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The association between major depressive disorder (MDD) and obesity was assessed in 4,150 US adolescents aged 12-19 years from the 2001-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Weight and height were measured by health professionals and MDD was based on a structured diagnostic interview. The prevalence of MDD in the past year among US adolescents was 3.2% and 16.8% of US adolescents were obese. After adjustment for sex, age, race/ethnicity and poverty, MDD was not significantly associated with obesity among adolescents overall (adjusted odds ratio (adjOR) = 1.6, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.9-2.9), but an increased odds of obesity was observed among males (adjOR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.1-7.1) and non-Hispanic blacks (adjOR = 3.1, 95% CI = 1.1-8.3) with MDD. Future research on strategies that might reduce the risk of obesity in males and non-Hispanic black adolescents with MDD may be warranted. Keywords Obesity * Overweight * Depression * Adolescence * Epidemiology * NHANES, Introduction There has been increasing awareness of the public health and individual impact of major depressive disorder since the release of the World Health Report (Mathers et al., 2004) that [...]

Objective: The goals of this study were to explore the perceptions of professionals concerning research, its different approaches, and appropriate future directions with Native American communities, particularly in relation to nutrition issues. Design: Semistructured qualitative interviews. Setting: Interviews were conducted at Native and non-Native academic institutions, at other relevant locations, and over the telephone. Participants: Participants (N = 20) were from Native and non-Native academic institutions and had experience working with research in Native American communities. Phenomena of Interest: Relationships between Native and non-Native academic institutions, worldviews regarding research and American Indian communities, and beneficial research within American Indian communities. Analysis: Interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and returned to the participants for review. Analysis of interview material involved eliciting themes. Results: Some participants acknowledged different cultural worldviews in relation to research. Many participants provided insight on how to define beneficial research. Most said building trust between Native and non-Native academic institutions is an important step in developing effective research relationships. Conclusions and Implications: These findings are a first step toward creating a more equitable process of research that acknowledges different cultural worldviews and values community involvement within Native American communities. KEY WORDS: worldviews, research, tribal colleges, American Indian communities

This article discusses the relationship between sports drink taste, nutritional aspects, and athletes' consumption of sport drinks during training. An analysis of body mass index, body fluid changes, and water-electrolyte balance is presented.

Water deprivation-induced sodium appetite: humoral and cardiovascular mediators and immediate early genes. Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol 282: R552-R559, 2002; 10.1152/ ajpregu.00295.2000. Adult rats deprived of water for 24-30 h were allowed to rehydrate by ingesting only water for 1-2 h. Rats were then given access to both water and 1.8% NaCl. This procedure induced a sodium appetite defined by the operational criteria of a significant increase in 1.8% NaCl intake (3.8 [+ or -] 0.8 ml/2 h; n = 6). Expression of Fos (as assessed by immunohistochemistry) was increased in the organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis (OVLT), median preoptic nucleus (MnPO), subfornical organ (SFO), and supraoptic nucleus (SON) after water deprivation. After rehydration with water but before consumption of 1.8% NaCl, Fos expression in the SON disappeared and was partially reduced in the OVLT and MnPO. However, Fos expression did not change in the SFO. Water deprivation also 1) increased plasma renin activity (PRA), osmolality, and plasma [Na.sup.+]; 2) decreased blood volume; and 3) reduced total body [Na.sup.+]; but 4) did not alter arterial blood pressure. Rehydration with water alone caused only plasma osmolality and plasma [Na.sup.+] concentration to revert to euhydrated levels. The changes in Fos expression and PRA are consistent with a proposed role for ANG II in the control of the sodium appetite produced by water deprivation followed by rehydration with only water. salt intake; hypovolemia; circumventricular organs; dehydration; thirst

