Nutrition Commons^™

A Novel Tetracycline-Responsive Transgenic Mouse Strain For Skeletal Muscle-Specific Gene Expression, Masahiro Iwata, Davis A. Englund, Yuan Wen, Cory M. Dungan, Kevin A. Murach, Ivan Jose Vechetti Jr, Christopher B. Mobley, Charlotte A. Peterson, John J. Mccarthy

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: The tetracycline-responsive system (Tet-ON/OFF) has proven to be a valuable tool for manipulating gene expression in an inducible, temporal, and tissue-specific manner. The purpose of this study was to create and characterize a new transgenic mouse strain utilizing the human skeletal muscle α-actin (HSA) promoter to drive skeletal muscle-specific expression of the reverse tetracycline transactivator (rtTA) gene which we have designated as the HSA-rtTA mouse. Methods: To confirm the HSA-rtTA mouse was capable of driving skeletal muscle-specific expression, we crossed the HSA-rtTA mouse with the tetracycline-responsive histone H2B-green fluorescent protein (H2B-GFP) transgenic mouse in order to label myonuclei. Results: …

Health And Nutrition, Sydney Williams, Lauren Larson

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

The goal of this club was to inform and build upon the knowledge about health and nutrition of 4th and 5th graders. We did different activities to engage the children in a fun way of learning about health and nutrition so that it wouldn't feel like an extension of school.

Comparison Of Maternal Beliefs About Causes Of Autism Spectrum Disorder And Association With Utilization Of Services And Treatments, Virginia Chaidez, Erik Fernandez Y Garcia, Lulu W. Wang, Kathleen Angkustsiri, Paula Krakowiak, Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Robin L. Hansen

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: This study aimed to describe parental perceptions of the causes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in an ethnically diverse sample and explore whether these perceptions relate to treatment choices.

Methods: The sample consisted of White (n=224), Hispanic (n=85) and Asian (n=21) mothers of a child with ASD. A mixed methods approach was used in this secondary analysis focusing on parental perceptions about the causes of ASD and the relationship of these to utilization of services and treatment.

Results: Environmental and genetic factors were most often believed to be the cause or one of the causes of ASD by mothers …

Campbell Elementary Afterschool Nutrition Science Club: Fun With Food, Natalie Strawhecker

Honors Theses

Several schools in the Lincoln Public School district have afterschool programs for students from 3:30-5:00pm in order to provide a safe and fun place for students to play while their parents are still at work. For this Honors Thesis an afterschool nutrition club was created for students to learn about MyPlate and healthy living.

A seven-week curriculum was created for students at Campbell Elementary with each week focusing on a different food group in MyPlate and healthy living as a whole. In order to track the students’ progress, an eight question pre and post quiz was developed. A weekly journal …

Exploring H.Pylori Seropositivity As A Risk Factor For Type 2 Diabetes, Virginia Chaidez, Yumou Qiu

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: In the US, the percentage of adults with diagnosed diabetes are higher in members of racial and ethnic minority groups compared to non-Latino Whites. Understanding why such disparities exist has been less forthcoming.

Methods: Secondary data analysis was conducted using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2000 cross-sectional data.

Results: H.pylori seropositivity was highest in Mexican Americans (43.7%), lowest in non- Hispanic Whites (18.1%). Diabetes was highest in non-Hispanic Blacks (5.9%); lowest in non-Hispanic whites (4.3%). H.pylori seropositivity was associated with greater likelihood of having type 2 diabetes (1.927, 95% CI 1.142, 3.257) compared to H.pylori negative …

Role Of 3-Hydroxy Fatty Acid-Induced Hepatic Lipotoxicity In Acute Fatty Liver Of Pregnancy, Sathish Kumar Natarajan, Jamal A. Ibdah

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP), a catastrophic illness for both the mother and the unborn offspring, develops in the last trimester of pregnancy with significant maternal and perinatal mortality. AFLP is also recognized as an obstetric and medical emergency. Maternal AFLP is highly associated with a fetal homozygous mutation (1528G>C) in the gene that encodes for mitochondrial long-chain hydroxy acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCHAD). The mutation in LCHAD results in the accumulation of 3-hydroxy fatty acids, such as 3-hydroxy myristic acid, 3-hydroxy palmitic acid and 3-hydroxy dicarboxylic acid in the placenta, which are then shunted to the maternal circulation leading …

