Sara E Benjamin Neelon

Biographic Data

ID	6082677
NAME	Sara E Benjamin Neelon
GIVEN NAMES	Sara E Benjamin
FAMILY NAME	Neelon
SIGNATURE	NEELON S E B
AFFILIATIONS	Duke Medical Center
VERIFIED	No
TOTAL WORKS	16
TOTAL CITATIONS	4
AUTHOR COUNT	16
EDITOR COUNT	0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR	2011
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR	2019
H-INDEX	1

Modifying the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (Epao) to better capture feeding practices of family childcare home providers
Open AccessAntonio Tovar, Amber E Vaughn et al.ARTICLEPublic Health Nutrition2019
Objective To describe the modification and validation of an existing instrument, the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO), to better capture provider feeding practices. Design Modifications to the EPAO were made, validity assessed through expert review, pilot tested and then used to collect follow-up data during a two-day home visit from an ongoing cluster-randomized trial. Exploratory factor analysis investigated the underlyi…
Assessment of nutrition and physical activity environments in family child care homes
Open AccessAmber E Vaughn, Amber Vaughn et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2017
NCT01814215 , March 15, 2013
An evaluation of outdoor school environments to promote physical activity in Delhi, India
Open AccessSamiksha Tarun, Monika Arora et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2017
The majority of schools did not have infrastructure to support physical activity, such as cycle lanes, marked pedestrian crossings, or traffic calming mechanisms such as school warning signs. However, most had playground equipment, courts, and outdoor play areas. Nearly all were free from vandalism and many had murals or art. These results provide preliminary data for future work examining outdoor school environments, active transport to school, …
Association between distance to nearest supermarket and provision of fruits and vegetables in English nurseries
Open AccessT Burgoine, John A Gallis et al.ARTICLEHealth & Place2017
With 796,500 places available for children in England, pre-school nurseries could serve as an important setting for population-wide dietary intervention. It is critical to understand the determinants of healthy food provision in this setting, which may include access to food stores. This study examined the association between objective, GIS-derived supermarket proximity and fruit and vegetable serving frequency, using data from 623 English nurser…
Effects of a New State Policy on Physical Activity Practices in Child Care Centers in South Carolina
Jennifer R O’neill, Marsha Dowda et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Public Health2017Cited by: 3References: 10
Objectives. We sought to determine the extent to which child care centers in South Carolina improved physical activity practices after a new policy took effect. Methods. In 2012, South Carolina adopted new mandatory physical activity standards within its child care quality enhancement program. This quasi-experimental study used North Carolina, a state not making policy changes, as the comparison. Participants were 34 child care centers in South C…
Application of the Intervention Mapping protocol to develop Keys, a family child care home intervention to prevent early childhood obesity
Open AccessCourtney M Mann, Dianne S Ward et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2015
The IM process, while time-consuming, enabled rigorous and systematic development of intervention components that are directly tied to behavior change theory and may increase the potential for behavior change within the FCCHs
Assessing care providers’ perceptions and beliefs about physical activity in infants and toddlers
Open AccessKathryn R Hesketh, Esther Van Sluijs et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2015
This study is the first to assess the physical activity perceptions and attitudes of providers caring for infants and toddlers. Though all providers believed toddlers should engage in more physical activity than infants, most providers believed that young children require only a short amount of physical activity each day, below recommended guidelines. How provider perceptions influence children's physical activity behavior requires investigation
Impact of Regulatory Interventions to Reduce Intake of Artificial Trans–Fatty Acids
Vivien L Hendry, Eva Almiron-Roig et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Public Health2015
We examined the impact of regulatory action to reduce levels of artificial trans–fatty acids (TFAs) in food. We searched Medline, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, and EconLit (January 1980 to December 2012) for studies related to government regulation of food- or diet-related health behaviors from which we extracted the subsample of legislative initiatives to reduce artificial TFAs in food. We screened 38 162 articles and identified 14 studies that …
Nutrition practices of nurseries in England. Comparison with national guidelines
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, T Burgoine et al.ARTICLEAppetite2015Cited by: 1References: 20
