Beth Dixon - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Beth Dixon

British Journal of Nutrition, 2013

Dietary variety is positively correlated with energy intake in most studies. However, the associa... more Dietary variety is positively correlated with energy intake in most studies. However, the associations between dietary variety and measures of body adiposity are inconsistent in the literature, which limits the development of clear national nutrition recommendations regarding dietary variety. In the present systematic review, we critically evaluate the associations between dietary variety and measures of body adiposity among healthy adults within the existing literature. We conducted a systematic search of the MEDLINE and Web of Science databases in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement to examine these associations. We identified twenty-six studies in total that investigated the associations between dietary variety and body adiposity measures. Total variety was non-significantly associated with body adiposity in most studies, while variety in recommended foods was either inversely associated (six out of ten studies) or non-significantly associated (three out of ten studies) with body adiposity. Conversely, variety in non-recommended foods (i.e. sources of added sugars and solid fats) increased the likelihood of excess adiposity in most studies (six out of nine studies). Definitions and measurement of dietary variety were inconsistent across studies and contributed to some of the discrepancies noted in the literature. In conclusion, among the studies that met the inclusion criteria for the present review, dietary variety was inconsistently associated with body adiposity in diverse populations. Using consistent and specific definitions of dietary variety may help provide further insight into the associations between dietary variety and excess adiposity before definitive public health messages are ma

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, May 1, 2002

Address correspondence to: Leslie A. Lytle, PhD, RD, Division of Epidemiology, 1300 S. 2nd St., S... more Address correspondence to: Leslie A. Lytle, PhD, RD, Division of Epidemiology, 1300 S. 2nd St., Ste. 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454. ... J. Weber is a research associate in the Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, USA.

ABSTRACT Introduction: Previous research found minimal or no influence of menu labeling laws on f... more ABSTRACT Introduction: Previous research found minimal or no influence of menu labeling laws on fast food choices. This study evaluates the effect of mandatory calorie labeling policy in Philadelphia, PA, on number of calories purchased by customers. Methods: Philadelphia implemented calorie labeling early in 2010. Baltimore, MD, was selected as a comparison location that has not passed calorie labeling. We interviewed and obtained receipts from customers exiting fast food chains in both cities, pre- and post-labeling. This natural experiment was analyzed utilizing a difference-in-difference design and multivariate regressions. Results: We surveyed 2,128 customers ages 18-65. Respondents were 61% male, 39% female. The majority (71%) identified as black, 18% white, 7% Hispanic/Latino and 3% other. There was no change in mean calories purchased after labeling, though calories purchased decreased in both locations over the study period. Subgroup analysis is pending. After labeling was implemented, 37% of the sample said they saw calorie information, a smaller effect than found in other studies. Approximately 35% of adults who saw labels reported that the information affected their purchase, most (76%) reporting using it to purchase fewer calories. Discussion: Menu labeling did not impact calories purchased by fast food customers and a majority did not recall seeing the information upon leaving the restaurant. We must improve menu labeling policy to influence calories purchased, and investigate whether other policies may increase its effectiveness. However, menu labeling may have other impacts besides reducing calories purchased.

American journal of health promotion : AJHP, Jan 21, 2015

Purpose . Interest and funding continue to grow for bringing supermarkets to underserved areas, y... more Purpose . Interest and funding continue to grow for bringing supermarkets to underserved areas, yet little is known about their impact. Design . A quasi-experimental study was used to determine the impact of a new supermarket opening as a result of tax and zoning incentives. Setting . The study took place in the South Bronx, New York City, New York. Studied were residents of two South Bronx neighborhoods deemed high need. Measures . Food purchasing and consumption were examined via surveys and 24-hour dietary recalls before and at two points after the supermarket opened (1-5, 13-17 months). Analysis . Data were analyzed using difference-in-difference models controlling for gender, race and ethnicity, age, education, marital status, and self-reported income. Ordinary least squares and logistic regression models were estimated for continuous and binary outcomes, respectively. Results . At baseline, 94% to 97% of consumers shopped at a supermarket. There was a 2% increase in this behav...

Background: Taxing and labeling unhealthy food and drinks have been proposed to shift food choice... more Background: Taxing and labeling unhealthy food and drinks have been proposed to shift food choices towards healthier items and address obesity rates. Preliminary evidence suggests such methods could be minimally effective depending on how they are structured. Methods: We constructed a snack shop in a large, urban public hospital. Customers could purchase healthy and less healthy beverages and snacks from October - December 2011. We examined experimental conditions testing relative influence of price changes via a 30% tax on less healthy items; labels highlighting less healthy products; and labels indicating the product is taxed because it is less healthy. The five experimental conditions were: baseline (A); tax only (B); less healthy labels (C); tax plus less healthy labels (D); and tax plus less healthy labels with details of tax highlighted on the label (E). We recorded every purchase: 2,151 unique sales transactions. Results: At baseline, 47% of items sold were not healthy. Analy...

