UC awarded nearly $1 million to help fight infant obesity spike

Cathy Stough, an associate professor at the University of Cincinnati, was interviewed by Spectrum News1 about UC’s recent National Institutes of Health award aimed at preventing infant obesity. The nearly $1 million grant supports a program designed to reach families early and examine how nutrition and education can influence child growth and diet.

Stough is a pediatric psychologist on faculty in UC's College of Arts and Sciences, in the Department of Psychology. Stough is also director of the Healthy Bearcat Families Lab. Her research interests are weight management and eating behaviors of young children, including preschoolers, toddlers, and infants. 

The project will deliver services to families participating in Every Child Succeeds, with researchers evaluating impacts on child growth trajectories and dietary habits. Stough said Ohio’s obesity rates are often higher than the national average, with minority and low-income families facing disproportionate barriers related to food access and affordability.

Grant funding will help cover grocery deliveries, supplemental foods and visits from peer counselors who share similar backgrounds with participating mothers. The study will enroll 60 infants and compare outcomes with traditional home-visiting services.

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is partnering on the effort. Robert Ammerman, a UC professor of pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s, said the initiative focuses on giving babies the healthiest possible start while supporting parents. Stough said the team hopes to begin the project next month.

Read the Spectrum News1 story.

Read more about the grant.  

Featured photo at top courtesy of iStock Photo/Bohdan Bevz.