American journal of preventive medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Physical activity loyalty cards for behavior change: a quasi-experimental study.
Financial incentives have been advocated by the UK and U.S. governments to encourage adoption of healthy lifestyles. However, evidence to support the use of incentives for changing physical activity (PA) behavior is sparse. ⋯ Financial incentives did not encourage participants to undertake more PA than self-monitoring PA. This study contributes to the evidence base and has important implications for increasing participation in physical activity and fostering links with the business sector.
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Evidence is mixed on the effects of graduated driver licensing (GDL) on motor vehicle crashes involving drivers aged 18 years. ⋯ GDL led to expected declines in crash rates for drivers aged 16 and 17 years. However, the findings suggest that when GDL applies only to novice drivers aged <18 years, rather than to all novice drivers, crash rates among drivers aged 18 years may increase. In order to potentially extend the safety benefits of GDL, the age at which GDL for new drivers should be applied requires further attention.
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Use of data generated through social media for health studies is gradually increasing. Twitter is a short-text message system developed 6 years ago, now with more than 100 million users generating over 300 million Tweets every day. Twitter may be used to gain real-world insights to promote healthy behaviors. ⋯ The approach includes five steps: (1) selecting keywords to gather an initial set of Tweets to analyze; (2) importing data; (3) preparing data; (4) analyzing data (topic, sentiment, and ecologic context); and (5) interpreting data. The steps are implemented using tools that are publically available and free of charge and designed for use by researchers with limited programming skills. Content mining of Tweets can contribute to addressing challenges in health behavior research.
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Public policy can limit alcohol consumption and its associated harm, but no direct comparison of the relative efficacy of alcohol control policies exists for the U.S. ⋯ Comparative policy ratings can help characterize the alcohol policy environment, inform policy discussions, and identify future research needs.
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To induce consumers to purchase healthier foods and beverages, some policymakers have suggested special taxes or labels on unhealthy products. The potential of such policies is unknown. ⋯ Taxation may induce consumers to purchase healthier foods and beverages. However, it is unclear whether the 15%-20% tax rates proposed in public policy discussions would be more effective than labeling products as less healthy.