Screening for marginal food security in young children in primary care.

Background: Household food insecurity (FI), even at marginal levels, is associated with poor child health outcomes. The Nutrition Screening Tool for Every Preschooler (NutriSTEP®) is a valid and reliable 17-item parent-completed measure of nutrition risk and includes a single item addressing FI which may be a useful child-specific screening tool. We evaluated the diagnostic test properties of the single NutriSTEP® FI question using the 2-item Hunger Vital Sign™ as the criterion measure in a primary care population of healthy children ages 18 months to 5 years.

An Exploration of Milk Product Health Beliefs and Dietary Calcium Intake in Young Adults.

Milk products (fluid milk, cheese, yogurt) typically provide a rich source of calcium and other nutrients, yet consumption is declining in Canada. This study examined milk product health beliefs among young adults and the association between these beliefs and dietary calcium intake. Seventy-nine participants (25 ± 4 y; 40 males) completed a milk product health belief questionnaire to determine a milk product health belief score (MPHBS) and a 3-day food record to assess dietary intake.

Parent reported nutritional risk and laboratory indices of cardiometabolic risk and in preschool-aged children.

Background: Eating habits formed during childhood may contribute to the increasing prevalence of cardiometabolic disorders. Assessing nutritional risk in young children may help to prevent later cardiometabolic disease. The objective of this study was to determine whether parent-reported nutritional risk in preschool-aged children was associated with laboratory indices of cardiometabolic risk, namely leptin and insulin.

Food parenting practices and their association with child nutrition risk status: comparing mothers and fathers.

In Canada, little is known about how food parenting practices are associated with young children's dietary intakes and no studies have examined food parenting practices of Canadian fathers. This study aimed to examine associations between food parenting practices and preschool-age children's nutrition risk. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of thirty-one 2-parent families; 31 mothers, 31 fathers, and 40 preschool-age children.

Young Adults' Perceptions of Calcium Intake and Health: A Qualitative Study.

Many young Canadian adults are not meeting dietary calcium recommendations. This is concerning as adequate calcium is important throughout young adulthood to maximize peak bone mass for osteoporosis prevention. There are limited studies that have explored young adults' perceptions toward calcium and health.

Predicted and measured resting metabolic rate in young, non-obese women.

Purpose: Measured resting metabolic rate (RMR) was compared with predicted RMR in a sample of young, non-obese women.

Methods: In 52 women aged 19 to 30 with a body mass index of 16 to 29 kg/m2, RMR was measured with a MedGem indirect calorimeter and predicted with five commonly used equations: the Harris-Benedict (1919), Mifflin (1989), Owen (1985), Schofield (weight) (1985), and Schofield (weight and height) (1985) equations. Measured RMR and predicted RMR were compared through the use of various measures.

Association between serum cholesterol and eating behaviours during early childhood: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Modifiable behaviours during early childhood may provide opportunities to prevent disease processes before adverse outcomes occur. Our objective was to determine whether young children's eating behaviours were associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease in later life.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study involving children aged 3-5 years recruited from 7 primary care practices in Toronto, Ontario, we assessed the relation between eating behaviours as assessed by the NutriSTEP (Nutritional Screening Tool for Every Preschooler) questionnaire (completed by parents) and serum levels of non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, a surrogate marker of cardiovascular risk.

Body mass, vitamin D and alcohol intake, lactose intolerance, and television watching influence bone mineral density of young, healthy Canadian women.

Objective: To report bone mineral density (BMD) in young, reportedly healthy Canadian women and to determine whether lifestyle factors that have been associated with bone health in older women are also associated with BMD in young women.

Method: We recruited a convenience sample of 52 female undergraduate students in the Applied Human Nutrition program at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada. BMD was measured at the femoral neck, lumbar spine (L1 to L4), and whole body using a Discovery Wi (Hologic Inc.

Dietary and total calcium intakes are associated with lower percentage total body and truncal fat in young, healthy adults.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between different sources of calcium intake (dairy [milk products only], dietary [all dietary sources including dairy], nondairy dietary [all dietary sources excluding dairy], and total [dietary + supplemental]) and fat mass in young adults.

Methods: One hundred ninety-seven healthy Caucasian men and women aged 18 to 28 years from southwestern Ontario underwent whole-body dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry to determine total body fat mass (%FM) and truncal fat (%TF). Calcium intakes, determined using a food frequency questionnaire, were divided into quartiles for each of dairy, dietary, nondairy dietary, and total sources.

Air displacement plethysmography for fat-mass measurement in healthy young women.

Purpose: Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and air displacement plethysmography (ADP) are commonly used to assess body composition. Accurate body fat measures are valuable in a variety of populations. Because DXA, the reference standard, is expensive and labour-intensive, determining whether these two methods are interchangeable is important.

Published predictive equations overestimate measured resting metabolic rate in young, healthy females.

Objective: To compare resting metabolic rate (RMR) measured by indirect calorimetry versus RMR predicted by several published formulas in a sample of healthy young women.

Methods: RMR was measured using indirect calorimetry and predicted using 6 commonly used equations (Nelson, 1992; Mifflin, 1990; Owen, 1986; Schofield(Weight), 1985; Schofield(Weight and Height), 1985; Harris-Benedict, 1919) in 47 reportedly healthy young females (age = 22.8 ± 2.

Effect of the transition from high school to university on anthropometric and lifestyle variables in males.

The obesity epidemic in North America has focused attention on the health risks of excess weight gain. The transition from high school to university is a critical period for weight gain, commonly referred to as the Freshman 15. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the transition from high school to university on anthropometrics and physical and sedentary activities in males.

Body weight and percent body fat increase during the transition from high school to university in females.

A critical period for weight gain may occur during the transition from high school to university. This descriptive, noncontrolled cohort study of 116 healthy females examined the effect of this transition over three study visits in first year university. The main outcome measure was body weight; others were height, body composition, waist circumference, dietary intake, and participation in physical and sedentary activities.