Promoting healthy weight in primary school children through physical activity and nutrition education: a pragmatic evaluation of the CHANGE! randomised intervention study.

Background: This pragmatic evaluation investigated the effectiveness of the Children's Health, Activity and Nutrition: Get Educated! (CHANGE!) Project, a cluster randomised intervention to promote healthy weight using an educational focus on physical activity and healthy eating.

Methods: Participants (n = 318, aged 10-11 years) from 6 Intervention and 6 Comparison schools took part in the 20 weeks intervention between November 2010 and March/April 2011. This consisted of a teacher-led curriculum, learning resources, and homework tasks.

Is it time to regulate over-the-counter weight-loss formulations?

Many products claiming to promote weight loss are freely available to purchase over the counter and are used by a substantial proportion of the population in many countries, who are often seeking rapid weight loss without long-term lifestyle changes. While there are multiple outlets for these products, surveys in England and Australia have found that at least 70% of community pharmacies stock these products and they are also available through internet pharmacies. Since the products are formulated as tablets and capsules, consumers may regard them as medicines, particularly when sold from a pharmacy.

Regular consumption of a cereal breakfast. Effects on mood and body image satisfaction in adult non-obese women.

Breakfast has psychological and nutritional benefits due to physiological mechanisms and expectations about health impact. Beliefs people hold about calories in food can adversely affect mood and body-image satisfaction and such adverse reactions can be predicted by body mass index. The objectives were to test the effect of consuming isocaloric breakfasts, appearing different in calorie content, on appetite, mood and body-image satisfaction, and to assess impact on daily nutrient intake.

Associations between children's socioeconomic status, weight status, and sex, with screen-based sedentary behaviours and sport participation.

Objective: The objective was to study associations between socioeconomic status (SES), weight status, and sex, with children's participation in sedentary behaviours and sport.

Methods: Children (aged 9-10 years; n = 6,337) completed a questionnaire to establish how long they spent in sedentary behaviours and sport participation during week days and weekend days. Height and weight were measured to calculate body mass index.

Changes in BMI and prevalence of obesity and overweight in children in Liverpool, 1998-2006.

Aims: To investigate changes in mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of obesity between 1998 and 2006 in annual cohorts of 9-10-year-old Liverpool schoolchildren.

Methods: Stature and body mass data collected at the Liverpool SportsLinx project's fitness testing sessions were available on 26,782 (n = 13,637 boys, 13,145 girls) participants. BMI was calculated from these data.

Is air temperature at birth associated with body mass index in 9-10 year-old children?

Several studies suggest that temperature (season) at birth affects body weight and obesity years later. This study related air temperature at birth to body mass index in Liverpool primary school children (n = 11,084). No association was found between body mass index categories and month or season of birth and only weak correlations with month of birth and air temperature at birth.

The prevalence of underweight in 9-10-year-old schoolchildren in Liverpool: 1998-2006.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of underweight between 1998 and 2006 in Liverpool schoolchildren aged 9-10 years using recently published underweight cut-off points.

Design And Setting: Stature and body mass data collected at the Liverpool SportsLinx project's fitness testing sessions were used to calculate BMI.

Subjects: Data were available on 26,782 (n 13,637 boys, 13,145 girls) participants.

Is overweight and obesity in 9-10-year-old children in Liverpool related to deprivation and/or electoral ward when based on school attended?

Objectives: To determine whether weight problems in children (overweight, obesity and overweight or obesity) were related to deprivation indices when attributed only according to electoral ward of the school attended. To determine whether children with weight problems were more likely to be found in some wards rather than others, and to compare the distribution for boys and girls.

Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional, observational study.

Assessment of malnutrition in mental health clients: nurses' judgement vs. a nutrition risk tool.

Background: The existence of malnutrition in general hospitals is well documented. Psychiatric patients are known to have increased risk of malnutrition, yet physical examinations and nutritional assessments rarely take place in psychiatric hospitals.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to adapt an established nutrition risk score for use with psychiatric patients, using criteria previously agreed by the care team, and to assess whether the clinical judgement of ward staff alone identified a similar group of patients to be at risk.