Colleagues, friends,

Here’s a trimmer (May-June) “Info Monthly,” organized in the same four sections as before. Announcements: e.g. announced Meetings, Conferences, Resources; News, i.e. print and electronic media stories, usually bylined; Reports, Essays, Commentaries, Policy Briefs, now including the National Academy of Sciences pubs; and Research and Reviews: peer-reviewed journal articles. Thanks for all you do.

 

Robert H. Ross, PhD, Research Associate Professor, Center for Community and Public Health, University of New England, Portland, Maine, Email: rross1@une.edu

July 8, 2011

 

A. Announcements

1. Weight of the Nation 2012. On May 7-9, 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, will host Weight of the Nation™, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, D.C. Planning for the 2012 conference is being done by CDC with members of the planning committee. http://www.weightofthenation.org/.
2. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Grant Will Help Expand Healthy Schools Program to 30,000 Schools Across the Nation
   http://www.rwjf.org/childhoodobesity/product.jsp?id=72490.    
3. IOM Issues Recommendations for Preventing Obesity in Early Childhood
   http://www.rwjf.org/childhoodobesity/product.jsp?id=72539&cid=XEM_205591.  
4. For NCPPA News, current and back Issues, of the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity, go to and subscribe at http://www.ncppa.org/publications/ncppanews/issue209june282011/.
5. To register to receive Alerts, including Tables of Contents of recurrent issues of Journals including “International Journal of Obesity” and “Obesity,” go to http://www.nature.com/register.
6. To register for Webinars given by WellSteps (http://new.wellsteps.com/), go to http://new.wellsteps.com/resources/webinars.
7. To receive the Newsletter of the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, subscribe at http://www.yaleruddcenter.org/newsletter/.
8. As of June 2, 2011, all PDF versions of books published by the National Academies Press (NAP) will be downloadable free of charge to anyone. This includes our current catalog of more than 4,000 books plus future reports published by NAP.* We invite you to sign up for MyNAP --a new way for us to deliver free downloads of this content to loyal subscribers like you, to offer you customized communications, and to reward you with exclusive offers and discounts on our printed books.
9. A set of resources and information related to CDC's winnable battles initiative available at: http://www.icontact.com/ and http://www.cdc.gov/WinnableBattles/. Topic-specific information about each area (food safety, healthcare-associated infections, HIV, motor vehicle injuries, nutrition/physical activity/obesity, teen pregnancy and tobacco) and PowerPoint slides that you can download, fact sheets, and other resources such as policy briefs, best practices, and Vital Signs.
10. SNaX for Everyone. A Promising PRC Program Helps Schools and Communities Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity. Stories of Prevention Research, CDC Prevention Research Centers Program, June 2011. http://www.cdc.gov/prc/stories-prevention-research/stories/snax-for-everyone.htm?source=govdelivery.
11. Obesity Fills In for Smoking as Major Killer. Michael Smith, MedPage Today, June 30, 2011.http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/Obesity/27371.

