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Although physical fitness is regarded as a determinant of combat readiness, more than two-thirds of American military personnel are considered overweight or obese. While the U.S. Army recognizes nutrition as a priority with the development of the Performance Triad, nutrition education in the U.S. Navy remains retroactive, targeting only weight management and neglecting the role of nutrition in performance enhancement. There is limited data regarding the nutrition knowledge of the U.S. Navy population, a key factor in designing nutrition-focused programs, partially due to the lack of an appropriate assessment tool. The purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) validate an 86-item modified Nutrition for Sport Knowledge Questionnaire (M- NSKQ) using 15 Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDN) from across the country, and 2) assess sports nutrition knowledge, nutrition practices, and performance on physical fitness assessments (PFA) from a sample of 102 midshipmen in the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) at Virginia Tech. The M-NSKQ assesses nutritional knowledge regarding weight management, macronutrients, micronutrients, hydration, nutrient timing, supplementation, and alcohol. The mean M-NSKQ score for RDNs was 84%, and questions with less than 50% correct responses were modified. Although no significant associations were found between M-NSKQ scores and PFAs for midshipmen, the mean M-NSKQ score was only 51%, and less than 10% met the daily recommendations for fruit, vegetables, grains, and dairy. Specific areas for improvement are discussed. These results highlight the need for nutrition education that is designed to address the gaps in knowledge and poor nutrition practices identified within this naval population. / M. S.

Unintentional weight loss is a common and significant problem among nursing home residents and an important indicator of malnutrition. Nursing home residents who lose more than 5% of their body weight in one month or 10% of body weight in six months are at increased risk for morbidity and mortality. Licensed nurses, who are responsible for maintaining the health and well-being of nursing home residents, have been shown to be deficient in nutrition knowledge. Little is known about the relationship between nurse nutrition knowledge and unintentional weight loss in nursing home residents.The purpose of this study was to revise a nurse nutrition questionnaire to reduce respondent burden and to examine the psychometric properties of the revised instrument. The revised instrument was then used to describe the relationship between nurse nutrition knowledge and unintentional weight loss in nursing homes across Northeast Indiana.A descriptive, correlational, and non-experimental design was used to describe the relationship between nurse nutrition knowledge and unintentional weight loss (UWL) in nursing home residents in Northeast Indiana. Licensed nurses (N = 101) from nine nursing homes were recruited for this study. Nurse nutrition knowledge was measured using a revised nutrition questionnaire (NKQ-R) and weight loss data was obtained from the Nursing Home Compare Database.Content validity of the NKQ-R was acceptable. Item analysis demonstrated six items below the acceptable point biserial of .15, and one question demonstrated a very high P value of 98 and had a nonfunctioning distracter response. Four of these problematic items were in subscale `3' (nutritional deficiencies of institutionalized older adults). Consistent with findings from previous studies, nurses scored below average on the nurse nutrition questionnaire, however relationships between nurse nutrition knowledge and unintentional weight loss were not supported. Level of nurse education was positively correlated with NKQ-R scores. Nursing home ownership type was significantly related to NKQ-R scores and unintentional weight loss; nurses working in not-for-profit nursing homes scored higher on the NKQ-R than nurses working in not-for-profit nursing homes, and not-for-profit nursing homes had a lower incidence of UWL than the for-profit nursing homes in this study.

Good nutrition is crucial. School-aged children battle social issues such as poor nutrition, childhood obesity, and minimal nutrition knowledge. This study was a quasi-experimental design analyzing the effects of CATCH curriculum with a Farm-to-School program to assess nutrition knowledge of third grade students, and to increase fruit and vegetable consumption behavior. Third grade boys and girls (n=65) participated in this study. The intervention consisted of two nutrition education classes and a farm tour. Data were collected at baseline and post intervention. Surveys assessed nutrition knowledge and fruit and vegetable consumption behavior. Data were analyzed with independent sample t-tests. Significant differences were found concerning knowledge of fiber and farm exposure (p<0.001). Knowledge of vitamins and minerals and reported vegetable consumption behavior at home and school were also significant (p<0.05). These findings suggest that CATCH nutrition education and farm tours can positively affect school-aged children's nutrition knowledge and consumption behavior.

