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NJAES Faculty Expertise Database

John Worobey
Professor
 Nutritional Sciences
Davison
Department Chair
26 Nichol Avenue
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone: 732-932-6517
Fax: 732-932-6522
Email: worobey@rci.rutgers.edu

Expertise Summary
  Our research is focused on identifying nutrition and behavior connections that serve to optimize early human development. For example, it has recently been suggested that formula feeding in infancy may be associated with later childhood obesity. Such an outcome, however, may be confounded with maternal social class and less than optimal caregiving skill. As we have previously established that formula-fed infants display less motor activity and lower irritability than breast-fed infants of the same age and weight, our current efforts are directed at determining if a low activity–high difficulty profile places the infant at increased risk for excessive weight gain. The Rutgers Infant Nutrition and Growth (RING) Project, has enrolled over 100 infants to date and is following this cohort for diet, temperament, and caregiving predictors of early overweight. Our research on the importance of maternal control of children’s diets in toddlerhood is being extended to economically at-risk preschool children in urban areas. For example, we are assessing diet, motor activity, and health parameters in Head Start children, as well as maternal restrictiveness and pressuring to eat. Finally, we have been exploring factors that may contribute to the development of eating disorders in college-age students. Although much data exists on family factors, self-esteem, and a need for control as predictors of anorexia or bulimia nervosa, little is known about factors such as temperament or interpersonal relationships. Our current work suggests that a manic style of loving may have implications for relationships with food in both young women and men, but that these associations are secondary to the mealtime climate while growing up.

Research Projects
  • Physical activity as related to childhood weight gain

    • Selected Publications
    Mothers’ attitudes toward fat, weight, and dieting in themselves and their children
      Journal: Body Image: An International Journal of Research
     Authors: Jaffe, K and Worobey, J
    Volume: 3    Pages: 113-120
    Date Published: 2006
    Nutrition and behavior: Concepts, issues and research
      Authors: Worobey, J, Tepper, BJ and Kanarek, R
    Date Published: 2006
    Perceptions and preferences for infant body size by low-income mothers
      Journal: Journal of Reproductive and Infant Physiology
     Authors: Worobey, J. and Islas Lopez M.
    Volume: 23    Pages: 303-308
    Date Published: 2005

     

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