Articles

Is sedentary behaviour just physical inactivity by another name?

The relationship between sedentary behaviour and physical activity and their role in the development of health conditions is an ongoing topic of research. This debate paper presents arguments in favour and aga...

Authors: Hidde P. van der Ploeg and Melvyn Hillsdon

The weight of work: the association between maternal employment and overweight in low- and middle-income countries

Maternal employment has increased in low-and middle-income countries (LMIC) and is a hypothesized risk factor for maternal overweight due to increased income and behavioral changes related to time allocation. ...

Authors: Vanessa M. Oddo, Sara N. Bleich, Keshia M. Pollack, Pamela J. Surkan, Noel T. Mueller and Jessica C. Jones-Smith

The impact of an innovative web-based school nutrition intervention to increase fruits and vegetables and milk and alternatives in adolescents: a clustered randomized trial

The increase in overweight and obesity in adolescents and its health-related consequences highlight the need to develop strategies, which could help them adopt healthy eating habits. The objective of this stud...

Authors: Karine Chamberland, Marina Sanchez, Shirin Panahi, Véronique Provencher, Jocelyn Gagnon and Vicky Drapeau

The effect of a weight gain prevention intervention on moderate-vigorous physical activity among black women: the Shape Program

Rates of physical inactivity are high among Black women living in the United States with overweight or obesity, especially those living in the rural South. This study was conducted to determine if an efficacio...

Authors: Mary L. Greaney, Sandy Askew, Sherrie F. Wallington, Perry B. Foley, Lisa M. Quintiliani and Gary G. Bennett

Does replacing sedentary behaviour with light or moderate to vigorous physical activity modulate inflammatory status in adults?

Sedentary behaviour, obesity and insulin resistance are associated with pro-inflammatory status. Limited data on whether physical activity modulates inflammatory status and counteracts obesity and insulin resi...

Authors: Catherine M. Phillips, Christina B. Dillon and Ivan J. Perry

Children’s everyday exposure to food marketing: an objective analysis using wearable cameras

Over the past three decades the global prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity has increased by 47%. Marketing of energy-dense nutrient-poor foods and beverages contributes to this worldwide increase. P...

Authors: L. N. Signal, J. Stanley, M. Smith, M. B. Barr, T. J. Chambers, J. Zhou, A. Duane, C. Gurrin, A. F. Smeaton, C. McKerchar, A. L. Pearson, J. Hoek, G. L. S. Jenkin and C. Ni Mhurchu

The association between ambient fine particulate air pollution and physical activity: a cohort study of university students living in Beijing

Air pollution has become a substantial environmental issue affecting human health and health-related behavior in China. Physical activity is widely accepted as a method to promote health and well-being and is ...

Authors: Hongjun Yu, Miao Yu, Shelby Paige Gordon and Ruiling Zhang

Externalizing behavior is prospectively associated with intake of added sugar and sodium among low socioeconomic status preschoolers in a sex-specific manner

High intake of added sugar and sodium is a public health concern for preschool-aged children living in the US. Externalizing behavior may predict higher consumption of added sugar and/or sodium; however, previ...

Authors: Erica C. Jansen, Alison L. Miller, Julie C. Lumeng, Niko Kaciroti, Holly E. Brophy Herb, Mildred A. Horodynski, Dawn Contreras and Karen E. Peterson

Equity effects of children’s physical activity interventions: a systematic scoping review

Differential effects of physical activity (PA) interventions across population sub-groups may contribute to inequalities in health. This systematic scoping review explored the state of the evidence on equity e...

Authors: Rebecca E. Love, Jean Adams and Esther M. F. van Sluijs

Citizen science applied to building healthier community environments: advancing the field through shared construct and measurement development

Physical inactivity across the lifespan remains a public health issue for many developed countries. Inactivity has contributed considerably to the pervasiveness of lifestyle diseases. Government, national and ...

Authors: Erica Hinckson, Margaret Schneider, Sandra J. Winter, Emily Stone, Milo Puhan, Afroditi Stathi, Michelle M. Porter, Paul A. Gardiner, Daniela Lopes dos Santos, Andrea Wolff and Abby C. King

Energy balance components in persons with paraplegia: daily variation and appropriate measurement duration

Despite obesity being highly prevalent in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI), our current understanding of the interactions between energy balance components, which may contribute to this, is limited. The p...

