health education, and involvement in public policy work has been moderate by health education practitioners and health…

Purpose/Objectives: The US Department of Agriculture created its Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) to address poor nutrition and rising obesity among children. The FFVP allocates funding for selected elementary schools with at least 50% free/reduced price school meal enrollments to provide free fresh fruit and vegetable snacks to students.…

Little research has assessed the fidelity, adaptation or integrity of activities implemented within community-based obesity prevention initiatives. To address this gap, a mixed-method process evaluation was undertaken in the context of the South Australian Obesity Prevention and Lifestyle (OPAL) initiative. An ecological coding procedure assessed…

The aim was to compare the effectiveness of untailored text messages for smoking cessation to tailored text messages delivered at a higher frequency. From February 2007 to August 2009, 2030 users of an internet-based smoking cessation program with optional text message support aged 15-25 years were consecutively randomized to versions of the…

House and Ball communities (HBCs), represent a prime context for human immunodeficiency virus prevention with African American young men who have sex with men and transgender persons. This study sought to understand the composition and function of social support and sexual networks of HBC members in Los Angeles, California (N = 263). Participants…

Objective: This article aims to review the previously published literature on the social and environmental factors which influence children (aged 3-5 years) to be obese/overweight and the accuracy of parental perceptions. Obesity levels are on the increase in today's society and habits are being passed from parents to children, with family…

Background: Body image disturbances and disordered eating behaviors are prevalent across college campuses and can lead to psychological and physical health consequences. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to gain formative research on the promotion of positive body image on a university campus with the goal of developing educational programs.…

Background: There is a critical need for evidence-based health education interventions for women with intellectual disabilities (IDs) to promote receipt of preventive health screenings. Previous research has established "Women Be Healthy," an 8-week classroom-style intervention designed to teach women with IDs about breast and cervical…

Objective: We conducted a randomized controlled crossover trial to evaluate the effects of a new worksite weight-control programme designed for men with or at risk of obesity using a combination of nutrition education and nutrition environmental interventions. Subjects and methods: Male workers with or at risk of obesity were recruited for this…

Background: Obesity is a major health problem in people with intellectual disabilities. It is also widely accepted that low-grade systemic inflammation associated to obesity plays a key role in the pathogenic mechanism of several disorders. Fortunately, physical activity has shown to improve inflammation in people with metabolic syndrome and type…

In response to the scientific evidence documenting both profound developmental changes in sleep and circadian biology during adolescence and the myriad of negative health, performance, and safety outcomes risks associated with chronic sleep loss, at least 70 public school districts in the United States, representing approximately 1,000 schools,…