Primary researchers: Christina Potter, Jeff Brunstrom (Ph.D. supervisor)

Collaborators: Becci Griggs, Danielle Ferriday, Sarah Davies, Peter Rogers

Childhood obesity is widely regarded as a serious health concern. In the NBU, several researchers have interests in how and when children develop an understanding of portion size, and how this relates to their parent’s beliefs about portion size.

Recently, NBU researchers assisted with an NHS randomised control trial called “The Community Mandolean Randomised Trial (ComMando).” The purpose of this trial was to train obese children to adopt healthier eating behaviours (i.e., eating more slowly, eating smaller portions) using a novel device called a Mandolean.

We’ve also engaged the public with our research by collaborating with a local, interactive science centre called At-Bristol. More recently, Danielle Ferriday and Jeff Brunstrom have been involved in the development of At-Bristol’s new “Food!” exhibit.

Our work has also led to the development of novel tools to assess beliefs about food in children. These are currently being used in a study based in Philadelphia and led by Dr Jennie Fisher at Temple University.