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Objectives This study sought to advance understanding of the influence of psychosocial factors on oral health by examining how parental self-efficacy (with regard to acting on their child's oral health needs) and oral health knowledge relate to parental and child oral health behaviors and self-rated oral health. Methods Parents of children in grades 0/1 and 5/6 ( n = 804) and children in grades 5/6 ( n = 377, mean age 11.5 ± 1.0, 53.9% female) were recruited from a stratified random sample of 11 primary (elementary) schools. Participants completed surveys capturing psychosocial factors, oral health-related knowledge, and parental attitudes about oral health. Parents also rated their own oral health status and the oral health of their child. Correlations and logistic regression analysis (adjusted for socioeconomic status, child age, and gender) examined associations between psychosocial factors and the outcomes of interest (parent and child behaviors and self-rated oral health status). Results Higher parental self-efficacy was associated with more frequent toothbrushing (by parent and child), and more frequent visits to a dental professional. These associations were particularly strong with regard to dental visits for children, with parents with the highest tertile for self-efficacy 4.3 times more likely to report that their child attended a dentist for a checkup at least once a year (95% CI 2.52-7.43); and 3 times more likely to report their child brushing their teeth at least twice a day ( Adjusted Odds Ratio 3.04, 95% CI 1.64-5.64) compared with those parents in the lowest tertile for self-efficacy. No associations with oral health knowledge were found when examined by tertile of increasing knowledge. Conclusions Oral health self-efficacy and knowledge are potentially modifiable risk factors of oral health outcomes, and these findings suggest that intervening on these factors could help foster positive dental health habits in families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is already known about this subject Sugar-sweetened beverages have been suggested as a possible contributor to the development of obesity., However, longitudinal evidence is limited, and most previous studies were conducted in the United States. It is unclear if the results are applicable to other parts of the world., What this study adds We assessed the longitudinal association between sweet drink intake and body mass index in a large sample of children and adolescents in the Australian state of Victoria., We generally found limited evidence for a longitudinal association between various indicators of sweet drink consumption and body mass index., Objective The aim of this study was to examine whether baseline ( T1) or 2-year change in sweet drink intake in children and adolescents was associated with age- and gender-standardized body mass index ( BMIz) at time two ( T2), 2 years later. Methods Data on 1465 children and adolescents from the comparison groups of two quasi-experimental intervention studies from Victoria, Australia were analysed. At two time points between 2003 and 2008 (mean interval: 2.2 years) height and weight were measured and sweet drink consumption (soft drink and fruit juice/cordial) was assessed. Results No association was observed between T1 sweet drink intake and BMIz at T2 among children or adolescents. Children from higher socioeconomic status families who reported an increased intake of sweet drinks at T2 compared with T1 had higher mean BMIz at T2 ( β: 0.13, P = 0.05). There was no evidence of a dose-response relationship between sweet drink intake and BMIz. In supplementary analyses, we observed that more frequent usual consumption of fruit juice/cordial was associated with a higher BMIz at T2 among children. Conclusion This study showed limited evidence of an association between sweet drink intake and BMIz. However, the association is complex and may be confounded by both dietary and activity behaviours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Early childhood caries ( ECC) describes dental caries affecting children aged 0-71 months. Current research suggests ECC has important aetiological bases during the first year of life. Gaps in knowledge about disease progression prevent the effective and early identification of 'at risk' children. Aim To conduct a systematic review of research studies focusing on (a) acquisition and colonization of oral bacteria and ECC and (b) risk and/or protective factors in infants aged 0-12 months. Design Ovid Medline and Embase databases (1996-2011) were searched for RCT, longitudinal, cross-sectional and qualitative studies. Two investigators undertook a quality assessment for risk of bias. Results Inclusion criteria were met for (a) by four papers and for (b) by 13 papers; five papers were rated medium or high quality. Bacterial acquisition/colonization and modifying factor interrelationships were identified, but their role in the caries process was not clarified. Key risk indicators were infant feeding practices (nine papers), maternal circumstances and oral health (6) and infant-related oral health behaviours (4). Conclusion This review confirmed that factors occurring during the first year of life affect ECC experience. Despite heterogeneity, findings indicated maternal factors influence bacterial acquisition, whereas colonization was mediated by oral health behaviours and practices and feeding habits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the utility of the biopsychosocial model to predict accuracy of weight status perception among Australian adolescents. The factors included in this framework were: age, gender, and BMI-z (biological factors); satisfaction with body weight and shape (psychological factors); socioeconomic status, peer weight (social factors). Cross-sectional data, including measured height and weight, and self-reported weight status, was obtained from 2954 adolescents (mean age=14.6, 56% male) who participated in the It's Your Move! study. Accuracy of weight status perception was associated with gender, BMI-z, SES, and weight