scholarly journals Reducing Obesity Among People With Disabilities

2013 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 175-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael H. Fox ◽  
Mary Helen Witten ◽  
Carolyn Lullo

Achieving healthy weight for people with disabilities in the United States is a challenge. Obesity rates for adults and children with disabilities are significantly higher than for those without disabilities, with differences remaining even when controlling for other factors. Reasons for this disparity include lack of healthy food options for many people with disabilities living in restrictive environments, difficulty with chewing or swallowing food, medication use contributing to changes in appetite, physical limitations that can reduce a person’s ability to exercise, constant pain, energy imbalance, lack of accessible environments in which to exercise or fully participate in other activities, and resource scarcity among many segments of the disability population. In order for there to be a coordinated national effort to address this issue, a framework needs to be developed from which research, policy, and practice can emerge. This paper reviews existing literature and presents a conceptual model that can be used to inform such a framework, provides examples of promising practices, and discusses challenges and opportunities moving forward.

2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (02) ◽  
pp. 088-100
Author(s):  
Kelly M. Purtell ◽  
Arya Ansari ◽  
Qingqing Yang ◽  
Caroline P. Bartholomew

AbstractAlmost 5 million children attend preschool in the United States each year. Recent attention has been paid to the ways in which preschool classrooms shape children's early language development. In this article, we discuss the importance of peers and classroom composition through the lens of age and socioeconomic status and the implications for children's early learning and development. We also discuss the direct and indirect mechanisms through which classroom peers may shape each other's language development. As part of this discussion, we focus on exposure to peer language and engagement with peers, along with teachers' classroom practices. We conclude by discussing the ways in which teachers can ensure that children in classrooms of different compositions reap the maximum benefit, along with implications for research, policy, and practice.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S195-S196
Author(s):  
Deborah Carr

Abstract Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences aims to publish the highest quality social scientific research on aging and the life course in the U.S. and worldwide. The disciplinary scope is broad, encompassing scholarship from demography, economics, psychology, public health, and sociology. A key substantive focus is identifying the social, economic, and cultural contexts that shape aging experiences worldwide. In the coming decade, social gerontology research is poised to present many opportunities for cross-national and cross-cultural scholarship – driven in part by the proliferation of large parallel data sets from many nations in Europe, Latin America, and Asia. I will discuss the role that peer-reviewed cross-national scholarship can play in disseminating knowledge that informs gerontological research, policy, and practice internationally. I will also identify under-researched areas that will be of great interest to scholars in the coming decade, including LGBT older adults, aging in the Global South, reconfigured families, and centenarians.


Social Work ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra Simmel ◽  
Svetlana Shpiegel

Child maltreatment is a pervasive and widespread phenomenon in the United States. While the incidence of child maltreatment had been on the decline until approximately 2012, since that time, the rates have increased somewhat. Child maltreatment affects all age groups of children and youth, although infants and younger children are at the highest risk for victimization. In addition, for many years, all forms of child maltreatment were addressed collectively, with scant research on how distinct types might co-occur or individually present. Through many research, policy, and practice advances in recent years, there is growing awareness regarding how each abuse type is relatively unique in terms of the risks for manifestation, as well as in the outcomes from and interventions for their respective perpetration. Two types of maltreatment—child neglect and emotional abuse—reflect intriguing trends in this overall phenomenon. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, across all types of maltreatment, child neglect is the most frequently reported form of abuse, while emotional abuse is among the least reported. These reports, however, are derived from statutory definitions and investigations and likely do not convey the true incidence of abuse that occurs in the United States. Moreover, these two types of maltreatment are all the more compelling because they can be perceived as not having visible signs of victimization, thereby making the recognition and verification of their harm difficult to discern. As such, for this and several other factors, research on neglect and emotional abuse have often been linked together. Since the 1990s, however, research has begun to highlight the unique contextual factors associated with their manifestation as well as the negative ramifications of each. Therefore, this chapter begins by presenting broad reference and resource information relevant to both types of abuse. Subsequently, the chapter diverges to focus solely on neglect and emotional abuse as distinct forms of child maltreatment.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-206
Author(s):  
Stephanie C. Boddie ◽  
Eric Kyere ◽  
A. Christson Adedoyin

BackgroundBlack youth are disproportionately disadvantaged in nearly every indicator of academic performance.ObjectiveThis analysis seeks to understand the role of racism in the genesis of educational disparities affecting Black youth.MethodsDrawing from structural functionalism, modern capitalism, and critical race theory, we provide a meta-theoretical framework to explore the underpinnings of racial disparities that disadvantage Black youth in U.S. public schools.FindingsThis meta-theoretical framework suggests a critical need to examine the history of racism as well as the social, political, and economic structure of the U.S. to understand the educational disparities affecting Black youth.ConclusionSocial work professionals can use this meta-theoretical framework to inform research, policy, and practice addressing educational disparities and ultimately create more equitable, fair, and just school environments.


Inclusion ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik W. Carter

Abstract An important aspect of supporting many people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to flourish involves providing meaningful opportunities to participate in the spiritual and religious life of their community. Yet, a review of prevailing practices suggests the spirituality and faith community connections of individuals with intellectual disability, autism, and other developmental disabilities may be inconsistently supported or entirely overlooked. This article suggests an initial framework for research, policy, and practice aimed at fostering inclusion at the intersection of disability, religion, and spirituality. Recommendations are offered for designing services and supports that ensure that (a) people with disabilities can participate fully in inclusive spiritual and religious activities, (b) congregations develop the commitment and capacity to welcome people with disabilities and their families, (c) families receive support in ways that honor their faith commitments and connections, and (d) service systems support people with disabilities and their families in comprehensive and culturally competent ways.


2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 409-413
Author(s):  
Sue Swenson

Abstract This speech was presented at a conference, the National Goals in Research, Policy, and Practice, held in Washington, DC, on August 6-7, 2015. The conference was a working meeting to summarize the current state of knowledge and identify a platform of national goals in research, practice, and policy in intellectual and developmental disabilities. The meeting was jointly organized by the Research and Training Center on Community Living, Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota; Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Developmental Disabilities and Health, Institute on Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois Chicago; Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Advancing Employment for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston; The Arc of the United States; Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD); and American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD), with the support of National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).


1988 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 1567-1573 ◽  
Author(s):  
F L MacKellar ◽  
D R Vining

US policy on world resources and population underwent a drastic shift between the 1970s and 1980s. Underlying this shift were deep and persistent divisions among social scientists and policy scientists who are students of the global resource scarcity hypothesis. This article consists of a brief review of the history of the debate between those who believe that resources are becoming increasingly scarce and those who do not. Major focuses include the ambiguities of scarcity measures, and economic literature such as The Limits to Growth, Global 2000, the critique of Julian Simon, and The Resourceful Earth.


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