The one facility at school and university campuses guaranteed to be used by most everyone every day is the public restroom--a hub for germs and dirt. Applicants and their parents; visiting faculty and speakers; teachers and students--the variety of people who pass through a restroom and pass judgment is considerable. The impact is considerable…

Good nutrition is important for optimal athletic performance. Adolescent athletes often depend on their coaches for nutritional information on weight management, dietary supplements, and dietary practices. Some dietary practices, such as vegetarianism, have the potential to be harmful to the adolescent athlete if not followed with careful…

Background: Internationally, over the last four decades large-scale mass media campaigns have been delivered to promote physical activity and its associated health benefits. In 2002-2005, the first Western Australian statewide adult physical activity campaign "Find Thirty. It's Not a Big Exercise" was launched. In 2007, a new iteration…

Physical activity is critical to healthy development of children. It is well documented that helping children develop and sustain a physically active lifestyle requires children to become motivated. Many studies have been conducted in the past 2.5 decades on determinants and correlates for children and adolescents' physical activity…

This article examines two large-scale public communication campaigns to explore the appropriateness and effectiveness of using one-way communication in contentious environmental issues. The findings show while one-way communication can be successfully employed in contentious issues, it is not appropriate for all contexts and may contribute to…

Although the importance of physical development as an integrated part of early childhood education is well understood, many early childhood teachers lack the specific background and training in this area. To fill this gap, this article presents a framework of recommended practices and a corresponding assessment tool. The Head Start Body Start…

In "Building a Larger Tent for Public Health: Implications of the SOPHE-AAHE Partnership," Robert Goodman (2013) poses thoughtful questions for the role that the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) may play with the integration of former American Association for Health Education (AAHE) members into SOPHE. He further describes a process by…

Background: School policies can change practices on a relatively permanent basis. This study investigated adoption and implementation of state-level policies specifying minutes (or percent) of physical activity in physical education (PE) or during school. Methods: Policies were identi?ed from existing databases and rated as having weak, moderate,…

This four-page document provides an overview of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), a health research agency within the federal government. NICHD is a part of the National Institutes of Health in the U.S Department of Health and Human Services. This brief report describes the mission of…

This supplement of "Health Education & Behavior" showcases the current state of the field of systems science applications in health promotion and public health. Behind this work lies a steady stream of public dollars at the federal level. This perspective details nearly a decade of investment by the National Institutes of…

This article is an excerpt from "Raising Elijah: Protecting Our Children in an Age of Environmental Crisis" (2011), by Sandra Steingraber. As a scientist, mother, and concerned citizen, Steingraber explores herein the damaging effects of the myriad and ubiquitous environmental pollutants--in homes, schools, and communities--on the lives…

Teachers and other school staff play key roles as partners in the prevention, identification, and intervention of mental health difficulties among children and youth. However, it is essential that teachers are equipped with sufficient mental health literacy to engender effective practices in these areas. This article reviews the literature related…

Superintendents and boards of education more often than not choose "books over bricks" and their repair and maintenance budgets usually are lower than what they need. However, they all recognize the importance of healthy schools for students and staff. Is there a way to improve the condition of one's school buildings without spending a lot of…

This article used self-reporting inventory, self-test questionnaire, and other methods, chose four vocational schools in Shanghai for comparing experimental study of mental health, conducted experiments on experimental group and control group, and analyzed the current mental health of young students in Shanghai. It shows that the sunshine sports…

The purpose of this study is to survey school counselors to determine their knowledge and perceived preparedness to implement wellness strategies in school counseling programs. Wellness plans are a requirement for thousands of public school districts in the United States. There are no established standards for the training of school counselors in…