Objective: This study was conducted to review the trends observed in studies concerning the associations of family meal practices with health status and dietary intake.
Methods: A literature review was carried out using MEDLINE (PubMed) and Eric databases. Relevant articles published between 2001 and 2011 were identified using the following search terms: “family meals” or “family meal” or “family dinner” or “family mealtime.” Additional articles were retrieved from the references of three systematic reviews on family meal practice. After screening titles, abstracts, and full texts, 50 articles were included in this review.
Results: Of the 43 measures used to assess family meal practices, 30 were related to “family meal frequency (FMF)” using one question. Many of them were asked about the frequency of a meal with all or most of the family within a week. Twenty-four cross-sectional and six longitudinal studies examined the association between FMF and health or nutrition status among young children through adolescents. Ten cross-sectional and three longitudinal studies reported FMF and food or nutrient intake among children. Children with high FMF were more likely to have a lower score of depression symptoms, higher intake of fruits and vegetables, and higher score of diet quality. The association of obesity and FMF yielded mixed results. Studies that targeted adults were limited to four cross-sectional studies.
Conclusion: This study implied that children and adolescents who have frequent family meals have a better dietary intake, such as a higher intake of fruits and vegetables.

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Objectives: We developed a tool, the Diet-Lifestyle Support Guide (DLSG), to assist counselors in improving skills to achieve client behavioral changes in the intensive lifestyle modification program of Specific Health Guidance. The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of the DLSG in the weight management program.
Methods: This is a prospective historical cohort-matched, non-randomized controlled trial. The intervention group (n=35; 24 males, 11 females) received health guidance using an adaptation of DLSG, with the initial interview held between September 2011 and January 2013. The control group (n=35) received conventional counseling from April 2008 to August 2011. Both groups underwent the same protocol, and the participants were individually matched with cases by sex, age, initial body mass index, and smoking status. We examined differences in changes of anthropometric and laboratory data for up to one year.
Results: No significant differences were noted between the initial and 6-month weight or waist circumference. However, a significant difference (p‹0.001) was noted in weight between the intervention and control groups (-0.8 kg vs. +0.5 kg, respectively) during the follow-up period. A significant difference was also noted in weight change at 1 year (-2.5 kg vs. -0.8 kg, p‹0.01). Additionally, we noted a significant difference in the change in waist circumference (p‹0.001).
Conclusions: Since further significant weight loss was observed only in the intervention group. The Diet-Lifestyle Support Guide may promise a certain level of effectiveness for improving metabolic syndrome status.

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Objective: Obesity and being underweight appear to be completely opposite, but both are undesirable for the healthy growth of children. This study examined the similarities and differences between obese and underweight children by comparing their lifestyle behaviors based on the stages of growth.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was implemented utilizing the permitted “Field Survey of Lifestyle” issued by the Board of Education of Niigata prefecture. The participants were boys and girls from elementary to high school (n=7,395). We classified the participants into three groups: underweight, normal weight, and overweight/obese. We analyzed their dietary, physical activity and sleep patterns.
Results: Among elementary school boys, a larger percentage of underweight children (n=50, 58.8%) “exercised more than three days a week” than did obese children (n=147, 42.6%) (p=0.01). In contrast, among high school students, a larger percentage of obese children (n=89, 37.1%) “exercised more than three days a week,” as compared to underweight children (n=12, 25.0%) (p=0.001). In elementary school children, more underweight participants exhibited desirable behaviors such as “having breakfast everyday,” “chewing food well,” “eating with family (or with adults),” and “watching TV for less than two hours per day,” than did obese and normal weight children. In contrast, underweight high school students exhibited fewer desirable behaviors than did normal and overweight students.
Conclusions: Obese and underweight children have similar behaviors regarding exercise and sleep. It was shown that even if children were classified into the same figure group, their lifestyle varied according to the stages of growth.

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Objective: To identify the relationships between nutrition labelling use and health/nutritional status.
Methods: A systematic review was conducted using articles published both in Japan and overseas. MEDLINE (PubMed) database was searched for overseas articles and the Igaku Chuo Zasshi and CiNii databases were searched for domestic articles. Handsearching was also performed for them. Nine Japanese articles and nine English articles were selected for analysis based on the results of a first screening by title/abstract and a second screening by reading of full papers.
Results: Most participants in overseas studies were adults, while most of them in Japanese studies were university students. Six overseas studies and two Japanese studies considered confounders. In these six overseas studies, participants who had health problems such as overweight were found to use nutrition labelling more frequently than those who had no health problems. However, there were some limitations, such as the subjective examination method of nutrition labelling use (i.e., self-reporting). In the two Japanese studies that considered confounders, no significant relationships were detected.
Conclusions: Participants in overseas studies who had health problems were found to use nutrition labelling more frequently than those who had no health problems. Particpants in Japanese studies were limited to university students, and no significant relationships were detected between nutrition labelling use and health/nutritional status.

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Objective: This study was conducted to develop a decisional balance scale for consuming a balanced diet in fifth and sixth grade elementary school children and to test its reliability and factorial validity.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted to measure the level of decisional balance among 217 fifth and sixth graders from a total of seven elementary schools using a self-administered questionnaire between April and May 2013 in A town, Ibaraki. The reliability and factorial validity of the questionnaire were estimated from the internal consistency and confirmatory factor analysis. The decisional balance score that benefits (Pros) minus the cost score (Cons) was compared by gender, grade, degree of obesity, and exercise habits.
Results: Factor analysis revealed that seven items for Pros (α=0.86) and six items for Cons (α=0.80) were effective for consuming a balanced diet. Excellent goodness-of-fit indices were obtained in confirmatory factor analysis (GFI=0.91, AGFI=0.87, CFI=0.92, RMSEA=0.08). The decisional balance score significantly differed by gender and degree of obesity (p‹0.05).
Conclusion: We developed a measure for decisional balance for consuming a balanced diet among higher grades of elementary school children and demonstrated its reliability and factorial validity.

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Objective: To explore the feelings of new nutritionists about their job performance to prevent their early job turnover.
Methods: We conducted interviews with 10 nutritionists (1 male, 9 females) who have been employed for three months according to semi-structure interview guidelines. All interviews were tape-recorded and a verbatim transcript was made. The obtained data were qualitatively and descriptively analyzed.
Results: Five categories (“anxiety about not being competent,” “confusion regarding work content,” “feelings toward the leader,” “joy of working,” and “hope for the future”) and 18 subcategories were extracted regarding the feelings of new nutritionists about their job performance.
Conclusions: The new nutritionists had anxiety about not being able to perform well as a professional, and the dilemma of not being able to take full advantage of their qualification. On the other hand, they had hope for the future, while accepting the reality with awareness of the relationships with patients or users, supervisors, and senior nutritionists. To prevent their early job turnover, stepwise and systematic training is important at workplace, which include education for their supervisors to improve their teaching methods and attitudes to the new nutritionists.

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