Anne R. Lindsay

A gender-specific approach to improving substance abuse treatment for women: The Healthy Steps to Freedom program

Given that women increasingly report using drugs to lose weight, substance abuse treatment programs must include body image, weight, eating pathology, and health knowledge as core intervention targets. This study tested the efficacy of a supplemental health and body image curriculum designed for women in substance abuse treatment who report weight concerns called Healthy Steps to Freedom (HSF). Data from 124 adult women recruited from substance abuse treatment facilities in southern Nevada completed measures of drug use, body dissatisfaction, eating pathology, thin-ideal internalization, and health knowledge/behaviors before and after participation in the 12-week HSF program. Results revealed that thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, and eating disorder symptoms significantly decreased after HSF program participation, whereas health-related behaviors (e.g., increased healthy food consumption) and knowledge (e.g., understanding of basic nutrition, exercise) increased. These results suggest that the inclusion of the HSF program in substance abuse treatment improves weight-related issues in substance-abusing women.

Weight-related concerns related to drug use for women in substance abuse treatment: prevalence and relationships with eating pathology.

Women in substance abuse treatment increasingly report weight-related concerns as motivation for drug use. However, limited research has explored the nature of these concerns or examined whether women in substance abuse treatment with weight-related concerns related to drug use differ from those who do not on variables relevant to eating pathology. Using a sample of 297 women in substance abuse treatment, this study examined two intertwined issues: (1) the prevalence and nature of weight-related concerns related to drug use and (2) whether women who endorse weight-related concerns related to drug use differ from those without weight-related concerns on body dissatisfaction, eating pathology, perceived pressure and internalization of thin-ideal media, and appearance-related drug-use expectancies. Descriptive analyses indicated that the majority of participants were concerned about gaining weight during treatment and/or that weight gain could trigger drug relapse. Analyses of variance revealed that women who reported weight-based concerns (both with regards to weight gain during treatment and relapse potential) endorsed higher levels of body dissatisfaction, dieting, bulimic symptoms, and thin-ideal internalization than women who did not endorse weight-related concerns. Results suggest that substance abuse treatment programs should be aware of and address weight-related concerns around drug use for women.

Field Assessments for Obesity Prevention in Children and Adults: Physical Activity, Fitness, and Body Composition

Nutrition and health educators work in community settings implementing lifestyle programs focused on obesity prevention and chronic disease risk reduction. These programs typically focus on improving diet and physical activity (PA) behaviors. Many nutrition educators may not be confident in their ability to select, administer, and interpret PA assessments to effectively evaluate their PA or lifestyle programs. This report will assist educators in identifying and selecting appropriate field-based assessments for measurement of PA, physical fitness, and body composition for children and adults. Specific guidelines, references, and resources are given for selecting assessment methods and test within these 3 areas.

Dynamic Energy Balance: An Integrated Framework for Discussing Diet and Physical Activity in Obesity Prevention—Is it More than Eating Less and Exercising More?

Understanding the dynamic nature of energy balance, and the interrelated and synergistic roles of diet and physical activity (PA) on body weight, will enable nutrition educators to be more effective in implementing obesity prevention education. Although most educators recognize that diet and PA are important for weight management, they may not fully understand their impact on energy flux and how diet alters energy expenditure and energy expenditure alters diet. Many nutrition educators have little training in exercise science; thus, they may not have the knowledge essential to understanding the benefits of PA for health or weight management beyond burning calories. This paper highlights the importance of advancing nutrition educators’ understanding about PA, and its synergistic role with diet, and the value of incorporating a dynamic energy balance approach into obesity-prevention programs. Five key points are highlighted: (1) the concept of dynamic vs. static energy balance; (2) the role of PA in weight management; (3) the role of PA in appetite regulation; (4) the concept of energy flux; and (5) the integration of dynamic energy balance into obesity prevention programs. The rationale for the importance of understanding the physiological relationship between PA and diet for effective obesity prevention programming is also reviewed.

Interrater Reliability of a Field-Based Preschool Movement Skills Assessment

Objective: To determine the interrater reliability of the Preschool Movement Assessment (PMA), a unique field‐based assessment tool for use by early childhood professionals in preschool settings. Methods: A total of 123 preschool children, aged 3–5years, were assessed by 6 trained raters using the PMA tool in an intervention. Interrater agreement on individual items of the PMA was determined using the kappa (&kgr;) and intraclass correlation coefficient statistics. Results: Weighted &kgr; values were 0.82–0.96, indicating excellent agreement for all constructs of the PMA. The 95% confidence intervals indicated that all weighted &kgr;s were statistically significant. The intraclass correlation coefficient for the PMA total score was 0.97. Conclusions and Implications: After additional developmental research, the tool might serve to establish and support a minimum level of functional movements that should be attained before a child enters grade school.