Background: New York City recently implemented an incentive program to introduce supermarkets int... more Background: New York City recently implemented an incentive program to introduce supermarkets into high-need areas, aiming to change the food environment and improve healthy eating. This policy is being considered nationally, with little known about effectiveness. This project examines the influence of recently-introduced supermarkets on shopping and food consumption among residents of a low-income area of the Bronx, NYC. Methods: We collected data from the intervention and a control community before and after the supermarket opening in 2011, using a difference-in-difference design to examine impacts on adults and on children 3-10. Prior to opening, data was collected from 2200 adults (850 parents) via street-intercept surveys assessing fruit, vegetable and snack consumption (using dietary screeners), along with shopping patterns. We also included follow-up 24-hour dietary recalls of 603 participants (207 parents). After opening, data was collected from 2130 adults (838 parents) wit...

The Journal of nutrition, 2006

To improve the measurement of usual dietary intake, the National Cancer Institute developed a cog... more To improve the measurement of usual dietary intake, the National Cancer Institute developed a cognitively based Diet History Questionnaire (DHQ), which has been validated against four 24-h dietary recalls (4 24-HR) for energy, macronutrients, and several vitamins and minerals. This analysis used data from The Eating at America's Table Study (EATS) to determine the validity of estimates for carotenoids and tocopherols from the DHQ. Over the course of a year, 163 participants provided 1 or 2 blood samples and completed the DHQ and 4 24-HR. For both the DHQ and the 4 24-HR, crude correlations between serum and diet were modest to strong for the provitamin A carotenoids (alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin), low to modest for lycopene, and very low for lutein. The individual dietary tocopherols were weakly correlated with the serum tocopherols, but vitamin E from food and dietary supplements was strongly and positively correlated with serum alpha-tocopherol and strongl...

The American journal of clinical nutrition, 2004

An analysis of dietary patterns or combinations of foods may provide insight regarding the influe... more An analysis of dietary patterns or combinations of foods may provide insight regarding the influence of diet on the risk of colon and rectal cancer. A primary aim of the Dietary Patterns and Cancer (DIETSCAN) Project was to develop and apply a common methodologic approach to study dietary patterns and cancer in 4 European cohorts: the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study (Finland-ATBC), the Netherlands Cohort Study (NLCS) on Diet and Cancer, the Swedish Mammography Cohort (SMC), and the Ormoni e Dieta nella Eziologia dei Tumori (Italy-ORDET). Three cohorts (ATBC, NLCS, and SMC) provided data on colon and rectal cancer for the present study. The cohorts were established between 1985 and 1992; follow-up data were obtained from national cancer registries. The participants completed validated semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaires at baseline. Exploratory factor analysis, conducted within each cohort, identified 3-5 stable dietary patterns. Two dietary patterns...

The Journal of nutrition, 2003

The association between diet and cancer, predominantly investigated univariately, has often been ... more The association between diet and cancer, predominantly investigated univariately, has often been inconsistent, possibly because of the large number of candidate risk factors and their high intercorrelations. Analysis of dietary patterns is expected to give more insight than analysis of single nutrients or foods. This study aimed to develop and apply a common methodological approach to determine dietary patterns in four cohort studies originating in Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Italy. Food items on each of the food frequency questionnaires were aggregated into 51 food groups, defined on the basis of their position in the diet pattern and possible relevance to cancer etiology. Exploratory factor analysis was used to analyze dietary patterns. Using a standardized approach, 3-5 stable dietary patterns were identified, explaining 20-29% of total variance in consumption of the food groups. Two dietary patterns, which explained most of the variance, were consistent across the studi...

The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans include quantitative recommendations for 2 eating patte... more The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans include quantitative recommendations for 2 eating patterns, the USDA Food Guide and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Eating Plan, to promote optimal health and reduce disease risk. A Mediterranean dietary pattern has also been promoted for health benefits. Our objective was to determine whether adherence to the USDA Food Guide recommendations, the

Topics in Clinical Nutrition, 2007

British Journal of Nutrition, 2014

Varied diets are diverse with respect to diet quality, and existing dietary variety indices do no... more Varied diets are diverse with respect to diet quality, and existing dietary variety indices do not capture this heterogeneity. We developed and evaluated the multidimensional US Healthy Food Diversity (HFD) index, which measures dietary variety, dietary quality and proportionality according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). In the present study, two 24 h dietary recalls from the 2003-6 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were used to estimate the intake of twenty-six food groups and health weights for each food group were informed by the 2010 DGA. The US HFD index can range between 0 (poor) and 1 - 1/n, where n is the number of foods; the score is maximised by consuming a variety of foods in proportions recommended by the 2010 DGA. Energy-adjusted Pearson&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;s correlations were computed between the US HFD index and each food group and the probability of adequacy for fifteen nutrients. Linear regression was run to test whether the index differentiated between subpopulations with differences in dietary quality commonly reported in the literature. The observed mean index score was 0·36, indicating that participants did not consume a variety of healthful foods. The index positively correlated with nutrient-dense foods including whole grains, fruits, orange vegetables and low-fat dairy (r 0·12 to 0·64) and negatively correlated with added sugars and lean meats (r - 0·14 to - 0·23). The index also positively correlated with the mean probability of nutrient adequacy (r 0·41; P&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt; 0·0001) and identified non-smokers, women and older adults as subpopulations with better dietary qualities. The US HFD index may be used to inform national dietary guidance and investigate whether healthful dietary variety promotes weight control.