B.       News

1. Born to Lose: Health Inequality at Birth The New York Times Economix blog, Nancy Folbre, 06/27/2011. In an imaginary world of equal opportunity we would all be free to choose our own economic future. In reality, many children in the United States are born to lose, suffering health disadvantages at birth that reduce their likelihood of economic success. http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/born-to-lose-health-inequality-at-birth/?hp.
2. Amid 'War on Obesity,' Skeptics Warn of Stigma. David Crary, Associated Press, May 1, 2011. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2713146/posts. 
3. FDA proposes draft menu and vending machine labeling requirements, invites public to comment on proposals. FDA News Release, April 1, 2011. http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm249471.htm.
4. Scientists turn 'bad fat' into 'good fat'. Michelle Roberts, BBC News, May 3, 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13266196.
5. U.S. Middle and High Schools Making Progress to Provide Healthier Lunches, Falling Short on Physical Activity. Major New Study Shows Schools are Providing More Nutritious Foods Through National School Lunch Program, but Many Also Offer High-Fat Items and Empty Calories. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, May 4, 2011. http://www.rwjf.org/childhoodobesity/product.jsp?id=72280.
6. Bottle Feeding at Age 2 Raises Obesity Risk. Study Shows Link Between Childhood Obesity and Regular Bottle-Feeding by 2-Year-Olds. Brenda Goodman, WebMD, May 5, 2011. http://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/news/20110505/bottle-feeding-at-age-2-raises-obesity-risk.
7. How Obesity Spreads in Social Networks. Shared attitudes might not be the only force, among women, shaping weight gain in social circles. Katherine Harmon, Scientific American, May 5, 2011. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20689421.
8. Oregon Farm-to-School Bill Would Benefit Health Through Job Creation, Study Finds. Health Impact Assessment Uncovers Unexpected Benefits, Continues Growing Trend.http://www.healthimpactproject.org/news/project/health-impact-project-grantee-releases-final-hia.
9. Foods With Benefits, or So They Say. Natasha Singer, New York Times, May 14, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/business/15food.html.
10. Governor Taking Good Approach Toward a Healthier Iowa [OPINION]. Globe Gazette, 05/15/2011. The governor wants to make Iowa the healthiest state in the union and said last week he expects a comprehensive model for a new public-private partnership that focuses on health and wellness to be ready in a couple of months. http://www.globegazette.com/news/opinion/editorial/article_ac12e7ca-7f78-11e0-8b7a-001cc4c002e0.html.
11. Decade's Top 10 Public Health Achievements. WebMD, Bill Hendrick, 05/20/2011. Controlling infectious diseases like AIDS and tuberculosis, doing a better job of fighting tobacco use, improving motor vehicle safety, and reducing heart disease and death have been named by the CDC as being among the 10 top public health achievements of the first decade of the 21st century.
12. Too Much Pregnancy Weight Linked to Baby's Obesity Risk. Study Suggests Pregnant Women Who Gain Excess Weight Deliver Babies With Too Much Body Fat. Denise Mann, WebMD Health News, June 7, 2011. http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20110607/too-much-pregnancy-weight-linked-to-babys-obesity-risk
13.  High School Kids Get Too Many Sugary Drinks, Too Little Exercise: CDC Only one in 10 kids meets federal goals for fitness, study reveals. Alan Mozes, Healthday News, June 16, 2011.http://health.usnews.com/health-news/diet-fitness/fitness/articles/2011/06/16/high-school-kids-get-too-many-sugary-drinks-too-little-exercise-cdc.
14. Obama Administration releases National Prevention Strategy. News Release, HHS, June 16, 2011. To read more about today's announcement, visit http://www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets /prevention06162011a.html . More information on the National Prevention Strategy and the National Prevention Council can be found at http://www.HealthCare.gov/center/councils/nphpphc/index.html. Report: http://www.healthcare.gov/center/councils/nphpphc/strategy/report.pdf, http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/06/20110616a.html

 

