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This study takes a child-centred approach to examine the relationship between children's third-place play, parents' perceptions of their neighbourhood environment, and time spent by children in physical activity and sedentary behaviour during weekday out-of-school hours. A total of 1102 children aged 8–13 years from 19 schools across Auckland, New Zealand took part in a public participation geographic information systems (PPGIS) survey utilising closed- and open-ended questions and child mapping of destinations. The results suggested that playing in green places near home were associated with more time spent in light physical activity and less sedentary behaviour. Children who played in street places near home (e.g. driveways, footpath, carpark) spent more time in moderate to vigorous physical activity. Although parental perceptions of their neighbourhood environment were not directly associated with children's time spent in physical activity, children with parents who perceived their neighbourhood as more connected were more likely to engage in third-place play. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neighbourhood design can have substantial impacts on children's physical and psychological well-being. COVID-19 lockdowns produced striking and unprecedented changes in how neighbourhoods functioned for children. The aim of this research was to explore what worked well for children during Alert Levels 3 and 4 (lockdown) in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ), focusing in particular on the neighbourhood environment. Children (n = 192) aged between 5 and 13 years completed an online survey that collected information on neighbourhood walking and wheeling and what they liked about their neighbourhood during lockdown in NZ. Car-less neighbourhoods were important for supporting children's well-being. Community activities such as the NZ Bear Hunt were appreciated by children. Natural environments, being home, spending time with family, and simple activities were all liked by participants. Social connections were important but often required technology. Findings can help inform initiatives to support child well-being in the face of potential future lockdowns or new pandemics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The period before and during pregnancy is increasingly recognized as an important stage for addressing malnutrition. This can help to reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases in mothers and passage of risk to their infants. The FIGO Nutrition Checklist is a tool designed to address these issues. The checklist contains questions on specific dietary requirements, body mass index, diet quality, and micronutrients. Through answering these questions, awareness is generated, potential risks are identified, and information is collected that can inform health‐promoting conversations between women and their healthcare professionals. The tool can be used across a range of health settings, regions, and life stages. The aim of this review is to summarize nutritional recommendations related to the FIGO Nutrition Checklist to support healthcare providers using it in practice. Included is a selection of global dietary recommendations for each of the components of the checklist and practical insights from countries that have used it. Implementation of the FIGO Nutrition Checklist will help identify potential nutritional deficiencies in women so that they can be addressed by healthcare providers. This has potential longstanding benefits for mothers and their children, across generations. Synopsis: The FIGO Nutrition Checklist addresses key nutrition concerns for pregnancy. It can be used by healthcare professionals, or women themselves, to identify potential nutritional risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research was to gain an understanding of child consultation in policies for healthy environments in the international evidence base, and examine national and local-level policy and processes regarding child consultation. A systematic mapping review was conducted and grey literature was sought from Aotearoa New Zealand urban and neighbourhood planning, local board, and transport authority websites. A local exemplar project (in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland City) of child engagement in policy planning was presented. Twenty-four articles met the inclusion criteria for the literature search. The literature was synthesised into three broad themes: co-design and planning processes, green space, and physical activity and body size. Despite the existence of high-level national policies, there was little regional consistency. The 'Healthy Puketāpapa' project presented provided a replicable model for high-quality, local consultation processes. Child consultation is a method through which decision-makers can respect children as citizens, and the process has been found to be beneficial to all stakeholders involved. This research provides an international perspective of literature, and a methodology that can be replicated in other countries and regions for comparability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Appropriately disseminating results to children are important because it respects the role they played in the research process. Clearly conveying complex messages to children, however, can be challenging and take a substantial amount of time for researchers. This paper reports on the results dissemination processes and accompanying critical reflection, that occurred during Neighbourhoods for Active Kids study – a community-based health research project with 1102 children aged 8–13 years residing in Auckland, Aotearoa/New Zealand. The results dissemination items included: an individual physical activity and food-purchasing behaviour summary, school physical activity and food-purchasing behaviour summary, colouring-in poster, a video, comic, results booklet, school summary report and school data. The results from critical reflection have been developed into five tips for disseminating results to children. The tips are: consult with children and incorporate their feedback throughout; allow space for change and adaptation; meet children where they are at in the digital world and in the physical world; it's OK to ask for help; and be careful of the words you use. Findings can be used to inform results dissemination activities across a range of social science disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advertising of unhealthy food and beverages forms an important component of obesogenic environments. Such marketing to children is a key health determinant because of its impact on dietary preference and food purchasing behaviour. The location of