Objective: To determine the usefulness of variables from psychosocial models of health behavior in explaining fat-related dietary behavior among a sample of Chinese Americans. Design: A survey questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of Chinese Americans and analyzed for descriptive statistics and relationships among variables. Subjects/Settings: Participants were 600 healthy individuals, ranging from 25 to 70 years of age, living in New York City. Variables Measured: Demographic factors, degree of acculturation, food preferences, and 13 social psychological scales derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Healthy Belief Model, and Social Cognitive Theory. Dependent measures assessed were intention to reduce dietary fat and behaviors related to the selection of reduced-fat diets. Statistical Analyses: Descriptive statistics, Pearsons' correlation coefficients, t-tests, one-way analyses of variance, and multiple regression analyses were used. Results: Attitude, overall health concern, and self-efficacy accounted for 58% of the variance in behavioral intention for the entire sample. Attitude, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy accounted for 19% of the variance in the prediction of dietary fat reduction behaviors. In general, a gradient was seen in the increased predictiveness of each regression model by degree of acculturation of the immigrants to American culture: predictiveness (R2) for behavior ranged from 15% for the least to 34% for the most acculturated. Acculturation was significantly related to declines in the influence of habit and of social norms. These effects were not seen by length of residency. Implications: Nutrition educators should assess the degree of acculturation of groups with whom they work and recognize that the degree of acculturation impacts the relative importance of various psychosocial variables in fat reduction behaviors. KEY WORDS: Chinese Americans, psychosocial theory, dietary fat (JNE 33:322-331, 2001)

Fears and experiences of food restriction influence eating behavior but the association between past and present economic disadvantage, food insecurity and body size is poorly understood. Therefore, we examined these associations in a nationwide, representative sample of 25- to 64-y-old Finnish men and women (n = 6506). The respondents were classified by their body mass index (BMI) into four groups: thin, normal, overweight and obese. Economic disadvantage was assessed by three indicators including low household income, unemployment during past 5 y and long-term economic problems in childhood. Food insecurity was assessed by five separate items concerning economic fears and experiences related to sufficient supply of food during the past 12 mo, and a combined scale in which those with affirmative responses to four to five items were classified as hungry. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted using both the BMI grouping and indicators of economic disadvantage as independent variables to predict food insecurity, controlling simultaneously for age, educational attainment and sex. The results showed that low household income, recent unemployment and economic problems in childhood were all predictors of food insecurity. Thin people were most likely to be hungry and showed most food insecurity in five separate items. In addition, obese people reported more buying cheaper food due to economic problems and fears or experiences of running out of money to buy food than did normal weight subjects. In conclusion, both past and present economic disadvantage is associated with various aspects of food insecurity. The association between food insecurity and BMI is curvilinear. J. Nutr. 131: 2880-2884, 2001. KEY WORDS: * food insecurity * economic disadvantage * body mass index

Research has been conducted on the intracellular symbiotic dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium. The effect of the solid food and dissolved inorganic nutrients such as ammonium, nitrate and phosphate on the growth of these dinoflagellates has been investigated and reported.

This article discusses cultural perceptions of body weight and diet. The author examines the importance of body image in todays society and discusses the psychological affect it is having on people, stating that obese people are often treated as deviant, and thin people are revered even though they may not be healthy.

Issues are presented concerning the effect of film-induced sadness on the food intake of low-restraint and high-restraint individuals. The effect of sadness with and without threats to self-esteem is discussed.

Studies of children and adolescents have shown that food and nutrition issues are important to young people and that children as young as 7 years old (1,2) are actively manipulating […]

Previous research has demonstrated the efficacy of behavioral interventions in teaching self-feeding skills as well as in reducing inappropriate self-feeding behavior. The purpose of this study was to extend previous research on the use of prompting and reinforcement in reducing unsafe eating behaviors to the treatment of an adolescent with developmental disabilities and esophageal stricture. A behavioral assessment and treatment using prompting and reinforcement were shown to be effective in decreasing bite rate, decreasing bite size, and increasing the number of chews per bite. DESCRIPTORS: developmental disabilities, self-feeding, unsafe eating behavior

The objective of this study was to evaluate differences in college students' dietary intake and quality in relation to their Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality preferences. Students from three large introductory nutrition classes and 26 other classes were recruited to participate. Students (n = 302) completed a scannable version of the food frequency portion of the National Cancer Institute's Health Habits and History Questionnaire (NCI-HHHQ) and the MBTI. Dietary intake was compared using an adapted version of the Diet Quality Index (DQI), a multidimensional indicator of quality, and the recommended servings from the Food Guide Pyramid. Differences were determined by grouping the students according to their personality preferences and applying analysis of variance. Students preferring Extraversion, Intuition, or Judgment had tendencies for better dietary habits. Although some differences existed between men and women, Extraverts, in general, in comparison to Introverts, had higher intakes of grain, fruit, and dairy servings, with an overall superior DQI and a lower percentage of kcalories from fat; however, they also had a higher percentage of kcalories from alcohol. Intuitive women, in comparison to Sensing, had a superior DQI, consumed more fruit servings and breakfasts per week, and had a lower percentage of kcalories from sweets. Women preferring Judgment, as compared to those preferring Perception, consumed a significantly lower percentage of kcalories from alcohol and more frequent breakfasts. Suggestions for future research and for improving nutrition education are made based upon the link between certain personality preferences and dietary quality.

