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- All Subjects: Nutrition
- All Subjects: Mental Health
- Creators: School of Nutrition and Health Promotion
- Resource Type: Text
- Status: Published
Description
There are two goals for this honors student project: (1) to determine (using an online survey) what college students do and do not know about cooking and preparing foods and (2) to video record short demonstrations of several cooking skills that college students lack the most based on survey responses. Ultimately, this project hopes to help students develop skills they can use in the kitchen to encourage more cooking at home and less eating out, dietary changes that should lead to more healthful meals and a healthier population. Links to cooking videos: https://youtu.be/ufsVYnfoCQM https://youtu.be/aZCIH33ebZ0
ContributorsKarr, Alexandra Rose (Author) / Johnston, Carol (Thesis director) / Jacobs, Mark (Committee member) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
The objective of this study was to access whether there were any associations between food insecurity, weight status and emotional eating for adults and youth, and to discover whether emotional eating was prevalent for both age groups. By gathering participants from six various low-income housing communities throughout the Phoenix, Arizona, the researchers were able to gather data from 114 participants, 57 adults and 57 youth. The participants were a convenience sample, and were recruited by flyers sent via the mail and door-to-door announcements in the spring and summer of 2014. The adult and youth were asked to complete a survey that was part of a larger study, which included the Weight-Related Eating Questionnaire to access the participants' emotional eating. The participants' height and weight were measured manually and were integrated into the BMI system, and the participants' food insecurity statuses were validated using the US Household Food Security Survey. The results of the study illustrated associations between food insecurity and emotional eating for adults, but not for youth. In addition, there were no associations between adults' emotional eating and their child's emotional eating. The results from this study were consisted with the current research examining the associations of food insecurity and emotional eating, where there is only a correlation between food insecurity and emotional eating for adults. However, this study was not consistent with past research accessing the associations between adults' emotional eating and their child's emotional eating since this study found no relationship between the two. Being that a cross-sectional survey-based research was incorporated into this study, further research needs to explore on food insecurity, weight status and emotional eating to determine their causality.
ContributorsVannortrick, Taylor Michelle (Author) / Bruening, Meg (Thesis director) / Lucio, Joanna (Committee member) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2015-12
Description
Many individuals are not following healthy lifestyles as evidenced by the high obesity rates and poor physical activity levels. Many do not know how to eat healthy and exercise effectively, especially given busy schedules and no time to cook or go to the gym. However, people do spend a significant amount of time on their mobile device using social media. This outlet can potentially be used to inspire and teach individuals how to cook healthy simple meals, or find motivation to get off the couch for some exercise. In this study, strategies were identified that would increase the comments, likes, and followers of the investigator's Instagrams, which were designed to motivate followers to live a healthier lifestyle. Initially, 462 posts were assessed retrospectively to determine how the number of likes and comments were influenced by hashtags, category of posts (nutrition, fitness, or inspiration), and/or type of app, PicPlayPost, Instaframe, and the updated Instagram. These results were used in a 1-month prospective study to increase likes and followers to the investigator's Instagrams. In the retrospective study, it was determined that hashtags influenced the number of comments and likes across the categories and that the PicPlayPost app increased the likes in all categories. Hence, for the prospective study, the investigator wrote 1 nutrition and 1 fitness post daily for 28 days using a minimum of 15 hashtags per post. In addition, 3 nutrition posts and 3 fitness posts per week used the PicPlayPost app. This posting strategy increased the number of likes per post by 100%, and the number of followers increased from 369 to 1082 in one month. Interestingly, the nutrition posts received 27% more likes than the fitness posts, and the PicPlayPost app increased comments by 134%. In conclusion, the use of hashtags, PicPlayPost, and Instaframe apps increased the likes and comments on social media. These strategies may increase audience's attention on a certain topic and be used to improve individuals' lifestyles.
