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Childhood Obesity

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Childhood obesity is associated with numerous negative effects on children's physical and emotional health and well-being. RAND research on childhood obesity includes studies on peer and neighborhood influences on food choices, school nutrition policies, physical activity of children and their families, and adolescent dietary behaviors.

Journal Article
Changes to Kids' Menus May Help Curb Childhood Obesity
Most kids' menu items at the top 200 U.S. restaurant chains exceed the calorie counts recommended by nutrition experts. The restaurant industry can embrace calorie guidelines to promote children's health and reduce childhood obesity.
Dec 5, 2016
Journal Article
Middle School Intervention Program Leads to Long-Term BMI Reduction
A five-week obesity prevention program helped obese seventh grade students lose weight over a long-term period. The average reduction in body mass index two years later when they entered high school translated into about nine pounds lower bodyweight.
May 23, 2016

Explore Childhood Obesity

Journal Article
Food Insecurity, Sleep, and Cardiometabolic Risks in Urban American Indian/Alaska Native Youth
Food insecurity contributes to racial/ethnic disparities in health. This is the first study to examine associations among food insecurity, sleep, and cardiometabolic outcomes in urban American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth.
Nov 4, 2022
Blog
Truth Decay, School Lunch Nutrition, Regulating Space: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on tackling Truth Decay, how civilian tech experts view the military's use of artificial intelligence, a new approach to regulating outer space, and more.
May 13, 2022
News Release
Strengthening School Lunch Nutritional Standards May Help Improve Obesity Outlook for Low-Income Children
Regulations that strengthened the nutritional requirements for school lunches were associated with a decline in signs of obesity among school children in kindergarten through 5th grade who participated in free or reduced-price lunch programs.
May 5, 2022
Journal Article
School Food and Beverage Availability and Children's Diet, Purchasing, and Obesity: Evidence From a Natural Experiment
We examined whether the number of competitive food and beverage items available for purchase in school, overall and by type (unhealthy, healthy, neutral), was associated with in-school food purchases, dietary behaviors, and body mass index outcomes.
Mar 11, 2021
Commentary
Why 'Guilt-Free' Lanes at the Supermarket Could Help Fight Obesity
The United Kingdom is banishing so-called “guilt lanes,” supermarket cash register aisles permeated by junk food. This is a necessary step in the nation's fight against obesity. But what's really needed is a comprehensive approach.
Jul 5, 2018
Journal Article
Childhood Self-Control and Adolescent Obesity: Evidence from Longitudinal Data on a National Cohort
Children with higher levels of self-control in kindergarten gain less excess weight and are less likely to become obese over the next eight years than children with less self-control.
Jun 29, 2018
Journal Article
Neighborhood Environments and Physical Activity: A Longitudinal Study of Adolescents in a Natural Experiment
Adolescence is a time when the decline in physical activity and increase in obesity is dramatic, highlighting the need to identify opportunities to address obesogenic behaviors for this age group.
Apr 18, 2018
Journal Article
Evaluation of the Dissemination of SNaX, a Middle School-Based Obesity Prevention Intervention, Within a Large US School District
This evaluation found that that the Students for Nutrition and eXercise ("SNAX") was acceptable to schools, but only a handful had the capacity to maintain the program, and it did not affect eating behaviors in schools.
Apr 11, 2018
Journal Article
Retrospective Review of Comorbid Conditions in a Multidisciplinary Pediatric Weight Management Clinic
Multidisciplinary pediatric obesity clinics can help patients make healthy lifestyle choices.
Dec 7, 2017
Dissertation
Contextual Effects and Child Health and Cognition
This dissertation examines how the local environment contexts contribute to children's health and cognition.
Sep 25, 2017
Periodical
RAND Review: September-October 2017
This issue highlights recent RAND research on North Korea; RAND's future workspace pilot project; and insights on the post--Arab Spring experience in the Middle East.
Aug 24, 2017
Journal Article
The Effect of State Competitive Food and Beverage Regulations on Childhood Overweight and Obesity
Students in states that regulate “competitive” foods and beverages—those offered or sold outside the school lunch program--were less likely to be overweight or obese than students in states with no such policies.
Apr 4, 2017
Infographic
How Restaurants Can Fight Childhood Obesity
Restaurants can help lower kids' risk of obesity by adopting single-serving guidelines to help children avoid eating too much.
Mar 27, 2017
News Release
Kids’ Menu Items Often Include Excess Calories; Experts Say Changes May Help to Curb Childhood Obesity
Most kids' menu items at the top 200 U.S. restaurant chains exceed the calorie counts recommended by nutrition experts. The restaurant industry can embrace calorie guidelines to promote children's health and reduce childhood obesity.
Dec 5, 2016
Journal Article
Epidemiological Paradox or Immigrant Vulnerability? Obesity Among Young Children of Immigrants
According to the "immigrant epidemiological paradox," immigrants and their children enjoy health advantages over their U.S.-born peers--advantages that diminish with greater acculturation.
Sep 22, 2016
Journal Article
IRB and Research Regulatory Delays Within the Military Health System: Do They Really Matter? And If So, Why and for Whom?
Improving the military's research regulatory system could help reduce costly delays that jeopardize researchers' abilities to answer mission-relevant questions in a timely manner.
Jul 19, 2016
Journal Article
Neighborhood, Family and Peer-Level Predictors of Obesity-Related Health Behaviors Among Young Adolescents
High scores on measures of peer social functioning and family connectedness predicted healthy behaviors among adolescents.
Jul 19, 2016
Journal Article
The Role of School Environments in Explaining Racial-Ethnic Disparities in Body Mass Index Among U.S. Adolescents
School characteristics in the fifth and eighth grades showed little additional influence on the racial and ethnic disparities in body mass index observed at school entry in a longitudinal study of elementary and middle school students.
Jun 24, 2016
News Release
Middle School Intervention Program Leads to Long-Term BMI Reduction for Obese Students
A five-week obesity prevention program helped obese seventh grade students lose weight over a long-term period. The average reduction in body mass index two years later when they entered high school translated into about nine pounds lower bodyweight.
May 23, 2016

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