Gardening Experience Is Associated With Increased Fruit And Vegetable Intake Among First-Year College Students: A Cross-Sectional Examination, Jennifer Loso, Daniel Staub, Sarah E. Colby, Melissa D. Olfert, Kendra Kattelmann, Melissa Vilaro, James Colee, Wenjun Zhou, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Anne E. Matthews

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background Gardening interventions have been shown to increase fruit and vegetable (F/V) intake among school-aged children. It is unknown whether these effects persist into later adolescence or adulthood, and little is known about whether gardening in later adolescence is related to F/V intake. Objective To identify the relationship between both childhood and recent (within the past 12 months) gardening experiences and current F/V intake among college students. Design/participants A cross-sectional evaluation of 1,121 college freshmen with suboptimal F/V consumption from eight US universities. Main outcome measures Participants completed the National Cancer Institute Fruit and Vegetable Screener and questions about gardening …

Teens Implementing A Childhood Obesity Prevention Program In The Community: Feasibility And Perceptions Of A Partnership With Hsta And Icook 4-H, Rebecca L. Hagedorn, Jade A. White, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Sarah E. Colby, Kendra K. Kattelmann, Adrienne A. White, Melissa D. Olfert

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

High school student researchers and teen leaders from the Health Science Technology Academy (HSTA), under the supervision of HSTA teachers, led a childhood obesity prevention (COP) program (iCook 4-H). The objective was to evaluate the feasibility and perceptions of having teen leaders implement a COP program for dyads of youth (9–10 years old) and their primary adult food preparer. Behavior change and perceptions were assessed through surveys and open-ended interviews. Across eight HSTA organizations, 43 teen leaders participated in teaching the iCook 4-H program to 24 dyads. Increased frequency of culinary skills, physical activity and mealtime behavior were reported by …

St. John’S Wort Regulates Proliferation And Apoptosis In Mcf-7 Human Breast Cancer Cells By Inhibiting Ampk/Mtor And Activating The Mitochondrial Pathway, Mi-Kyoung You, Hwa-Jin Kim, Ji Hyun Kook, Hyeon-A Kim

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

St. John’s Wort (SJW) has been used as an estrogen agonist in the systems affected by menopause. Also, hypericin, a bioactive compound of SJW, has been used as a photosensitizer in photodynamic therapy. In the present study, we investigate the anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of SJWto demonstrate the chemo-preventive effect in human breast cancer cells. MCF-7 cellswere culturedwith DMSO or various concentrations of SJWethanol extract (SJWE). Cell viability, proliferation, apoptosis, the expression of proteins involved in cell growth and apoptosis, and caspase-3/7 activity were examined. SJWE dose-dependently suppressed cell growth and induced apoptosis ofMCF-7 cells. Mechanistically, SJWE enhanced the phosphorylation …

Health Disparities Score Composite Of Youth And Parent Dyads From An Obesity Prevention Intervention: Icook 4-H, Melissa D. Olfert, Makenzie L. Barr, Rebecca L. Hagedorn, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Sarah E. Colby, Kendra K. Kattelmann, Adrienne A. White

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

iCook 4-H is a lifestyle intervention to improve diet, physical activity and mealtime behavior. Control and treatment dyads (adult primary meal preparer and a 9–10-year-old youth) completed surveys at baseline and 4, 12, and 24 months. A Health Disparity (HD) score composite was developed utilizing a series of 12 questions (maximum score = 12 with a higher score indicating a more severe health disparity). Questions came from the USDA short form U.S. Household Food Security Survey (5), participation in food assistance programs (1), food behavior (2), level of adult education completed (1), marital status (1), and race (1 adult and …

Effects Of Tunable, 3d-Bioprinted Hydrogels On Human Brown Adipocyte Behavior And Metabolic Function, Mitchell Kuss, Jiyoung Kim, Dianjun Qi, Shaohua Wu, Yuguo Lei, Soonkyu Chung, Bin Duan