Recent national guidelines call for improved nutrition within early years settings. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to describe foods and beverages served in nurseries, assess provider behaviors related to feeding, and compare these practices to national guidelines. We administered a mailed survey to a random sample of nurseries across England, stratifying by tertile of deprivation. A total of 851 nurseries returned the survey (54.3% re…
Nutrition and physical activity randomized control trial in child care centers improves knowledge, policies, and children’s body mass index
Open AccessAbbey Alkon, Angela A Crowley et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2014
National Clinical Trials Number NCT01921842
Promoting Breastfeeding in Child Care Through State Regulation
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Dustin T Duncan et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2014
Policies supporting breastfeeding vary by state, but little is known about the geographical aspects of this variation. This study describes state breastfeeding licensing and administrative regulations targeting child care settings, compares regulations with national standards, and examines the spatial patterning and clustering of these regulations throughout the United States (US). We compared regulations for child care centers (centers) and fami…
Nutritional quality of foods marketed to children in Honduras
Open AccessMatthew D Gunderson, Matthew Gunderson et al.ARTICLEAppetite2014References: 22
Watch Me Grow
Open AccessRebecca J N Brouwer, Sara E Benjamin NeelonARTICLEBMC Public Health2013
The garden-based feasibility study shows promise, but additional testing is needed to assess its ability to increase vegetable and fruit intake in children
Preventing Obesity in Infants and Toddlers in Child Care
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Elsie M Taveras et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2013
Nutritional quality of foods and beverages on child-care centre menus in Mexico
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Hortensia Reyes-Morales et al.ARTICLEPublic Health Nutrition2013
Objective The purpose of the present study was to assess the nutritional quality of foods and beverages listed on menus serving children in government-sponsored child-care centres throughout Mexico. Design For this cross-sectional menu assessment, we compared (i) food groups and portion sizes of foods and beverages on the menus with MyPlate recommendations and (ii) macronutrients, sugar and fibre with Daily Reference Intake standards. Setting Men…
Age of Achievement of Gross Motor Milestones in Infancy and Adiposity at Age 3 Years
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Emily Oken et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2011

Age of Achievement of Gross Motor Milestones in Infancy and Adiposity at Age 3 Years
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Emily Oken et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2011
Watch Me Grow
Open AccessRebecca J N Brouwer, Sara E Benjamin NeelonARTICLEBMC Public Health2013
The garden-based feasibility study shows promise, but additional testing is needed to assess its ability to increase vegetable and fruit intake in children
Preventing Obesity in Infants and Toddlers in Child Care
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Elsie M Taveras et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2013
Nutritional quality of foods and beverages on child-care centre menus in Mexico
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Hortensia Reyes-Morales et al.ARTICLEPublic Health Nutrition2013
Objective The purpose of the present study was to assess the nutritional quality of foods and beverages listed on menus serving children in government-sponsored child-care centres throughout Mexico. Design For this cross-sectional menu assessment, we compared (i) food groups and portion sizes of foods and beverages on the menus with MyPlate recommendations and (ii) macronutrients, sugar and fibre with Daily Reference Intake standards. Setting Men…
Nutrition and physical activity randomized control trial in child care centers improves knowledge, policies, and children’s body mass index
Open AccessAbbey Alkon, Angela A Crowley et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2014
National Clinical Trials Number NCT01921842
Promoting Breastfeeding in Child Care Through State Regulation
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, Dustin T Duncan et al.ARTICLEMaternal and Child Health Journal2014
Policies supporting breastfeeding vary by state, but little is known about the geographical aspects of this variation. This study describes state breastfeeding licensing and administrative regulations targeting child care settings, compares regulations with national standards, and examines the spatial patterning and clustering of these regulations throughout the United States (US). We compared regulations for child care centers (centers) and fami…
Nutritional quality of foods marketed to children in Honduras
Open AccessMatthew D Gunderson, Matthew Gunderson et al.ARTICLEAppetite2014References: 22
