 Sheryl Rifas-Shiman, MPH In the December 2017 online issue of the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, several colleagues and I reported that children who consumed high amounts of fructose in early childhood or whose mothers drank a lot of sugary beverages while pregnant may be at greater risk for developing asthma in mid-childhood.
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The First 1000 Days Of Life: A Window Of Opportunity For Novel Interventions Of Childhood Obesity1/3/2018  Izzuddin Aris, PhD Childhood overweight/obesity remains a substantial problem globally. Rising trends in children's and adolescents' body mass index have plateaued in many high-income countries, childhood obesity rates have dramatically increased in parts of Asia over the past few decades. Mounting evidence suggests that the period between conception and age 2, otherwise known as the “first 1000 days of life”, is important in shaping a child’s future risk of obesity. While previous studies have identified numerous maternal factors that can boost subsequent childhood obesity risk (e.g., maternal obesity, diabetes, excessive weight gain during pregnancy, etc.), researchers have only considered them in isolation. Recent findings from the Project Viva and Southampton Women’s Survey cohorts have highlighted that these interlinked risk factors, both independently and cumulatively, contribute to a child's future risk of obesity.
 Jason Block, MD, MPH More than 40% of all food consumed in the United States is prepared, or ready-to-eatfood. Widespread policy change is underway, including calorie labeling and enhancements to the Nutrition Facts panel, to guide customers to healthier choices when dining in restaurants or buying prepared food. But convincing customers to make changes in fast-paced settings is difficult. Price and taste often quickly overtake health concerns. Why can’t we just change the default options to be healthier?
 Karen Switkowski, MPH, PhD Most parents, nutritionists and educators will agree that it’s not easy to get kids to eat fruits and vegetables, especially in school. In this earlier blog post, Dr. Jenn Woo explained the importance and effects of improved school meal standards, which have since been changed again by the Trump administration. It is well-established that providing nutritious, affordable school meals is important in controlling childhood obesity and there is broad support for this initiative from physicians, and former First Lady Michelle’s Obama’s Let’s Move campaign. However, the best way to implement improved standards is controversial. There’s also the important question, raised in Dr. Woo’s post, of whether kids will actually eat these healthier meals and learn to appreciate fresh, nutritious food.
 Full disclosure: all of my colleagues refused to write a blog post on this topic. “Ewww,” one said. “I don’t feel comfortable writing about that,” said another. Even when I pointed out that our department has written papers on very similar topics, they all declined. So I decided to tackle it myself, because a) it’s a topic that applies to everyone who was ever born, b) is biologically very important and interesting, and c), I think it’s an excellent example of how the implications of a small but interesting scientific study can be misinterpreted, exaggerated, or distorted.
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