UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health

The present study examined the extent to which positive and negative weight-related comments from mothers and fathers are related to adolescent health and wellbeing, and whether these associations differ according to adolescent sociodemographic characteristics. Online questionnaires  were collected from a diverse sample of 2032 U.S.-based adolescents aged 10–17 years (59% female; 40% White, 25% Black or African American, 23% Latinx). Results showed more frequent negative weight-related comments from parents were associated with poorer adolescent health and wellbeing, while positive comments contributed to lower levels of WBI and body appreciation; these associations were documented regardless of whether mothers or fathers were the source of such comments, and considerable consistency was demonstrated across adolescent sociodemographic characteristics.

Full citation: Lessard, L.M., Puhl, R.M., Foster, G.D., Cardel, M. (2023). Parental communication about body weight and adolescent health: The role of positive and negative comments. Journal of Pediatric Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsad040

Social media is a free and easy tool for sponsors of summer meal programs to reach eligible participants. However, Rudd Center research shows that many programs are not using social media effectively.

This toolkit contains step-by-step instructions for sponsors to create graphics, brand content, and post information on social media.

Health-care providers express weight-based stigma toward patients with obesity, who in turn perceive negative judgements, disrespectful communication, and lack of compassion from health-care providers. Weight stigma in health-care encounters is associated with lower patient motivation and adherence, poorer provider-patient communication, reduced quality of care, and health-care avoidance. Multifaceted approaches are needed to reduce stigma-related barriers in patient care.

Full citation: Puhl, R.M. (2023). Weight stigma and barriers to effective obesity care. Gastorenterology Clinics of North America, 52, 417-428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gtc.2023.02.002

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to assess the relationship between body image and refusal to be weighed by a healthcare provider among women in the United States, including examination of their reasons for refusal. Of the 384 respondents, 32.3 % reported refusing to be weighed by a healthcare provider.  The most common reasons for refusing to be weighed were having a negative impact on emotions, self-esteem, or mental health (52.4 %). Reasons for refusing to be weighed ranged from shame and embarrassment to lack of provider trust, personal autonomy, and concerns about discrimination. Identifying interventions and alternatives such as telehealth to provide healthcare services that are weight-inclusive may mediate these negative experiences.

Full citation: Ramseyer Winter, V., Trout, K., Harrop, E., O’Neill, E., Puhl, R., Bartlett-Equilant, G. (2023). Women’s refusal to be weighed during healthcare visits: Links to body image. Body Image, 46, 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2023.04.006

US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foods programs for households – The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), The Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) – provide nutritious foods at no cost to income-eligible individuals. The Healthy Eating Research (HER) Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System were used to evaluate the quality of foods in each program. Foods are categorized into a three-tiered system based on levels of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar per serving, and presence of whole grains: Green (choose often,) Yellow (choose sometimes,) and Red (choose rarely.)

This document provides an outline that charitable food organizations can use to prepare data for HER analyses using FANO categories.

Rules of thumb to help rank food utilizing the HER Guidelines for the Charitable Food System.

Participants (N = 8100 adults who reported having ever experienced weight stigma; 95% female; 94% White) completed an identical online survey in their country’s dominant language that assessed their experiences of weight stigma from 16 different family member sources, as well as internalized weight bias, body image, eating behaviors, perceived stress, and self-rated health. Family-based weight stigma, especially from mothers (49%-62%), spouses/romantic partners (40%-57%), and fathers (35%-48%), was highly prevalent across countries. Weight stigma from one’s immediate family members was associated with indices of poorer psychosocial health across the six countries

Full citation: Lawrence, S. E., Puhl, R. M., Watson, R. J., Schwartz, M. B., Lessard, L. M., & Foster, G. D. (2023). Family‐based weight stigma and psychosocial health: A multinational comparison. Obesity. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.23748

In this paper, we conducted a pilot randomized trial of a technology-driven family beverage choice intervention that aimed to reduce sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) and fruit juice (FJ) consumption in 60 parent–child dyads, in which children were 1–8 years old. The pediatrician-initiated intervention consisted of a water promotion toolkit, a video, a mobile phone application, and 14 interactive voice-response phone calls to parents over 6 months. Children in both the intervention and the control groups substantially decreased their consumption of SSB and FJ over follow-up and increased water consumption, but constrained linear mixed-effects models showed no differences between groups on these measures. Compared to parents in the control group, intervention parents had larger decreases in SSB intake at 3 months, but these differences were not sustained at 6 months.

Full citation: Lewis KH, Hsu F-C, Block JP, Skelton JA, Schwartz MB, Krieger J, Hindel LR, Ospino Sanchez B, Zoellner J. A Technology-Driven, Healthcare-Based Intervention to Improve Family Beverage Choices: Results from a Pilot Randomized Trial in the United States. Nutrients. 2023; 15(9):2141. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15092141

As many as two-thirds of parents talk to their teens about weight, but these conversations can leave Adolescents feeling criticized, ashamed, and distressed. A new study from the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy & Health highlights the barriers in these conversations between parents and adolescents, and the need for more parent education and supportive communication. Study findings, published in the journal Pediatric Obesity, show that parents want guidance on how to communicate about weight-related topics with their adolescents, while adolescents want their parents to be more supportive and accepting of their weight.