Evaluation of Online and In-Person Nutrition Education Related to Salt Knowledge and Behaviors among Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children Participants.

Background: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) differs from other federal nutrition programs in that nutrition education is a required component. WIC programs traditionally provide in-person education, but recently some WIC sites have started offering online education. Education focused on reducing salt intake is an important topic for WIC participants because a high-sodium diet has been associated with high blood pressure, and low-income populations are at increased risk.

Eating School Lunch Is Associated with Higher Diet Quality among Elementary School Students.

Background: Few studies have assessed the dietary quality of children who eat meals from home compared with school meals according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine diet quality for elementary school students in relation to source of breakfast and lunch (whether school meal or from an outside source).

Design: An observational study was conducted of students in 43 schools in San Diego, CA, during the 2011-2012 school year.

Online and In-Person Nutrition Education Improves Breakfast Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors: A Randomized Trial of Participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.

Background: Although in-person education is expected to remain central to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) service delivery, effective online nutrition education has the potential for increased exposure to quality education and a positive influence on nutrition behaviors in WIC participants. Education focused on promoting healthy breakfast behaviors is an important topic for WIC participants because breakfast eating compared with breakfast skipping has been associated with a higher-quality diet and decreased risk for obesity.

Objective: To examine the influences of online and in-person group nutrition education on changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to breakfast eating.

Impact of California Children's Power Play! Campaign on Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Physical Activity among Fourth- and Fifth-Grade Students.

Purpose: Examine the impact of the Children's Power Play! Campaign on fruit and vegetable (FV) intake and physical activity (PA).

Design: Study design was a cluster randomized, controlled trial.

Setting: Forty-four low-resource public schools in San Diego County, California, were included in the study.

School Breakfast Policy Is Associated with Dietary Intake of Fourth- and Fifth-Grade Students.

Background: Breakfast skipping has been associated with obesity. Schools have adopted breakfast policies to increase breakfast participation. Recently, there have been concerns that students in schools where breakfast is served in the classroom may be eating two breakfasts--one at home and one at school--thereby increasing their risk of excessive energy intake and weight gain.

Child experience of food insecurity is associated with child diet and physical activity.

Background: Food insecurity is associated with deficits in child development and health, but little is known about how children's specific food-insecurity experiences play out through nutritional and non-nutritional pathways that may compromise well-being.

Objective: This study used child self-reports of food insecurity to examine the types of food-insecurity experiences that were most prevalent and the relations between child food insecurity (CFI), child diet, and child physical activity (PA).

Methods: A total of 3605 fourth- and fifth-grade children whose schools participated in the Network for a Healthy California-Children's PowerPlay! campaign completed 24-h diary-assisted recalls and surveys including items from the Child Food Security Assessment and questions about PA.

Passive commuting and dietary intake in fourth and fifth grade students.

Background: Promoting active commuting by walking or biking to and from school could increase physical activity and reduce obesity among youth. However, exposure to the retail food environment while commuting may lead to greater dietary intake among active commuters.

Purpose: To examine the relationship between commute patterns and dietary intake and quality in elementary students.

Eat lunch first or play first? Inconsistent associations with fruit and vegetable consumption in elementary school.

Scheduling play before eating lunch has been suggested as a relatively simple environmental strategy to increase fruit and vegetable (FV) intake among elementary school students. However, the few small studies to date have had mixed findings. The primary aim of this observational study was to evaluate the possible relationship between the relative order of play and eating and students' lunch intake of FV.

Autism and developmental screening in a public, primary care setting primarily serving Hispanics: challenges and results.

We implemented screening of children 16-30 months of age (n = 1,760) from a typically under-served, primarily Hispanic, population, at routine pediatric appointments using the modified checklist for autism in toddlers (M-CHAT) and Ages and Stages Questionnaire. Screen positive rates of 26 and 39%, respectively, were higher than previous reports. Hispanics were more likely to score M-CHAT positive than non-Hispanics (adjusted OR 1.

Investigation of shifts in autism reporting in the California Department of Developmental Services.

We investigated if shifts in the coding of qualifying conditions in the California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) have contributed to the increase in California children with autism observed in recent years. Qualifying condition codes for mental retardation (MR) and autism in DDS electronic files were compared to hard-copy records for samples of children born 1987, 1990, 1994, and 1997. Contrary to expectations, we did not find evidence of a coding shift from "MR only" to "both MR and autism" or an increase in the proportion of children with coded autism who lacked supportive diagnostic documentation in records (possible "misclassifications").

Infection in the first 2 years of life and autism spectrum disorders.

Objective: The purpose of this work was to investigate the association between infections in the first 2 years and subsequent diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders.

Methods: We conducted a case-control study among children born at Kaiser Permanente Northern California from 1995 to 1999. Case subjects (n = 403) were children with an autism diagnosis recorded in Kaiser Permanente databases.