Publications by authors named "Iana Castro"

This field study identified, through observation, child influence on food and beverage purchases within a supermarket, as well as the influence of the children's perceptions of their parents' parenting strategies related to eating behaviors on these purchases. Four supermarkets were recruited to participate and agreed to allow recruitment of parent-child dyads and implementation of data collection protocols within their stores. Parent-child (7-14 yo) dyads were recruited to wear eye-tracking glasses during the supermarket visit, complete separate individual interviews, and have their store receipts scanned.

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Low-income communities often lack access to supermarkets and healthy foods. Enhanced stocking requirements for staple foods for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-authorized retailers may increase availability of healthy foods in smaller stores which are prevalent in low-income areas. This study aimed to evaluate the extent that small food stores located in low-income areas met the U.

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Food purchasing and consumption behaviors have implications for nutrition and obesity. Food retail environments, in particular, shape customer food choices and energy intake. The marketing literature offers insights about how public health practitioners can work within food retail environments to encourage healthy food choices.

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Evidence indicates that restaurant-based interventions have the potential to promote healthier purchasing and improve the nutrients consumed. This study adds to this body of research by reporting the results of a trial focused on promoting the sale of healthy child menu items in independently owned restaurants. Eight pair-matched restaurants that met the eligibility criteria were randomized to a menu-only versus a menu-plus intervention condition.

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This study examines Latino parent-child interactions about foods and beverages requested in food retail environments in San Diego, CA. It seeks to extend our understanding of parent-child request interactions and purchases by studying how the number of product request interactions and purchases differ based on four factors that have been understudied in previous parent-child interaction research: parent gender, child gender, product healthfulness, and who initiated the request interaction (parent or child). By unobtrusively observing Latino parent-child dyads for the duration of a brief shopping trip, we found that parent and child gender are related to the number of request interactions initiated by parents and children.

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Objective: Restaurants are playing an increasingly important role in children's dietary intake. Interventions to promote healthy ordering in restaurants have primarily targeted adults. Much remains unknown about how to influence ordering for and by children.

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The objective of this study was to observe parent-child interactions in tiendas, limited assortment food stores catering to Latinos in the United States, and to examine the extent to which child involvement influenced these interactions and their purchase outcomes. Two confederates, one posing as a tienda employee and one posing as a customer, observed the entire shopping trip of 100 Latino parent-child (mean age = 8 years) dyads and coded the following: number and type of parent- and child-initiated request interactions, types of purchase influence attempts used by children and how parents responded, and whether the product was purchased. Level of child involvement was examined as a potential influencing factor on purchasing.

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Background: Away-from-home eating is an important dietary behavior with implications on diet quality. Thus, it is an important behavior to target to prevent and control childhood obesity and other chronic health conditions. Numerous studies have been conducted to improve children's dietary intake at home, in early care and education, and in schools; however, few studies have sought to modify the restaurant food environment for children.

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