A Family Life Education (FLE) curriculum was introduced in Fiji schools in 2010 in response to concern about increasing teenage pregnancies and young people's vulnerability to sexually transmitted infections and other health and social problems. However, conservative and suspicious parental attitudes towards FLE have been an obstacle. The need for…

Policy-makers making decisions on the implementation of school-based sexuality education (SE) programmes face two important questions: (1) what are the costs of implementing and scaling up SE programmes, and (2) what are the impacts? This paper responds to these questions by retrospectively assessing costs, impact and cost-effectiveness of the…

Background: We describe the prevalence of behaviors that put American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) high school students at risk for teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and the relationships among race/ethnicity and these behaviors. Methods: We analyzed merged 2007 and 2009 data from the national Youth Risk Behavior…

This study consists of three sub-studies. Sub-study 1 and 2 attempted to incorporate environmental variables as precursor background variables of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to predict quitting-related intentions among Texas adult smokers and university student smokers, respectively. Sub-study 1 and 2 analyzed different data sets and were…

Every child deserves a fair chance. A chance to learn, grow, explore possibilities, persevere and achieve his or her potential. The Ounce of Prevention Fund believes that no child's potential should be limited by poor health. Good health in early childhood is an essential component of school readiness. The benefits of health and learning are…

Every child deserves a fair chance. A chance to learn, grow, explore possibilities, persevere and achieve his or her potential. Yet many children in America, particularly children who live in poverty or are racial or ethnic minorities, face inequitable conditions that reduce their chances of leading healthy lives. These conditions lead to…

Background. High overweight and obesity prevalence has instigated many programs to improve children's health. Farm to School (F2S) is a grassroots-organized program that seeks to improve children's dietary habits, especially fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption, through various educational activities. Long-term goals include reducing obesity…

Experiential cooking classes for low-income adults can help improve healthy nutrition behaviors. However, nutrition educators and Extension professionals can face challenges in successful implementation of these programs such as difficulties recruiting and retaining participants. Drawing upon lessons learned from a cooking intervention with…

Background: A disparity in smoking behavior exists between the general and minority populations residing in Taiwan's mountainous areas. This study analyzed individual and environmental factors associated with children's smoking behavior in these areas of Taiwan. Methods: In this school-based study, data on smoking behavior and related factors for…

Rates of sexually transmitted infections and teenage pregnancy amongst the under-16s are causing increasing concern. There is limited evidence about the sexual behaviour and sex education preferences of this age group, especially of those from Black and minority ethnic groups. This study aimed to provide data on early heterosexual risk behaviour,…

Objective: To examine whether the combined use of a task-specific self-efficacy scale for oral health behaviour (SEOH) and an oral health questionnaire (OHQ) would be useful for evaluating subjects' behaviours and cognitions. Design: Questionnaires. Methods: One hundred and eighty-five students completed the SEOH and OHQ. The 30-item OHQ uses a…

Objective: To determine differences in sun-protection behaviours, and incidence of sunburn, between Australian adolescent female fake tan users and non-users. Design: Cross sectional survey. Method: 398 adolescent females aged 12 to 18 years participated in a survey at public venues, schools, and online. The main outcome measures were…

Adolescent risk behavior remains prevalent and contributes to numerous social problems and growing health care costs. Contrary to popular perception, adolescents in rural areas engage in risky behaviors at least as much as youth from urban or suburban settings. Little research, however, focuses on risk behavior prevention in the rural context.…

Background: Health education in primary and middle schools in China has been implemented for more than two decades since 1990s. This study aims to assess the students' health literacy gained through school health education, and provide scientific base to the concerned government agencies for updating the relevant national policy for school-based…

The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence of physical and psychological dating violence victimization and perpetration reported by inner-city African American and Hispanic adolescent girls as well as associated risky sexual behaviors among this population. Participants in this study were 10th- and 11th-grade female students from seven…