In 2022, Nemours Children’s Health and Healthy Eating Research at Duke University presented the “Healthy Kids, Healthy Future: Advancing Equity in Early Childhood” webinar series. Through four webinars, this series explored how to leverage early care and education settings to achieve equitable health outcomes by highlighting opportunities and advances in: • Policy • Research •… Continue Reading Webinar Series: Advancing Equity in Early Childhood
In July 2019, results of the Nemours Children’s Health System’s National Early Care and Education Learning Collaboratives (ECELC) project were published in the journal Preventing Chronic Disease. The ECELC project, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), involved nearly 1,200 child care programs in 10 states. This collaborative is the largest of… Continue Reading ECELC Increases ECE Healthy Practices in 10 States
A March 2019 brief by Healthy Eating Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, states that NAPSACC (i.e.: Nutrition And Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care) has the “best evidence for impact” on obesity prevention in young children. Developed by the Children’s Healthy Weight Research Group at the UNC Center for Health… Continue Reading NAPSACC Earns Recognition
Obesity is a growing problem among toddlers, children and adolescents in the United States. Gaining weight and fat mass rapidly during the first six months of life is one risk factor that can lead to obesity in children. A University of Minnesota School of Public Health study, recently published in the journal Nutrients, examined the… Continue Reading Nursing and Eating Right Leads to Healthier Babies
Physical activity is critical for healthy development in the young, but many children are being left behind. Physical Activity Research Center (PARC) investigators have examined physical activity across built environments, parks and recreation, schools, and rural areas—-all through an equity lens. Years of research tell us there are many influences on young people’s physical activity… Continue Reading How to Improve Physical Activity for Children
Researchers evaluated the association of the 2009 changes to the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) food package and childhood obesity trends. They hypothesized that the food package change reduced obesity among children participating in WIC, a population that has been especially vulnerable to the childhood obesity epidemic. Before the… Continue Reading WIC Changes and Effects on Childhood Obesity
Children monitored regularly for height and weight are less likely to be overweight, according to research by University of Manchester and Oxford experts. Publishing in the journal Preventive Medicine Reports, the researchers say current practice may fail to spot a large number of children who are a normal weight on school entry but develop obesity… Continue Reading Regular Height and Weight Checks Critical
Preschoolers are not experiencing enough outdoor play when not in childcare, new research from the University of Western Australia (UWA) has found. The research may be of interest to early childhood education and care services in encouraging and providing suggestions for families to engage in outdoor activities at home. The research also highlights the importance… Continue Reading Outdoor Play is Key for Young Children’s Health
Childhood obesity is a serious health problem and disproportionately affects children of lower income and racial/ethnic minorities. Contributing factors to childhood obesity include the neighborhood environment, social influences, economic factors, the home environment, parenting behaviors, and child behavioral and biological factors. Previous pediatric obesity prevention interventions have been less effective than expected, perhaps in part… Continue Reading Obesity Prevention Among Low-Income Preschoolers
Breastfeeding is associated with a reduced risk of asthma and allergies in infants, but only about half of American mothers breastfeed their children through their first 6 months, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s breastfeeding report card. Physical complications, such as insufficient milk supply, can discourage mothers from breastfeeding or expressing breast… Continue Reading Study Asks, Why Do Mothers Stop Breastfeeding?