28 girls 12-18 years of age were recruited in a Midwest metropolitan area. 15 open-ended questions was used. Most girls preferred the phrase “physical activity” over “exercise.” The benefits most frequently mentioned included positive physical attributes, mental health benefits, and staying healthy. Three major themes were identified: autonomy (ask them what they like to do, and then provide choices), fun (being with friends, variation, and enjoyment), and body image (gaining weight, appearance, and self-confidence). Implications: Use active listening and a focus on the goals of the teen. Teachers need to evaluate their teaching and counseling approach, because the teens emphasized two points: “Don’t tell me what to do” and “Don’t put me down.”
Bouts of physical activity lasting > or = 10 minutes may be a more time-efficient strategy to decrease body mass index and waist circumference.
This qualitative study from North Carolina provide insight into key areas of concern for parents regarding the nutrition and activity environment of child-care centers. This information may be used to create or modify interventions or policies and to help motivate parents to become advocates for change in child care. Out of 508 parents 27% rated meals quality as excellent. And 42% meals rated them as good. The majority of parents categorized the quality of physical activity at the center as excellent (36%) or good (46%), and suggested more structured, outdoor activities for children.
This paper from the ProChildren project investigate personal, social and physical environmental predictors in 13.305 kids. Daily fruit intake and daily vegetable intake was mainly associated with knowledge of the national recommendations, positive self-efficacy, positive liking and preference, parental modeling and demand and bringing fruit to school. This study showed that a combination of personal and social factors is related to daily F&V intake in schoolchildren.
Dietary behaviour is strongly influenced by the dietary environment, shaped by food supplies, investment policies and advertising, to create an obesogenic food market. Substantial resources have been invested in the production of meat, dairy, oils and sugar and the withdrawal from sale of fruit, vegetables and fish. The result is an ‘obesogenic economy’, i.e. a market economy that encourages weight gain, in which children are a prime target. Interventions in the obesogenic market need to be considered and several opportunities are described in the this paper. Recent moves to strengthen national and international food policies aimed to promote healthier behaviour have been undertaken, but they will need political support if they are to be fully implemented. Alliances of public health interests can help to create that political support and promote health-enhancing environments.
Unge orker ikke skolens formynderiske sundhedsundervisning – de vil have ‘hands on’-undervisning og virkelige mennesker, viser en ny undersøgelse fra Danmarks Pædagogiske Universitetsskole og Hjerteforeningen.
Inter99 results
Jan 2
Offering group-based counselling in addition to individual counselling resulted in small, but significantly improved dietary habits at five-year follow-up and a tendency of better maintenance, compared to individual counselling alone.
A small study found that hi-tech method (texting) improved compliance more than paper and pencil.
PhunkyFoods works!
Jan 2
The UK National Foundation for Educational Research studied the impact of PhunkyFoods in 18 primary schools across the country between November 2007 and September 2008. The findings include: 1) Parents and teachers saw improvements in the knowledge, awareness, attitudes and behaviour towards exercise and healthy eating. 2) More than half of children said they ate more healthily as a result. 3) More than half of children demonstrated that they had improved their understanding of why healthy eating was important. 4) The number of pupils who could provide a sophisticated response about what ‘balance’ meant to them in diet doubled after the project.
Researchers from The University of Manchester and the University of Newcastle in Australia quizzed nearly 1,300 sportspeople and found alcohol-related companies sponsored almost half of them. The study found that sportspeople sponsored by the alcohol industry were more likely to engage in binge drinking than those with no alcohol sponsor.