Leslie A. Lytle, Ph.D., R.D.

Ph.D. in Health Behavior/Health Education, University of Michigan

M.S. in Education, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN

B.S. in Biological Health Medical Dietetics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

Research Interests:

Planning and evaluating eating behavior change interventions in children; youth health promotion research; childhood obesity prevention; theories of health behavior.

Member: Obesity Prevention Center
Minnesota Cancer Center
Minnesota Obesity Center

Recent Publications:

Pasch, KE, Nelson MC, Lytle LA, Moe SG, Perry CL. Adoption of risk related factors through early adolescence: Associations with weight status and implications for causal mechanisms. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2008; 43: 387-393

McMurray R, Ward D, Elder J, Lytle LA, Strikmiller P, Baggett C, Young DR. Do Overweight Girls Over report Physical Activity? Am J Health Behav. 2008; 32(5): 538-546.

Stevens J, Murray D, Baggett C, Elder JP, Lohman TG, Lytle LA, Pate RR, Pratt CA, Treuth MS, Webber LS, Young DR. Associations between physical activity and body composition in middle school girls objective assessments: the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG). American Journal of Epidemiology 2007; doi: 10.1093/aje/kwm202

Murray D, Blitstein, Hannan P, Baker W, Lytle LA. Sizing a trial to alter the trajectory of health behaviours: Methods, parameter estimates, and their application. Statistics in Medicine 2007; 26:2297-2316.

Gray CW, Lytle LA, Perry CL, Story M, Taylor G, Bishop D. Foods taken as a proxy for foods eaten in a school cafeteria lunch. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2007; 107; 1019-1023.

Elder JP, Lytle LA, Sallis JF, Young DR, Stckler A, Simons-Morton D, Stone E, Jobe JB, Stevens J, Lohman T, Webber L, Pate R, Saksvig BI, Ribisl K. A description of the social-ecological framework used in the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG). Health Education Research 2007; 22(2); 155-165

Rasmussen M, Krolner Rikke, Klepp K-I, Lytle L, Brug J, Bere E, Due P. Determinants of fruit and vegetable consumption among children and adolescents: Systematic review of the literature: Part I: Quantitative studies. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. 2006, 3:22

Lytle LA, Kubik MY, Perry CL, Story M, Birnbaum AS, Murray DM. Influencing healthful food choices in school and home environments: Results from the TEENS study. Preventive Medicine. 2006;43:8-13.

McKenzie TL, Catellier DJ, Conway T, Lytle LA, Grieser M, Webber LA, Pratt CA, Elder JP. Girls’ activity levels and lessons contexts in middle school PE: TAAG Baseline. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2006;38(7):1229-35.

Murray DM, Blitstein J, Hannan P, Baker W, Lytle LA. Sizing a trial to alter the trajectory of health behaviors: Methods, parameter estimates, and their application. Statistics in Medicine. Published online 2006 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sim.2714.

Harnack L, Lytle LA et al. Reliability and validity of a brief questionnaire to assess calcium intake of middle-school-age children. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2006, 106 (11) 1790-1795.

Reaves L, Steffen LM, Dwyer JT, Lytle LA, Feldman HA, Hoelscher DH, Webber LS, Zive M, Osganian SK. Vitamin supplement intake is related to dietary intake and physical activity: The Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health(CATCH). Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2006, 106 (12) 2018-2023.

Phillips GA, Shadish WR, Murray DM, Kubik M, Lytle LA, Birnbaum AS. The Center for Epidemiologic Study Depression Scale with a young adolescent Population: A confirmatory factor analysis. Multivariate Behavioral Research. 2006, 41(2) 147-163

O’Dougherty M, Story M, Lytle LA. Food choices of young African American and Latino adolescents: Where do parents fit in? Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2006, 106 (11), 1846-1850.

Gao S, Harnack L, Schmitz K, Fulton J, Lytle LA, Van Coevering P, Jacobs DR. Reliability and Validity of a Brief Tool to Measure Children’s Physical Activity. Journal of Physical Activity and Health. 2006, 3, 415-422

McKenzie TL, Catellier DJ, Conway T, Lytle LA, Grieser M, Webber LA, Pratt CA, Elder JP. Girls’ activity levels and lessons contexts in middle school PE: TAAG Baseline. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2006;38(7):1229-35.

Professional Experience:

Principal Investigator, Etiology of Childhood Obesity. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH. 2006-2011

Principal Investigator, Etiology of Adolescent Obesity. National Cancer Institute, NIH. Grant through the Transdisciplinary Research in Energetics and Cancer (TREC) Center at the University of Minnesota, "Examining the Obesity Epidemic through Youth, Family, and Young Adults" 2005-2010.

Co-Director of the Transdisciplinary Research in Energetics and Cancer (TREC) Center at the University of Minnesota, “Examining the Obesity Epidemic through Youth, Family, and Young Adults” National Cancer Institute, NIH. Robert Jeffery, PhD, 2005-2010

Principal Investigator on Subcontract to Rand Corporation: TAAG 2: Away from Home. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH. Deb Cohen, PhD, Principal Investigator. 2007-2010.

Senior Advisor for Healthy Eating Research, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Mary Story, PhD, PI. 2005-2010

Co-Investigator, Impact of Mind-Body Intervention Post Organ Transplant. National Institute of Nursing Research, NIH. Cynthia Gross, PhD, PI. 2003-2008.

Co-Investigator, Healthy Home Offerings via the Mealtime Environment. National Institutes of Health, NIDDK. Jayne Fulkerson, PhD, PI. 2006-2008.

Co-Investigator, Team COOL, NIDDK, Martha Kubik, PhD, PI, 2006-2008.

Honors:

Recipient of the Exemplary Paper Award (TAAG SOFIT), American Education Research Association Special Interest Group Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education, Chicago, 2007.

Recipient of the Virginia Beal Award for Excellence in Nutrition, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, April, 2004.

Elected to Delta Omega Honorary Public Health Society, 1996.

Contact

Mailing Address:
Division of Epidemiology and Community Health
1300 South Second Street, Suite 300
Minneapolis, MN 55454 

Phone (Work): (612) 624-3518

Email: lalytle@umn.edu

Website: http://www.epi.umn.edu//cyhp