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Obesity and its related health complications cause billions of dollars in healthcare costs annually in the United States, and there are yet to be safe and long-lasting anti-obesity approaches. Using brown adipose tissue (BAT) is a promising approach, as it uses fats for energy expenditure. However, the effect of the microenvironment on human thermogenic brown adipogenesis and how to generate clinically relevant sized and functioning BAT are still unknown. In our current study, we evaluated the effects of endothelial growth medium exposure on brown adipogenesis of human brown adipose progenitors (BAP). We found that pre-exposing BAP to angiogenic factors promoted …

Voices For Food: Methodologies For Implementing A Multi-State Community-Based Intervention In Rural, High Poverty Communities, Suzanne Stluka, Lindsay Moore, Heather A. Eicher-Miller, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Becky Henne, Donna Mehrle, Daniel Remley, Lacey Mccormack

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Rural communities experience unique barriers to food access when compared to urban areas and food security is a public health issue in rural, high poverty communities. A multi-leveled socio-ecological intervention to develop food policy councils (FPCs), and improve food security in rural communities was created. Methods to carry out such an intervention were developed and are described.

Methods: A longitudinal, matched treatment and comparison study was conducted in 24 rural, high poverty counties in South Dakota, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, Nebraska and Ohio. Counties were assigned to a treatment (n = 12) or comparison (n = 12) group. Intervention activities …

Co-Activation, Estimated Anterior And Posterior Cruciate Ligament Forces, And Motor Unit Activation Strategies During The Time Course Of Fatigue, Cory M. Smith, Terry J. Housh, Ethan C. Hill, Josh L. Keller, Glen O. Johnson, Richard J. Schmidt

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

This study aimed to combine co-activation as well as anterior and posterior cruciate ligament force estimations with the motor unit activation strategies employed by the primary muscles that are involved in the movement at the knee joint. Fourteen male subject performed 25 maximal concentric isokinetic leg extension muscle actions at 120 s^-1. Electromyographic and mechanomyographic signals from the vastus lateralis and bicep femoris, as well as force, were used to measure co-activation, and estimated anterior and posterior ligament forces during the time course of fatigue. There were decreases in quadriceps force and increases in hamstring force during the …

Sex- And Mode-Specific Responses To Eccentric Muscle Fatigue, Ethan C. Hill, Terry J. Housh, Cory M. Smith, Josh L. Keller, Richard J. Schmidt, Glen O. Johnson

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The primary purpose of the present investigation was to examine sex-related differences as a result of fatiguing eccentric muscle actions on torque, muscle blood flow, electromyography, and mechanomyography. Eighteen men and 18 women performed peak torque trials prior to (pretest), immediately after (posttest), and 5-min after (recovery) completing 50 submaximal (60 % of eccentric peak torque), eccentric, isokinetic (180 ° · s ⁻ 1) muscle actions of the elbow flexors. Electromyographic and mechanomyographic responses were simultaneously recorded from the biceps brachii muscle, and muscle blood flow was measured at pretest, posttest and recovery. There were sex- and mode-specific responses for …

The Contributions Of Arterial Cross‑Sectional Area And Time‑Averaged Flow Velocity To Arterial Blood Flow, Ethan C. Hill, Terry J. Housh, Cory M. Smith, Josh L. Keller, Richard J. Schmidt, Glen O. Johnson

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Ultrasound has been used for noninvasive assessments of endothelial function in both clinical and athletic settings and to identify changes in muscle blood flow in response to exercise, nutritional supplementation, and occlusion. The purposes of the present study were to examine the reliability and relative contributions of arterial cross‑sectional area and time‑averaged flow velocity to predict muscle blood flow as a result of fatiguing exercise in men and women. Methods: Eighteen healthy men and 18 healthy women performed 50 consecutive eccentric repetitions of the elbow flexors at 60% of their pretest eccentric peak torque at a velocity of 180° …

Need (More Than) Two To Tango: Multiple Tools To Adapt To Changes In Oxygen Availability, Deborah Fratantonio, Francesco Cimino, Antonio Speciale, Fabio Virgili