Consumers' ability to perform common nutrition label use tasks and specific task components, which revealed the effect of prior knowledge, were analyzed for relationships with demographic characteristics, label reading, and health status. Data were from a mall intercept experimental study. Most consumers (78%) accurately compared two products, 58% accurately evaluated nutrient level claims, 45% comprehensively balanced nutrients over a daily diet, and 20% accurately calculated the contribution of a single food to a daily diet, a task that required complex math. The subjects who performed significantly poorer were over 55 years of age, nonwhite, and less educated than those who performed best. Not reading food labels and having a diet-related health condition were also related to poorer performance. Task component analysis showed that all types of subjects shared the same response tendencies when making nutrition judgments. The findings suggest that dietary guidance for consumers will be more effective if it does not require quantitative tasks but relies instead on tasks that are easier for consumers.

This article describes the use of the Intervention Mapping (IM) process to develop a 5 A Day badge to increase fruit and vegetable (F&V) intake in 4th- to 6th-grade junior Girl Scouts. IM provides a structure for the application of theory and data to program planning beyond the needs assessment phase that is based on an understanding of the problem and an informed decision about intervention methods and strategies. Step 1 is an analysis of the determinants of the behavior - in this case, eating behavior in youth and the theoretical constructs that influence these determinants. In step 2, intervention methods for influencing these determinants are chosen and then translated into practical and fun strategies in Step 3. In this example, lack of knowledge and skills for food selection and preparation, lack of exposure to and availability of fruits and vegetables, negative norms and attitudes toward eating fruits and vegetables, and lack of role models promoting fruits and vegetables were identified as determinants of eating behavior in children. Social Cognitive Theory constructs of behavioral capability, self-efficacy, and self-control provided the framework for choosing the intervention methods: skill building, role modeling, self-monitoring, goal setting, and contracting.

Byline: Elizabeth A. Fries (1), Deborah J. Bowen (2), Helen P. Hopp (3), Kamila S. White (1) Keywords: fat consumption feedback; risk factor feedback; dietary behavior change; randomized feedback Abstract: Excess consumption of dietary fat promotes chronic disease such as heart disease and cancer. Dietary analysis and feedback are often used to motivate dietary change however, little is known about how people process, react to, and use this feedback to change behavior. This study used a randomized feedback design to examine psychological reactions to dietary fat feedback. Subjects were assessed for fat consumption and then randomly assigned to a high, moderate, or low percentage of calories from fat feedback group. Findings indicate that there are strong emotional, cognitive, and behavioral reactions to providing high-fat dietary feedback. Subjects that were told their diets were high in fat reported stronger negative emotional reactions and also reported they had stronger intentions to change than the other two feedback categories. These results are compared with studies providing nonrandomly assigned risk factor feedback. Author Affiliation: (1) Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, 23284 (2) Cancer Prevention Research Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, USA (3) School of Public Health, Loma Linda University, California, 92354 Article History: Registration Date: 09/09/2004

The purpose of this study was to determine if, how, and why adolescents changed their diets during pregnancy. Nutrient intakes per 1000 kcal of 97 pregnant adolescents were compared with those of 125 demographically similar nonpregnant adolescents. Additionally, pregnant adolescents were asked how and why their food consumption had changed since conception. Results indicate that pregnant girls' diets were more (p < .05) nutrient dense for protein, vitamins D, K, [B.sub.6], [B.sub.12], thiamin, riboflavin, folate, and minerals zinc, magnesium, calcium, and phosphorus. Since becoming pregnant, a majority reported that they had increased the amount of food eaten, specifically milk/dairy products, vegetables, fresh fruit/unsweetened juices, breads/cereals, and chocolate. Major motivations for increasing food intake during pregnancy included food cravings, increased appetite, improved taste of food, and concern for the baby. Health professionals' influence was cited for increased intake of vitamin supplements but not for changes in food intake. Major motivations for decreasing food intake during pregnancy were nausea and the altered taste of some foods. Pregnant adolescents apparently received the 'milk and calcium message' and changed their diets accordingly. Other messages may need to be individualized because motivations for dietary change differed.

