Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center15 Children’s Way Little Rock Arkansas 72202

As one of the top medical innova-tions of the last century, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is widely used in hospitals and research institutions to study brain structure. MRI is very safe and it provides excellent imaging resolution. It can show great details of almost every specific structure inside the brain. But it was not until the 1990s that scien-tists discovered that a specific MRI technique called functional MRI (fMRI) can not only mea-sure the brain structure but can also measure brain function. Since then, fMRI has become a prominent and unique tool to explore brain functioning. In an fMRI study, a participant is asked to lie down inside the MRI scanner and

keep his/her head still during the scan. While the scanner is taking pictures of the brain, the participant will be asked to do some simple mental tasks at the same time. During each task, specific regions of the brain will be acti-vated and will demand more blood oxygen. This will change the measured MRI signal and therefore the functional activation in the specific regions of the brain can be detected. The functions in many important brain regions have been confirmed by fMRI. For example, when a participant taps his or her fingers, fMRI will show activation in the motor cortex which is located on the top of the brain; when he or she looks at flash-ing pictures, fMRI will show activation in the visual cortex which is located on the back of the brain; and when he or she listens to pure tones, fMRI will show activation in the audi-tory cortex which is located on both sides of the brain. The activity of the brain can be visu-alized with colors on the brain scan as shown here.

continued on page 3

Exploring Brain Activity with Functional MRI by Dr. Xiawei Ou, Magnetic Resonance Physicist

Currently Enrolling:

Glowing Study This is a long-term study for pregnant women. It is designed to look at how the health of women at conception affects the health of their child at birth. Families are followed through pregnancy until the child is 2.

Qualifications Women must be less than 8-weeks pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant. Moms must be healthy at conception and meet specific entry criteria.

Compensation Nutrition education and monetary compensation are provided through pregnancy. Diapers are provided through the child’s 1st birthday. Additional compensation is provided from 1-2 years of age.

New StudiesOther short-term studies exploring some of the important questions about how our brain functions in childhood. Participants attend two study visits on the campus of Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

Qualifications Children participating in these studies must be healthy and between 8 - 10 years of age.

CompensationMonetary compensation is provided for completion of each visit.

To learn more:501-364-3309

email: acncstudies@uams.edu

Our Children, Our NutritionSpring 2012

this issue:

Exploring Brain Function

Meet the Staff

Complementary Foods

Psychological Testing

Living Lean with Lizzie

A publication of Arkansas Children’s Nutrition CenterVolume 10

Meet the Staff: Jennifer & Meghan

Jennifer joined the ACNC last June as a Licensed Psychol-ogical Examiner.

She has a Bachelor of Psych-ology and a Master of Science in Counseling Psychology, both from the University of Central Arkansas. The interaction with everyone is what Jennifer enjoys most about working at the Center.

“I love watching the children grow and progress with each visit, and everyone- participants, families, and staff- is so friendly. It’s great being part of a team that cares so much about our participants and their families.”

Meghan recently joined the ACNC team as a Graduate Research Assistant.

She has a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Fitness, and a Master of Education in Exercise Science. She moved to Arkansas in August from the University of Missouri where she worked as a research lab technician, and it was her interest in childhood obesity prevention that brought her to the ACNC. While assisting the clinical staff with study visits part-time, Meghan is also working toward her Doctorate in Clinical and Translational Sciences at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Our Children, Our Nutritionis published by

Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center 15 Children’s Way

Little Rock, Arkansas 72202 (501)364-3309

Editors: Rebecca Carter, M.B.A.Amanda Garner, B.S. Contributors: Aline Andres, Ph.D. Xiawei Ou, Ph.D. Amy Roberts, L.P.E. Elizabeth Hayes, B.S.

Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center is part of the National Human Nutrition Research Center Program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service. It is housed on the campus of one of the ten largest children’s hospitals in the United States . Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center is a partnership between Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Research Institute and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

www.arkansaschildrensnutritioncenter.com

Our families,Our research,Our vision,Our team,Our ACNC...

Volume 10

Psychological testing is an important and valuable component to our research studies because it allows in-vestigators an opportunity to see how children are develop-ing at different ages. Through testing and paperwork done by mom, our Psychological Examiners evaluate language, behavior, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, and other aspects of development. All of these components give us a better picture of a child’s overall development. Psychological testing is often a part of the visit that many children look forward to because they are able to do

different tasks such as draw-ing, looking at pictures, and making designs with blocks. While the testing can be con-sidered “play” for the babies and children up to 2 years of age, starting at age 3, testing is more similar to schoolwork. Referring to testing as “play” for a 4 year old can be mis-leading and disappointing to the child because they keep waiting for playtime to start. At ACNC, we like to refer to psy-chological testing for the older children as a time when we are going to do “big-kid” work. Another part of psychological testing that can be challenging for parents is refraining from helping their child complete the tasks. It is understandable to want to assist your child because you want them to do well or you know they are capable of doing the task, but a crucial component of testing is the standardization of giving the tests. In other words, every child is asked the questions in the same manner and every child gets the same amount

of attempts at completing a task. The parent may think they are helping, but stating the question any differently than how the examiner says it or showing them how to do a task, causes the child to not receive credit, regardless of whether they responded cor-rectly or not. It is important to keep in mind that we are test-ing your child’s abilities, not what they can do with your help. During testing, it is useful for a parent to help keep their child on track, but refrain from showing him or her how to do a task.

