Age differences in the use of serving size information on food labels: numeracy or attention?

ObjectiveThe ability to use serving size information on food labels is important for managing age-related chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity and cancer. Past research suggests that older adults are at risk for failing to accurately use this portion of the food label due to numeracy skills. However, the extent to which older adults pay attention to serving size information on packages is unclear. We compared the effects of numeracy and attention on age differences in accurate use of serving size information while individuals evaluated product healthfulness.DesignAccuracy and attention were assessed across two tasks in which participants compared nutrition labels of two products to determine which was more healthful if they were to consume the entire package. Participants' eye movements were monitored as a measure of attention while they compared two products presented side-by-side on a computer screen. Numeracy as well as food label habits and nutrition knowledge were assessed using questionnaires.SettingSacramento area, California, USA, 2013-2014.SubjectsStratified sample of 358 adults, aged 20-78 years.ResultsAccuracy declined with age among those older adults who paid less attention to serving size information. Although numeracy, nutrition knowledge and self-reported food label use supported accuracy, these factors did not influence age differences in accuracy.ConclusionsThe data suggest that older adults are less accurate than younger adults in their use of serving size information. Age differences appear to be more related to lack of attention to serving size information than to numeracy skills

Misunderstanding of Front-Of-Package Nutrition Information on US Food Products.

Front-of-package nutrition symbols (FOPs) are presumably readily noticeable and require minimal prior nutrition knowledge to use. Although there is evidence to support this notion, few studies have focused on Facts Up Front type symbols which are used in the US. Participants with varying levels of prior knowledge were asked to view two products and decide which was more healthful. FOPs on packages were manipulated so that one product was more healthful, allowing us to assess accuracy. Attention to nutrition information was assessed via eye tracking to determine what if any FOP information was used to make their decisions. Results showed that accuracy was below chance on half of the comparisons despite consulting FOPs. Negative correlations between attention to calories, fat, and sodium and accuracy indicated that consumers over-relied on these nutrients. Although relatively little attention was allocated to fiber and sugar, associations between attention and accuracy were positive. Attention to vitamin D showed no association to accuracy, indicating confusion surrounding what constitutes a meaningful change across products. Greater nutrition knowledge was associated with greater accuracy, even when less attention was paid. Individuals, particularly those with less knowledge, are misled by calorie, sodium, and fat information on FOPs

Relationships among food label use, motivation, and dietary quality.

Nutrition information on packaged foods supplies information that aids consumers in meeting the recommendations put forth in the US Dietary Guidelines for Americans such as reducing intake of solid fats and added sugars. It is important to understand how food label use is related to dietary intake. However, prior work is based only on self-reported use of food labels, making it unclear if subjective assessments are biased toward motivational influences. We assessed food label use using both self-reported and objective measures, the stage of change, and dietary quality in a sample of 392 stratified by income. Self-reported food label use was assessed using a questionnaire. Objective use was assessed using a mock shopping task in which participants viewed food labels and decided which foods to purchase. Eye movements were monitored to assess attention to nutrition information on the food labels. Individuals paid attention to nutrition information when selecting foods to buy. Self-reported and objective measures of label use showed some overlap with each other (r=0.29, p<0.001), and both predicted dietary quality (p<0.001 for both). The stage of change diminished the predictive power of subjective (p<0.09), but not objective (p<0.01), food label use. These data show both self-reported and objective measures of food label use are positively associated with dietary quality. However, self-reported measures appear to capture a greater motivational component of food label use than do more objective measures

Assessing the Risk of 100-year Freshwater Floods in the Lamprey River Watershed of New Hampshire Resulting from Changes in Climate and Land Use

What is the coastal resource issue the project sought to address? Both the magnitude and frequency of freshwater flooding is on the rise in seacoast NH and around much of New England. In the Great Bay watershed, this is the result of two primary causes: 1) increases in impervious surface stemming from a three-to-four fold increase in developed land since 1962; and 2) changing rainfall patterns in part exemplified by a doubling in the frequency of extreme weather events that drop more than 4 inches of precipitation in less than 48 hours (Wake et al., 2011) over the same time period. Moreover, the size of the 100-year precipitation event in this region has increased 26% from 6.3 inches to 8.5 inches from the mid 1950’s to 2010 (NRCC and NRCS, 2012). One consequence is the occurrence of three 100-year floods measured on the Lamprey River at Packers Falls since 1987, and a fourth if the three days of flooding in March of 2010 had occurred instead in two days (Figure 1). Flooding events are expected to continue to increase in magnitude and frequency as land in the watershed is further developed and climate continues to change in response to anthropogenic forcing (e.g., Hayhoe et el., 2007; IPCC, 2007; Karl et al., 2009). Land use management strategies, in particular low impact development (LID) zoning requirements, are one strategy that communities can employ for increased resiliency to flooding with the greatest influence in urban environments

The Impact of Federal Level Special Education Policy Internships in Preparing Special Education Faculty: A Preliminary Investigation

In this manuscript, the authors examine the reaction of special education doctoral scholars and their response to a federal policy internship. Six doctoral scholar participants participated in a summer federal policy internship opportunity and partook in the study. Doctoral scholars responded to a survey about their knowledge of federal legislation and their perceptions of the federal policy internship. Data were collected and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Three themes emerged after completing their doctoral internship which include: importance of advocacy and its impact on policy, importance of evidence based practices and their role in policy making, and increased knowledge of national organizations and their impact on federal policy. Overall, the doctoral internship experience had a positive impact on the six special education doctoral interns in terms of knowledge and skills regarding policy and legislation

Sea ice biogeochemistry and material transport across the frozen interface

Author Posting. © Oceanography Society, 2011. This article is posted here by permission of Oceanography Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Oceanography 24 no. 3 (2011): 202–218, doi:10.5670/oceanog.2011.72.The porous nature of sea ice not only provides a habitat for ice algae but also opens a pathway for exchanges of organic matter, nutrients, and gases with the seawater below and the atmosphere above. These constituents permeate the ice cover through air-ice gas exchange, brine drainage, seawater entrainment into the ice, and air-sea gas exchange within leads and polynyas. The central goal in sea ice biogeochemistry since the 1980s has been to discover the physical, biological, and chemical rates and pathways by which sea ice affects the distribution and storage of biogenic gases (namely CO2, O2, and dimethyl sulfide) between the ocean and the atmosphere. Historically, sea ice held the fascination of scientists for its role in the ocean heat budget, and the resulting view of sea ice as a barrier to heat and mass transport became its canonical representation. However, the recognition that sea ice contains a vibrant community of ice-tolerant organisms and strategic reserves of carbon has brought forward a more nuanced view of the "barrier" as an active participant in polar biogeochemical cycles. In this context, the organisms and their habitat of brine and salt crystals drive material fluxes into and out of the ice, regulated by liquid and gas permeability. Today, scientists who study sea ice are acutely focused on determining the flux pathways of inorganic carbon, particulate organics, climate-active gases, excess carbonate alkalinity, and ultimately, the role of all of these constituents in the climate system. Thomas and Dieckmann (2010) recently reviewed sea ice biogeochemistry, and so we do not attempt a comprehensive review here. Instead, our goal is to provide a historical perspective, along with some recent discoveries and observations to highlight the most outstanding questions and possibly useful avenues for future research