and shape satisfaction. Gender differences in weight status perception were moderated by satisfaction with weight. In boys, weight satisfaction was associated with perceived healthy weight; in girls, it was associated with perceived healthy weight and underweight. Moderately overweight adolescents are most at risk of underestimating their weight status and could benefit from education about the boundaries of the healthy weight range., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: The Romp & Chomp intervention reduced the prevalence of overweight/obesity in pre-school children in Geelong, Victoria, Australia through an intervention promoting healthy eating and active play in early childhood settings. This study aims to determine if the intervention successfully created more health promoting family day care (FDC) environments., Methods: The evaluation had a cross-sectional, quasi-experimental design with the intervention FDC service in Geelong and a comparison sample from 17 FDC services across Victoria. A 45-item questionnaire capturing nutrition- and physical activity-related aspects of the policy, socio-cultural and physical environments of the FDC service was completed by FDC care providers (in 2008) in the intervention (n= 28) and comparison (n= 223) samples., Results: Select results showed intervention children spent less time in screen-based activities (P= 0.03), organized active play (P < 0.001) and free inside play (P= 0.03) than comparison children. There were more rules related to healthy eating (P < 0.001), more care provider practices that supported children's positive meal experiences (P < 0.001), fewer unhealthy food items allowed (P= 0.05), higher odds of staff being trained in nutrition (P= 0.04) and physical activity (P < 0.001), lower odds of having set minimum times for outside (P < 0.001) and organized (P= 0.01) active play, and of rewarding children with food (P < 0.001)., Conclusions: Romp & Chomp improved the FDC service to one that discourages sedentary behaviours and promotes opportunities for children to eat nutritious foods. Ongoing investment to increase children's physical activity within the setting and improving the capacity and health literacy of care providers is required to extend and sustain the improvements., (© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

Objective: In 2006, the Victorian Government adopted the School Canteens and other school Food Services (SCFS) Policy that bans the sale of sweet drinks and confectionary and recommends the proportions of menu items based on a traffic light system of food classification. This study aims to determine whether compliance with the policy improves the nutritional profile of the menus., Methods: Items from food service menus were assessed for compliance with the SCFS policy and categorised as 'everyday' ('green'), 'select carefully' ('amber') or 'occasionally' ('red') (n=106). Profile analysis assessed differences in the nutritional profile of the menus between sub-groups., Results: Overall, 37% of menus contained items banned under the policy. The largest proportion of items on the assessed menus were from the 'amber' category (mean: 51.0%), followed by 'red' (29.3%) and 'green' (20.3%). No menus met the traffic light-based recommendations and there was no relationship between policy compliance and the proportion of items in each of the three categories., Conclusions and Implications: To increase the healthiness of the school food service we recommend a greater investment in resources and infrastructure to implement existing policies, and establishing stronger monitoring and support systems., (© 2011 The Authors. ANZJPH © 2011 Public Health Association of Australia.)

Background: Kids--'Go for your life' (K-GFYL) is an award-based health promotion program being implemented across Victoria, Australia. The program aims to reduce the risk of childhood obesity by improving the socio-cultural, policy and physical environments in children's care and educational settings. Membership of the K-GFYL program is open to all primary and pre-schools and early childhood services across the State. Once in the program, member schools and services are centrally supported to undertake the health promotion (intervention) activities. Once the K-GFYL program 'criteria' are reached the school/service is assessed and 'awarded'. This paper describes the design of the evaluation of the statewide K-GFYL intervention program., Methods/design: The evaluation is mixed method and cross sectional and aims to: 1) Determine if K-GFYL award status is associated with more health promoting environments in schools/services compared to those who are members only; 2) Determine if children attending K-GFYL award schools/services have higher levels of healthy eating and physical activity-related behaviors compared to those who are members only; 3) Examine the barriers to implementing and achieving the K-GFYL award; and 4) Determine the economic cost of implementing K-GFYL in primary schools. Parent surveys will capture information about the home environment and child dietary and physical activity-related behaviors. Environmental questionnaires in early childhood settings and schools will capture information on the physical activity and nutrition environment and current health promotion activities. Lunchbox surveys and a set of open-ended questions for kindergarten parents will provide additional data. Resource use associated with the intervention activities will be collected from primary schools for cost analysis., Discussion: The K-GFYL award program is a community-wide intervention that requires a comprehensive, multi-level evaluation. The evaluation design is constrained by the lack of a non-K-GFYL control group, short time frames and delayed funding of this large scale evaluation across all intervention settings. However, despite this, the evaluation will generate valuable evidence about the utility of a community-wide environmental approach to preventing childhood obesity which will inform future public health policies and health promotion programs internationally., Trial Registration: ACTRN12609001075279.