Background: An analysis of dietary patterns or combinations of foods may provide insight regardin... more Background: An analysis of dietary patterns or combinations of foods may provide insight regarding the influence of diet on the risk of colon and rectal cancer. Objective: A primary aim of the Dietary Patterns and Cancer (DIETSCAN) Project was to develop and apply a common method- ologic approach to study dietary patterns and cancer in 4 European cohorts: the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study (Finland-ATBC), the Netherlands Cohort Study (NLCS) on Diet and Cancer, the Swedish Mammography Cohort (SMC), and the Ormoni e Dieta nella Eziologia dei Tumori (Italy-ORDET). Three cohorts (ATBC, NLCS, and SMC) provided data on colon and rectal cancer for the present study. Design: The cohorts were established between 1985 and 1992; follow-up data were obtained from national cancer registries. The participants completed validated semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaires at baseline. Results: Exploratory factor analysis, conducted within each cohort, identified 3-5 sta...

PEDIATRICS, 2005

Objectives. To describe the sociodemographic differences among Mexican American children (first, ... more Objectives. To describe the sociodemographic differences among Mexican American children (first, second, and third generation), non-Hispanic black children, and non-Hispanic white children; to compare the health status and health care needs of Mexican American children (first, second, and third generation) with those of non-Hispanic black children and non-Hispanic white children; and to determine whether first-generation Mexican American children have poorer health care access and utilization than do non-Hispanic white children, after controlling for health insurance status and socioeconomic status.

Obesity, 2013

Objective-Obesity is a pressing public health problem without proven population-wide solutions. R... more Objective-Obesity is a pressing public health problem without proven population-wide solutions. Researchers sought to determine whether a city-mandated policy requiring calorie labeling at fast food restaurants was associated with consumer awareness of labels, calories purchased and fast food restaurant visits.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2007

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2002

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2006

Objective The objective of this study was to measure dietitians' perceptions, attitudes, and know... more Objective The objective of this study was to measure dietitians' perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of evidence-based practice (PAK score), and to determine whether antecedent factors (eg, sociodemographic characteristics, education and training, professional experiences, and employment setting) predicted PAK score. Design This cross-sectional, descriptive study used the Dietitian Research Involvement Survey following the Tailored Design Method. Subjects/setting This study surveyed 500 randomly selected registered dietitians from seven dietetic practice groups of the American Dietetic Association. Statistical analyses performed Bivariate relationships were examined between antecedent factors and PAK score. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to test whether these factors predicted PAK score. Results Higher PAK scores were associated with registered dietitians who completed more years of education (rϭ0.28, PϽ.0005), had taken a research course (rϭ0.28, PϽ.0005), frequently read research articles (rϭ0.41, PϽ.0005), earned an advanced-level board certification (rϭ0.18, Pϭ.004), worked full-time (rϭ0.26, PϽ.0005), or belonged to professional organizations (rϭ0.18, Pϭ.003).

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2011

Early childhood is a critical time to establish nutrition habits to prevent obesity. At least hal... more Early childhood is a critical time to establish nutrition habits to prevent obesity. At least half of US children spend time in care outside of the home, where little is known about their dietary intakes and nutrition environment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate nutrition practices of group child-care centers in New York City and to assess whether dietary intakes of children at these centers meet nutrition recommendations. In 2005 and 2006, student research assistants administered surveys to directors of 40 child-care centers in three underserved communities (Central Brooklyn, East/Central Harlem, South Bronx) and in Manhattan, gathered menus, and observed beverages and foods consumed by 240 3-and 4-year-old children. Almost all centers provided beverages and foods recommended by national guidelines, including reduced-fat milk, 100% fruit juice, and whole grains. Some centers also provided higher-fat milk and sugar-sweetened beverages, but no centers provided soda. Drinking water was available in classrooms at only half of the centers. From observations at meal and snack times between 8 AM to 2 PM, Ͻ50% of children ate at least half of the daily recommended intake for each of five main food groups, with only 17% of children eating at least half of the daily recommended intake for vegetables and only 5% of children eating at least half of the daily recommended intake for vitamin E. Although many centers provided healthful beverages and foods to children, further efforts are needed to make water available as a beverage throughout the day and to improve dietary intakes, especially of vegetables and vitamin EϪcontaining foods.