27 posts · 18,990 views
Discussions centered on obesity as a complex system, exploring on how we use feedback for personal behaviour change as well as the role feedback plays in other aspects of the obesity system.
pennydeck
27 posts
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- February 15, 2011
- 07:00 AM
- 1,299 views
Is a picture worth a thousand words…er, calories?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
This is Part 4 of my review of iPhone apps that track calories in and calories out (begun on Jan 31st). This week I’ll take a look at two apps that have taken a different approach to tracking calories – … Continue reading →... Read more »
Zepeda, L., & Deal, D. (2008) Think before you eat: photographic food diaries as intervention tools to change dietary decision making and attitudes. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 32(6), 692-698. DOI: 10.1111/j.1470-6431.2008.00725.x
- February 17, 2011
- 07:00 AM
- 1,148 views
Health Halos: A Class Experiment
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
I’m currently co-teaching an upper level university course on obesity with my Ph.D. supervisor, Dr. Diane Finegood, and recently gave a lecture exploring topics related to food consumption (the course is modeled around the clusters and variables of the Foresight … Continue reading →... Read more »
Chandon, P., & Wansink, B. (2007) The Biasing Health Halos of Fast‐Food Restaurant Health Claims: Lower Calorie Estimates and Higher Side‐Dish Consumption Intentions. Journal of Consumer Research, 34(3), 301-314. DOI: 10.1086/519499
- June 7, 2011
- 10:19 AM
- 1,121 views
Internet-Based Health Interventions: What Works?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Many health behaviour interventions and treatment programs increasingly use web-based delivery platforms, capitalizing on the 80% of internet users in the US that search online resources for health information (1). Internet programs represent a relatively new way to deliver interventions … Continue reading →... Read more »
Webb TL, Joseph J, Yardley L, & Michie S. (2010) Using the internet to promote health behavior change: a systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of theoretical basis, use of behavior change techniques, and mode of delivery on efficacy. Journal of medical Internet research, 12(1). PMID: 20164043
- February 22, 2011
- 10:30 AM
- 1,120 views
Weight loss? There’s an app for that! Pt. 5
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
This is the conclusion (Part 5) of my series on iPhone apps that track calories in and calories out. As discussed previously, there are many different apps available, but other than user reviews posted in the app store, there’s currently … Continue reading →... Read more »
Burke LE, Conroy MB, Sereika SM, Elci OU, Styn MA, Acharya SD, Sevick MA, Ewing LJ, & Glanz K. (2011) The effect of electronic self-monitoring on weight loss and dietary intake: a randomized behavioral weight loss trial. Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), 19(2), 338-44. PMID: 20847736
- July 7, 2011
- 10:43 AM
- 1,114 views
How do life events affect body weight? Part 2
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
In my previous blog post, I discussed a paper by Ogden and Hills (1) that explores individuals’ perceived triggers of behaviour change and the factors that contribute to maintaining behaviour change over time. But a number of questions remain: are … Continue reading →... Read more »
Ogden J, Stavrinaki M, & Stubbs J. (2009) Understanding the role of life events in weight loss and weight gain. Psychology, health , 14(2), 239-49. PMID: 19235083
- June 17, 2011
- 01:43 PM
- 1,103 views
Friday Feedback Favourites
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Each Friday, I share a collection of stories, research, or other news and notes related to the role of feedback in complex systems that catch my attention during the previous week. Most of these I share on twitter when I … Continue reading →... Read more »
Hill, A., Rand, D., Nowak, M., & Christakis, N. (2010) Emotions as infectious diseases in a large social network: the SISa model. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 277(1701), 3827-3835. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2010.1217
Fowler JH, & Christakis NA. (2008) Dynamic spread of happiness in a large social network: longitudinal analysis over 20 years in the Framingham Heart Study. BMJ (Clinical research ed.). PMID: 19056788