ContributorsTomasso, Bernice Grace (Author) / Johnston, Carol (Thesis director) / Dixon, Kathy (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Height is an essential measure for the evaluation of an adult's health, and especially important for the measure of children's health.4 Lasers have been popularly used in many areas such as construction, engineering, government for defense purposes, and for equestrians. Lasers are depended on for their accuracy, reliability, and ease of use.8, 9 It can be reasoned then that lasers should be a reliable way of measuring height, proving to be accurate and easy to use. Currently, stadiometers are the standard way of measuring height. For the study a laser tool was created to measure the volunteers' heights. Volunteers were recruited from a total of four various public sites in different cities. Participants were categorized into three groups, children (ages 2-12), adolescents (13-18), and adults (19+). A total of 128 participants were measured. Results showed a strong positive correlation between measurements of the stadiometer and the laser (figure 3). While there were limitations to this study, results show that a laser may be a validated tool to measure height accurately
ContributorsGarcia-Turner, Vanessa Marie (Author) / Mayol-Kreiser, Sandra (Thesis director) / Johnston, Carol (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Background. Research suggests that fish oil can be used as an intervention to increase clotting times and reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Objective. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of fish oil supplementation on blood coagulation parameters in adults with blood type A (BTA) compared to blood type O (BTO) over an eight-week intervention.
Design. The study was a randomized, double-blind dietary intervention using healthy adults with blood types A or O. A total of 18 participants completed the study. Subjects were randomized into two groups: an experimental group (fish oil) made up of 7 BTO and 4 BTA adults, and a control group (coconut oil) made up of 4 BTO and 3 BTA adults. Non-fasting blood was drawn and analyzed for prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (PTT), and international normalized ratio (INR) at weeks 0 and 8. A food frequency questionnaire was completed at week 0, and anthropometric data collected at weeks 0 and 8.
Results. Baseline PTT results differed significantly between blood types, 28.1±1.4 seconds and 29.7±1.3 seconds for BTA and BTO respectively (p<0.05). Physical activity differed significantly between the experimental and control group at baseline, 53.9±26.8 METS and 86.0±41.9 METS, respectively (p<0.05). In the Fish oil group, prothrombin time increased for BTA vs. BTO, 0.18±0.29 seconds vs -0.11±0.31 seconds respectively (p<0.10indicating a statistical trend). There were no other differences between groups for the other outcome variables.
Conclusion. Fish oil supplementation prolonged clotting time in BTA adults and may be a useful strategy in this population for reducing cardiovascular disease risk. More research is needed to verify and expand these results.
Objective. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of fish oil supplementation on blood coagulation parameters in adults with blood type A (BTA) compared to blood type O (BTO) over an eight-week intervention.
Design. The study was a randomized, double-blind dietary intervention using healthy adults with blood types A or O. A total of 18 participants completed the study. Subjects were randomized into two groups: an experimental group (fish oil) made up of 7 BTO and 4 BTA adults, and a control group (coconut oil) made up of 4 BTO and 3 BTA adults. Non-fasting blood was drawn and analyzed for prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (PTT), and international normalized ratio (INR) at weeks 0 and 8. A food frequency questionnaire was completed at week 0, and anthropometric data collected at weeks 0 and 8.
Results. Baseline PTT results differed significantly between blood types, 28.1±1.4 seconds and 29.7±1.3 seconds for BTA and BTO respectively (p<0.05). Physical activity differed significantly between the experimental and control group at baseline, 53.9±26.8 METS and 86.0±41.9 METS, respectively (p<0.05). In the Fish oil group, prothrombin time increased for BTA vs. BTO, 0.18±0.29 seconds vs -0.11±0.31 seconds respectively (p<0.10indicating a statistical trend). There were no other differences between groups for the other outcome variables.
Conclusion. Fish oil supplementation prolonged clotting time in BTA adults and may be a useful strategy in this population for reducing cardiovascular disease risk. More research is needed to verify and expand these results.
ContributorsRyder, Ashley Brooke (Author) / Johnston, Carol (Thesis director) / Lespron, Christy (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
The aim of this study is to understand the relationship among physical fitness, leisure-time activity levels, measures of body composition, and assessments of emotion toward physical activity in individuals with Down syndrome (DS). This is important because it could help individuals understand the importance of physical activity in this population. The BMI, waist circumference, height, weight, body fat percentage, and non-exercise estimation of aerobic capacity along with the temporary state of emotion toward physical activity of thirty participants with DS were measured. The results of our study show that individuals with DS who are more physically fit have less body fat and a lower BMI. They also took part in more leisure-time activity and expressed more effort during physical activity.
