JANUARY NEWS
PINARD AWARDED HEALTHY EATING RESEARCH GRANT
Dr. Courtney Pinard here at the Center was recently awarded a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Connections grant through the Healthy Eating Research program to conduct food-access research related to retail food “corner stores” located in rural and urban environments in Nebraska.
A measurement gap in food access research will be addressed through this project by assessing various factors in corner stores within the context of the larger food environment and related to childhood obesity prevention. The project will result in the development of tools and a toolkit that will assist in the assessment of healthy food access in both rural and urban settings.
A specific aim for the project is to identify factors that influence successful implementation of corner store projects in targeted populations as well as barriers in rural and urban settings. A second aim is to modify existing measurement tools and develop new ones to better assess healthy food access. The ultimate goal is to have common, yet adaptable, measurement tools that can capture comprehensive information, such as success stories and barriers to implementing healthy corner stores.
CENTER ASSISTING FEEDING AMERICA
WITH FOOD BANK PROJECT
The Center is working with Feeding America to implement a survey of health education in approximately 200 food banks across the U.S.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation will work with registered dietitians in local communities to bring resources, programs and expertise to food banks, their partner agencies and food insecure families while the Center will bring survey design expertise.
Three key initiatives of the project include 1) raising awareness of food insecurity as a public health issue, 2) identifying strategies and securing resources to change the mix of food flowing through the food banking network and to increase access to healthier food and 3) building nutrition capacity within the Feeding America network.
Funder of the project is the National Dairy Council, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is a partner.
WOODRUFF NAMED RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Michelle Woodruff, currently a part-time research assistant with the Center, will begin a new research associate position later this month, assisting on multiple projects.
Woodruff is an Omaha native who recently graduated from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, with a Bachelor of Arts in Theology. While in school, authors like Wendell Berry led her to develop an interest in local food insecurity and sustainability, as well as cooking and individual nutrition, and she is therefore excited to delve into the Center's many projects.
She plans to eventually pursue a career in nursing, and hopes that her engagement with the Center will help her to better understand the roles that nutrition research and local food sustainability play in Nebraska's healthcare system.
SMITH TO STUDY FOOD PREPARATION BEHAVIORS FOR CANCER PREVENTION
Doctoral student and Center Graduate Assistant Teresa Smith, MS has been accepted into the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Public Health Cancer Epidemiology Education in Special Populations (CEESP) program.
Funded by a grant from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health, the CEESP program provides educational opportunities for students to learn about cancer epidemiology in special populations as well as translation of epidemiology into cancer control and prevention interventions. As part of the program, Smith will be studying food preparation behaviors in U.S. Hispanic families in Southern California, developing and piloting a measurement tool.
Findings from her study will help inform how food preparation behaviors in the home food environment can provide opportunities for cancer and other chronic disease prevention in underserved populations.
FARM TO SCHOOL TOOLKIT WINS AWARD
In 2011, the Center developed a Farm to School toolkit as part of the Live Well Omaha: Douglas County Putting Prevention to Work project, which was funded by Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funds awarded to the Center by the Douglas County Health Department.
In December, the toolkit won an Award of Excellence from the Public Relations Society of America-Nebraska Chapter. This Paper Anvil Award was won in the category of Marketing Consumer Products, Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages by the Center along with Emspace Group and Grain & Mortar, who produced and designed this unique online Farm to School resource.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS FROM CENTER STAFF
Toobert, D.J., Strycker, L.A., Smith, M.L., Barrera, M., Klesges, L.M., Resnicow, K., Elliot, D.L., Ory, M.G., Williams, G., Greene, G.W., Nebeling, L., Peterson, K.E., & Yaroch, A.L. Social resources as a mediator of dietary and physical activity change in multi-site sample. Journal of Health Behavior and Public Health. 2012 Nov:2(3):15-26.
Mâsse, L.C., Blanck, H.M., Valente, M., Weber, D., Agurs-Collis, T., Atienza, A.A., & Yaroch, A.L. Association between household practices with self-reported obesogenic behaviors and body mass index of U.S. children and adolescents. Preventing Chronic Disease. 2012;9:110149. DOI.
Rutten, L.J., Yaroch, A.L., Patrick, H., & Story, M. Obesity prevention and national food security: a food systems approach. ISRN Public Health. 2012, Article ID 539764, 10 pages. doi:10.5402/2012/539764.
RECENT ARTICLES OF INTEREST
Trends in the Prevalence of Extreme Obesity Among US Preschool-Aged Children Living in Low-Income Families, 1998-2010
Higher Levels of Obesity Associated with Increased Risk of Death; Being Overweight Associated with Lower Risk of Death
The Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition aids in survey development and evaluation for national organizations and others. If you are interested in finding out more about these services, please contact Dr. Amy Yaroch, executive director, at ayaroch@centerfornutrition.org.