C.       Reports, Essays, Commentaries, Policy briefs

1. Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies. Prepublication Available. Even the youngest children in the United States are at risk of becoming obese. To combat this growing problem and contribute to efforts in obesity prevention in young children, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) reviewed factors related to overweight and obesity from birth to age five...http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13124&utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=National%20Academies%20Press&utm_campaign=NAP+mail+New++6.28.11&utm_content=web&utm_term=.
2. Child and Adolescent Health and Health Care Quality: Measuring What Matters. Prepublication Available. Increasing public investments in health care services for low-income and special needs children and adolescents in the United States have raised questions about whether these efforts improve their health outcomes. Yet it is difficult to assess the general... http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13084&utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=National%20Academies%20Press&utm_campaign=NAP+mail+new+5.3.11&utm_content=web&utm_term=.
3. Child and Adult Care Food Program: Aligning Dietary Guidance for All. The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a federally-funded program designed to provide healthy meals and snacks to children and adults while receiving day care at participating family day care homes, traditional child care centers, afterschool... http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12959&utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=National%20Academies%20Press&utm_campaign=NAP+mail+new+5.17.11&utm_content=web&utm_term=.
4. Hunger and Obesity: Understanding a Food Insecurity Paradigm: Workshop Summary. At some point during 2009, more than 17 million households in the United States had difficulty providing enough food for all their members because of a lack of resources. In more than one-third of these households, the food intake of some household members... http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13102&utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=National%20Academies%20Press&utm_campaign=NAP+mail+new+5.31.11&utm_content=web&utm_term=.
5. Surveillance Summaries, Volume 60, No. SS-6, May 20, 2011. Surveillance of Health Status in Minority Communities — Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health Across the U.S. (REACH U.S.) Risk Factor Survey, United States, 2009. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6006a1.htm?s_cid=ss6006a1_e&source=govdelivery.
6. Physical Activity Levels of High School Students --- United States, 2010.Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)June 17, 2011 / 60(23);773-777. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6023a1.htm?s_cid=mm6023a1_e&source=govdelivery.  
7. Beverage Consumption Among High School Students --- United States, 2010. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). June 17, 2011 / 60(23);778-780. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6023a2.htm?s_cid=mm6023a2_e&source=govdelivery.
8. Obesity in Canada. Increased activity and healthier eating can improve obesity rates, but aren’t the only factors at play. Comprehensive new report examines how obesity varies across Canada, who’s most at risk and possible actions to address it. Download the report: Obesity in Canada. http://secure.cihi.ca/cihiweb/products/Obesity_in_canada_2011_en.pdf, https://secure.cihi.ca/estore/productFamily.htm?pf=PFC1636&lang=en&media=0.
9. Pathways to Urban Sustainability: Lessons from the Atlanta Metropolitan Region: Summary of a Workshop. The U.S. population is more than 80 percent urban. Recognizing that many metropolitan areas in the United States have been experimenting with various approaches to sustainability, and that despite the differences among regions, there are likely some core...http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13143&utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=National%20Academies%20Press&utm_campaign=NAP+Mail+New+6.21.11&utm_content=web&utm_term=.

 

D.      Research and Reviews

 

1.       Child overweight/obesity

1.1.Determinants, Risk factors, Co-occurring conditions

1.1.1.Childhood overweight after establishment of the gut microbiota: the role of delivery mode, pre-pregnancy weight and early administration of antibiotics.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2011 Apr;35(4):522-9. Epub 2011 Mar 8. (Original)

1.2.Disparities

1.2.1.A randomized controlled trial of culturally tailored dance and reducing screen time to prevent weight gain in low-income African American girls: Stanford GEMS.
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2010 Nov;164(11):995-1004. (Original)

1.3.Prevalence, Incidence

1.4.Physical activity and Nutrition

1.5.Intervention, Outcomes, including Cost

1.5.1.Hip-Hop to Health Jr. Obesity Prevention Effectiveness Trial: postintervention results.
Obesity (Silver Spring). 2011 May;19(5):994-1003. Epub 2010 Dec 30. (Original)

1.5.2.Long-term efficacy of group-based treatment for childhood obesity compared with routinely given individual counselling.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2011 Apr;35(4):530-3. Epub 2011 Feb 1. (Original)

1.5.3.Contribution of social marketing strategies to community-based obesity prevention programmes in children.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2011 Apr;35(4):472-9. Epub 2010 Oct 26. (Review)

1.5.4.A 4-year, cluster-randomized, controlled childhood obesity prevention study: STOPP.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2009 Apr;33(4):408-17. Epub 2009 Mar 17. (Original)

1.5.5.A parent-led family-focused treatment program for overweight children aged 5 to 9 years: the PEACH RCT.
Pediatrics. 2011 Feb;127(2):214-22. Epub 2011 Jan 24. (Original)

1.5.6.Aerobic exercise and snoring in overweight children: a randomized controlled trial.
Obesity (Silver Spring). 2006 Nov;14(11):1985-91. (Original)

