Other Nutrition Commons^™

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 …

Using A Model To Design Activity-Based Educational Experiences To Improve Cultural Competency Among Graduate Students, Yeon Bai, Kathleen D. Bauer

Department of Nutrition and Food Studies Scholarship and Creative Works

To improve the cultural competency of 34 students participating in graduate nutrition counseling classes, the Campinha-Bacote Model of Cultural Competence in the Delivery of Health Care Services was used to design, implement, and evaluate counseling classes. Each assignment and activity addressed one or more of the five constructs of the model, i.e., knowledge, skill, desire, encounters, and awareness. A repeated measure ANOVA evaluated pre- and post-test cultural competence scores (Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence among Healthcare Professionals). The overall cultural competence score significantly improved (p < 0.001) from “culturally aware” (68.7 at pre-test) to “culturally competent” (78.7 at post-test). Students significantly improved (p < 0.001) in four constructs of the model including awareness, knowledge, skill, and encounter. Factor analysis indicated that course activities accounted for 83.2% and course assignments accounted for 74.6% of the total variance of cultural competence. An activity-based counseling course encouraging self-evaluation and reflection and addressing Model constructs significantly improved the cultural competence of students. As class activities and assignments aligned well with the Campinha-Bacote Model constructs, the findings of this study can help guide health educators to design effective cultural competence training and education programs.

Teens As Teachers In The Garden: Cultivating A Sustainable Model For Teaching Healthy Living, Virginia Bolshakova, John Gieng, C. Sheena Sidhu, Mary Vollinger, Lorena Gimeno, Jessica Guild

Faculty Publications

School gardens are an ideal space to deliver a healthy living curriculum, such as nutrition and physical activity education, to elementary school youth. However, public schools often lack the resources and support to establish sustainable garden-based programming. We created the Healthy Living Ambassador program, a collaborative after-school garden program in low-income communities that brought together resources from schools, community programs, and University of California Cooperative Extension. This school garden program featured culturally competent teens as teachers to serve as near-peer educators and mentors to elementary school youth. The program development model incorporated lessons from sustainable community-based health program interventions and …

Obesity, Noah Rhodes

Global Issues in Public Health

Obesity is a worldwide issue that can be defined as a non-communicable condition which means that it is non-infectious and non-transmissible and it is defined as having a BMI over 30 even though BMI doesn’t account for the person’s muscle mass which causes some athletes to be considered obese just because they weigh a lot for their height. Diagnosing obesity can be a long process which includes a health history being taken, a general physical exam, calculation of BMI, and measuring waist circumference. Diagnosis of obesity also involves checking for problems such as high blood pressure, variation of cholesterol levels …

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 …

Vitamin Fortification Of Milled Rice: A New Approach To Address Micronutrient Malnutrition, Drexel H. Camacho

Angelo King Institute for Economic and Business Studies (AKI)

To address micronutrient deficiencies in the susceptible sector of society, it is recommended to fortify the commercial milled rice with vitamins using the new technique of fortification. The simple approach, which involves rice surface modification and vitamin absorption, is deemed economical compared to traditional fortification processes. Moreover, the susceptibility of losing vitamins due to washing processes is resolved in this improved grain fortification as ~90% of the vitamins are retained. The results shown in this study indicate the successful fortification of vitamins on rice and that fortification is more pronounced when the grain undergoes sonication process. As the staple food …