Decreased Prevalence Of Obesity Research Articles

Healthy lifestyle practice correlates with decreased obesity prevalence in individuals with high polygenic risk: TMM CommCohort study.

Obesity and overweight, fundamental components of the metabolic syndrome, predispose individuals to lifestyle-related diseases. The extent to which adopting healthy lifestyles can reduce obesity risk, even in those with a high genetic risk, remains uncertain. Our aim was to assess the extent to which lifestyle modifications can improve outcomes in individuals with a high polygenic score (PGS) for obesity. We quantified the genetic risk of obesity using PGSs. Four datasets from the Tohoku Medical Megabank Community-Based Cohort (TMM CommCohort) were employed in the study. One dataset (n = 9958) was used to select the best model for calculating PGS. The remaining datasets (total n = 69,341) were used in a meta-analysis to validate the model and to evaluate associated risks. The odds ratio (OR) for obesity risk in the intermediate (11th-90th percentiles in the dataset) and high PGS categories (91st-100th) was 2.27 [95% confidence intervals: 2.12-2.44] and 4.83 [4.45-5.25], respectively, compared to that in the low PGS category (1st-10th). Trend analysis showed that an increase in leisure-time physical activity was significantly associated with reduced obesity risk across all genetic risk categories, representing an OR of 0.9 [0.87-0.94] even among individuals in the high PGS category. Similarly, sodium intake displayed a positive association with obesity across all genetic risk categories, yielding an OR of 1.24 [1.17-1.31] in the high PGS category. The risk of obesity was linked to the adoption of healthy lifestyles, even in individuals with high PGS. Our results may provide perspectives for integrating PGSs into preventive medicine.

Universal Free School Meals and School and Student Outcomes

The White House National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health included expanding free school meals to all students, regardless of income, which has sparked debate in the United States. To assess the association between universal free school meals (UFSMs) and school and student outcomes in the United States. An expert panel-informed protocol was developed to evaluate intervention or cohort studies comparing UFSM programs, such as the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), with non-UFSM programs in US schools from August 2012 (excluding 2020-2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) in peer-reviewed publications or government reports. Outcomes included meal participation rates, attendance, dietary intake and quality, food waste, economic impact, food insecurity, anthropometrics, disciplinary actions, stigma, and shaming. A search of Medline, Econlit, Business Source Ultimate, ERIC, Agricola, Cab Abstracts, and CINAHL was performed in April 2024. Two researchers screened articles for inclusion, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias, using the Risk of Bias in Nonrandomized Studies of Interventions tool, for each included study. Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations was used to assess the certainty of evidence for each outcome. The search identified 2784 records, with 6 studies included, representing more than 11 000 elementary, middle, and high schools. Nonrandomized intervention studies performed difference-in-difference or rate ratio analysis to investigate CEP participation rates, attendance, anthropometrics, and/or suspensions. CEP was associated with increased lunch (3 studies; moderate certainty) and breakfast (1 study; very low certainty) participation. School attendance was unchanged or improved in schools with CEP compared with schools without UFSM (2 studies; low certainty). CEP was associated with lower obesity prevalence (1 study; very low certainty) and fewer suspensions (1 study; very low certainty). Reasons for downgrading the certainty ratings included indirectness (data not fully representative of the United States) and inconsistency (small number of studies limiting ability to assess consistency). Despite the limitations, the evidence reflected well-designed longitudinal intervention studies appropriate for decision-making. In this systematic review, UFSMs were associated with increased meal participation, no or slight improvements in attendance, and decreased obesity prevalence and suspension rates; certainty of evidence was moderate for lunch participation and low or very low for other outcomes. Studies did not report several important outcomes, such as diet quality and food security, suggesting the need for more high-quality research encompassing policy-relevant indicators.

Controlled and Real-Life Investigation of Optical Tracking Sensors in Smart Glasses for Monitoring Eating Behavior Using Deep Learning: Cross-Sectional Study.

The increasing prevalence of obesity necessitates innovative approaches to better understand this health crisis, particularly given its strong connection to chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular conditions. Monitoring dietary behavior is crucial for designing effective interventions that help decrease obesity prevalence and promote healthy lifestyles. However, traditional dietary tracking methods are limited by participant burden and recall bias. Exploring microlevel eating activities, such as meal duration and chewing frequency, in addition to eating episodes, is crucial due to their substantial relation to obesity and disease risk. The primary objective of the study was to develop an accurate and noninvasive system for automatically monitoring eating and chewing activities using sensor-equipped smart glasses. The system distinguishes chewing from other facial activities, such as speaking and teeth clenching. The secondary objective was to evaluate the system's performance on unseen test users using a combination of laboratory-controlled and real-life user studies. Unlike state-of-the-art studies that focus on detecting full eating episodes, our approach provides a more granular analysis by specifically detecting chewing segments within each eating episode. The study uses OCO optical sensors embedded in smart glasses to monitor facial muscle activations related to eating and chewing activities. The sensors measure relative movements on the skin's surface in 2 dimensions (X and Y). Data from these sensors are analyzed using deep learning (DL) to distinguish chewing from other facial activities. To address the temporal dependence between chewing events in real life, we integrate a hidden Markov model as an additional component that analyzes the output from the DL model. Statistical tests of mean sensor activations revealed statistically significant differences across all 6 comparison pairs (P<.001) involving 2 sensors (cheeks and temple) and 3 facial activities (eating, clenching, and speaking). These results demonstrate the sensitivity of the sensor data. Furthermore, the convolutional long short-term memory model, which is a combination of convolutional and long short-term memory neural networks, emerged as the best-performing DL model for chewing detection. In controlled laboratory settings, the model achieved an F1-score of 0.91, demonstrating robust performance. In real-life scenarios, the system demonstrated high precision (0.95) and recall (0.82) for detecting eating segments. The chewing rates and the number of chews evaluated in the real-life study showed consistency with expected real-life eating behaviors. The study represents a substantial advancement in dietary monitoring and health technology. By providing a reliable and noninvasive method for tracking eating behavior, it has the potential to revolutionize how dietary data are collected and used. This could lead to more effective health interventions and a better understanding of the factors influencing eating habits and their health implications.

Obesity and Multimorbidity in the USA: National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2005-2014

Declining mortality rates and an aging population have contributed to increasing rates of multimorbidity (≥2 chronic conditions) in the United States. Obesity is an important risk factor for the development of chronic diseases. We evaluated the association between obesity and multimorbidity, and how the prevalence of concomitant obesity has changed over time. We used data from 8,883 individuals aged ≥60 years with data on body mass index (BMI) and self-reported comorbidities from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2005-2014. Logistic regression was used to quantify the association between BMI categories (<18.5, 18.5-24.9, 25-29.9, ≥30 kg/m2) and multimorbidity (yes/no). Change in proportions of obesity coexisting with multimorbidity by year was tested through linear regression. All analysis used NHANES survey design and weighting to be representative of the US population. The overall proportion of individuals with concomitant multimorbidity and obesity was 75%. As compared to a normal BMI (18.5-24.9 kg/m2), older adults with obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) had higher odds of multimorbidity (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.49,2.12). Persons with obesity had higher odds of decline in physical (1.41 [1.06,1.88]), basic (1.56 [1.13,2.15]), and instrumental activities of daily living (OR 1.58 [1.03,2.40]). The proportion of individuals with obesity and multimorbidity increased over time, but did not reach significance (β = 0.008, p=0.051). These results emphasize the role of obesity as a contributing factor to the burden of multimorbidity among older adults and underscore the importance of identifying and addressing obesity and multimorbidity via interventions to decrease obesity prevalence.

Impacts of a sugar sweetened beverage tax on body mass index and obesity in Thailand: A modelling study.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes to address obesity. Thailand has just launched the new tax rates for SSB in 2017; however, the existing tax rate is not as high as the 20% recommended by the WHO. The objective for this study was to estimate the impacts of an SSB tax on body mass index (BMI) and obesity prevalence in Thailand under three different scenarios based on existing SSB and recommended tax rates. A base model was built to estimate the impacts of an SSB tax on SSB consumption, energy intake, BMI, and obesity prevalence. Literature review was conducted to estimate pass on rate, price elasticity, energy compensation, and energy balance to weight change. Different tax rates (11%, 20% and 25%) were used in the model. The model assumed no substitution effects, model values were based on international data since there was no empirical Thai data available. Differential effects by income groups were not estimated. When applying 11%, 20%, and 25% tax rates together with 100% pass on rate and an -1.30 own-price elasticity, the SSB consumption decreased by 14%, 26%, and 32%, respectively. The 20% and 25% price increase in SSB price tended to reduce higher energy intake, weight status and BMI, when compared with an 11% increase in existing price increase of SSB. The percentage changes of obesity prevalence of 11%, 20% and 25% SSB tax rates were estimated to be 1.73%, 3.83%, and 4.91%, respectively. A higher SSB tax (20% and 25%) was estimated to reduce consumption and consequently decrease obesity prevalence. Since Thailand has already endorsed the excise tax structure, the new excise tax structure for SSB should be scaled up to a 20% or 25% tax rate if the SSB consumption change does not meet a favourable goal.

Does agricultural trade liberalization increase obesity in developing countries?

AbstractAgricultural trade liberalization has been sometimes accused of being one of the main causes of increasing obesity and overweight in developing countries. However, there is no consensus on the impacts of trade on obesity in the literature. We estimate the impacts of agricultural trade openness on the prevalence of obesity and overweight using a sample of 70 developing countries between 1990 and 2013. We find that a 1% increase in agricultural trade openness would decrease obesity prevalence by 0.5%. We find similar results for the prevalence of overweight. Our results are robust to alternative specifications. Our findings suggest that long‐term health concerns related to overnutrition associated with agricultural trade liberalization in developing countries are overstated. Public health interventions should target domestic causes behind overnutrition rather than trade policies and agreements.

The Chicken and Egg Problem: Obesity and the Urban Monocentric Model

Recent medical studies have examined ways to offer enhanced spatial planning opportunities to increase a person’s level of physical activity. These studies demonstrate a decreasing prevalence of obesity in denser and less car-oriented communities with mixed land uses. Yet, these studies raise the chicken and egg problem, namely, whether or not prevalence of obesity motivate change of residence, or whether or not people who are more physically active prefer to live in denser and less car-oriented communities? Based on a two-year longitudinal survey of the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), we explore this question using a 3SLS methodology, where the two endogenous variables include: BMI and apartment size. The age of the housing unit in years and the structure type provide the exogenous variables that identify the BMI equation. This empirical model is justified based on the urban monocentric model, which forecasts smaller apartments in multi-story structures with smaller building footprints, where price of land is expensive (at the central cities), which, in turn, give rise to denser and less car-oriented communities. In contrast, single family units with larger lot size, which give rise to more car-oriented communities, are typical of suburbs, where the price of land is relatively cheap. Moreover, the natural evolution theory of suburbanization process explains the correlation between construction age, type, income level, and location in central cities. Results of our study give rise to the possibility that for the Jewish female and male populations, health considerations may influence housing choice, but not vice versa. For other populations (i.e., Arab females and males), and with one exception, no correlation between BMI and housing choice is found. Public policy implications of our study suggest that health-related considerations might be employed to promote return to denser urban areas/central cities (reverse suburbanization) particularly among the Jewish population group.

Road network intersection density and childhood obesity risk in the US: a national longitudinal study

ObjectivesRoad intersection density is an important indicator of walkability. The objectives of this study were to examine the trends in intersection density in the US from 2007 to 2011 and assess the associations between intersection density and childhood obesity risk at the state level. Study designLongitudinal analyses were conducted to assess the spatial-temporal changes of population-weighted intersection density in relation to the risk of childhood obesity in the US. MethodsRoad network data from the Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) (2007–2011), the prevalence of overweight and obesity data from the National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) (2007–2011), and the American Community Survey (ACS) (2011) were used. Geographic information system (GIS) visualization and spatial and regression analyses were conducted. Mixed-effect models were fit to assess the longitudinal relationship between intersection density and childhood obesity. ResultsBetween 2007 and 2011, population-weighted intersection density remained relatively stable in most states. Low-intersection-density states were clustered in the Southeastern region in both 2007 and 2011. The high-intersection-density states were clustered in the Middle Atlantic Division. California and Nevada also were identified as high-intersection-density clusters in 2011. States with lower road intersection density corresponded with states with higher childhood obesity prevalence. Our mixed-effect model estimates suggested that increased intersection density was associated with decreased obesity prevalence. ConclusionsThis study provided empirical evidence for longitudinal associations between neighborhood intersection density and childhood obesity prevalence based on national data and offered a new perspective of the role that road network plays in childhood obesity prevention.

Obesity prevalence in large US cities: association with socioeconomic indicators, race/ethnicity and physical activity.

Obesity has a complex association with socioeconomic factors. Further clarification of this association could guide population interventions. To determine the relationship between obesity prevalence, socioeconomic indicators, race/ethnicity, and physical activity, we performed a cross-sectional, multivariable linear regression, with data from large US cities participating in the Big Cities Health Inventory. Increased household income was significantly associated with decreased obesity prevalence, for White (-1.97% per 10 000USD), and Black (-3.02% per 10 000USD) populations, but not Hispanic. These associations remained significant when controlling for the proportion of the population meeting physical activity guidelines. Educational attainment had a co-linear relationship with income, and only a bachelor's degree or higher was associated with a lower prevalence of obesity in White (-0.30% per percentage) and Black (-0.69% per percentage) populations. No association was found between obesity prevalence and the proportion of the population meeting physical activity guidelines for any race/ethnicity grouping. At the population level of large US cities, obesity prevalence is inversely associated with median household income in White and Black populations. Strategies to increase socioeconomic status may also decrease obesity. Targeting attainment of physical activity guidelines as an obesity intervention needs further appraisal.

Oral microbiome and obesity in a large study of low-income and African-American populations

ABSTRACTFew studies have evaluated the relationship of oral microbiome with obesity. We investigated the oral microbiome among 647 obese and 969 non-obese individuals from the Southern Community Cohort Study, through 16S rRNA gene sequencing in mouth rinse samples. We first investigated 16 taxa in two probiotic genera, Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. Among them, eight showed nominal associations with obesity (P < 0.05). Especially, Bifidobacterium (odds ratio [OR] = 0.67, 95% confidence interval [CI]:0.54, 0.83) and Bifidobacterium longum (OR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.45, 0.73) were significantly associated with decreased obesity prevalence with false-discovery rate (FDR)-corrected P of 0.01 and 5.41 × 10−4, respectively. Multiple other bacterial taxa were also significantly associated with obesity prevalence at FDR-corrected P < 0.05. Among them, five in Firmicutes and two respectively in Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria were significantly associated with increased obesity prevalence. Significant associations with decreased obesity prevalence were observed for two taxa respectively in Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. Most of these taxa were associated with body mass index at study enrollment and weight gain during adulthood. Also, most of these associations were observed in both European- and African-Americans. Our findings indicate that multiple oral bacterial taxa, including several probiotic taxa, were significantly associated with obesity.

Does the Housing Unit's Type and Size Affect Health?

Recent medical studies have examined ways to offer more spatial planning opportunities to increase a person's level of physical activity. These studies demonstrate a decreasing prevalence of obesity in denser and less car-oriented communities with mixed land uses. Yet, apart from these environmental effects, the impact of characteristics of the housing unit itself (e.g., type and size), combined with socio-demographic variables (e.g., the number of children, marital status, place of birth, country of origin, and gender) on the body mass index (BMI) has not been examined previously. Based on a two-year longitudinal survey of the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the current study examines this potential implication based on the BMI measure. Stratification by gender indicates opposite effects of suburbanization on projected BMI of women and men, who move from smaller condominiums in multi-family buildings to single family units and to larger apartments.

Position paper on taxes to non-basic energy-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages

In 2014 the Mexican government implemented taxes to reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and nonessential energy-dense foods. In this manuscript, we analyze the scientific evidence linking the consumption of these products to chronic diseases, and summarize the studies that have evaluated the observed and expected impact of food taxes in Mexico. The implementation of taxes to unhealthy foods has reduced purchases of sugar-sweetened beverages in 7.6% and nonessential energy-dense foods in 7.4%. A reduction in consumption could decrease obesity prevalence by 2.5%; prevent 20 000 cardiovascular disease events; 189 000 diabetes cases; and 20 000 cardiovascular deaths. Additionally, this impact could save nearly 1 173 million dollars from healthcare costs. Taxes to unhealthy foods should be strengthened up and remain as an integral part of the national strategy to reduce obesity and chronic diseases in Mexico.

Obesity and Weight Control: Is There Light at the End of the Tunnel?

Our global population recently arrived at the landmark figure of seven billion, and the nutrition problems we face are increasing as rapidly, with the longstanding crisis of undernutrition joined by the escalating problem of overconsumption and obesity. Over the past 30 years, it has become clear that control of body weight is as simple as matching energy intake to expenditure, yet how to achieve this in the current obesigenic environment is far from simple. A review of causative mechanisms shows controlling eating behaviour and food intake as central to regulation of body weight, but in an environment where the need to suppress intake is uppermost, there are few physiological mechanisms with which to tackle this. Macronutrient composition, energy density, food format (beverages), palatability, portion size and hedonics all influence intake and readily promote overeating. Currently, the most successful obesity treatment is restrictive bariatric surgery, both invasive and expensive, achieving better outcomes than diet and exercise. Despite considerable advances, there remains a critical gap in translation of underpinning knowledge into successful public health outcomes, as recently outlined in the 2nd Lancet series in obesity with no country reporting decreased obesity prevalence in the last 30 years. Future contribution may come from better understanding of mechanisms including gut-brain axis and regulation of appetite, the gut microbiome and the genetic underpinning of bodyweight control. Clearly, prevention is the key, with nutrition education required to lead changes in behaviour, and possibly the only viable long-term approach. Whether the global obesity trend can be reversed without significant change in national food policies and/or the built environment however is under debate, and without doubt a major public health challenge for tomorrow if there is to be light at the end of the obesity tunnel.

Economic growth and obesity in South African adults: an ecological analysis between 1994 and 2014.

To assess the trend associations between South Africa's economic growth using various economic growth indicators (EGIs) with adult obesity prevalence over a specified period of time. Data for obesity levels reported were obtained from national surveys conducted in South African adults in 1998, 2003 and 2012. EGIs incorporated in the current analysis were obtained from the World Bank and IHS Global insight databases. Obesity prevalence is presented by gender, urbanisation level and ethnicity. EGIs congruent to the time points where obesity data are available are presented. Unadjusted time trend plots were applied to assess associations between obesity prevalence and EGIs by gender, urbanisation level and ethnicity. Females present higher levels of obesity relative to males for all time points. For both males and females, an overall increase in prevalence was observed in both rural and urban settings over-time, with urban dwellers presenting higher obesity levels. An overall increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita and Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) per capita was observed. The Gini coefficient for all ethnicities except the White population increased between 1998 and 2003 but declined by 2012. Overtime per capita GDP and HFCE increased with increasing obesity prevalence in both genders. The trend association between the Gini coefficient for all ethnicities and obesity prevalence was similar for both genders in that as the Gini coefficient increased obesity prevalence declined, and when the coefficient decreased obesity prevalence increased. Trend associations exist between South Africa's economic growth and adult obesity.

Dietary intake and the dynamics of stress, hypertension and obesity in a peri-urban community in Accra.

This study intends to investigate the association between dietary intake, stress and prevalence of chronic diseases. The study was a cross-sectional design conducted in two poor peri-urban communities in Accra. A total of 90 households each with a male and female between the ages of 18 and 45 years were sampled, and their socio-demographic status, anthropometric measurement and fasting blood sugar were assessed. Blood pressure was measured and chronic stress/anxiety was determined using the trait and state inventory (T-stai) questionnaire. Three days repeated 24-hour dietary recall was also done. Analysis of variance and linear regression analysis were used in data analysis. About 28% of the subjects were hypertensive and 55.5% had high chronic stress. Hypertension was higher in males (32.2%) than females (24.4%) (p=.023) whiles stress was higher in females (60.9%) than males (50.0%) (p=.017). Hypertensive subjects recorded higher stress (51.02%) and hypertension was more prevalent in subjects with high stress (32.89%) especially in females (57.14%, p=.036). Hypertension increased with mean age whiles stress decreased with mean age. Hypertensive subjects recorded a significantly higher BMI and sodium intake whiles high stress individuals recorded a lower animal protein but a higher cereal protein intake (p<.05). Chronic stress was associated with intake of low animal protein and high cereal protein. Increased dietary diversity score was associated with decreased obesity prevalence (p<.05). Hypertension, chronic stress, and obesity were linked, and affected by dietary sodium, animal protein, and dietary diversity of subjects respectively.

Adipose tissue palmitoleic acid and obesity in humans: does it behave as a lipokine?

Animal models have shown that adipose-derived palmitoleic acid may serve as a lipokine that contributes to resistance to diet-induced obesity. Studies in humans have evaluated only plasma palmitoleic acid concentrations, which reflect stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase 1 (SCD1) activity in the liver and are associated with increased risk of obesity. These apparent opposite effects of palmitoleic acid deserve further research in humans. Because carbohydrate intake can increase hepatic SCD1 activity, it could be used as a stratifying variable to disentangle the effects of adipose tissue SCD1 compared with the effects of liver SCD1 activity on obesity. We examined whether the effects of adipose tissue palmitoleic acid and SCD1 activity were associated with decreased obesity prevalence and whether this association was modified by carbohydrate intake. Prevalence ratios (PRs) of obesity [body mass index (in kg/m²) > 30] were examined in a cross-sectional study in 1926 adults in Costa Rica. Two desaturation indexes (16:1/16:0 and 18:1/18:0) were used as surrogate measures of adipose tissue SCD1 activity. We observed a positive association between adipose tissue palmitoleic acid concentrations and obesity (PR for lowest compared with highest quintiles of palmitoleic acid: 2.27; 95% CI: 1.52, 3.38; P for trend < 0.0001). A significant association was also observed between obesity and adipose desaturation indexes. The association between adipose tissue palmitoleic acid concentrations and obesity was attenuated in persons with low carbohydrate intake. There is no direct evidence that adipose tissue palmitoleic acid behaves as a lipokine to reduce obesity occurrence in humans. However, the attenuation of the association by low carbohydrate intake warrants further research on adipose-derived palmitoleic acid and obesity risk.

Understanding the causal factors of obesity using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health

Purpose. Behavioural, personal, psychological, sociodemographic, environmental, biological and childbearing factors have been associated with obesity among women. This study quantitatively explored the effects of these factors on predicting body mass index (BMI) in U.S. women using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) and determined the effectiveness of using the ICF with population-level data.Methods. We used the ICF Core Sets for Obesity, and data from the 1999–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) in a sample of 8766 U.S. women to quantify the impact of all associated causal factors. Linear regression was used in the analyses.Results. Body image perceptions (42%) was the most significant contributor, followed by hypertension (12%), general health condition (11%), diabetes/borderline diabetes (10%), arthritis (9%) and performing vigorous activity (9%).Conclusions. To decrease obesity prevalence rates in U.S. women, obesity prevention and treatment programmes should parallel the contributory effects of its most significant causal factors of psychological, biological and behavioural. In addition, more research and data are needed to explore the relationship between BMI in women and the multiple influencing factors by going beyond the more frequently available information of age, gender, race, education, income and parity.

Parents' Perceptions of Food Availability: Implications for Childhood Obesity

Childhood obesity is an epidemic in the United States, with children experiencing chronic adult diseases and poor health outcomes. Focus groups were held with parents of children between 6–12 years of age in three different communities in Brooklyn and the Bronx, New York, to explore their attitudes and practices regarding food availability. Poor food quality and discrimination were the key themes affecting parents' food choices and perceptions of food availability in their neighborhoods. Social workers are in a position to decrease obesity prevalence by supporting childhood obesity policy legislation, designing interventions to increase parental awareness of childhood obesity and the importance of making healthy food choices, and working with parents to improve food quality and availability in their neighborhoods.

Combating obesity trends in teenagers through persuasive mobile technology

Throughout the last decade, there has been an alarming increase in obesity prevalence among adults and teens throughout the world. Obesity has been found to increase the risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and some cancers. Due to the many health risks associated with obesity, an increase in prevalence has also pressured health care systems and the finances of the individual. Our research proposes to decrease obesity prevalence in adults by motivating teens to become or continue being physically active so that they can continue these healthy lifestyles as adults. Our goal is to encourage long term adoption of physically active behaviors by introducing a motivating application running on a mobile device. We use the Technology Acceptance Model, the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Theory of Meaning Behavior, and the Big 5 Personality Theory to guide our design.

A Public Health Approach to Decreasing Obesity

In concert with clinical medicine, which addresses diseases in individuals, the public health approach targets behavioral, sociocultural, and environmental factors that contribute to disease and injury in populations. For example, over the last 40 years, coordinated government efforts and efforts and private sector initiatives decreased smoking prevalence by almost half through taxation of tobacco products, smoking bans in public places, laws prohibiting tobacco sales to minors, advertising restrictions, and aggressive public education campaigns. Soon, however, obesity may surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. Public health interventions to decrease obesity prevalence must apply the same kind of multifaceted and coordinated approach that reduced tobacco use in order to change individual behavior patterns and effectively address the environmental barriers to physical activity and healthful food choices.