Childhood Obesity News and Research

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JRC publishes first comprehensive report on school food policies in Europe

As part of the European Commission's efforts to help reduce childhood obesity, the Commission's in-house science service, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), has published the first comprehensive report on school food policies in Europe.

16 Jul 2014

Portable, microchip-based test for diagnosing type-1 diabetes

An inexpensive, portable, microchip-based test for diagnosing type-1 diabetes could improve patient care worldwide and help researchers better understand the disease, according to the device's inventors at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

14 Jul 2014

Study examines how Twitter can be used to talk about health problems

Childhood obesity is one of the top public health concerns in the United States, with 32 percent of youths aged 2-19 classified as obese as of 2012.

11 Jul 2014

Children with healthy food outlets near their homes have reduced likelihood of being overweight

Children with a greater number of healthy food outlets near their homes had a reduced likelihood of being overweight or obese, finds an Australian study published in American Journal of Health Promotion.

8 Jul 2014

Sibling relationships affect child's weight

It is well documented that children with obese parents are at greater risk for obesity. In a new study, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital, Cornell University, and Duke University looked at how different kinds of family associations affect obesity, specifically how sibling relationships affect a child's weight.

8 Jul 2014

LifeBridge Health's Neil Meltzer wins AHA Gold Heart Award

The Gold Heart Award, the American Heart Association's highest national recognition for volunteerism, was presented to Neil Meltzer, M.P.H., president and CEO of LifeBridge Health, for his two decades of exceptional leadership and advocacy at the annual Gold Heart Banquet in Dallas, Texas.

1 Jul 2014

Kids’ familiarity with unhealthy food logos is linked to obesity

The more a child is familiar with logos and other images from fast-food restaurants, sodas and not-so-healthy snack food brands, the more likely the child is to be overweight or obese.

28 Jun 2014

Sociologists to discuss economic inequality at ASA's Annual Meeting in San Francisco

More than 5,000 sociologists will convene in San Francisco this August to explore ideas and scientific research relating to economic inequality and many other topics, as part of the American Sociological Association's 109th Annual Meeting. This year's theme, "Hard Times: The Impact of Economic Inequality on Families and Individuals," draws attention to the many ways in which inequality reverberates throughout American society and the world.

27 Jun 2014

Hormonal imbalance is not the sole cause of childhood obesity, say experts

The number of children who are obese remains alarmingly high in the U.S. and, unfortunately, diseases associated with obesity are on the rise.

26 Jun 2014

Fashion industry supports Drink Up initiative that encourages Americans to drink more water

The Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA), which works with the private sector and PHA Honorary Chair First Lady Michelle Obama to make healthier choices easier for busy parents and families, today announced multiple leaders from the fashion industry have joined its Drink Up initiative, an effort that encourages Americans across the country to drink more water, more often.

25 Jun 2014

Researchers find that BMI tool misses children who should be considered obese

Physicians using body mass index (BMI) to diagnose children as obese may be missing 25 percent of kids who have excess body fat despite a normal BMI, which can be a serious concern for long-term health, according to a Mayo Clinic study published online today in Pediatric Obesity.

24 Jun 2014

New studies shed light on the mechanism of childhood obesity

With the increase in childhood obesity and the associated increase in type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents, there is growing interest in how children's bodies process the foods they eat and how obesity and diabetes begin to develop at early ages.

18 Jun 2014

Affordable Care Act to have significant impact on patients with diabetes

The Affordable Care Act (ACA, also known as Obamacare) is dramatically changing health care delivery in the U.S. Specific parts of the new law, which will be phased in through 2020, will have a significant impact on patients with diabetes and prediabetes, as explored in a comprehensive Review article published in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

17 Jun 2014

UnitedHealthcare and IRONKIDS join forces to motivate young people to lead healthy lifestyles

UnitedHealthcare is teaming up with IRONKIDS® for the UnitedHealthcare IRONKIDS Kansas Fun Run to inspire and motivate young people to lead active, positive and healthy lifestyles.

6 Jun 2014

Soda consumers may get much higher dose of harmful sugar fructose than labels show

Soda consumers may be getting a much higher dose of the harmful sugar fructose than they have been led to believe, according to a new study by the Childhood Obesity Research Center (CORC) at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC), part of Keck Medicine of USC.

5 Jun 2014

Viewpoints: VA's problems begin with Congress; costly hepatitis drug may be a good buy

Politically, this critique of the VA is a no-brainer. After all, denying, delaying or incompetently delivering benefits to veterans who are entitled to them and have sacrificed so much for us is grotesque: the moral equivalent of kicking dogs and stealing food from children.

31 May 2014

State highlights: Complaint says Fla. plans tried to keep out AIDS patients; Ill. restores some Medicaid services; Fla. Gov. to sue feds

Four Florida insurance companies offering Affordable Care Act policies are discriminating against people with HIV or AIDS, according to two health-rights organizations that plan to file a formal complaint with the federal government Thursday.

30 May 2014

Viewpoints: Michelle Obama and school lunches; more about the VA health system 'scandal'; context and caution on Medicare's physician data release

When we began our Let's Move! initiative four years ago, we set one simple but ambitious goal: to end the epidemic of childhood obesity in a generation so that kids born today will grow up healthy.

30 May 2014

Michelle Obama wades into political debate to stop backtracking on school lunch reforms

Michelle Obama turned uncharacteristically political on Tuesday, pushing back against a measure pending in the Republican-controlled House that would let some schools opt out of federal dietary standards for school lunches.

29 May 2014

Study examines how food additive MSG contributes to obesity and liver disease

The commonly used food additive monosodium glutamate (MSG) has been linked to obesity and disorders associated with the metabolic syndrome including progressive liver disease.

28 May 2014