A Parent’s Role during Psychological Testingby Amy L. Roberts, Licensed Psychological Examiner

Parental involve-ment is so important for

us to get the best data possible. We appreci-ate all of our parents for working with us

and helping us perform quality research. With-

out you, our research would be impossible.

Thank you.

Make Half Your Plate

Fruits & Vegetables

Find these recipes and more ideas at ChooseMyPlate.gov

Pineapple, carrots, and tomatoes add tang to this Sweet and Sour Pork, served with a colorful salad. Finish with nonfat frozen yogurt.

Enjoy the crunchy, juicy goodness of apples and grapes in this Chicken Waldorf Salad, served on mixed greens and topped with low-fat dressing. End your meal with Blueberry-Lime Yogurt.

Flavorful herbed green beans and roasted potatoes round out this Smoky Mustard-Maple Salmon. For dessert, enjoy a fruit, granola, and yogurt parfait.

Tomatoes, carrots, celery, and onions are key to this whole-grain Spaghetti and Quick Meat Sauce, paired with broccoli florets. Finish with warm Roasted Pears and Vanilla Cream.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion • October 2011 • CNPP-26 USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. • Recipes by EatingWell

There are so many ways to eat Fruits & Vegetables every day.

Complementary Foods: When and How?by Dr. Aline Andres, Director, Human Studies Core

C o m p l e m e n -tary foods should be introduced after age 6 months, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization. This is in contrast with previous practices where comple-mentary foods were often introduced by 4 months of age. To know if babies are ready, see if they can: sit up with support, hold their head steady, taste their fingers or toys, open and close their mouth when food is pre-sented and if they can keep food in their mouth and swallow it. The best way to begin introducing complementary foods is to start with cere-als, mixed thin with breastmilk or formula. Re-member to always feed your baby cereal with a spoon, not in the bottle. After cereals you can

start introducing baby jar foods. Try to offer as wide of a variety as possible, espe-cially vegetables and fruits. Research has shown that babies will like most foods if presented repeatedly, so new foods should be of-fered at least 8 times for ba-bies to get used to the taste and learn to accept it. You may try a little taste on the lips at first, but don’t be dis-couraged if there are a few

things they will not eat. Overall, babies should accept about 80% of the foods you offer. It is im-portant that you give them time to get used to the food you are offering. It is also important to avoid offering favorite foods right after the food they appear to dislike. Finally, babies will turn their head away when they are full. It is their way of telling you they are satisfied.

Brain Function, continued from page 1

At ACNC, we are using the most advanced fMRI tech-niques to study specific func-tional components controlled by the brain. For example, we study the brain language functioning in children with different infant diets by asking them to do specific language tasks and then detecting the brain activation using fMRI. We also study the brain impulse control in children by asking them to view pictures of food with high calories versus low calories while being scanned. The results of our studies will enable us to understand the differences in brain activity and functioning related with different diets or body mass, and may eventually help us improve brain function devel-opment in children.

Spring 2012

15 Children’s WayLittle Rock, Arkansas 72202

Changing Science, Changing Lives

Why is it so hard to make healthy changes to our lifestyle even though we know it can help us live better? Often times, we are not able to make adjustments because we try to change too many things at one time, causing us to fail. Changes in lifestyle behaviors may seem difficult, but can often be achieved by setting personal, specific, and realistic goals. Why should goals be personal? Identifying goals that are personal helps you begin to figure out ways to make them achievable. When setting a personal goal, make sure to take into consideration what is important to you at that particular time in your life. For instance, if you are pregnant, eating healthy daily would be important for you because it is essential for your baby to grow and develop properly. A goal you may choose is to include at least one good source of folic acid in

your diet every day. Another personal goal relating to pregnancy may be to keep a weight journal in which you weigh yourself daily to help ensure you gain the Institute of Medicine’s recom-mended amount of weight. When setting a goal, keeping it personal is very important to ensure that you are getting the greatest benefit possible. Why should goals be specific? Goals that are specific will help bring into focus your efforts and help you clearly define what you want to accom-plish. Keeping your goal specific helps you emphasize exactly what you want to accomplish. A general goal would be, “I want to be more active.” How-ever, a specific goal would be, “I want to walk 3 days a week for 30 minutes.” Making a goal specific helps identify a meaningful way for you to accomplish your healthy goal. Why should goals be realistic?

Realistic goals are more likely to be attainable so you do not get frustrated with a goal you could never accom-plish in the first place. A realistic goal should represent a purpose you are willing and able to work toward. Also, it needs to be realistic for you and where you are in your life. A goal of never again eating sweets may not be realistic for someone who really enjoys sweets. It may be more realistic to set a goal of replacing one dessert with a piece of fruit each day. Setting realistic goals will help set you up for a reward-ing accomplishment. Shaping your goals into what you want to accomplish and making them specific and realistic will give you a better chance of success. You can create a healthy change in your life-style by setting a goal that is right for you, so set a new goal today!

Living Lean with Lizzieby: Elizabeth Hayes, Nutritionist