Authors: Tom E. Nightingale, Sean Williams, Dylan Thompson and James L. J. Bilzon

Relationship between mean daily energy intake and frequency of consumption of out-of-home meals in the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey

Out-of-home meals have been characterised as delivering excessively large portions that can lead to high energy intake. Regular consumption is linked to weight gain and diet related diseases. Consumption of ou...

Authors: Louis Goffe, Stephen Rushton, Martin White, Ashley Adamson and Jean Adams

Appetitive traits associated with higher and lower body mass index: evaluating the validity of the adult eating behaviour questionnaire in an Australian sample

The aims of this study were to evaluate the factor structure of the newly developed Adult Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (AEBQ) (Hunot et al., Appetite 105:356-63, 2016) in an Australian sample, and examine as...

Authors: Kimberley M. Mallan, Alison Fildes, Xochitl de la Piedad Garcia, Jayne Drzezdzon, Matthew Sampson and Clare Llewellyn

Erratum to: Effects of a physical activity and nutrition program in retirement villages: a cluster randomised controlled trial

Authors: Jonine Jancey, Anne-Marie Holt, Andy Lee, Deborah Kerr, Suzanne Robinson, Li Tang, A. S. Anderson, Andrew P. Hills and Peter Howat

Investigating the importance of the local food environment for fruit and vegetable intake in older men and women in 20 UK towns: a cross-sectional analysis of two national cohorts using novel methods

Local neighbourhood environments can influence dietary behavior. There is limited evidence focused on older people who are likely to have greater dependence on local areas and may suffer functional limitations...

Authors: S. Hawkesworth, R.J. Silverwood, B. Armstrong, T. Pliakas, K. Nanchahal, C. Sartini, A. Amuzu, G. Wannamethee, J. Atkins, S.E. Ramsay, J.P. Casas, R.W. Morris, P.H. Whincup and Karen Lock

Financial incentives and purchase restrictions in a food benefit program affect the types of foods and beverages purchased: results from a randomized trial

This research evaluated the effects of financial incentives and purchase restrictions on food purchasing in a food benefit program for low income people.

Authors: Simone A. French, Sarah A. Rydell, Nathan R. Mitchell, J. Michael Oakes, Brian Elbel and Lisa Harnack

Item response modeling: a psychometric assessment of the children’s fruit, vegetable, water, and physical activity self-efficacy scales among Chinese children

This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of four self-efficacy scales (i.e., self-efficacy for fruit (FSE), vegetable (VSE), and water (WSE) intakes, and physical activity (PASE)) and to invest...

Authors: Jing-Jing Wang, Tzu-An Chen, Tom Baranowski and Patrick W.C. Lau

Effect of a mobile app intervention on vegetable consumption in overweight adults: a randomized controlled trial

Mobile applications (apps) have been heralded as transformative tools to deliver behavioral health interventions at scale, but few have been tested in rigorous randomized controlled trials. We tested the effec...

Authors: Sarah Mummah, Thomas N. Robinson, Maya Mathur, Sarah Farzinkhou, Stephen Sutton and Christopher D. Gardner

The international food unit: a new measurement aid that can improve portion size estimation

Portion size education tools, aids and interventions can be effective in helping prevent weight gain. However consumers have difficulties in estimating food portion sizes and are confused by inconsistencies in...

Authors: T. Bucher, M. Weltert, M.E. Rollo, S.P. Smith, W. Jia, C.E. Collins and M. Sun

Perceived fussy eating in Australian children at 14 months of age and subsequent use of maternal feeding practices at 2 years

Concerns about fussy eating are common amongst parents of young children. However, studies of the long-term impact of fussy eating show mixed results with regard to adequacy of dietary intake and child growth....

Authors: Rebecca Byrne, Elena Jansen and Lynne Daniels

Food parenting practices for 5 to 12 year old children: a concept map analysis of parenting and nutrition experts input

Parents are an important influence on children’s dietary intake and eating behaviors. However, the lack of a conceptual framework and inconsistent assessment of food parenting practices limits our understandin...