ContributorsSnow, Michelle Jeannette (Author) / Ringenbach, Shannon (Thesis director) / Chen, Chih-Chia (Committee member) / Maraj, Brian (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary killer of Americans. As such, alternative means of a dietary approach to preventing or mitigating the development of CVD is clearly needed in addition to the ongoing recommendation for increased consumption of fruits and vegetables. Many studies suggest that fungi have the potential to decrease morbidity and mortality associated with CVD. Specifically, white button mushrooms, viz., Agaricus bisporus, are fairly common and inexpensive and full of untapped possibilities for efficacy although much additional research is needed. With antioxidants, e.g., selenium, and beta-glucans, viz., indigestible polysaccharides, white button mushrooms contain a plethora of bioactive ingredients that confer a potentially strong tool against the debilitating social impact of CVD.
The objective of this thesis was to establish protocols and a valid experimental design for testing whether dietary mushrooms could, in fact, be protective against CVD risk. Specifically, a case-study approach was used to validate this experimental method to test white button mushrooms and their impact on blood lipid levels and the inflammatory response. This dietary study involved preparation of two soups: a placebo, broth-based soup and one with one cup of white button mushrooms per cup of soup to provide one and a half cups of soup (and mushrooms) per day to each participant. The soup was prepared in The Kitchen Café at the ASU Downtown Campus (Phoenix, AZ).
After preparing the soup, the next goal was recruitment through listserv, local advertisements, flyers, and word of mouth of participants to test the overall plan. Over fifteen people responded; however, only one candidate met the inclusion criteria of someone at high risk of developing CVD and agreed to participate in the study. The participant visited the nutrition laboratory in downtown Phoenix (550 N. 5th Street). Anthropometric data and an initial blood draw were completed, and fourteen 1.5 cup containers of mushroom soup were dispensed to the participant. After two weeks, the individual returned and the same procedures were executed to include anthropometry and blood analysis. Even though the subject did not show changes in blood markers of CVD risk (lipids and inflammatory markers), the hypothesis for the thesis that the study design would be effective was accepted. Thus, the procedure was successful and validated and will be used in the future study.
The objective of this thesis was to establish protocols and a valid experimental design for testing whether dietary mushrooms could, in fact, be protective against CVD risk. Specifically, a case-study approach was used to validate this experimental method to test white button mushrooms and their impact on blood lipid levels and the inflammatory response. This dietary study involved preparation of two soups: a placebo, broth-based soup and one with one cup of white button mushrooms per cup of soup to provide one and a half cups of soup (and mushrooms) per day to each participant. The soup was prepared in The Kitchen Café at the ASU Downtown Campus (Phoenix, AZ).
After preparing the soup, the next goal was recruitment through listserv, local advertisements, flyers, and word of mouth of participants to test the overall plan. Over fifteen people responded; however, only one candidate met the inclusion criteria of someone at high risk of developing CVD and agreed to participate in the study. The participant visited the nutrition laboratory in downtown Phoenix (550 N. 5th Street). Anthropometric data and an initial blood draw were completed, and fourteen 1.5 cup containers of mushroom soup were dispensed to the participant. After two weeks, the individual returned and the same procedures were executed to include anthropometry and blood analysis. Even though the subject did not show changes in blood markers of CVD risk (lipids and inflammatory markers), the hypothesis for the thesis that the study design would be effective was accepted. Thus, the procedure was successful and validated and will be used in the future study.
