��������

Fathers are often underrepresented in family health research. Researchers at the USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center (CNRC) at �������� explored fathers’ parenting styles in relation to food, eating and physical activity. Their findings were published in .
“The motivation (to studying fathers) is that we need more information to tailor interventions in the future, so interventions are specific enough for fathers,” said Dr. Alex Jimenez Garcia, postdoctoral associate in the CNRC at Baylor and lead author of the paper.

The researchers explored fathers’ parenting practices and their association with race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and children’s characteristics. The participants were fathers with an average age of 38; 37.5% self-identified as Hispanic, 17.7% as Black or African American, and the remainder as non-Hispanic white or other / mixed races. They surveyed more than 600 fathers of children ages 5 to 11 and identified distinct parenting types, such as:

• Engaged supporter fathers: Highly involved in food and physical activities
• Leveled fathers: Let children take a balanced approach
• Autonomy-focused fathers: Encourage children’s independence
• Uninvolved fathers: Minimal involvement in food and physical activities
• Control-focused fathers: Exert significant control over their children’s choices

After analyzing the data, they found that “engaged supporter fathers” indicated a more collaborative approach in family dynamics than all other profiles. “Uninvolved fathers” displayed little engagement and responsibility, which could affect their children’s overall health and home environment.

“One of the strengths of this paper is the relevance that we found was race and ethnicity have a stronger association with parenting type than socioeconomic status", he said. "We started contributing evidence to the relevance of culture, race and ethnicity in parenting practices.” 

The survey included questions about behaviors fathers use to provide an environment for the child, asking about structure, access to fruits and vegetables and co-participation in physical activity. Researchers identified their profiles through data analysis and explored social determinants, child characteristics and family dynamics. They also found that fathers of boys are more engaged than fathers of girls and that fathers seem to be more involved in physical activity than nutrition. 

“If we can classify fathers by parenting practices before any intervention, we can move toward precision medicine to increase physical activity because we can create profiles and tailor the intervention based on the specific needs of the father,” Jimenez Garcia said. “Normally nutrition and physical activity interventions provide a one-size-fits all approach, but a differentiated approach would provide more effective results.”

These findings may open doors for researchers to be more precise in how to intervene and focus on specific populations. The team continues to use these instruments for other lines of research, including how fathers’ behaviors affect their children’s behaviors, as well as sleep and screen time. 

By Homa Warren, senior communications associate at ��������

Obesity and type 2 diabetes are two of the most common and serious health problems in the U.S. They often go together and can lead to other diseases, like heart problems and cancer. Scientists have long known that the brain plays a key role in managing body weight and blood sugar, but exactly how it does this is still not completely understood.

Dr. Makoto Fukuda at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center and the Department of Pediatrics at �������� and his colleagues compared how the brain regulates weight and blood sugar in healthy lean mice and obese mice. 

The researchers focused on POMC neurons. These brain cells help the body regulate hunger, blood sugar, and how it uses energy. They respond to a hormone called leptin, which is produced by fat cells and tells the brain how much energy the body has stored.

In healthy people and mice, leptin helps reduce appetite and increase energy use. But in people and mice with obesity, although leptin levels are high, the brain is resistant to its effects. This resistance makes it harder to lose weight and control blood sugar.

“We found that a molecule called Rap1 acts like a brake, preventing the brain from responding to leptin,” Fukuda said. “Removing this brake in POMC cells using ‘genetic scissors’ not only prevented healthy mice from getting obese but also made obese mice lose weight. Interestingly, blood sugar levels rapidly dropped after removing Rap1 in these neurons, and this happened even without significant weight loss. Removing Rap1 in POMC neurons nearly corrected the diabetic condition in mice, and this positive effect lasted for the duration of the experiment.”

These findings are important because they suggest a new way for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes. Future studies will explore how Rap1 works in other parts of the brain and whether similar effects can occur in humans. If scientists can find a way to safely block Rap1 in specific brain cells in humans, it might help restore leptin sensitivity and improve glucose metabolism without requiring major weight loss.

By Ana María Rodríguez, Ph.D., senior communications associate at ��������

Dr. David B. Allison has been named the new director of the Houston USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center at ��������. He succeeds Dr. Dennis M. Bier, who led the CNRC for more than 30 years.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to walk in Dr. Bier’s footsteps, and it is a great honor,” Allison said. “I’m looking forward to learning from my colleagues, having conversations about their research, helping them promote it and even participating and collaborating with them on it.”

As director, Allison plans to build on the core areas of research at the Center and introduce new efforts to advance nutrition science, agriculture and the health of American families.

“There is a clear sense of family here. I am hoping to advance the knowledge of nutrition through science,” he said. To support this vision, he plans to retain and recruit talented faculty and staff who are passionate about improving children’s and families’ nutrition and physical activity.

“We want to make research easier. We’re going to brainstorm. We’re going to bring in outside people as consultants, speakers and advisers and have grant-writers help promote new, innovative ideas, as well as nurture and support the activity and ideas that are already happening here,” he said.

Allison earned his undergraduate degree at Vassar College and a master’s and doctoral degrees from Hofstra University. He completed fellowships at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. Prior to joining the CNRC, Allison served as the dean of the School of Public Health at Indiana University in Bloomington.

By Taylor Barnes, senior communication associate at ��������