Authors: Teresia M. O’Connor, Louise C. Mâsse, Andrew W. Tu, Allison W. Watts, Sheryl O. Hughes, Mark R. Beauchamp, Tom Baranowski, Truc Pham, Jerica M. Berge, Barbara Fiese, Rebecca Golley, Melanie Hingle, Stef P. J. Kremers, Kyung E. Rhee, Helen Skouteris and Amber Vaughn

Self-reported eating rate is associated with weight status in a Dutch population: a validation study and a cross-sectional study

Observational studies performed in Asian populations suggest that eating rate is related to BMI. This paper investigates the association between self-reported eating rate (SRER) and body mass index (BMI) in a ...

Authors: Janet H.W. van den Boer, Jentina Kranendonk, Anne van de Wiel, Edith J.M. Feskens, Anouk Geelen and Monica Mars

Impact of the Supporting Physical Activity in the Childcare Environment (SPACE) intervention on preschoolers’ physical activity levels and sedentary time: a single-blind cluster randomized controlled trial

Physical activity levels among preschoolers in childcare are low and sedentary time high. The Supporting Physical Activity in the Childcare Environment (SPACE) intervention had three components: 1. portable play ...

Authors: Patricia Tucker, Leigh M. Vanderloo, Andrew M. Johnson, Shauna M. Burke, Jennifer D. Irwin, Anca Gaston, Molly Driediger and Brian W. Timmons

The role of self-regulatory skills and automaticity on the effectiveness of a brief weight loss habit-based intervention: secondary analysis of the 10 top tips randomised trial

Habit-interventions are designed to promote the automaticity of healthy behaviours and may also enhance self-regulatory skills during the habit-formation process. A recent trial of habit-based advice for weigh...

Authors: Nathalie Kliemann, Victoria Vickerstaff, Helen Croker, Fiona Johnson, Irwin Nazareth and Rebecca J. Beeken

Predictors of screen viewing time in young Singaporean children: the GUSTO cohort

Higher screen viewing time (SVT) in childhood has been associated with adverse health outcomes, but the predictors of SVT in early childhood are poorly understood. We examined the sociodemographic and behavior...

Authors: Jonathan Y. Bernard, Natarajan Padmapriya, Bozhi Chen, Shirong Cai, Kok Hian Tan, Fabian Yap, Lynette Shek, Yap-Seng Chong, Peter D. Gluckman, Keith M. Godfrey, Michael S. Kramer, Seang Mei Saw and Falk Müller-Riemenschneider

The development and validation of measures to assess cooking skills and food skills

With the increase use of convenience food and eating outside the home environment being linked to the obesity epidemic, the need to assess and monitor individuals cooking and food skills is key to help interve...

Authors: Fiona Lavelle, Laura McGowan, Lynsey Hollywood, Dawn Surgenor, Amanda McCloat, Elaine Mooney, Martin Caraher, Monique Raats and Moira Dean

Social ecological correlates of workplace sedentary behavior

To identify social ecological correlates of objectively measured workplace sedentary behavior.

Authors: Sarah L. Mullane, Meynard J.L. Toledo, Sarah A. Rydell, Linda H. Feltes, Brenna Vuong, Noe C. Crespo, Mark A. Pereira and Matthew P. Buman

Effect and process evaluation of a kindergarten-based, family-involved cluster randomised controlled trial in six European countries on four- to six-year-old children’s steps per day: the ToyBox-study

The ToyBox-intervention is a theory- and evidence-based intervention delivered in kindergartens to improve four- to six-year-old children’s energy balance-related behaviours and prevent obesity. The current st...

Authors: Marieke De Craemer, Maïté Verloigne, Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij, Odysseas Androutsos, Violeta Iotova, Luis Moreno, Berthold Koletzko, Piotr Socha, Yannis Manios and Greet Cardon

The impact of financial incentives on participants’ food purchasing patterns in a supermarket-based randomized controlled trial

The impacts of supermarket-based nutrition promotion interventions might be overestimated if participants shift their proportionate food purchasing away from their usual stores. This study quantified whether p...

Authors: Dana Lee Olstad, David A Crawford, Gavin Abbott, Sarah A McNaughton, Ha ND Le, Cliona Ni Mhurchu, Christina Pollard and Kylie Ball

Effect of classroom-based physical activity interventions on academic and physical activity outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Physical activity is associated with many physical and mental health benefits, however many children do not meet the national physical activity guidelines. While schools provide an ideal setting to promote chi...

Authors: Amanda Watson, Anna Timperio, Helen Brown, Keren Best and Kylie D. Hesketh

Family-based childhood obesity prevention interventions: a systematic review and quantitative content analysis

A wide range of interventions has been implemented and tested to prevent obesity in children. Given parents’ influence and control over children’s energy-balance behaviors, including diet, physical activity, m...

Authors: Tayla Ash, Alen Agaronov, Ta’Loria Young, Alyssa Aftosmes-Tobio and Kirsten K. Davison

Reducing calorie sales from supermarkets – ‘silent’ reformulation of retailer-brand food products

Food product reformulation is seen as one among several tools to promote healthier eating. Reformulating the recipe for a processed food, e.g. reducing the fat, sugar or salt content of the foods, or increasin...

Authors: Jørgen Dejgård Jensen and Iben Sommer

Development of a dynamic framework to explain population patterns of leisure-time physical activity through agent-based modeling

Despite the increasing body of evidences on the factors influencing leisure-time physical activity, our understanding of the mechanisms and interactions that lead to the formation and evolution of population p...

Authors: Leandro M. T. Garcia, Ana V. Diez Roux, André C. R. Martins, Yong Yang and Alex A. Florindo

Association of parents’ and children’s physical activity and sedentary time in Year 4 (8–9) and change between Year 1 (5–6) and Year 4: a longitudinal study

Parents could be important influences on child physical activity and parents are often encouraged to be more active with their child. This paper examined the association between parent and child physical activ...

Authors: Russell Jago, Emma Solomon-Moore, Corrie Macdonald-Wallis, Janice L. Thompson, Deborah A. Lawlor and Simon J. Sebire

Frequency of eating home cooked meals and potential benefits for diet and health: cross-sectional analysis of a population-based cohort study

Reported associations between preparing and eating home cooked food, and both diet and health, are inconsistent. Most previous research has focused on preparing, rather than eating, home cooked food; used smal...

Authors: Susanna Mills, Heather Brown, Wendy Wrieden, Martin White and Jean Adams

Which physical and social environmental factors are most important for adolescents’ cycling for transport? An experimental study using manipulated photographs

Ecological models emphasize that cycling for transport is determined by an interplay between individual, physical and social environmental factors. The current study investigated (a) which physical and social ...

Authors: Hannah Verhoeven, Ariane Ghekiere, Jelle Van Cauwenberg, Delfien Van Dyck, Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij, Peter Clarys and Benedicte Deforche

Comparison of an alternative schedule of extended care contacts to a self-directed control: a randomized trial of weight loss maintenance

Behavioral interventions for obesity produce clinically meaningful weight loss, but weight regain following treatment is common. Extended care programs attenuate weight regain and improve weight loss maintenan...

Authors: Gareth R. Dutton, Marissa A. Gowey, Fei Tan, Dali Zhou, Jamy Ard, Michael G. Perri and Cora E. Lewis

The feasibility and RE-AIM evaluation of the TAME health pilot study

Conducting 5 A’s counseling in clinic and utilizing technology-based resources are recommended to promote physical activity but little is known about how to implement such an intervention. This investigation a...

Authors: Zakkoyya H Lewis, Kenneth J Ottenbacher, Steve R Fisher, Kristofer Jennings, Arleen F Brown, Maria C Swartz, Eloisa Martinez and Elizabeth J Lyons

Using computer, mobile and wearable technology enhanced interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour: a systematic review and meta-analysis

High levels of sedentary behaviour (SB) are associated with negative health consequences. Technology enhanced solutions such as mobile applications, activity monitors, prompting software, texts, emails and web...

Authors: Aoife Stephenson, Suzanne M. McDonough, Marie H. Murphy, Chris D. Nugent and Jacqueline L. Mair

Built environmental correlates of older adults’ total physical activity and walking: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Identifying attributes of the built environment associated with health-enhancing levels of physical activity (PA) in older adults (≥65 years old) has the potential to inform interventions supporting healthy an...