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Oxygen is a fundamental element for the life of a large number of living organisms allowing an efficient energetic utilization of substrates. Organisms relying on oxygen evolved complex structures for oxygen delivery and biochemical machineries dealing with its safe utilization and the ability to overcome the potentially harmful consequences of changes in oxygen availability. On fact, cells composing complex Eukaryotic organisms are set to live within an optimum narrow range of oxygen, quite specific for each cell type. Minute modifications of oxygen availability, either positive or negative, induce the expression of specific genes, the major actors of this responses being …

More Than Fast Food: Development Of A Story Map To Compare Adolescent Perceptions And Observations Of Their Food Environments And Related Food Behaviors, Kristin A. Riggsbee, Jonathon Riggsbee, Melissa J. Vilaro, Lauren Moret, Marsha Spence, Elizabeth Anderson Steeves, Wenjun Zhou, Melissa D. Olfert, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Tanya Horacek, Elizabeth Hall, Sarah E. Colby

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this convergent, multiphase, mixed methods study was to better understand the perceptions of adolescents’ food environments and related food behaviors using grounded visualization and story mapping. Adolescents from one high school (13–16 years) in the southeastern United States were evaluated via data from health behavior surveys (n = 75), school environment maps, focus groups (n = 5 groups), and Photovoice (n = 6) from October 2016 to April 2017. Data from each phase were integrated using grounded visualization and new themes were identified (n = 7). A story map using ArcGIS Online was developed from data integration, …

Development Of Igrow: A Curriculum For Youth/Adult Dyads To Increase Gardening Skills, Culinary Competence, And Family Meal Time For Youths And Their Adult Caregivers, Jade A. White, Rebecca L. Hagedorn, Nicole L. Waterland, Makenzie L. Barr, Oluremi A. Famodu, Amy E. Root, Adrienne A. White, Sarah E. Colby, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Kendra Kattelmann, Melissa D. Olfert

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

This manuscript describes the development of a “learn by actively participating” curriculum for youth and their adult caregivers (dyad pair) to increase gardening skills, culinary competence, and family meal time. The curriculum was developed by integrating “iCook 4-H” and Junior Masters Gardener “Health and Nutrition from the Garden”, and “Essential Elements of 4-H Youth Development” curriculums with additional resources for gardening activities from the USDA’s My Plate and garden-based recipes. Expert reviewers (n = 11) provided feedback on the curriculum content, session structure, dosage, age appropriateness, and balance of the three focused areas. Seven family dyads (n = …

Development And Validation Of A Simple Convenience Store Shelf Audit, Tanya M. Horacek, Elif Dede Yildirim, Erin Kelly, Adrienne A. White, Karla P. Shelnutt, Kristin Riggsbee, Melissa D. Olfert, Jesse Stabile Morrell, Anne E. Matthews, Terezie T. Mosby, Tandalayo Kidd, Kendra Kattelmann, Geoffrey Greene, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Sarah E. Colby, Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, Onikia Brown

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background This paper describes the development, reliability, and convergent validity of a practical tool—the Convenience Store Supportive Healthy Environment for Life-Promoting Food (SHELF) Audit. Methods Audit items included: a variety of fresh, processed, and frozen fruits and vegetables; low-fat dairy products; healthy staples and frozen meals; healthy food incentive programs; items sold in check-out areas; portion/cup sizes; and pricing. Each audit item was scored using a five-point semantic-differential scale (1 = provides little or no support for healthful foods to 5 = provides high support for healthful foods). Convergent validity was examined by comparing the SHELF audit to Ghirardelli et …

Armms As A Versatile Platform For Intracellular Delivery Of Macromolecules, Qiyu Wang, Jiujiu Yu, Tatenda Kadungure, Joseph Beyene, Hong Zhang, Quan Lu

