A sedentary lifestyle and too much tasty but high-calorie food are fattening America's children to an alarming degree, doctors and researchers agree. Now, some researchers are trying to determine how that trend affects children with disabilities. Children with disabilities are just as tempted by food and the lure of television as those without…

This article focuses on the role of Grace Paterson (1843-1925) in education, health and social welfare in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Glasgow. Integral to her efforts to improve the health of the city's poor was her emphasis on the need to raise the standards of the domestic education of working-class girls and women, both in the…

In 2002 MTV aired a global media campaign, "Staying Alive," to promote HIV prevention among 16- to 25-year-olds. Skeptics believed that a global MTV campaign would reach only a small group of elite young people. MTV increased access to its campaign, however, by making all materials "rights free" to third-party (non-MTV)…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review evidence related to the factors that influence people's understanding of health information and how miscommunication of health information can jeopardize people's health. Design/methodology/approach: A literature review was conducted of English language articles, cited in major literature databases…

Background: Across the nation, schools have become actively involved in developing obesity prevention strategies both in classrooms and in cafeterias. We sought to determine the type of foods being offered during lunch in the cafeteria of 3 public high schools in 1 county and if this reflects the purchasing patterns of students. By labeling foods…

Food insecurity in older adults is influenced by financial constraints, functional disability, and isolation. Twenty-eight social- and community-service providers participated in four focus groups to report (a) perceptions and experiences with food insecurity in their older clients, (b) beliefs about their potential role(s) in promoting food…

Background: School health services are important tools for health promotion among schoolchildren, but little is known about their effects. This article addresses the effects of dialogues with school health nurses among schoolchildren who were victims of bullying. Study population and methods: Cross-sectional and school-based survey, the Danish…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a 13-week adult education class for older adults with early-stage dementia titled Health Promotion for the Mind, Body, and Spirit. The mixed method research design (N = 14) used a quasiexperimental one-group pretest/posttest and the qualitative methods of focus group and phone interview with…

Weight-related problems, including eating disorders, disordered eating, and obesity, are prevalent among adolescents. School and community-based educators and health care providers have an important role to play in the prevention of weight-related problems in youth. This article includes: 1) a brief overview of weight-related problems in…

Background: Dental disease is one of the leading causes of school absenteeism for children. This article describes the creation and evolution of the St. David's Dental Program, a mobile school-based dental program for children. Methods: The dental program is a collaboration of community partners in Central Texas that provides free dental care to…

Background: Health illiteracy is a societal issue that, if addressed successfully, may help to reduce health disparities. It has been associated with increased rates of hospital admission, health care expenditures, and poor health outcomes. Because of this, much of the research in the United States has focused on adults in the health care system.…

It is estimated that more than 40 million U.S. youth carry school materials in backs, routinely carrying books, laptop computers, personal and other items used on a daily basis. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that 7,277 emergency visits each year result from injuries related to backpacks. Injury can occur when a child…

Some 600,000 children in the US are allergic to peanuts. Of 400 elementary school nurses, 44% cite increased food-allergic students in the past five years. Peanut allergy doubled in children from 1997 to 2002, and yet peanuts are only one of six foods most often causing allergic reactions in children, including milk, eggs, wheat, soy, and tree…

Physical education represents an area of the middle school curriculum that has the potential to impact adolescents' developing knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors in positive and meaningful ways that may endure across the lifespan. Despite the well-documented benefits of engaging in regular physical activity (e.g., American Heart…

This study examined the impact of tobacco possession laws on public smoking among youth. There were two intervention sites: a fast food restaurant and a shopping mall. Two control sites were also monitored for public smoking among youth. Preliminary findings suggest that when police issued tickets to minors for violating tobacco possession laws,…