Introduction: Adequate nutrition knowledge, positive attitudes and perceptions, and good practices of parents on infant and young child feeding (IYCF), among others, are essential for the optimal growth of children. Hence, the involvement of both parents in IYCF is essential. Aim: To explore and describe the involvement of both biological parents and caregivers in IYCF in Mzimba-north district, Malawi by assessing their nutrition knowledge, attitudes, perceptions and practices, and identifying the factors that affected their involvement. Study design: A cross sectional descriptive study employing quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Setting: Five agriculture extension planning areas in Mzimba-north district, Malawi. Sampling technique: Stratified random sampling in the quantitative domain and purposive sampling in the qualitative domain. Sample: Quantitative domain: Households [mothers (n = 154) and fathers (n = 127)] with children aged zero to 24 months and caregivers (n = 4) where the biological parents were absent. Qualitative domain: A different sample of fathers (n = 41), mothers (n = 53) and local leaders (n = 3). Methodology: Quantitative domain: Participants were stratified into three groups based on the age of their children, i.e. <six months, six to 12 and >12 to 24 months. Data were collected using modified FAO nutrition knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) questionnaires. Data were analysed using Stata version 14.0 and Microsoft Excel 2013 version. The Chi-square, Fisher’s exact and McNemar's tests were used to compare the nutrition KAP between males and females. Testing was done at 0.05 significance level. Qualitative domain: Eleven focus group discussions (FGDs): five with males and six with females, and three in-depth interviews with three local leaders were conducted using three interview guides (one for each group). Creswell’s method of data analysis was used to identify themes and sub-themes. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria (Ref no EC151204-26) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Mzuzu Agriculture Development Division, Malawi. Results: Quantitative domain: More than half of the participants knew the recommended IYCF practices. More than 80% of the participants showed positive attitudes on the appropriate IYCF practices. No significant differences were observed between the male and female participants’ mean knowledge scores and their responses on the attitude statements (P > 0.05). All participants with children <six months reported having their children breastfed both during the previous day and night. Half of the children <six months were exclusively breastfed. Poor food diversity with low consumption of animal foods was observed for children aged six to 24 months. The majority of the participants reported to have given their children food from only two food groups out of seven food groups. Qualitative domain: The participants identified the roles of mothers, fathers and local leaders in IYCF; mothers had direct roles while fathers and local leaders had supporting roles. The roles and influence of grandmothers on IYCF were also discussed. The participants identified the motivating factors and the factors limiting parental involvement in IYCF, and made recommendations on improving parental involvement in IYCF. Conclusion: Findings from the qualitative study were in support of quantitative study findings. Both parents were involved in IYCF. However, mothers had direct roles while fathers had supporting roles. Good nutrition knowledge, positive attitudes and perceptions, and poor practices on IYCF were reported. Recommendations: Participants in the FGDs made recommendations on improving parental involvement in IYCF. Recommendations are also made for future research and the implementation of IYCF practices in Mzimba-north district, Malawi. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Food Science / MSc / Unrestricted

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This dissertation is comprised of three essays that investigate consumer behavior and health outcomes. The first essay uses experimental economic techniques to explore consumers' preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for nutritionally differentiated grass-fed beef. Our findings suggest that consumers' nutrition knowledge about the functions of Vitamin A, Vitamin E, CLA, and Omega 3 could positively affect their WTP for grass-fed beef while the knowledge about the main food sources of these nutrients negatively affects their WTP for grass-fed beef. Furthermore, a higher sensory evaluation score of grass-fed beef compared to conventional beef will lead to a higher probability for a consumer to choose grass-fed beef and a higher monetary value she/he is willing to pay for grass-fed beef. Using the same experimental data collected in the first study, the second essay investigates the impacts of consumers' nutrition knowledge on their WTP by accommodating the potential endogeneity problem using an instrumental variable approach and a non-instrumental variable approach. Our results suggest the existence of the endogeneity of nutrition knowledge and indicate that ignoring the endogeneity problem in econometric modeling will downwardly bias the estimates of the true effects of nutrition knowledge. The estimates obtained from different estimation strategies in the study indicate the robustness of our findings about the effects of nutrition knowledge on consumers' food purchasing behavior. The third essay investigates the impacts of primary care giver (PCG)'s time allocation patterns and household food expenditure choices on childhood obesity using the national panel study of income dynamics data. Our results do not suggest significant impacts of PCG's labor force participation, involvement in children's outdoor activity, and household food expenditures on children's Body Mass Index (BMI). However, the estimates from iterated seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) and semi-parametric polynomial estimation indicate that parents' BMI significantly influence children's BMI. Interestingly, physical activity appears to have weak correlation with children's BMI. / Ph. D.

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The purpose of this research was to discern associations of nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and diet with postpartum weight retention 1 year following childbirth. Subjects for this research were low-income, Hispanic, non-Hispanic black, and non-Hispanic white women recruited in a hospital 0 -- 1 day postpartum. In study 1, a nutrition attitudes scale was developed and validated in 134 low-income women at 1.5 months post-delivery. The final scale was administered to a second group of 206 women at 1.5, 6 and 12 months postpartum. Attitudes at each time were compared to demographics and weight status. Obese women at 1 year had higher barriers to healthful eating subscale averages than normal and overweight subjects at 1.5 and 6 months, and overweight participants at 12 months. Obese individuals also had greater emotional eating subscale scores than both normal and overweight subjects at 12 months. In study 2, a test of general nutrition knowledge was developed and validated in a sample of 151 women at 1 day post-delivery. The validated instrument was then administered to a test sample of 140 women at 0 and 12 months postpartum. Body weights were measured at 1.5, 6, and 12 months and height 1.5 months. Women with < 5% weight retention at 1 year had greater knowledge at 0 (53% vs.49%, p<0.05) and 12 months (55% vs. 51%, p <0.05) than those with >̲5%. Women who lactated >̲ 6 months had more knowledge than those who lactated < 6 months. In study 3, 182 women visited the research site at 1.5, 3, 6, and 12 months postpartum where dietary data were collected via one 24-hour recall and 2 days of diet records. Weight status was measured during each clinic visit; height was measured at 1.5 months. At 1 year postpartum, obese women had a greater percentage of energy from carbohydrates than their normal weight counterparts (52.5 % vs. 49.6%, p<0.05). Less than half of the population met the recommendations for folate, calcium, magnesium, and vitamins B6, D, E and C at all time points, regardless of ethnicity, BMI and lactation status. / text