1.5.7.Behavioral weight control treatment with supervised exercise or peer-enhanced adventure for overweight adolescents.
J Pediatr. 2010 Dec;157(6):923-928.e1. Epub 2010 Jul 23. (Original)

1.6.Measurement

 

2.       Adult overweight/obesity

2.1.Determinants, Risk factors, Co-occurring conditions

2.2.Disparities

2.2.1.Health promotion intervention in low socioeconomic kindergarten children.
J Pediatr. 2011 May;158(5):796-801.e1. Epub 2011 Jan 17. (Original)

2.2.2.Pharmacotherapy for overweight/obesity in ethnic minorities and white Caucasians: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Diabetes Obes Metab. 2010 Dec 3. doi: 10.1111/j.1463-1326.2010.01346.x. (Review)

2.2.3.Long-term results of an obesity program in an ethnically diverse pediatric population.
Pediatrics. 2011 Mar;127(3):402-10. Epub 2011 Feb 7. (Original)

2.3.Prevalence, Incidence

2.4.Physical activity and Nutrition

2.4.1.The effects of a whole grain-enriched hypocaloric diet on cardiovascular disease risk factors in men and women with metabolic syndrome.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Jan;87(1):79-90. (Original)

2.5.Intervention, Outcomes, including Cost

2.5.1.Effects of 12-month exercise on health-related quality of life: a randomized controlled trial.
Prev Med. 2011 May 1;52(5):344-51. Epub 2011 Mar 1. (Original)

2.5.2.The effects of intermittent or continuous energy restriction on weight loss and metabolic disease risk markers: a randomized trial in young overweight women.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2011 May;35(5):714-27. Epub 2010 Oct 5. (Original)

2.5.3.Motivational interviewing: a useful approach to improving cardiovascular health?.
J Clin Nurs. 2011 May;20(9-10):1236-44. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2010.03558.x. (Review)

2.5.4.Efficacy of a workplace-based weight loss program for overweight male shift workers: the Workplace POWER (Preventing Obesity Without Eating like a Rabbit) randomized controlled trial.
Prev Med. 2011 May 1;52(5):317-25. Epub 2011 Feb 20. (Original)

2.5.5.Weight reduction for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2011 Jun 15;6:CD003619. (Review)

2.5.6.Comparison of two health-promotion programs for older workers.
Am J Public Health. 2011 May;101(5):883-90. Epub 2011 Mar 18. (Original)

2.5.7.Interventions to increase physical activity among healthy adults: meta-analysis of outcomes.
Am J Public Health. 2011 Apr;101(4):751-8. Epub 2011 Feb 17. (Review)

2.5.8.Home-based exercise for middle-aged Chinese at diabetic risk: a randomized controlled trial.
Prev Med. 2011 May 1;52(5):337-43. Epub 2011 Mar 1. (Original)

2.5.9.The clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of long-term weight management schemes for adults: a systematic review.
Health Technol Assess. 2011 Jan;15(2):1-182. (Review)

2.5.10.Cognitive behavioral therapy improves diet and body composition in overweight and obese adolescents.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 May;87(5):1134-40. (Original)

2.5.11.Long-term effects of a lifestyle intervention on weight and cardiovascular risk factors in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus: four-year results of the Look AHEAD trial.
Arch Intern Med. 2010 Sep 27;170(17):1566-75. (Original)

2.5.12.A motivation-focused weight loss maintenance program is an effective alternative to a skill-based approach.
Int J Obes (Lond). 2011 Feb;35(2):259-69. Epub 2010 Aug 3. (Original)

2.5.13.Are physical activity interventions in primary care and the community cost-effective? A systematic review of the evidence.
Br J Gen Pract. 2011 Mar;61(584):e125-33. (Review)

2.6.Measurement

2.6.1.An accurate risk score based on anthropometric, dietary, and lifestyle factors to predict the development of type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes Care. 2007 Mar;30(3):510-5. (Original)