EFFECTS OF FOOD ASSISTANCE AND NUTRITION PROGRAMS ON NUTRITION AND HEALTH: VOLUME 4, EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE LITERATURE REVIEW

This report provides a summary of a comprehensive review and synthesis of published research on the impact of USDA's domestic food and nutrition assistance programs on participants' nutrition and health outcomes. The outcome measures reviewed include food expenditures, household nutrient availability, dietary intake, other measures of nutrition status, food security, birth outcomes, breastfeeding behaviors, immunization rates, use and cost of health care services, and selected nonhealth outcomes, such as academic achievement and school performance (children) and social isolation (elderly). The report is one of four volumes produced by a larger study that includes Volume 1, Research Design; Volume 2, Data Sources; Volume 3, Literature Review; and Volume 4, Executive Summary of the Literature Review. The review examines the research on 15 USDA food assistance and nutrition programs but tends to focus on the largest ones for which more research is available: food stamps, school feeding programs, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Over half of USDA's budget - $41.6 billion in fiscal year 2003 - was devoted to food assistance and nutrition programs that provide low-income families and children with access to a healthy diet.Dietary intake, food expenditures, nutrient availability, nutrient intake, nutritional status, nutrition and health outcomes, USDAs food assistance and nutrition programs, Food Security and Poverty,

A protected discharge facility for the elderly: design and validation of a working proof-of-concept

With the increasing share of elderly population worldwide, the need for assistive technologies to support clinicians in monitoring their health conditions is becoming more and more relevant. As a quantitative tool, geriatricians recently proposed the notion of frail elderly, which rapidly became a key element of clinical practices for the estimation of well-being in aging population. The evaluation of frailty is commonly based on self-reported outcomes and occasional physicians evaluations, and may therefore contain biased results. Another important aspect in the elderly population is hospitalization as a risk factor for patient\u2019s well being and public costs. Hospitalization is the main cause of functional decline, especially in older adults. The reduction of hospitalization time may allow an improvement of elderly health conditions and a reduction of hospital costs. Furthermore, a gradual transition from a hospital environment to a home-like one, can contribute to the weaning of the patient from a condition of hospitalization to a condition of discharge to his home. The advent of new technologies allows for the design and implementation of smart environments to monitor elderly health status and activities, fulfilling all the requirements of health and safety of the patients. From these starting points, in this thesis I present data-driven methodologies to automatically evaluate one of the main aspects contributing to the frailty estimation, i.e., the motility of the subject. First I will describe a model of protected discharge facility, realized in collaboration and within the E.O. Ospedali Galliera (Genoa, Italy), where patients can be monitored by a system of sensors while physicians and nurses have the opportunity to monitor them remotely. This sensorised facility is being developed to assist elderly users after they have been dismissed from the hospital and before they are ready to go back home, with the perspective of coaching them towards a healthy lifestyle. The facility is equipped with a variety of sensors (vision, depth, ambient and wearable sensors and medical devices), but in my thesis I primarily focus on RGB-D sensors and present visual computing tools to automatically estimate motility features. I provide an extensive system assessment I carried out onthree different experimental sessions with help of young as well as healthy aging volunteers. The results I present are in agreement with the assessment manually performed by physicians, showing the potential capability of my approach to complement current protocols of evaluation

Technology as tool to overcome barriers of using fitness facilities: A health behavioural perspective

Underlying health conditions have been highlighted throughout the literature preventing several populations from engaging in physical activity. There have been little to no attempts made in addressing these populations directly in fitness facilities or indirectly using information technology (IT). The current research aimed at exploring current barriers and practices regarding IT and technological support in a fitness facility environment, using health behaviour theories (HBT) to explain member experiences. The sample was composed of 66 participants selected from 5 fitness facilities in Manchester, UK, of which there were 60.6% males and 39.4% females aged from 18-59. The instrument used was a survey. Health motives were reported by 71.2% of the participants, while ‘injury’ (reported by 70.2%), ‘lack of knowledge about exercise and health’ (reported by 42.4%), and ‘illness’ (reported by 28.1%) as main barriers to use the facilities. The main support mechanisms provided by the facilities management were staff support (59%), with online and technological support only accounting for 38.6% of facility support. The use of personal IT within the facilities were utilised by over half the participants (50.2%). The study revealed the need of additional IT support by fitness facilities in the form of applications and digital platforms. The findings are discussed with HBT as the theoretical underpinnings and suggestions are made for future research regarding IT advancements as support mechanisms