ContributorsBratrud, Kathryn Michelle (Author) / Martin, Keith (Thesis director) / Appel, Christy (Committee member) / Shepard, Christina (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
The purpose of this research was to analyze the EPODE Model for the development community-based interventions against childhood obesity and its transferability on a global scale. The Ensemble, Prevenons L'Obesite des Enfant (EPODE: Together Let's Prevent Childhood Obesity) Model was developed in France following the successful results of a community-based intervention there. The Model is illustrated by four pillars that are essential to program implementation and positive results. These pillars are: political support, research & evaluation, social marketing principles and public/private partnerships. Using these four pillars, the model has been transferred to diverse countries around the globe and has shown results in these diverse locations. In order to understand what makes this model so transferrable to so many diverse locations, this researcher traveled to the Netherlands, Belgium and France visiting program locations and interviewing professionals who have been involved in the development of the model, its modification and implementation. These interviews addressed specific modifications to the model that were made for implementation in the Netherlands and Belgium. This paper outlines the key transferrable components of this model and outlines a proposed model to be used in the United States.
ContributorsNielsen, Abigail Fanchon (Author) / Ohri-Vachaspati, Punam (Thesis director) / Barroso, Cristina (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
In the last five decades, the prevalence of chemicals added to food to enhance its color, texture, flavor, and freshness has increased. These chemicals, known as food additives, are synthetically derived or chemically altered substances that are added to food during processing to achieve a specialized effect. Additives are regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration and while many are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS), some emerging research suggests that their safety rulings need to be reexamined.
Considering food additives in one’s diet is of the utmost importance for health, though it can be problematic for those with limited knowledge of additives or nutrition. Common opinion is that good nutrition involves only what is or is not being consumed—calories, fat, etc. But the realm of nutrition depends on quality of food—whole, minimally processed food that subsequently lacks additives—as much as it does the composition of food.
This paper reviews eight of the most common and often problematic food additives in America: high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, sodium nitrate/ sodium nitrite, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (trans fat), monosodium glutamate (MSG), benzoate preservatives (BHA and BHT), potassium bromate, and caramel coloring. It is important to note that this list is far from comprehensive; these additives receive much attention in America making them some of the most talked about and most easily recognized additives.
This paper aims to present sound depictions of existing research that most often refutes the validity of the “generally recognized as safe” claim currently standing for these food additives, providing consumers with reliable information with which they can make educated decisions when purchasing food and eating healthfully.
Considering food additives in one’s diet is of the utmost importance for health, though it can be problematic for those with limited knowledge of additives or nutrition. Common opinion is that good nutrition involves only what is or is not being consumed—calories, fat, etc. But the realm of nutrition depends on quality of food—whole, minimally processed food that subsequently lacks additives—as much as it does the composition of food.
This paper reviews eight of the most common and often problematic food additives in America: high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, sodium nitrate/ sodium nitrite, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (trans fat), monosodium glutamate (MSG), benzoate preservatives (BHA and BHT), potassium bromate, and caramel coloring. It is important to note that this list is far from comprehensive; these additives receive much attention in America making them some of the most talked about and most easily recognized additives.
This paper aims to present sound depictions of existing research that most often refutes the validity of the “generally recognized as safe” claim currently standing for these food additives, providing consumers with reliable information with which they can make educated decisions when purchasing food and eating healthfully.
ContributorsJones, Haley Brooke (Author) / Larsen, Dale (Thesis director) / Wharton, Christopher (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Previous research has found improvements in motor and cognitive measures following Assisted Cycle Therapy (AC) in adolescence with Down syndrome (DS). Our study investigated whether we would find improvements in mental health in older adults with DS as measured from the Adapted Behavior Dementia Questionnaire (ABDQ), Physical Activity Self Efficacy Scales (PACES), Children's Depressive inventory, which are early indicators of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in persons with Down syndrome. This study consisted of seven participants with Down syndrome between the ages of 31 and 54, inclusive, that cycled for 30 minutes 3 x/week for eight weeks either at their voluntary cycling rate (VC) or approximately 35% faster with the help of a mechanical motor (ACT). Our results were consistent with our prediction that self efficacy improved following ACT, but not VC. However, our results were not consistent with our prediction that dementia and depression were improved following ACT more than VC. These results were interpreted with respect to the effects of exercise in older adults with DS. Future research should focus on recruiting more participants, especially those with deficits in mental health.
ContributorsPandya, Sachin (Author) / Ringenbach, Shannon (Thesis director) / Coon, David (Committee member) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05