The purpose of this research was to further our understanding of how children understand and use nutrition messages. As part of formative assessment for the development of nutrition messages for elementary age school children, focus groups and one-on-one interviews were conducted with 141 students, grades K to 6. Children were asked to interpret the messages found in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Food Guide Pyramid and to indicate how they use food labels. In addition, they were asked to discuss their opinion of 'good and bad foods' and 'dieting' and to link specific foods with nutrition terms. Differences by cognitive development were found with younger children having more difficulty interpreting more abstract terms such as 'variety' and 'healthy weight.' Children in grades 3 to 6 who were asked about reading food labels had difficulty describing how they use labels and offered unrealistic criteria for determining the acceptability of food based on label information. While younger children freely used terms such as 'low fat' or 'low sugar,' they had difficulty in naming three foods within those categories. Our research suggests that nutrition messages need to be developmentally appropriate and give specific behavioral messages in order to positively inform the eating choices of children.

Decisions about household budgets can influence the economic well-being as well as health status of families. A decision to constrain the food budget without adequate consideration of its impact on dietary status may be counterproductive by leading to higher expenditures in other areas, such as short- and long-term nutrition-related medical costs. A recent report indicates that 4 of the 10 leading causes of deaths in the United States are diet related - heart disease, cancer, strokes, and diabetes. Other diet-related conditions are overweight, hypertension, and osteoporosis. Health costs associated with these seven diet-related conditions are approximately $250 billion each year (1). Thus, household practices related to nutrition status may be of concern for those interested in identifying ways to reduce public and private health costs for American consumers. Limited household income can constrain the food budget and influence food choices and meal planning decisions. A U.S. Department of Agriculture report shows that households with limited financial resources spend less per person for most food categories and consume less than does the general population (2). Although low-income households spend less on food - in absolute terms - than other households, they spend a higher percentage of their total income for food. Food preparers in these households have many difficult choices to make in order to provide nutritious meals for family members. This study focuses on one household practice that may influence the nutritional status of American consumers. It examines primary food preparers who agreed or disagreed with the following item: I run my household on a strict food budget. Specifically, it examines the relationship of that reported budgetary decision with: (1) other measures food preparers frequently use to try to cut food costs, (2) their nutritional concerns for the family, and (3) meal planning considerations and practices. Results suggest inconsistencies or limitations in applying commonly recommended cost-saving consumer techniques.

The association between dental erosion and oral hygiene practices on bulimic patients was determined through assessment of dental history, oral hygiene practices, measurement of tooth wear index (TWI) and nutritional intake in thirty-three vomiting bulimics. Results obtained have shown that there is no significant association between oral hygiene practices, TWI, and nutritional intake and dental erosions among bulimics.

Anorexia and plasma tryptophan concentrations were evaluated on liver cirrhosis patients and normal individuals to determine the relationship between plasma tryptophan levels and anorexia. Results obtained revealed that an increase in the tryptophan precursor TRP in the plasma results to an increase in the serotogenic system activity in the brain which alters the eating behavior thus, mediating the onset of liver cirrhosis in patients with chronic liver disease.

Analyses of variance (ANOVA) measuring stroop color-naming latencies applied on 32 randomly selected subjects were used to evaluate the effects of short-term food deprivation and chronic dietary restraint on the selective processing of appetite cues. The subjects were assigned a 6-hour food deprivation and a non-food deprivation condition and were divided into high, moderate, and low restraint eating groups. Results established the relation between chronic dietary restraint and selective processing of appetite cues and the correlation of high levels of dietary restraint with selective processing of alcohol cues.

Escherichia coli O157:H7 was responsible for the outbreak of diarrhea, accompanied by intestinal bleeding among children at the Shirasagi Kindergarten in Urawa, Saitama Prefecture in Oct. 1990. The formerly harmless bacteria has evolved into a virulent strain that produces a toxin which can be fatal for humans. In addition to causing dehydration, O157 also affects the brain and kidneys. Antibiotic treatment aggravates the symptoms by causing the dead bacteria to release verotoxin. A germ free environment hygienic food preparation and eating habits can assure protection from O157.