Spatial Analysis of the Nutritional Risk of Older Adults Participating in the Older Americans Act Program in South Carolina, 2013

Malnutrition is a prevalent, serious, and often unrecognized health threat for older adults in the United States. The prevalence estimates of malnutrition in the elderly are highly variable as methods for detection are not standardized. It is dependent on the use of the different available tools, the population being studied, and the different settings (living at home, institutionalized, or hospitalized) The purpose of this study was to determine the spatial variation of the nutritional risk of Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) service recipients in South Carolina (SC) using factors that influence the nutritional status of older adults included in the DETERMINE Your Nutritional Health nutrition screening checklist. In addition, the relationship between neighborhood socioeconomic factors and the participation rates in services provided by the AAA by zip codes was examined. A cross-sectional secondary analysis of data collected by the OAA in SC was conducted. Local Moran\u27s I and the Getis-Ord Gi* statistic were used to identify clusters of high nutritional risk scores by zip code. Principal component analysis was conducted using neighborhood socioeconomic characteristic variables collected from the 2010 Census and the 2014 American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Regression analysis, using participation rates as the dependent variable, was computed with simultaneous entry of the factor scores that resulted from the principal component analysis. Results showed clusters of higher nutritional risk were observed along South Carolina\u27s I-95 corridor and SC Promise Zone. Three factors were retained from the principal component analysis: economic disadvantage, family structure and housing instability. Neighborhood economic disadvantage increased participation rates while housing instability decreased these rates. The use of spatial analysis to identify clusters of nutritional risk among AAA nutritional services participants can serve as a visual link to engage program leaders in developing strategies to better understand this variability and develop strategies to reduce disparities in nutritional risk

APPLE-Tree (Active Prevention in People at risk of dementia: Lifestyle, bEhaviour change and Technology to REducE cognitive and functional decline) programme: protocol

Background: Observational studies indicate that approximately a third of dementia cases are attributable to modifiable cardiometabolic, physical and mental health, and social and lifestyle risk factors. There is evidence that intensive behaviour change interventions targeting these factors can reduce cognitive decline. / Methods and analysis: We will design and test a low intensity, secondary dementia‐prevention programme (Active Prevention in People at risk of dementia: Lifestyle, bEhaviour change and Technology to REducE cognitive and functional decline, “APPLE‐Tree”) to slow cognitive decline in people with subjective cognitive decline with or without objective cognitive impairment. We will embed our work within social science research to understand how dementia prevention is currently delivered and structured. We will carry out systematic reviews and around 50 qualitative interviews with stakeholders, using findings to coproduce the APPLE‐Tree intervention. We plan a 10‐session group intervention, involving personalised goal‐setting, with individual sessions for those unable or unwilling to attend groups, delivered by psychology assistants who will be trained and supervised by clinical psychologists. The coproduction group (including public and patient involvement [PPI], academic and clinical/third‐sector professional representatives) will use the Behaviour Change Wheel theoretical framework to develop it. We will recruit and randomly allocate 704 participants, 1:1 to the intervention: informational control group. This sample size is sufficient to detect a between‐group difference at 2 years of 0.15 on the primary outcome (cognition: modified neuropsychological test battery; 90% power, 5% significance, effect size 0.25, SD 0.6). / Dissemination: We will work with Public Health England and third‐sector partners to produce an effective national implementation approach, so that if our intervention works, it is used in practice

