The economic cost for the United States from heart disease, diabetes, and cancer is estimated at $71 billion annually. Along with this trend, the prevalence of obesity in the United States has reached epidemic proportions. To date, all interventions related to the prevention and treatment of obesity have failed. We must find a new way to prevent…

Rates of eating disorders have increased recently and are a public health concern especially among college students. Understanding variables that are associated with eating disorders could be helpful in preventing them. Participants (N = 525) were students from a large southwestern university. It was hypothesized that a desire for an underweight…

This study examined whether behavioral differences (exercise, dieting, changing eating habits, taking pills, or vomiting/taking laxatives to lose weight) exist when identifying the major influencing factors (media, family, friends, teacher/coach, and doctor/nurse) among Black and White men's and women's self-perceptions of body weight. Respondents…

The health education profession has made significant strides in promoting quality assurance for credentialing of health educators through a combination of individual certification and program approval and accreditation mechanisms. Although the profession has widely embraced individual certification, program accreditation has not been uniformly…

Media literacy education helps individuals become discriminating consumers of health information. Informed consumers are less likely to purchase useless health products if informed of misleading and deceptive advertising methods. The purpose of this study was to conduct a content analysis of health-related TV infomercials. An instrument…

This study compared two interventions in terms of impact on physical activity participation and mother-daughter relations. Previously sedentary mothers and daughters (N = 34) were randomly assigned to a 12-week university-or home-based physical activity group. Program activities were designed using focus group information, aspects of the social…

The purpose of this exploratory study was to evaluate the relationship between emotional eating and spiritual well-being. It was found that among college women lower levels of spiritual well-being correlated with higher levels of emotional eating (r = -0.22, p = 0.0015). In other studies emotional eating has been found to contribute to higher…

The current study provides measures of association between self-reported beliefs of currently practicing pharmacists and pharmacy students' beliefs about, willingness to provide, and preparedness to provide counseling on nutrition and physical activity following completion of a health education unit. A 3-week health education unit focusing on the…

This study retrospectively examined physical activity patterns across three specific age periods (childhood, teenage, and young adulthood) in a cross sectional sample of young Caucasian undergraduate women (N = 44). All women (mean age = 22.27 plus or minus 3.14 years) completed questionnaire packets assessing transtheoretical model of behavior…

This national survey of health education faculty (n = 282) found that the vast majority (88%) had been awarded a grant in the past 5 years, usually in amounts of less than $10,000. Less than one in four had received grants of $250,000 or more. Although less than one in four faculty (23%) felt prepared to write grants immediately following…

All Stars, Sr. is a comprehensive high school health education supplement designed to prevent high-risk behaviors among adolescents. The program includes topics such as personal health, nutrition, interpersonal relationships, and stress, with a special emphasis on drug prevention. Effective research-based programs that target late onset prevention…

The practice of using mass media in public health education practice is increasing. However, the challenges most health educators face in using the news media include either not knowing how to access the media or feeling a sense of ambivalence due to the risk of being misquoted or misrepresented. Developing an appreciation for the motivations and…

Two studies were performed to determine the relationship between cellular phone use and either reaction time or performance among college students. In the first study 60 undergraduates completed a computerized reaction time test. Mean reaction times were significantly higher when participants were talking on a cellular phone, either handheld or on…

An evolving body of research has examined the process of mentoring relationships among senior and junior faculty in health education and health promotion academic programs. However, little attention has been given to understanding the specific content of interactions between mentors and proteges. This qualitative research was conducted to identify…

At the national level, obesity and obesity-related illnesses are increasing dramatically. As with many other public health problems, some racial and ethnic populations are disproportionately affected. This article presents current information on the prevalence and consequences of obesity for racial and ethnic groups in the United States and…