Sharon L Hoerr

Publications (57) View all

• Article: Feeding behaviors of low-income mothers: directive control relates to a lower BMI in children, and a nondirective control relates to a healthier diet in preschoolers.

  Megumi Murashima, Sharon L Hoerr, Sheryl O Hughes, Stan A Kaplowitz
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  ABSTRACT: A topic of interest in the etiology of child obesity is whether and how parental feeding behaviors are associated with the food intake and weight status of children. The objective was to explore whether and how directive (overt) and nondirective (covert and food environmental structure) types of parental feeding control were associated with children's food intake and weight status. This was a cross-sectional exploratory study using structural equation modeling to determine directional associations between maternal feeding practices and children's food intake and weight status. Researchers collected data from 330 dyads of children aged 3-5 y and mothers participating in a federal preschool program for low-income families (Head Start) in Michigan. The mothers' feeding practices (directive and nondirective control), the children's food intakes, and the height and weight of both the mothers and children were measured. Structural equation models tested the relations between maternal feeding practices, the children's food intake, and weight status. The structural equation model confirmed that children's weight status was inversely associated with mothers' directive control, and mothers' nondirective control was associated with children's intakes of more nutrient-dense foods and less energy-dense foods. No association was found between the mothers' directive control and the children's food intakes. Mothers' use of nondirective feeding practices was associated with children's intakes of more nutrient-dense foods. However, use of more directive feeding control was associated with lower weight status in preschoolers of low-income mothers. These findings need to be examined in longitudinal studies. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01525186.
  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 03/2012; 95(5):1031-7. · 6.67 Impact Factor
• Article: Maternal Parenting Behaviors during Childhood Relate to Weight Status and Fruit and Vegetable Intake of College Students.

  Megumi Murashima, Sharon L Hoerr, Sheryl O Hughes, Kendra K Kattelmann, Beatrice W Phillips
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  ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE: Examine how maternal parenting behaviors in childhood, both general and feeding specific, relate to weight status and fruit and vegetable consumption in college students. DESIGN: Retrospective surveys on maternal behaviors and assessments on the college-aged child's current anthropometric measures and dietary intakes. PARTICIPANTS: College students (n = 424; 66% women). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Students' weight, height, waist circumference, fruit and vegetable intakes, students' reports on mothers' general and feeding-specific parenting behaviors during childhood. ANALYSIS: Correlation and regression analyses tested how maternal behaviors in childhood related to students' body mass index, waist circumference, and fruit and vegetable intake. RESULTS: Mothers' psychological control during childhood was associated with higher body mass index and waist circumference in students, and behavioral control was associated with lower waist circumference. Parent-centered feeding behaviors related to lower fruit and vegetable intakes of students, whereas child-centered feeding behaviors related to higher fruit and vegetable intakes. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Findings suggest that parental use of behavioral control and child-centered feeding practices and minimal use of psychological control and parent-centered feeding practices during childhood may promote a child's healthful weight status and fruit and vegetable consumption in young adulthood, specifically during college.
  Journal of nutrition education and behavior 12/2011; · 1.36 Impact Factor
• Article: Identifying clusters of college students at elevated health risk based on eating and exercise behaviors and psychosocial determinants of body weight.

  Geoffrey W Greene, Susan M Schembre, Adrienne A White, Sharon L Hoerr, Barbara Lohse, Suzanne Shoff, Tanya Horacek, Deborah Riebe, Jill Patterson, Beatrice W Phillips, Kendra K Kattelmann, Bryan Blissmer
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  ABSTRACT: Weight gain and an increase in overweight and obesity in college students raise serious health concerns. Weight management interventions for college-age men and women might be more effective if they were tailored to subgroups of students with similar behavioral and psychosocial characteristics associated with body weight status. The purpose of this study was to use cluster analysis to identify homogenous subgroups of college-aged men and women enrolled in a weight gain prevention study (Project WebHealth) using baseline data collected in 2008. Project WebHealth was a 15-month nutrition and physical activity intervention designed to decrease the rate of unwanted weight gain in 1,689 college students at eight geographically diverse universities in the United States. Outcome measures included anthropometrics, fruit and vegetable intake, physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness, and psychosocial variables associated with weight status in college students. Cluster analysis was performed separately by sex using a two-step clustering procedure using weight-related eating and exercise behaviors and psychosocial variables. Cluster groupings were validated against students' measured weight status and waist circumference as indicators of health risk. The study design was cross-sectional. Results showed that three similar clusters were identified for each sex. Validity of the cluster solution was supported by significant group differences in body mass index and waist circumference with the High Risk cluster at elevated health risk compared to the others. For men, variability in eating competence and cognitive restraint scores contributed most to the difference between clusters, whereas for women, emotional eating and uncontrolled eating scores did. These findings could be used to improve effectiveness of messages and interventions by tailoring them to subgroups of college students with similar behavioral and psychosocial characteristics associated with elevated health risk.
  Journal of the American Dietetic Association 03/2011; 111(3):394-400. · 3.59 Impact Factor
• Article: Confirmatory factor analysis of a questionnaire measuring control in parental feeding practices in mothers of Head Start children.

  Megumi Murashima, Sharon L Hoerr, Sheryl O Hughes, Stan Kaplowitz
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  ABSTRACT: Parental control in child feeding has focused primarily on directive types of control, such as pressure to eat and food restriction. This study aimed to develop an instrument to assess other types of directive control and two additional aspects of parental child feeding, non-directive and food environmental control. Mothers of Head Start children (n=330) completed a 29-item instrument designed to assess these three feeding constructs and reported their children's food intakes. Researchers measured heights and weights of both mothers and children. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the model with three constructs did not provide an acceptable fit to the data, but an alternative model with seven sub-constructs did (Chi-square=330, df=228 p<.05, CFI=.942, RMSEA=.037). The latter model included 24 items loading onto one of the following seven factors: high control, high contingency, child-centered feeding, encouraging nutrient-dense foods, discouraging energy-dense foods, mealtime behaviors, and timing of meals. By allowing researchers to quantitatively measure feeding practices in parents with limited resources, this instrument may contribute to an improved understanding of how parental child feeding behaviors can influence children's food intakes and weight status.
  Appetite 02/2011; 56(3):594-601. · 2.59 Impact Factor
• Article: Nutrition Education Needs and Learning Preferences of Michigan Students in Grades 5, 8, and 11

  Anne S. Murphy, June P. Youatt, Sharon L. Hoerr, Carol A. Sawyer, Sandra L. Andrews
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  ABSTRACT: An assessment of nutrition education needs and learning preferences of students in grades 5, 8, and 11 was conducted to target instruction toward areas of highest need and strongest interest of students using teaching methods they prefer. This research evaluated students knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, including knowledge of the new Food Guide Pyramid; attitudes about school lunches and learning about nutrition; nutrition topics of interest; and preferred methods for learning about nutrition. Although results varied across grade level, generally students need to learn about the Food Guide Pyramid; the relationship between dietary fat, weight status, and health; and food sources of fat, salt, and fiber. They want to learn about personal health — how to control weight, improve diet, and prevent disease — using instructional methods that actively involve them. Results provide information relative to students' interest, understanding, and application of the Dietary Guidelines.
  Journal of School Health 10/2009; 64(7):273 - 278. · 1.34 Impact Factor