Dietary intake and cognitive development among children in Kisumu County, Kenya

Varied nutrient-dense and high-quality diet are key to ideal growth and cognitive function in the early years of life. Nutrient deficiency can lead to negative functional effects of the brain and poor cognitive function. High rates of poverty in developing countries predispose children to malnutrition. This study aimed at exploring factors associated with dietary intake and cognitive development among children in Kisumu County, Kenya. This was a cross-sectional study survey that recruited 192 children aged less than 24 months. Food frequency questionnaire and Bayleys Scale for Infant Development kit was used to collect data. It was revealed that a total of 51% were girls with 30% aged below 6 months. Only 12% had cognitive scores above average. Child cognitive scores were linked with age (p= 0.022), carbohydrate (p=0.021), fat (p=0.011) and iron (p=0.022) intake. Only 34% and 32% of children consumed diets adequate in proteins and iron, respectively. Of children aged above 18 months, only 13% consumed diet adequate in iron. Factors associated with carbohydrate intake included: mother's marital status (p=0.036) and her level of income (p=0.028) while protein intake related to the type of housing (p=0.013). Fat intake was linked with the mother's marital status (p=0.009) and her level of income (p=0.001) while the iron intake was linked to the mother's level of income (p=<0.001) and her educational level (p< 0.001). Vitamin A intake was linked to the ability to pay rent by the household (p=0.016). Further analysis revealed that children whose fathers were earning more than Kenya shillings 3000.00 per month had 0.2 times lower risk of being above average on cognitive scores compared to those whose fathers were earning less than Kenya shillings 3000.00 per month, while those with an inadequate intake of carbohydrate had 8 times more risk of having cognitive scores above average compared to those whose diets were adequate. In conclusion, majority of children consumed diets inadequate in protein and iron while 12% of children had cognitive scores above average. Mother’s marital status, eduation and income influenced child’s dietary intake while their age groups and father’s income were associated with child's cognitive outcomes. Policies to enhance parental education and income level should be formulated to improve child's dietary and cognitive outcomes. Key words: Dietary intake, Cognitive development, Children, Bayleys Scale for Infant Development, Malnutritio

THE FIRST ASIA – PASIFIC PARTNERSHIP ON HEALTH AND NUTRITION IMPROVEMENT (APHNI) CONFERENCE: OVERCOMING GLOBAL HEALTH ISSUE BY CAPACITY BUILDING OF HEALTH PROVIDER

This seminar will be the first International Seminar which is going to be conducted by the Faculty of Health Sciences of Alma Ata University on October, 2019 at Grand Dafam Rohan Hotel, Yogyakarta. This International Seminar is organized as an effort to improve our understanding to increase the capacity of health workers in addressing the global health issues. In addition, this international seminar is also a mean to expose researches conducted by many researchers from universities and practitioners in Indonesia and neighborhood countries and to disseminate them to more people. This Proceeding contains articles resulted from various disciplines researches related to medicine, nutrition and dietetics, pharmacy, nursing, obstetrics and hospital management. This proceeding, hopefully, can be a reference for students, lecturers, and health practitioners. Furthermore, the issuance of these proceedings can be used as a reference in the development of future research, as well as a reference in an effort to improve health services

Animated video as health promotion tool for community supplementary feeding

The efforts carried out by the POSYANDU under Sawahan health center to increase maternal awareness and knowledge of the importance of supplementary feeding (PMT) and also to monitor children's growth were completed in the form of counselling and distribution of supplementary food. Counselling given once a month in the form of discourse often makes participants lose interest quickly and forget the materials given. Whereas distribution of the free PMT does not encourage participant to independently provide additional food for their children. This research developed an animated video using the prototyping method. The animated video was constructed under the guidance of public health experts and nutritionists. The video supported with animated images and interesting colour combinations is expected to attract the attention of the participants to pay attention to the material provided. Evaluation was conducted by giving pre test – post test and distributing questionnaires. The results of the pre test – post test showed that the nutritional knowledge from 35% participants was increasing. The questionnaire results showed about 93% of health cadres stated that the video could help them in nutrition education. In addition, after the video demonstration was over, health cadres stated that the video can motivate POSYANDU participants to control the child's growth independently and increase creativity in processing food for their children