title: Not as easy as pie. Disentangling the theoretical and applied components of children's health knowledge.
abstract: While there has been substantial research on children's dietary habits and physical activity level, there has been little work linking children's understanding of these concepts and how they apply them. This study aims to elucidate the association between two concepts that have not been distinguished in previous work; theoretical and applied health knowledge. Four-year-old children completed measures of theoretical and applied health knowledge regarding vegetables, fatty foods, physical, and sedentary activities. Results indicate that children's theoretical and applied health knowledge are distinct concepts that are positively associated. That is, children who accurately identify the relative health of foods and activities are more likely to be able to select foods and activities that promote their body's health.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 South College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403-5612, USA. nguyens@uncw.edu
authors.forename: Simone P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Cameron L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Gordon
authors.forename: Mary Beth
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: McCullough
mesh_terms: D015992:Body Mass Index; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D012044:Regression Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables