Digital Commons Network^™

The Child Nutrition Cost Of Weather Shocks In Nigeria, Danielle M. Abaya

Master's Theses

Child malnutrition is alarmingly high in Nigeria with the highest number of malnourished children, the second highest population of stunted children worldwide and 17 million Nigerians facing food insecurity. According to the World Health Organization, children are predicted to suffer about 80% of weather-related illnesses and deaths. As climate change continues to pose the greatest health threat and while scientists predict its irreversible effects in the next 10 years, countries such as Nigeria are already experiencing the burden of climate change today. This study uses total rainfall to measure precipitation and two Enhanced Vegetation Index variables, total change in greenness …

Immunological Effects Of Berberine And Physical Activity In A Murine Breast Cancer Model, Janae Mudge

Master's Theses

Berberine (BBR) is a plant-derived alkaloid popularly used in a complementary context to treat splenomegaly and chronic disease states such as rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and cancer. Recent research has examined BBR as a regulator of lipid and glucose metabolism in association with the AMPK pathway; but little is known concerning its immunological impacts. It is also known that exercise is a potent AMPK activator exhibiting immunological benefits, but nothing is known about the combination of these complementary approaches for treating breast cancer. The purpose of this study is to determine if oral consumption of BBR when paired with physical activity …

Impact Of Incorporating Intuitive Eating Principles Into A College Nutrition Course On Eating Behaviors, Kira L. Minot

Master's Theses

Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of an online introductory college nutrition course that implements evidence-based intuitive eating (IE) concepts and principles on students’ application of IE behaviors. A secondary outcome explored the relationship between student grades and changes in IE behavior implementation. Researchers hypothesized an increase in the average use of IE practices post-intervention.

Methods: This study was a non-randomized pilot intervention using pre- and post-test surveys. Enrolled students completed the intuitive eating scale-2 (IES-2) survey on the first and last days of the 16-week course. Students participated in typical nutrition coursework throughout the semester with the …

Diet Quality, Diet Motives, And Nutrition Literacy Of Vegans, Vegetarians, And Semi-Vegetarians, Sapna J. Peruvemba

Master's Theses

Individuals consuming plant-based diets have shown favorable dietary behaviors and diet quality. However, differences in diet quality considering motivations to adopt plant-based (vegan, vegetarian, and semi-vegetarian) diets and nutrition literacy, are not well known. The primary objective of this study was to assess diet quality, diet motives and nutrition literacy in vegans, vegetarians, and semi-vegetarians. The secondary objective was to investigate the association between diet motives and dietary quality. In this cross-sectional study, 223 participants completed an online survey and food frequency questionnaire. The study used the Healthy Eating Index-2015 to measure dietary quality, the Food Choice Questionnaire to measure …

No Association Between Macronutrient Intake And Body Composition Indices In Collegiate Athletes, Bryan Singharaj

Master's Theses

A scarcity of literature follows the relationship between macronutrient intake and bodycomposition indices within an athletic population. Therefore, the primary aims of the present study were to evaluate the relationship between the percent intake of carbohydrates, dietary fat, and protein with fat-free mass percentage (FFM %), fat mass percentage (FM %), fat mass index (FMI), and lean mass index (LMI). In addition, a secondary objective was to determine if there were any sex differences in the relationship between macronutrient intake and body composition indices. A total of 58 San José State University student-athletes from multiple sports were included in the …

Inverse Association Between Yogurt Consumption And Metabolic Syndrome Prevalence In United States Adult Males, But Not In Females Or In The Total Population: Nhanes 2017-2018, Diana K. Lee

Master's Theses

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is prevalent in the United States (US) population andconcerns lie in related chronic diseases and financial burdens. To mitigate MetS, modifying the diet is a possible solution. Yogurt is known for its nutrient density and is a possible health food. The growing interests in yogurt and the growing concerns for MetS are met with the gap of unraveling the yogurt consumption status and MetS prevalence in the US. We evaluated the association between yogurt consumption and MetS using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017-2018 and Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies data. The …

The Filipino American Diet: Generational Comparison Of Acculturation, Health Literacy, And Dietary Patterns, Regina Reina

Master's Theses

There is evidence to suggest that Filipino Americans (FAs) are at greater risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and chronic conditions when compared to other Asian American subgroups. However, research on possible risk factors for this group is limited as race classifications are seldomly disaggregated. Having limited health literacy is known to be a contributing factor in health disparities among immigrant populations, though it has largely been understudied among FAs. The comparison of dietary intake, acculturation, dietary acculturation, and health literacy between Philippine-born (PBs) FAs and U.S-born (UBs) FAs has not previously been described. PBs and UBs (n=140) from across the …

Effects Of Lemon Or Cinnamon Essential Oil Vapor On Physicochemical Properties Of Strawberries During Storage, Elise Christine Anita Freche

Master's Theses

Essential oils are currently being investigated for their potential role as food preservatives. They contain a mixture of bioactive compounds that would help increase the shelf life of food and might help preserve fruits without using synthetic chemicals. Although much research has been conducted on their antimicrobial properties, their effect on the physicochemical properties and organoleptic characteristics needs more investigation. In this study, the effects of lemon or cinnamon essential oil vapor on the physicochemical properties of strawberries were analyzed, focusing on the weight loss, color, firmness, acidity status, sugar content and visible decay. Strawberries were treated for 12 hours …

Association Between Meal Dietary Inflammatory Potential And Postprandial Sleepiness, Samantha Beth Kalb

Master's Theses

The amount and composition of food that is consumed are known to contribute toinflammation and may affect how we feel in the following hours. The aim of this research was to determine if the inflammatory potential of a single meal is associated with level of postprandial sleepiness. Participants (n = 70) recorded intake of one of their meals, then reported their degree of postprandial sleepiness (Stanford Sleepiness Scale), average activity level, average hours of nightly sleep, and daytime sleepiness (Epworth Sleepiness Scale). The Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) of the meal was estimated by adjusting DII parameters by 26%, reflecting the …

Recommendations For A Water Conservationist Diet In California, Helen M. Lee

Master's Theses

As the world’s population continues to increase, a focus on nutrition security and water sustainability is needed to ensure enough resources for future generations and their wellbeing. The agricultural sector uses the most water worldwide, so identifying agricultural commodities that use less water and are more nutritious could help society reach these goals. California is the largest producer of agriculture in the United States. Therefore, an analysis of water use and nutritional value was conducted using water footprint (WF) and nutrient rich food scores (NRF) of California’s agricultural products. The results of the WF and NRF analysis showed that the …

Food Insecurity And Dietary Changes During Covid-19 In The San Francisco Bay Area, Iris Vanessa Tablas-Mejia

Master's Theses

Shelter-in-place and social distancing protocols were issued across the country to containthe spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19); however, these safety measures gave rise to unprecedented unemployment rates and disruptions to food access. This study investigated how COVID-19 affected food security and food consumption patterns in the San Francisco Bay Area. A validated survey developed by the National Food Access and COVID Research Team (NFACT) was distributed online from August to November 2020. The survey measured food access and eating behaviors during the pandemic. Seven hundred and twentyfour participants (403 female, 76 male, average age 43.9 ± 15.0 years) completed …

Prevalence Of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder And Association With Nutrition Status In Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Emily Yelencich

Master's Theses

There is a large body of research on the relationship between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and diet; however, few conclusive, generalizable recommendations have been determined. Regardless, IBD patients often alter their normal dietary intake, which is concerning considering the prevalence of malnutrition in the IBD population. Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) is a feeding disorder that was recently added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and its prevalence and impact on the nutritional status of IBD patients has not previously been described. In this study ARFID risk was measured using the Nine-Item ARFID Screen and in the …

Risk Factors For Poor Birth Outcomes In Moderately Malnourished Pregnant Women In Sierra Leone, Candice A. Rodriguez

Master's Theses

Background: Maternal malnutrition in developing countries is associated with adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes. Malnourished mothers are often faced with additional risk factors as a circumstance of poverty. Supplementary nutrition can improve the outcomes of both mother and infant. Identifying maternal nutritional and socioeconomic risk factors is critical for developing effective interventions.

Objective: A secondary analysis to evaluate maternal risk factors associated with poor birth outcomes including pregnancy loss, low birth weight, stunting, and preterm delivery among moderately malnourished pregnant women in Sierra Leone. Maternal risk factors in the analysis are age, education, parity, BMI, MUAC, gestational weight gain, and …

Disordered Eating In Collegiate Athletes: Prevalence And Relationships With Body Composition, Sofia Apsey

Master's Theses

Performance pressures and emphasis on body weight and shape put collegiate athletes at risk for disordered eating. If not identified early, disordered eating behaviors could develop into a clinical eating disorder. While such behaviors are a known problem, prevalence rates are not well established in collegiate athletes. Disordered eating may also relate to physiological changes in athletes, such as body composition and performance, although this relationship is not well understood. The aims of this research were to 1) determine the prevalence of disordered eating risk in NCAA Division I student-athletes and 2) determine if such behaviors are related to baseline …

Association Of Food Pharmacy Participation With Type Ii Diabetes Risk Factors, Breanne Vinogradoff

Master's Theses

Food insecurity is defined as a lack of access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle and has been found to lead to higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). In recognition of this relationship, many safety-net clinics and food banks have introduced “food pharmacies.” The term “food pharmacy” may be used to describe a treatment model that focuses on provision of disease-specific, medically appropriate food. This observational study examined data from a food pharmacy in the San Francisco Bay Area to determine if program participation improved clinical measures of T2DM status or risk, namely glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting blood …

The Effects Of A 6-Week Group Meal Prep Program On The Frequency Of Consumption Of Home-Cooked Meals, Shannon Mendez

Master's Theses

Consumption of food away from home is associated with higher caloric intake and poorer diet quality compared to home-cooked food. The advance quantity meal prep (AQMP) program is a group-based program developed to increase the frequency of consumption of home-cooked meals. The AQMP pilot study was a pre-experimental 6-week intervention aimed at analyzing the effects of the program on frequency of consumption of home-cooked meals, cooking attitudes, cooking self-efficacy, and anthropometric measures. Ten study participants met once a week at a commercial kitchen to prepare and package lunches, dinners, and snacks for the work week. A survey was administered and …

Nutrition, Physical Activity, And Screen Time -Related Attitudes And Perceived Barriers Of Family Childcare Providers And Differences By Ethnicity, Qianxia Jiang

Master's Theses

Background:Childcare settings play an important role in shaping young children’s eating, physical activity (PA), and screen time (ST) behaviors. However, little research has focused on family childcare homes (FCCHs). This paper examines family child care provider (FCCP)-reported attitudes and perceived barriers related to nutrition, PA, and ST of preschool aged children in their FCCH, exploring differences by provider ethnicity.

Methods:We used baseline data from an ongoing cluster-randomized trial including surveys with FCCPs. We examined demographic characteristics and provider-reported nutrition, PA, and ST-related attitudes and barriers. Differences by ethnicity were assessed using chi square and multivariate loglinear analysis adjusting …

The Effect Of Guilt Free Claims On Restrained And Non-Restrained Eaters' Purchase Intention, Perception Of Product Healthfulness, And Amount Willing To Pay For A Novel Product, Alexis Ludwig

Master's Theses

Products with health-related claims that are perceived to be tasty are more likely to be purchase by consumers than products without a claim. Restrained eaters rely more on external cues such as food packaging rather than internal cues such as hunger signals in a way to control their caloric intake.^1,2 Restrained eaters may be more susceptible to marketing and food claims compared to non-restrained eaters. We propose a guilt free message will affect perception of healthfulness. We also propose a guilt free message and eating restraint will affect purchasing decisions. Lastly, perception of healthfulness and valuing nutritious products mediates …

A Survey Of New England Sheep Producers, Arielle L. Halpern

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Poor Maternal Nutrition On Offspring Muscle Metabolism, Dominique Martin

Master's Theses

Poor maternal nutrition during gestation alters offspring muscle composition, fiber number, postnatal growth, and stem cell function. Additionally, poor maternal nutrition impacts offspring whole body and stem cell metabolism. We hypothesized that over- or restricted-feeding during gestation would alter muscle myoblast metabolism as well as offspring Longissimus dorsi muscle (LD) metabolome. Pregnant Western White-faced ewes (n = 47) were individually fed 60% (RES), 100% (CON), or 140% (OVER) of NRC requirements starting at d 30.2 ± 0.2 of gestation. At d 90 and 135 of gestation, ewes were euthanized for fetal muscle collection. Another group of ewes were allowed to …

An Examination Of Daily Dietary Intake And Swallow Function In An Older Adult Population, Lillian A. Barone

Master's Theses

This study aims to determine the relationship, if any, of daily dietary intake of adult individuals living independently in the community and swallow function/ dysfunction. It appears that individuals modify their diet as they age and the correlation between this awareness of diet modification and dysphagia is unclear. Using the Yale Swallow Protocol and a study specific questionnaire, this relationship was examined. The results indicate future research should focus on the bi-directional relationship between malnutrition and dysphagia in the aging, community dwelling population.

The Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 (Igf1) System As A Potential Biomarker For Nutritional Status And Growth Rate In Pacific Rockfish (Sebastes Spp.), Nicole L. Hack

Master's Theses

Growth performance in vertebrates is regulated by environmental factors including the quality and quantity of food, which influences growth via endocrine pathways such as the growth hormone (GH) / insulin-like growth factor somatotropic axis. In several teleost fishes, circulating concentrations of insulin-like growth factor-1 (Igf1) correlate positively with growth rate, and it has been proposed that plasma Igf1 levels may serve as an indicator of growth variation for fisheries and aquaculture applications. Here, I tested whether plasma Igf1 concentrations might serve as an indicator of somatic growth in olive rockfish (Sebastes serranoides), one species among dozens of rockfishes …

The Response Of A Predatory Fish, Ophiodon Elongatus, To A Marine Protected Area: Variation In Diet, Catch Rates, And Size Composition, Eric S. Anderson

Master's Theses

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a management tool used to protect and sustain many ecologically and economically important fish species from overexploitation by recreational and commercial fishing. Lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus) and some of its prey species, such as rockfish (Sebastes spp.), are species that are protected from fishing in some California MPAs. Lingcod is an apex predator that consumes a variety of fish and invertebrate species. In this study, I sought to assess the effect of an MPA on the abundance, size and diet of Lingcod. I hypothesized that Lingcod in a no-take MPA would be more …

Association Of The Dietary Inflammatory Index With Metabolic Syndrome In The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey (2001-2006), Genevieve C. Caron

Master's Theses

Metabolic syndrome currently affects one third of adults in the U.S. and has been associated with a variety of chronic diseases that pose a burden to the nation. ^1,2 In the nationally representative NHANES dataset (2001-2006), dietary inflammatory index scores were found to significantly predict metabolic syndrome outcome among individuals above the age of 50 (OR=1.088; 95% CI=1.014-1.167; p=0.0184). Individuals older than 50 years of age who consume diets very high inflammatory properties were found to be 2.14 times more likely to have metabolic syndrome than those who consume a diet with very low inflammatory properties. This study supports the …

The Interrelations Between Work Factors, Family And Work Health Climate, Work Schedule, And Individual Behaviors, Jennifer C. Buden

Master's Theses

Background: The rates of obesity in the United States continue to rise, particularly with disparities in high stress, low job control occupations such as corrections. Employers are in a unique position to improve employee health through development of Total Worker Health interventions that integrate worker safety and health promotion to improve employee health and well-being.²⁵ Understanding influences on health behaviors in the workplace such as social support, and work schedules as well as family environment, may aide in developing worksite preventive strategies with the anticipation of chronic disease reduction and weight management. Purpose: The purpose of these studies was …

Training Group Home Staff On Nutrition, Kaitlin Carafa

Master's Theses

Currently, more than one-third of adults (more than 72 million people) in the United States are obese (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2014), and therefore obesity is a major public health concern. The prevalence of obesity in the population of individuals with disabilities has been shown to be 2.1 times higher than compared to the general population, and the prevalence is higher in less restrictive settings such as group homes (Saunders et al., 2011). Therefore, interventions aimed to decrease obesity should be created for this population. The purpose of this study is to investigate the need for a …

Does Nutrition Education Influence Snack Choices Of Preschoolers?, Laura Joseph

Master's Theses

Objective: To determine the impact of a nutrition education program on preschoolers’ snack choices when offered one healthy (grapes) or one unhealthy food (cookies).

Methods: This pre/post test experimental study included children ages 3-5 years old (n=45) from one preschool. Each child within a classroom (10-20 children) received the same nutrition education program (All 4 Kids) intervention (9, 30 minute lessons) taught by one registered dietitian over 2-weeks. Pre and post assessments included a snack knowledge and preference questionnaire and an observed snack selection trial to test the impact of the intervention. Children’s height and weight were measured …

Early Life Rainfall And Later Life Human Capital Outcomes In Bangladesh, Thomas Dreesen

Master's Theses

How does early life rainfall impact later life human capital outcomes in Bangladesh? This paper examines the effect of exogenous rainfall shocks that occur during individuals early-life on later life health, wealth and education outcomes of Bangladeshi women born between 1952-1988. I link historical rainfall for each woman’s birth year and Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) cluster of birth with current outcomes from the 1999/2000, 2004 and 2007 survey rounds of the DHS. This study finds that rural women with 20% higher than mean rainfall in their year and cluster of birth are on average 0.24 cm taller and score …

Post-Race Nutritional Supplementation Effects On The Incidence And Severity Of Upper Respiratory Tract Infection In Ironman Tri-Athletes, Deanna Dempsey

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of A Theory-Based Farm To School Program, Rebecca Kent Bishop

Master's Theses

Fruit and vegetable (FV) intakes in MS children remain lower than recommended. Theory-based, multi-component nutrition education interventions like Farm to School (F2S) target FV consumption and utilize such interventions to improve children’s dietary behaviors by incorporating nutrition and agriculture education. The current study was designed with Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as its framework. An intervention was implemented to enhance beliefs, norms, and self-efficacy regarding FV, thus potentially increasing the intention to consume more FV. The research objectives of this study are to describe changes over the course of the intervention in (1) nutrition knowledge; (2) norms, beliefs, and self-efficacy …