Childhood Obesity: Issues and Current Research
Saturday, 10:30 AM - 12:15 PM
Sheraton Back Bay B&C

Chair: Elissa Jelalian, Brown University Medical School

The Obesity Epidemic: Where are We and Where Do We Go from Here?
Speaker: William H. Dietz, Center for Disease Control

Biographical Sketch
Dr. Dietz is the Director of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity in the Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the CDC. Prior to his appointment to the CDC, he was a Professor of Pediatrics at the Tuft's University School of Medicine, and Director of Clinical Nutrition at the Floating Hospital of New England Medical Center Hospitals. He received his BA from Wesleyan University in 1966 and his MD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1970. After the completion of his residency at Upstate Medical Center, he received a Ph.D. in Nutritional Biochemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has been a councilor and past president of the American Society for Clinical Nutrition, and past president of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity. From 2001-2003 he served as a member of the Advisory Board to the Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism, and Diabetes of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. Dr. Dietz has received numerous awards for his work with nutrition of infants and children, public health and physical education, and the study of obesity. He is the author of over 150 publications in the scientific literature, and the editor of four books, including A Guide to Your Child’s Nutrition.

Abstract
Approximately one of every five children in the United States is now overweight, determined by a BMI > 95th percentile. The marked ethnic and gender differences in the prevalence of overweight suggest that significant cultural and parenting differences with respect to feeding, physical activity, or television viewing may play a major role in the origin or persistence of this problem in children and adolescents. Efficacious interventions in families, schools, and communities are beginning to emerge, but the prevalence of overweight and its implications for diseases in childhood and adulthood provide wonderful opportunities for efficacy and effectiveness research.

Obesity Prevention Research to Reduce Child Obesity
Speaker: Mary Story, University of Minnesota

Biographical Sketch
Dr. Story is Professor in the Division of Epidemiology and Community Health in the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota and also holds a joint appointment in the Department of Pediatrics. She is the Director of the National Program Office of the Healthy Eating Research Program funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She also directs the Maternal and Child Health Bureau Public Health Nutrition and Maternal and Child Nutrition Training Program. Dr. Story has her PhD in nutrition and has worked in the area of child and adolescent nutrition for several years. Her research focuses on community, environmental and family-based interventions with youth for obesity prevention and improving eating patterns, factors influencing eating behaviors of youth, and environmental approaches for improving nutrition. Much of her research is with minority populations. She has published over 280 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters and books on child and adolescent nutrition. She has been active in national organizations and has served as Chair of the ADA Public Health Nutrition Practice group, and Chair of the Food and Nutrition Section of the American Public Health Association. She is on the editorial board for the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, the Journal of Adolescent Health and Nutrition Today. She serves on many national committees and was the Editor of Bright Futures in Practice: Nutrition Implementation Guide and is currently on the Bright Futures Steering Committee for the American Academy of Pediatrics. She was a member of the Institute of Medicine Committee on Food Marketing and the Diets of Children and is currently on the Institute of Medicine Committee on Nutrition Standards for Foods in Schools.

Abstract
Currently, relatively few evidence-based successful models exist for the prevention of child obesity. The most effective strategies will likely be those that affect both energy intake and energy expenditure. Among the most important settings to target for obesity prevention in children and adolescents are family and schools. Schools have the potential to make valuable contributions to obesity prevention efforts. More than 95% of youth ages 5-17 are enrolled in school, and no other institution has as much continuous and intensive contact with children. The combination of classroom health education, physical education classes and recess, food service, health services, and family contact make schools a viable forum for providing both individual-level and environmental-level programs to improve eating and physical activity behaviors, and in turn prevent obesity. While many school-based obesity prevention efforts to date have not had significant effects on body weight, several school-based interventions have been shown to be effective in improving diet and physical activity levels of youth. Programs have been successful in implementing environmental changes, including school meals, modifying the prices of fruits and vegetables in the school cafeteria and in vending machines. This presentation will focus on promising approaches for child obesity prevention in schools.