Application of the Intervention Mapping protocol to develop Keys, a family child care home intervention to prevent early childhood obesity
Open AccessCourtney M Mann, Dianne S Ward et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2015
The IM process, while time-consuming, enabled rigorous and systematic development of intervention components that are directly tied to behavior change theory and may increase the potential for behavior change within the FCCHs
Assessing care providers’ perceptions and beliefs about physical activity in infants and toddlers
Open AccessKathryn R Hesketh, Esther Van Sluijs et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2015
This study is the first to assess the physical activity perceptions and attitudes of providers caring for infants and toddlers. Though all providers believed toddlers should engage in more physical activity than infants, most providers believed that young children require only a short amount of physical activity each day, below recommended guidelines. How provider perceptions influence children's physical activity behavior requires investigation
Impact of Regulatory Interventions to Reduce Intake of Artificial Trans–Fatty Acids
Vivien L Hendry, Eva Almiron-Roig et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Public Health2015
We examined the impact of regulatory action to reduce levels of artificial trans–fatty acids (TFAs) in food. We searched Medline, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, and EconLit (January 1980 to December 2012) for studies related to government regulation of food- or diet-related health behaviors from which we extracted the subsample of legislative initiatives to reduce artificial TFAs in food. We screened 38 162 articles and identified 14 studies that …
Nutrition practices of nurseries in England. Comparison with national guidelines
Open AccessSara E Benjamin Neelon, T Burgoine et al.ARTICLEAppetite2015Cited by: 1References: 20
Recent national guidelines call for improved nutrition within early years settings. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to describe foods and beverages served in nurseries, assess provider behaviors related to feeding, and compare these practices to national guidelines. We administered a mailed survey to a random sample of nurseries across England, stratifying by tertile of deprivation. A total of 851 nurseries returned the survey (54.3% re…
Assessment of nutrition and physical activity environments in family child care homes
Open AccessAmber E Vaughn, Amber Vaughn et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2017
NCT01814215 , March 15, 2013
An evaluation of outdoor school environments to promote physical activity in Delhi, India
Open AccessSamiksha Tarun, Monika Arora et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2017
The majority of schools did not have infrastructure to support physical activity, such as cycle lanes, marked pedestrian crossings, or traffic calming mechanisms such as school warning signs. However, most had playground equipment, courts, and outdoor play areas. Nearly all were free from vandalism and many had murals or art. These results provide preliminary data for future work examining outdoor school environments, active transport to school, …
Association between distance to nearest supermarket and provision of fruits and vegetables in English nurseries
Open AccessT Burgoine, John A Gallis et al.ARTICLEHealth & Place2017
With 796,500 places available for children in England, pre-school nurseries could serve as an important setting for population-wide dietary intervention. It is critical to understand the determinants of healthy food provision in this setting, which may include access to food stores. This study examined the association between objective, GIS-derived supermarket proximity and fruit and vegetable serving frequency, using data from 623 English nurser…
Effects of a New State Policy on Physical Activity Practices in Child Care Centers in South Carolina
Jennifer R O’neill, Marsha Dowda et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Public Health2017Cited by: 3References: 10
Objectives. We sought to determine the extent to which child care centers in South Carolina improved physical activity practices after a new policy took effect. Methods. In 2012, South Carolina adopted new mandatory physical activity standards within its child care quality enhancement program. This quasi-experimental study used North Carolina, a state not making policy changes, as the comparison. Participants were 34 child care centers in South C…
Modifying the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (Epao) to better capture feeding practices of family childcare home providers
Open AccessAntonio Tovar, Amber E Vaughn et al.ARTICLEPublic Health Nutrition2019
Objective To describe the modification and validation of an existing instrument, the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO), to better capture provider feeding practices. Design Modifications to the EPAO were made, validity assessed through expert review, pilot tested and then used to collect follow-up data during a two-day home visit from an ongoing cluster-randomized trial. Exploratory factor analysis investigated the underlyi…