Christakis NA, & Fowler JH. (2007) The spread of obesity in a large social network over 32 years. The New England journal of medicine, 357(4), 370-9. PMID: 17652652
- May 11, 2011
- 09:48 AM
- 1,079 views
Thoughts from the National Obesity Summit
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
I recently attended the National Obesity Summit in Montreal, organized by the Canadian Obesity Network. The conference was well-organized with a great line-up of excellent speakers; it was often hard to choose between sessions. I also enjoyed the opportunity to … Continue reading →... Read more »
Paquet C, Daniel M, Knäuper B, Gauvin L, Kestens Y, & Dubé L. (2010) Interactive effects of reward sensitivity and residential fast-food restaurant exposure on fast-food consumption. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 91(3), 771-6. PMID: 20089726
- March 8, 2011
- 07:30 AM
- 1,078 views
To weigh or not to weigh?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Trying to lose weight? Keep it off? Confusing advice is abundant and one aspect of this confusion centers on recommendations to weigh-in: should you weigh yourself daily? weekly? monthly? or not at all? While I’m certainly not the first to … Continue reading →... Read more »
Butryn, M., Phelan, S., Hill, J., & Wing, R. (2007) Consistent Self-monitoring of Weight: A Key Component of Successful Weight Loss Maintenance**. Obesity, 15(12), 3091-3096. DOI: 10.1038/oby.2007.368
- June 30, 2011
- 11:41 AM
- 1,002 views
Small planned steps or a quantum leap?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
How do you change your behaviours? Do you meticulously plan, set goals, and take small steps, or do you just “do it”? A commenter on my previous blog post examining iPhone apps for smoking cessation noted that the “the most … Continue reading →... Read more »
Resnicow K, & Vaughan R. (2006) A chaotic view of behavior change: a quantum leap for health promotion. The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 25. PMID: 16968551
- August 17, 2011
- 02:36 PM
- 887 views
Mobile social networking, self-monitoring, and health behaviour change
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
This week features a guest post by Richard, an undergraduate student working in the CDSM lab for the summer. His main project for the summer has been working on identifying iPhone apps that promise to help with weight management and … Continue reading →... Read more »
Lefebvre C. (2009) Integrating cell phones and mobile technologies into public health practice: a social marketing perspective. Health promotion practice, 10(4), 490-4. PMID: 19809002
- August 18, 2011
- 08:34 AM
- 858 views
A feedback example – dynamic speed displays: do they change driver behaviour?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Dynamic speed displays are large digital sign-boards that broadcast your speed as you travel past. Although they admonish you to slow down if you exceed the speed limit, do they provide effective feedback that changes driver behaviour and reduces risk … Continue reading →... Read more »
Ullman, G., & Rose, E. (2005) Evaluation of Dynamic Speed Display Signs. Transportation Research Record, 1918(1), 92-97. DOI: 10.3141/1918-12
- February 28, 2011
- 05:30 PM
- 845 views
How do you challenge students to solve complex problems?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
How do you help a class of undergraduate students learn that obesity is a complex problem that cannot be solved with the simple message of “eat less, move more”? Previously I blogged about a class experiment I used to illustrate … Continue reading →... Read more »
Malhi, L., Karanfil, O., Merth, T., Acheson, M., Palmer, A., & Finegood, D. (2009) Places to Intervene to Make Complex Food Systems More Healthy, Green, Fair, and Affordable. Journal of Hunger , 4(3), 466-476. DOI: 10.1080/19320240903346448
- September 23, 2011
- 07:14 PM
- 760 views
Is it possible to optimize support for making healthy decisions? Part 1
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
What factors govern the daily decisions we make about food, exercise, and other health behaviours? As my colleague Megan noted in a recent post on Behavioural Economics on her blog Verdant Nation, “our choices arise from opportunities or barriers that … Continue reading →... Read more »
Baumeister, R., Bratslavsky, E., Muraven, M., & Tice, D. (1998) Ego depletion: Is the active self a limited resource?. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(5), 1252-1265. DOI: 10.1037//0022-3514.74.5.1252
- January 25, 2011
- 12:34 AM
- 694 views
