UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health

Overweight patients are not the only ones who suffer weight stigmatization in the doctor’s office, a Yale study finds. Physicians who are overweight or obese are vulnerable to biased attitudes from patients which could interfere with quality of care, according to a study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. The findings, published in the International Journal of Obesity, show that a provider’s excess weight negatively affects patients’ perceptions of his or her credibility, level of trust, and inclination to follow medical advice.

Loopholes in industry self-regulation allow food companies to continue to reach large numbers of children with advertising for unhealthy products — such as fast food, candy, and cookies — during “tween” programs and popular children’s holiday specials. The study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity is published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Support is needed in child care centers to help meet existing water policies and new water requirements included in the 2010 Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act, according to a study published by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. The study, published in the March/April 2013 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, is the first to document availability and accessibility of water in compliance with state and federal policy, and accreditation standards in child care centers.

Full citation: Pomeranz JL, Puhl RM. New developments in the law for obesity discrimination protection. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2013;21(3):469-471. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.20094

Full citation: Puhl RM, Gold JA, Luedicke J, DePierre JA. The effect of physicians’ body weight on patient attitudes: implications for physician selection, trust and adherence to medical advice. Int J Obes (Lond). 2013;37(11):1415-1421. https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2013.33

Full citation: Pomeranz JL, Munsell CR, Harris JL. Energy drinks: an emerging public health hazard for youth. J Public Health Policy. 2013;34(2):254-271. https://doi.org/10.1057/jphp.2013.6

Full citation: Harris JL, Sarda V, Schwartz MB, Brownell KD. Redefining “child-directed advertising” to reduce unhealthy television food advertising. Am J Prev Med. 2013;44(4):358-364. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2012.11.039

Full citation: Handforth B, Hennink M, Schwartz MB. A qualitative study of nutrition-based initiatives at selected food banks in the feeding America network. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2013;113(3):411-415. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2012.11.001

Food banks are altering their nutrition-related policies and practices to address concerns about the rise in obesity and diet-related diseases among individuals struggling to afford food, according to a study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. The study, published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, examines these strategies and identifies the challenges and opportunities related to their implementation.