UB Researcher Receives $1.5 Million For First Study of Obesity Prevention In High-Risk Children

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- University at Buffalo behavioral medicine specialist Leonard H. Epstein, Ph.D, has received a $1.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to conduct the first large study in the U.S of obesity prevention in high-risk children.

Epstein and colleagues will recruit 180 families from Western New York that have children 5-10 years of age who are of normal weight for their age and height, but are at high risk of becoming obese. Children are considered at risk if their parents are significantly overweight.

A nationally recognized expert in the research and treatment of obesity in children, Epstein originated the Stoplight Diet Plan, the only weight-loss program in the U.S. to document weight loss and maintenance in children over a 10-year period.

Epstein has published widely in professional journals. He and his work have been featured on CBS' "48 Hours" and have been the subject of numerous articles in the print media.

Obesity in childhood is a major risk factor for being obese as an adult. Adult obesity is a contributing cause of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, stroke and other debilitating conditions of middle and late age.

Epstein's new study will be the first to address the issue of prevention of obesity, rather than treatment of the existing condition. The study will focus on working with participant families to change children's physical-activity patterns.

"Lack of physical activity is the biggest risk factor for the development of obesity in children, next to an obese parent," Epstein says.

He places much of the blame for this lack of activity on television, noting: "There is a direct relationship between how obese a child is and how much television is watched."

The study will assess the relationship between activity, body-mass index and percent body fat, as well as the effectiveness of various physical-activity interventions. It also will examine the role of several variables thought to have an impact on obesity prevention in children, including socioeconomic status, age, sex, family size and parental obesity.

Families interested in applying to participate in the study may call 645-6316.