Self-Monitoring in Weight Loss: a Complex Systems Perspective
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Does tracking your food intake and your exercise habits help you lose and maintain weight? A recent paper by Burke et al, published in the Journal of American Dietetic Association, reviews the collective research to date on the benefits of … Continue reading →... Read more »
Burke LE, Wang J, & Sevick MA. (2011) Self-monitoring in weight loss: a systematic review of the literature. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 111(1), 92-102. PMID: 21185970
- July 4, 2011
- 04:26 PM
- 641 views
How do life events affect body weight? Part 1
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Previously I blogged about the limitations of traditional theories to explain behaviour change, discussing how a complex systems approach that accounts for unplanned events may lead to better understanding of behaviour change and improvements in treatment outcomes. But how do … Continue reading →... Read more »
Ogden, J., & Hills, L. (2008) Understanding sustained behavior change: the role of life crises and the process of reinvention. Health:, 12(4), 419-437. DOI: 10.1177/1363459308094417
- November 7, 2011
- 08:04 AM
- 624 views
Capturing a Moment
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
How does the immediately availability of highly palatable foods influence caloric intake? Does this differ among different people and if so how? A study published in the journal Obesity by Thomas et. al. suggests that individuals with a higher BMI … Continue reading →... Read more »
Thomas JG, Doshi S, Crosby RD, & Lowe MR. (2011) Ecological momentary assessment of obesogenic eating behavior: combining person-specific and environmental predictors. Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), 19(8), 1574-9. PMID: 21273995
- September 8, 2011
- 06:42 PM
- 623 views
What’s most helpful for improving performance – precise or vague information?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
How precise does feedback need to be in order to support behaviour change? Most of us prefer exact information and are adverse to ambiguity (1), but absolute values may not be as successful for supporting behaviour change as one might … Continue reading →... Read more »
Mishra H, Mishra A, & Shiv B. (2011) In praise of vagueness: malleability of vague information as a performance booster. Psychological science, 22(6), 733-8. PMID: 21515738
- May 19, 2011
- 05:56 PM
- 602 views
Yes, there’s an app for that, but does it work?
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Do they REALLY work? iPhone apps in the health & fitness, lifestyle, and medical categories account for 7.7% of downloads* and promise to help you get fit, lose weight, quit smoking, improve your sleep, among many other benefits. In a … Continue reading →... Read more »
Abroms LC, Padmanabhan N, Thaweethai L, & Phillips T. (2011) iPhone Apps for Smoking Cessation A Content Analysis. American journal of preventive medicine, 40(3), 279-85. PMID: 21335258
- January 26, 2012
- 06:48 PM
- 517 views
Leveraging feedback to improve healthy food & beverage choices
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
Energy-dense foods purchased outside the home are an important contributor to the obesity epidemic facing our society. Can public health interventions that target the point of purchase help support individuals making healthy choices? A recent paper by Thorndike et al … Continue reading →... Read more »
Thorndike, A., Sonnenberg, L., Riis, J., Barraclough, S., & Levy, D. (2012) A 2-Phase Labeling and Choice Architecture Intervention to Improve Healthy Food and Beverage Choices. American Journal of Public Health. DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300391
- February 2, 2012
- 12:32 PM
- 493 views
Improving healthy food & beverage choices through choice architecture
by pennydeck in Feedback Solutions for Obesity
In my previous blog post, I discussed a study by Thorndike et al that looked at how both labeling healthy and unhealthy food choices with colour codes affected the purchase of healthy foods and beverages (1). The previous post focused … Continue reading →... Read more »
Thorndike, A., Sonnenberg, L., Riis, J., Barraclough, S., & Levy, D. (2012) A 2-Phase Labeling and Choice Architecture Intervention to Improve Healthy Food and Beverage Choices. American Journal of Public Health. DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300391
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