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Community-Based Strategies for Obesity Prevention: A Nutritional Perspective

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutrition and Obesity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 January 2025 | Viewed by 4651

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Carmen Pérez-Rodrigo

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Guest Editor

1. Bilbao Municipal Department of Community Health, Health Promotion, 48007 Bilbao, Spain
2. Spanish Society of Community Nutrition (SENC), 08029 Barcelona, Spain
Interests: public health nutrition; sustainable food systems; food habits; diet and health; obesity; community-based interventions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Javier Aranceta-Bartrina

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Guest Editor

Spanish Society of Community Nutrition, Royal Academy of Medicine of the Basque Country, 48008 Bilbao, Spain
Interests: public health nutrition; obesity; food habits; food-based dietary guidelines; human nutrition and health; diet and health; lifestyle interventions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Obesity is a major public health issue, and although its prevalence is stabilizing in many countries, in some studies uneven data have been observed and increasing trends still continue to be reported.

Living with overweight or obesity increases an individual’s risk of non-communicable diseases, which are often more frequently observed as BMI increases. Excess adiposity is also related to increased mortality and is an important risk factor for disability.

Evidence suggests that strategies to prevent overweight should include multiple approaches, target specific population groups, and consider life-cycle stages as well as the different determinants of obesity. Long-term global strategies play an important role in creating supportive environments that facilitate change.

The retail food environment is implicated in obesity and cardiometabolic disease risk. However, further investigations are needed to better understand the complex relationships between exposure and obesity-related outcomes, including regional differences in the affordability, proximity, and availability of food products; relationships between food advertising and obesity-related outcomes; and individual characteristics that might moderate the associations observed at broader levels (e.g., inhibitory control, health literacy, and food values).

While substantial focus has been placed on individual-level obesity prevention and management strategies through diet and lifestyle, increased attention to population- and community-level approaches is also urgently needed.

This Special Issue of Nutrients encourages the submission of original qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies based on interventions, programs, practices, and policies aimed to prevent overweight and obesity, particularly those considering community-based strategies and life-cycle approaches. Submissions that target population- and community-level approaches to prevent or manage obesity via considerations of food access and exposure, through observational studies, interventional studies, review articles, and commentaries, are all welcome.

Prof. Dr. Carmen Pérez-Rodrigo
Prof. Dr. Javier Aranceta-Bartrina
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

overweight
obesity
prevention
community-based intervention
life cycle
inequalities
supportive environment
dietary patterns
lifestyles

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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14 pages, 2887 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Co-Creation and Implementation of a Healthy Snacks Policy in Primary Schools: Data from Sintra Grows Healthy

by Telma Nogueira, Raquel J. Ferreira, Mariana Liñan Pinto, Vitória Dias da Silva, Paulo Jorge Nogueira and Joana Sousa

Nutrients 2024, 16(19), 3374; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193374 - 4 Oct 2024

Abstract

Policy interventions in the school food environment can improve dietary behaviors. However, the literature describing its development and implementation is scarce. This manuscript aims to describe the process of co-creation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of a Healthy Snacks Policy, in the scope of Sintra Grows Healthy intervention. Through a community-based participatory research methodology, the co-creation of the Healthy Snacks Policy comprises six stages: snacks evaluation, feedback sessions, class assemblies, school community assemblies, school cluster policy approval, and process evaluation. Within one school year, a Healthy Snacks Policy was co-created, approved, incorporated in the school regulations, implemented, continuously monitored, and evaluated. Regarding snacks evaluation, 1900 snacks were evaluated at the beginning of the school year and 1079 at the end of the school year. There were three feedback sessions, twenty-two class assemblies, and three school community assemblies. Most teachers perceived that children began to consume healthier snacks (72%); 66% of the children were considered to have started eating healthier; and most families said “yes or sometimes” when asked whether their children started requesting healthier snacks (70%), trying new foods (63%), and noticing improvements in their eating habits (74%). The co-creation of a Healthy Snacks Policy establishes an approach to effectively implement existing guidelines for school food supplies, complying with national priority implementation recommendations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies for Obesity Prevention: A Nutritional Perspective)

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18 pages, 1615 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Objectively Measured Sleep Duration and Health-Related Quality of Life in Older Adults with Metabolic Syndrome: A One-Year Longitudinal Analysis of the PREDIMED-Plus Cohort

by Alba Marcos-Delgado, Vicente Martín-Sánchez, Miguel Ángel Martínez-González, Dolores Corella, Jordi Salas-Salvadó, Helmut Schröder, Alfredo Martínez, Ángel M. Alonso-Gómez, Julia Wärnberg, Jesús Vioque, Dora Romaguera, José López-Miranda, Ramon Estruch, Francisco J. Tinahones, José M. Santos-Lozano, Jacqueline Álvarez-Pérez, Aurora Bueno-Cavanillas, Naomi Cano-Ibáñez, Carmen Amezcua-Prieto, Natalia Hernández-Segura, Josep A. Tur, Xavier Pintó, Miguel Delgado-Rodríguez, Pilar Matía-Martín, Josep Vidal, Clotilde Vázquez, Lidia Daimiel, Emili Ros, Estefanía Toledo, Tany E. Garcidueñas-Fimbres, Judith Viaplana, Eva M. Asensio, María D. Zomeño, Antonio Garcia-Rios, Alejandro Oncina-Cánovas, Francisco Javier Barón-López, Napoleón Pérez-Farinos, Carmen Sayon-Orea, Aina M. Galmés-Panadés, Rosa Casas, Lucas Tojal-Sierra, Ana M. Gómez-Pérez, Pilar Buil-Corsiales, Jesús F. García-Gavilán, Carolina Ortega-Azorín, Olga Castañer, Patricia J. Peña-Orihuela, Sandra González-Palacios, Nancy Babio, Montse Fitó and Javier Nieto Show full author list Hide full author list