Authors: David W. Barnett, Anthony Barnett, Andrea Nathan, Jelle Van Cauwenberg and Ester Cerin

Effects of urban motorways on physical activity and sedentary behaviour in local residents: a natural experimental study

There is little evidence on how changing the physical environment changes health-related behaviours. We studied the effects of the new M74 motorway (freeway) — opened in 2011 — and the existing M8 motorway in ...

Authors: R. G. Prins, L. Foley, N. Mutrie and D. B. Ogilvie

Perceptions of overweight by primary carers (mothers/grandmothers) of under five and elementary school-aged children in Bandung, Indonesia: a qualitative study

The prevalence of childhood overweight has increased in the past two decades in Indonesia. Even though prevalence is escalating, there is a lack of qualitative evidence to assist in the design and implementati...

Authors: Cut Novianti Rachmi, Cynthia Louise Hunter, Mu Li and Louise Alison Baur

Understanding differences between summer vs. school obesogenic behaviors of children: the structured days hypothesis

Although the scientific community has acknowledged modest improvements can be made to weight status and obesogenic behaviors (i.e., physical activity, sedentary/screen time, diet, and sleep) during the school ...

Authors: Keith Brazendale, Michael W. Beets, R. Glenn Weaver, Russell R. Pate, Gabrielle M. Turner-McGrievy, Andrew T. Kaczynski, Jessica L. Chandler, Amy Bohnert and Paul T. von Hippel

Systematic mapping review of the factors influencing physical activity and sedentary behaviour in ethnic minority groups in Europe: a DEDIPAC study

Physical activity and sedentary behaviour are associated with health and wellbeing. Studies indicate that ethnic minority groups are both less active and more sedentary than the majority population and that fa...

Authors: Lars Jørun Langøien, Laura Terragni, Gro Rugseth, Mary Nicolaou, Michelle Holdsworth, Karien Stronks, Nanna Lien and Gun Roos

Examining the impact of a province-wide physical education policy on secondary students’ physical activity as a natural experiment

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of a province-wide physical education (PE) policy on secondary school students’ moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA).

Authors: Erin Hobin, Tannis Erickson, Melisa Comte, Fei Zuo, Saamir Pasha, Donna Murnaghan, Steve Manske, Catherine Casey, Jane Griffith and Jonathan McGavock

The use of entertainment and communication technologies before sleep could affect sleep and weight status: a population-based study among children

Short sleep duration and poor sleep quality have been demonstrated to be associated with childhood obesity. It has been suggested that electronic entertainment and communication devices (EECDs) including TVs, ...

Authors: Nomathemba Dube, Kaviul Khan, Sarah Loehr, Yen Chu and Paul Veugelers

Weekend warrior physical activity pattern and common mental disorder: a population wide study of 108,011 British adults

The dose-response association between physical activity (PA) and mental health is poorly described. We explored cross-sectional associations between physical activity and common mental disorder (psychological ...

Authors: Mark Hamer, Stuart J. H. Biddle and Emmanuel Stamatakis

The role of sports clubs in helping older people to stay active and prevent frailty: a longitudinal mediation analysis

Frailty is a common syndrome in older adults characterised by increased vulnerability to adverse health outcomes as a result of decline in functional and physiological measures. Frailty predicts a range of poo...

Authors: Paul Watts, Elizabeth Webb and Gopalakrishnan Netuveli

Objectively measured physical environmental neighbourhood factors are not associated with accelerometer-determined total sedentary time in adults

The physical neighbourhood environment may influence adults’ sedentary behaviour. Yet, most studies examining the association between the physical neighbourhood environment and sedentary behaviour rely on self...

Authors: Sofie Compernolle, Katrien De Cocker, Joreintje D. Mackenbach, Femke Van Nassau, Jeroen Lakerveld, Greet Cardon and Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij

Disparities in dietary intake and physical activity patterns across the urbanization divide in the Peruvian Andes

Diet and activity are thought to worsen with urbanization, thereby increasing risk of obesity and chronic diseases. A better understanding of dietary and activity patterns across the urbanization divide may he...

Authors: Morgan L. McCloskey, Carla E. Tarazona-Meza, Jessica C. Jones-Smith, Catherine H. Miele, Robert H. Gilman, Antonio Bernabe-Ortiz, J. Jaime Miranda and William Checkley