outdoor advertising is important in exploring obesogenic environments and children's neighbourhoods. The aim of this study is to explore issues involved in the use of Google Street View to examine outdoor food and beverage advertising. The implications for using Google Street View in the context of neighbourhood built environment research and grass‐roots advocacy are discussed. The study was conducted within walkable distances from 19 primary and intermediate schools in Auckland, New Zealand, where "walkable" was defined as limited by 800 m road network boundaries, which are equivalent to school buffer boundaries. Google Street View allows for centrality of data collection, coding, and storage. However, challenges exist with the method because 727 (29.4%) of a total of 2,474 outdoor advertisements that were identified were not able to be categorised because images were unclear, not in English, blocked, or at angles where detail cannot be deciphered. Specific to outdoor advertising for food and beverages, the results presented here show that children are exposed to a significantly greater number of unhealthy advertising than other advertising, P=0.001, eta‐squared statistic (0.45) indicates a large effect size. Overall, the results show promise for the use of Google Street View in the study of obesogenic environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Inadequate fruit and vegetable (F&V) consumption is an important dietary risk factor for disease internationally. High F&V prices can be a barrier to dietary intake and so to improve understanding of this topic we surveyed prices and potential competition between F&V outlet types. Methods: Over a three week early autumn period in 2013, prices were collected bi-weekly for 18 commonly purchased F&Vs from farmers' markets (FM) selling local produce (n = 3), other F&V markets (OFVM) (n = 5), supermarkets that neighbored markets (n = 8), and more distant supermarkets (n = 8), (in urban Wellington and Christchurch areas of New Zealand). Prices from an online supermarket were also collected. Results: A total of 3120 prices were collected. Most F&Vs (13/18) were significantly cheaper at OFVMs than supermarkets. Over half of the F&Vs (10/18) were significantly cheaper at nearby compared to distant supermarkets, providing evidence of a moderate ‘halo effect’ in price reductions in supermarkets that neighbored markets. Weekend (vs midweek) prices were also significantly cheaper at nearby (vs distant) supermarkets, supporting evidence for a ‘halo effect’. Ideal weekly ‘food basket’ prices for a two adult, two child family were: OFVMs (NZ$76), online supermarket ($113), nearby supermarkets ($124), distant supermarkets ($127), and FMs ($138). This represents a savings of $49 per week (US$26) by using OFVMs relative to (non-online) supermarkets. Similarly, a shift from non-online supermarkets to the online supermarket would generate a $13 saving. Conclusions: In these locations general markets appear to be providing some substantially lower prices for fruit and vegetables than supermarkets. They also appear to be depressing prices in neighboring supermarkets. These results, when supplemented by other needed research, may help inform the case for interventions to improve access to fruit and vegetables, particularly for low-income populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Latch On's objective was to achieve improved breastfeeding rates in women with raised body mass indices using a multicomponent breastfeeding support intervention., Methods: A hybrid type 1 implementation-effectiveness trial with mixed-methods process and health economics analyses were conducted. Data collection included stakeholder questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, fidelity data, participant and health system costs., Results: The intervention was delivered with fidelity but the high breastfeeding rates at 3 months were not different between intervention and usual care. Participants receiving the minimum intervention dose were more likely to initiate breastfeeding (P = 0.045) and be breastfeeding at hospital discharge (P = 0.01) compared with participants below the threshold. Participant exit interview themes highlighted the importance of improving breastfeeding support to women, the effect of COVID-19 on the breastfeeding experience, and found that the intervention improved the experience of establishing breastfeeding. The intervention cost €157 per participant, with no other cost difference between groups. Process analysis found that follow-up breastfeeding services continued in half of sites after study completion., Conclusions: This low-cost intervention resulted in a more enjoyable breastfeeding experience for participants and changed practice in some study sites. The intervention dose received may impact effectiveness, but further research is needed to provide definitive evidence of clinical and cost effectiveness., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health.)

Objective: To understand the relationship between adolescents' unhealthy snacking behaviour during their school journey and their perceived and objective measures of food outlet availability in the school neighbourhood., Design: A cross-sectional survey enquired about socio-demographic information, school transport modes, perceived presence of food outlets in the school neighbourhood and unhealthy food purchase and consumption on the school journey. A geographical information system analysis of the food outlets within 500 m and 1000 m school buffers was undertaken. Data were analysed using generalised linear mixed modelling., Setting: All twelve secondary schools in Dunedin, Aotearoa New Zealand, March 2020-June 2022., Participants: Adolescents aged 13-18 years ( n 725) who reported being familiar with their school neighbourhood., Results: Perceived availability of food outlets in the school neighbourhood was inversely correlated with distance to the closest food outlet from school and positively correlated with food outlet density within 500 m and 1000 m school buffers. Adolescents' purchase and consumption of unhealthy snacks and drinks during the school journey were associated with perceived availability of food outlets and with shorter distance to the closest food outlet from school. Mixed transport users, girls and those living in high-deprivation neighbourhoods had higher odds of purchasing and consuming unhealthy snacks and drinks during the school journey than active transport users, boys and those living in low-deprivation neighbourhoods, respectively., Conclusions: Adolescents perceptions of the food environment and close access to food outlets in the school neighbourhood may influence adolescents' food purchase and consumption behaviours during the school journey.