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Majority of disease-modifying therapeutic targets are restricted to the intracellular space and are therefore not druggable using existing biologic modalities. The ability to efficiently deliver macromolecules inside target cells or tissues would greatly expand the current landscape of therapeutic targets for future generations of biologic drugs, but remains challenging. Here we report the use of extracellular vesicles, known as arrestin domain containing protein 1 [ARRDC1]-mediated microvesicles (ARMMs), for packaging and intracellular delivery of a myriad of macromolecules, including the tumor suppressor p53 protein, RNAs, and the genome-editing CRISPR-Cas9/guide RNA complex. We demonstrate selective recruitment of these macromolecules into ARMMs. When …

Milk Exosomes Are Bioavailable And Distinct Microrna Cargos Have Unique Tissue Distribution Patterns, Sonia Manca, Bijaya Upadhyaya, Ezra Mutai, Amy T. Desaulniers, Rebecca A. Cederberg, Brett R. White, Janos Zempleni

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Exosomes participate in cell-to-cell communication, facilitated by the transfer of RNAs, proteins and lipids from donor to recipient cells. Exosomes and their RNA cargos do not exclusively originate from endogenous synthesis but may also be obtained from dietary sources such as the inter-species transfer of exosomes and RNAs in bovine milk to humans. Here, we assessed the bioavailability and distribution of exosomes and their microRNA cargos from bovine, porcine and murine milk within and across species boundaries. Milk exosomes labeled with fluorophores or fluorescent fusion proteins accumulated in liver, spleen and brain following suckling, oral gavage and intravenous administration in …

Exercise And The Timing Of Snack Choice: Healthy Snack Choice Is Reduced In The Post-Exercise State, Christopher R. Gustafson, Nigina Rakhmatullaeva, Safiya E. Beckford, Ajai Ammachathram, Alexander Cristobal, Karsten Koehler

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Acute exercise can induce either a compensatory increase in food intake or a reduction in food intake, which results from appetite suppression in the post-exercise state. The timing of food choice—choosing for immediate or later consumption—has been found to influence the healthfulness of foods consumed. To examine both of these effects, we tested in our study whether the timing of food choice interacts with exposure to exercise to impact food choices such that choices would differ when made prior to or following an exercise bout. Visitors to a university recreational center were equipped with an accelerometer prior to their habitual …

Building Resilience In Social-Ecological Food Systems In Vermont, Kristine Lien Skog, Stine Elisabeth Eriksen, Christy Anderson Brekken, Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

There is an expanding interest in Local Food Systems (LFSs) in Vermont, United States, along with a growing effort to create adaptive governance to facilitate action. In this case study, we investigate how adaptive governance of LFS can provide ideas and act as a catalyst for creating resilience in other social-ecological systems (SESs). By participating in meetings and interviewing stakeholders inside and outside the Vermont LFS network, we found that consumers were highly motivated to participate by supporting environmental issues, the local economy, and interactive communities, as well as building social relationships. Farmers experienced better income and increased respect in …

Daily Dietary Intake Patterns Improve After Visiting A Food Pantry Among Food-Insecure Rural Midwestern Adults, Breanne N. Wright, Regan L. Bailey, Bruce A. Craig, Richard D. Mattes, Lacey Mccormack, Suzanne Stluka, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Becky Henne, Donna Mehrle, Dan Remley, Heather A. Eicher-Miller

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Emergency food pantries provide food at no cost to low-resource populations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate single-day dietary intake patterns before and after visiting a food pantry among food-secure and food-insecure pantry clients. This observational cohort study comprised a paired, before-and-after design with a pantry visit as the intervention. Participants (n = 455) completed a demographic and food security assessment, and two 24-h dietary recalls. Adult food security was measured using the U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module. Dietary intake patterns were assessed using Automated Self-Administered 24-h Recall data and classified by Healthy Eating Index (HEI-2010) …

Inhibitory Effects Of Toll-Like Receptor 4, Nlrp3 Inflammasome, And Interleukin-1Β On White Adipocyte Browning, Meshail Okla, Walid Zaher, Musaad Alfayez, Soonkyu Chung

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Adipose tissue expansion is accompanied by infiltration and accumulation of pro-inflammatory macrophages, which links obesity to pathologic conditions such as type 2 diabetes. However, little is known regarding the role of pro-inflammatory adipose tissue remodeling in the thermogenic activation of brown/beige fat. Here, we investigated the effect of pattern recognition receptors (PRR) activation in macrophages, especially the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and Nod-like receptor 3 (NLRP3), on white adipocyte browning. We report that TLR4 activation by lipopolysaccharide repressed white adipocyte browning in response to β3-adrenergic receptor activation and caused ROS production and mitochondrial dysfunction, while genetic deletion of TLR4 protected …

Effects Of Intensity On Muscle-Specific Voluntary Electromechanical Delay And Relaxation Electromechanical Delay, Cory M. Smith, Terry J. Housh, Ethan C. Hill, Josh L. Keller, Glen O. Johnson, Richard J. Schmidt

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The purposes of this study were to examine: 1) the potential muscle-specific differences in voluntary electromechanical delay (EMD) and relaxation electromechanical delay (R-EMD), and 2) the effects of intensity on EMD and R-EMD during step incremental isometric muscle actions from 10 to 100% maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC). EMD and R-EMD measures were calculated from the simultaneous assessments of electromyography, mechanomyography, and force production from the vastus lateralis (VL), vastus medialis (VM), and rectus femoris (RF) during step isometric muscle actions. There were no differences between the VL, VM, and RF for the voluntary EMD_E-M (onsets of the electromyographic …

Red Pepper Seed Water Extract Inhibits Preadipocyte Differentiation And Induces Mature Adipocyte Apoptosis In 3t3-L1 Cells, Hwa-Jin Kim, Mi-Kyoung You, Young-Hyun Lee, Hyun-Jung Kim, Deepak Adhikari, Hyeon-A Kim

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Reducing the number of adipocytes by inducing apoptosis of mature adipocytes as well as suppressing differentiation of preadipocytes plays an important role in preventing obesity. This study examines the anti-adipogenic and pro-apoptotic effect of red pepper seed water extract (RPS) prepared at 4°C (RPS4) in 3T3-L1 cells.

MATERIALS/METHODS: Effect of RPS4 or its fractions on lipid accumulation was determined in 3T3-L1 cells using oil red O (ORO) staining. The expressions of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and adipogenic associated proteins [peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ), CCAAT/enhancer-binding proteins α (C/EBP α), sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), fatty acid synthase (FAS), and …

Hidden Hunger: Solutions For America’S Aging Populations, Manfred Eggersdorfer, Ucheoma Akobundu, Regan L. Bailey, Julie Shlisky, Amy R. Beaudreault, Gilles Bergeron, Robert B. Blancato, Jeffrey B. Blumberg, Megan W. Bourassa, Filomena Gomes, Gordon Jensen, Mary Ann Johnson, Douglas Mackay, Keri Marshall, Simin Nikbin Meydani, Katherine L. Tucker

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The global population, including the United States, is experiencing a demographic shift with the proportion of older adults (aged ≥ 65 years) growing faster than any other age group. This demographic group is at higher risk for developing nutrition-related chronic conditions such as heart disease and diabetes as well as infections such as influenza and pneumonia. As a result, an emphasis on nutrition is instrumental for disease risk reduction. Unfortunately, inadequate nutrient status or deficiency, often termed hidden hunger, disproportionately affects older adults because of systematic healthcare, environmental, and biological challenges. This report summarizes the unique nutrition challenges facing the …

An Impact Mapping Method To Generate Robust Qualitative Evaluation Of Community-Based Research Programs For Youth And Adults, Melissa D. Olfert, Rebecca L. Hagedorn, Jade A. White, Barbara A. Baker, Sarah E. Colby, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Kendra Kattelmann, Adrienne A. White

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Ripple Effect Mapping (REM) is an evaluation approach that has traditionally been used in community settings to visually map the impact of programming and community interventions. This manuscript utilizes the Community Capitals Framework (CCF) to inform REM and to better highlight the changes and impact between various levels of a community, following a childhood obesity prevention intervention. The addition of in-depth qualitative analyses makes this approach particularly useful for the evaluation of interventions with a research–community partnership focus. The objective of this study was to describe a CCF-informed REM approach with detailed protocol, training, and application to the community-based, childhood …