National Childhood Obesity Study in China

Description

China offers a unique opportunity to study the causes of obesity given the significant social, environmental and lifestyle shifts and the rapid increase in obesity and many lifestyle related chronic diseases that are occurring in that country. 

The China Project uses longitudinal and national data collected in China to evaluate the interplay, impact and nonlinear relationships of the built, social, economic and environmental and policy factors related to childhood obesity.

Highlights

• Collected rich data by working with our local collaborators and developed a large database with information on more than 105,000 children in China and additional data from their families and communities. The data includes cross-sectional and longitudinal information.
• Completed a comprehensive literature review on systems thinking, modeling and applications on obesity and related non-communicable chronic disease research.
• Built a national spatial database in China which contains information on more than 4,000 Chinese households and 25,000 individuals with community-, city- and province-level geospatial information and other information regarding nutrition, physical activity and socioeconomic status.

Sample Presentations

• Cheng X, Wang Y, Xue H and Qu W. Overtime Growth and Spatial Distribution of Fast Food Industry in China during 2005-2012. Experimental Biology, Boston, Mar 28- Apr 1, 2015 (Selected into Emerging Leaders in Nutrition Science Poster Competition)
• Wang H, Xue H, Xu F and Wang Y. Sex Difference in Body Image Helps Explain Large Sex Difference in Childhood Obesity Rate in China. Experimental Biology, Boston, Mar 28- Apr 1, 2015
• Xue H, Wang H and Wang Y. Effects of Neighborhood Social Norms on Children’s Diets and Weight Outcome in China. Experimental Biology, Boston, Mar 28- Apr 1, 2015
• Xue H, Jia P, Wang H, Wang Y. Spatial analysis of childhood obesity and local food environment inequalities in China. The Obesity Week, Los Angeles, Nov. 2 - 7, 2015
• Yan F, Shi X, Wang H, Xu F, Wang Z, Gittelsohn J, Wang Y. Child and parental perspectives on health promotion and childhood obesity prevention in Beijing and Nanjing, China. The Obesity Week, Los Angeles, Nov. 2 - 7, 2015

Sample Publications

• Min J, Li J, Li Z, Wang Y. Impacts of infancy rapid weight gain on 5‐year childhood overweight development vary by age and sex in China. Pediatric Obesity 2012;7(5):365-373.
• Wang Y, Xue H, Chen HJ, Igusa T. Examining Social Norm Impacts on Obesity and Eating Behaviors among US School Children Based on Agent-based Model. BMC Public Health. 2014 ;14(1):923.
• Cai L, Wu Y, Wilson RF, Segal JB, Kim MT, Wang Y. Effect of Childhood Obesity Prevention Programs on Blood Pressure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Circulation 2014, 129(18): 1832-9/CIRCULATIONAHA.
• Wang Y, Xue H, Esposito L, Joyner MJ, Bar-Yam Y, Huang T-T.  Applications of Complex Systems Science in Obesity and Non-Communicable Chronic Disease Research. Advances in Nutrition, 2014, 5(5), 574-577
• Lobstein T, Jackson-Leach R, Moodie ML, Hall KD, Gortmaker SL, Swinburn BA, James WPT, Wang Y, and McPherson K. "Child and adolescent obesity: part of a bigger picture." The Lancet. 2015, Feb 18. pii: S0140-6736(14)61746-3

To find out more information about this project or how to get involved, please email the Global Obesity Prevention Center at Johns Hopkins directly here.