Nutrients 2024, 16(16), 2631; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16162631 - 9 Aug 2024

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Abstract

The aim of our cross-sectional and longitudinal study is to assess the relationship between daytime and night-time sleep duration and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults with metabolic syndrome after a 1-year healthy lifestyle intervention. Analysis of the data from 2119 Spanish adults aged 55–75 years from the PREDIMED-Plus study was performed. Sleep duration was assessed using a wrist-worn accelerometer. HRQoL was measured using the SF-36 questionnaire. Linear regression models adjusted for socioeconomic and lifestyle factors and morbidity were developed. In cross-sectional analyses, participants with extreme night-time sleep duration categories showed lower physical component summary scores in Models 1 and 2 [β-coefficient (95% confidence interval) <6 h vs. 7–9 h: −2, 3 (−3.8 to −0.8); p = 0.002. >9 h vs. 7–9 h: −1.1 (−2.0 to −0.3); p = 0.01]. Participants who sleep less than 7 h a night and take a nap are associated with higher mental component summary scores [β-coefficient (95% confidence interval) 6.3 (1.3 to 11.3); p = 0.01]. No differences between night-time sleep categories and 12-month changes in HRQoL were observed. In conclusion, in cross-sectional analyses, extremes in nocturnal sleep duration are related to lower physical component summary scores and napping is associated with higher mental component summary scores in older adults who sleep less than 7 h a night. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies for Obesity Prevention: A Nutritional Perspective)

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12 pages, 347 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Social Jetlag on Obesity-Related Outcomes in Spanish Adolescents: Cross-Sectional Evidence from the EHDLA Study

by Mayra Fernanda Martínez-López and José Francisco López-Gil

Nutrients 2024, 16(16), 2574; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16162574 - 6 Aug 2024

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Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the association between social jetlag (SJL) and obesity-related outcomes among adolescents from Valle de Ricote (Region of Murcia, Spain). We explored the relationship between SJL and body mass index (BMI) z-score, waist circumference, and body fat percentage, as well as the odds of having excess weight, obesity, and abdominal obesity in a sample of Spanish adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Eating Healthy and Daily Life Activities (EHDLA) project, which included 847 Spanish adolescents aged 12–17 years. SJL was assessed based on the differences in sleep patterns between weekdays and weekends. Obesity-related indicators such as BMI z-score, waist circumference, body fat percentage, excess weight, obesity, and abdominal obesity were measured. Generalized linear models with a Gaussian or binomial distribution were used to analyze the associations between SJL and obesity-related outcomes, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: The analysis revealed significant associations between SJL and BMI z-score (unstandardized beta coefficient [B] = 0.15, 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.25, p = 0.003), waist circumference (B = 1.03, 95% CI: 0.39 to 1.67, p = 0.002), and body fat percentage (B = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.31 to 1.43, p = 0.008). Additionally, the odds ratios (ORs) for excess weight (OR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.16 to 1.57; p < 0.001), obesity (OR = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.26 to 2.00; p < 0.001), and abdominal obesity (OR = 1.46, 95% CI: 1.23 to 1.72; p < 0.001) increased significantly with each 60 min increment in SJL. Conclusions: This study pointed out that the misalignment of sleeping times during weekdays and weekends (SJL) is significantly associated with higher BMI z-scores, waist circumference, body fat percentage, and higher odds of excess weight, obesity, and abdominal obesity among adolescents, being more significant in boys than in girls. These findings highlight the importance of addressing circadian misalignment in the prevention and management of obesity and its related metabolic disorders in this population. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies for Obesity Prevention: A Nutritional Perspective)

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20 pages, 990 KiB

Open AccessSystematic Review

Assessing the Healthfulness of University Food Environments: A Systematic Review of Methods and Tools

by Alicia Anne Dahl, Stacy M. Fandetti, Lilian O. Ademu, Ryan Harris and Elizabeth F. Racine

Nutrients 2024, 16(10), 1426; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16101426 - 9 May 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1577

Abstract

The availability, promotion, and price of healthy foods within the university food environment may impact students’ dietary choices. This systematic review summarizes the tools and methods used to assess the healthfulness of university food environments where many students spend a significant portion of their emerging adulthood. Thirty-six global studies published between 2012 and 2022 were sourced from PubMed (NNLM), Cochrane Library (Wiley), Web of Science (Clarivate), APA PsycInfo (EBSCO), CINHAL Complete (EBSCO), ProQuest Nursing, and Allied Health, following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Of the included studies, 58% were institutional-level audits, 17% examined individual-level perceptions, and 25% combined both. Most institutional-level audits focused on one aspect of the food environment (e.g., eateries, vending machines). For studies examining multiple spaces within the campus environment (38%), comprehensive assessments were limited, and most studies had to employ a combination of assessment tools. Surveys were most often used to gather individual perceptions about the food environment. The Nutrition Environment Measures Survey (NEMS) was the most commonly used tool across all studies. This review highlights the need for a standardized tool, method, or a “healthy” benchmark for specific use at universities to improve methodological rigor and comparability of findings across institutions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies for Obesity Prevention: A Nutritional Perspective)

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