Health promotion programs for school staff are an overlooked and under-utilized resource that can lead to reductions in overweight and obesity among teachers and other staff members if implemented properly. In addition to increasing the overall staff wellness, boosting morale, increasing productivity, improving academic achievement, providing…

The Reggio Emilia approach is an international example of high-quality early care and education programs and this article offers innovative, practical strategies in which Reggio Emilia-inspired educators can link this approach while implementing the research-based EAT [Ecological Approach to] Family Style Dining program to foster a positive…

Recent estimates suggest that youth spend approximately 80-93% of their working hours in a sedentary state, such as sitting or resting longer than usual (Institute of Medicine, 2013). Schools are conducive of this sedentary behavior and because of that, they have been identified as viable locations for children to be physically active. In order…

In efforts to respond to key government public health initiatives for settings-based health promotion, the "Workplace Health Champion" role has emerged as a method of promoting health within the UK healthcare setting. Health promotion techniques used by these individuals are based on psychological theories that are known to motivate…

Young children depend on their families and teachers to support their well-being and promote positive development, including eating behaviors. Children's food preferences and willingness to try new foods are influenced by the people around them. The eating behaviors children practice early in life affect their health and nutrition--significant…

The preschool years are a critical period for the development of food preferences and lifelong eating habits. Between the ages of 2 and 5, children become increasingly responsive to external cues, such as television commercials that use popular cartoon characters to advertise foods, candy in supermarket checkout aisles, and fast-food restaurants…

News reports calling attention to the steady increase in the number of overweight adults have become an accepted part of our media landscape. Worse still, warnings continue that more and more young children, like the adults who care for them, are carrying too much weight. Unfortunately, this bad news about our growing obesity problem isn't just…

"Ujima" is a Kiswahili word that means collective work and responsibility. "Brothers of Ujima" presents a unique cultural enrichment program designed to reinforce and bring out the strengths of African American preadolescent and adolescent males. This group counseling program helps young men plan and achieve their future goals…

This article profiles teacher Leroy Silva (Laguna), 27, a.k.a. "Buster". Silva describes himself as an active guy who stays busy working out, playing basketball, softball, and more recently golf, soccer, and lacrosse. He teaches personal wellness and sports (not physical education), a job he began in 2006. Before that he was a trainer at…

Childhood obesity is epidemic in the United States and other industrialized countries across the globe. This trend is alarming, because childhood obesity is associated with the early onset of serious health problems, including Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, orthopedic problems, behavioral disorders, and asthma. Mounting evidence also…

In physical education, bodies are not only moved but made. There are perceived expectations for bodies in physical education to be "healthy bodies"--for teachers to be "appropriate" physical, fit, healthy and skillful "role models" and for students to display a slim body that is equated with fitness and health. In…

Discusses how mentoring in health promotion differs from other key support roles, noting what the underlying rationale is behind mentoring, how a mentoring program should be designed, what the historical and theoretical roots of mentoring are, and what strategies mentors can use to be more effective. A research agenda for the mentoring approach is…

Group and organizational cultures play an important role in helping people to adopt healthier lifestyles. Culture can be assessed by looking at social expectations for behavior, called group norms. Cultural norms can be changed to support healthy lifestyles through a systematic and participatory process. Such a change effort would modify: (1)…

Describes the Modeling and Reinforcement to Combat HIV (MARCH) approach to behavior change, which educates through entertainment (entertainment figures modeling positive behaviors) and community-level interpersonal reinforcement (support from friends, family, and others to encourage behavior change). MARCH focuses as much on enabling people to…

In 2005, the Children's Aid Society launched The African American Male Initiative to respond to the growing concern for the status of African American males and to bring about change. The initiative aims to: (1) more fully understand the issues facing our Black male clients and (2) create new program strategies that will better address the needs…