Reduced-portion entrées in a worksite and restaurant setting: impact on food consumption and waste.

Objective: Large portion sizes in restaurants have been identified as a public health risk. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether customers in two different food-service operator segments (non-commercial worksite cafeteria and commercial upscale restaurant) would select reduced-portion menu items and the impact of selecting reduced-portion menu items on energy and nutrient intakes and plate waste.

Design: Consumption and plate waste data were collected for 5 weeks before and 7 weeks after introduction of five reduced-size entrées in a worksite lunch cafeteria and for 3 weeks before and 4 weeks after introduction of five reduced-size dinner entrées in a restaurant setting.

Weight Gain Prevention among Midlife Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial to Address Needs Related to the Physical and Social Environment.

Women tend to gain weight at midlife (40-60 years) increasing risk of obesity-related chronic diseases. Within specific eating occasions, needs related to the physical and social environment may result in less healthy eating behavior, which can lead to weight gain over time. The purpose of this study was to determine if a dietitian-delivered nutrition counseling intervention tailored to eating occasion needs could improve diet and prevent weight gain among midlife women over two years.

Associations between eating occasion characteristics and age, gender, presence of children and BMI among U.S. adults.

Objective: To describe how frequency and characteristics of traditional meal and non-meal occasions vary by age, gender, presence of children, and body mass index (BMI).

Design: A cross-sectional survey was administered to a national demographically balanced sample of adults via an online market research panel.

Setting: Online survey.

Whole grains and health: from theory to practice--highlights of The Grains for Health Foundation's Whole Grains Summit 2012.

The Grains for Health Foundation's Whole Grains Summit, held May 19-22, 2012 in Minneapolis, was the first meeting of its kind to convene >300 scientists, educators, food technologists, grain breeders, food manufacturers, marketers, health professionals, and regulators from around the world. Its goals were to identify potential avenues for collaborative efforts and formulate new approaches to whole-grains research and health communications that support global public health and business. This paper summarizes some of the challenges and opportunities that researchers and nutrition educators face in expanding the knowledge base on whole grains and health and in translating and disseminating that knowledge to consumers.

Parent calcium-rich-food practices/perceptions are associated with calcium intake among parents and their early adolescent children.

Objective: The study aimed to (i) segment parents of early adolescents into subgroups according to their Ca-rich-food (CRF) practices and perceptions regarding early adolescent CRF intake and (ii) determine whether Ca intake of parents and early adolescents differed by subgroup.

Design: A cross-sectional convenience sample of 509 parents and their early adolescent children completed a questionnaire in 2006-2007 to assess parent CRF practices and perceptions and to estimate parent and child Ca intakes.

Setting: Self-administered questionnaires were completed in community settings or homes across nine US states.

Relationship between attitudes and indicators of obesity for midlife women.

This study uses segmentation analyses to identify five distinct subgroups of U.S. midlife women (n = 200) based on their prevailing attitudes toward food and its preparation and consumption.

Need states based on eating occasions experienced by midlife women.

Objective: To identify a comprehensive set of distinct "need states" based on the eating occasions experienced by midlife women.

Design: Series of 7 focus group interviews.

Setting: Meeting room on a university campus.

Relationship between needs driving eating occasions and eating behavior in midlife women.

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine the relationship between type of eating occasion based on need state segments experienced by 200 midlife women (46+/-6 years) and food group, nutrient, and energy intake. Women completed an Eating Occasion Questionnaire for 3 eating occasions over a 3-day period for which they maintained diet records. Cluster analysis segmented 559 eating occasions into six need states.