Ru-Jye (Lindi) Chuang, DrPH, MS
Assistant Professor, Health Promotion & Behavioral Sciences
Ru-Jye.Chuang@uth.tmc.edu
Ru-Jye (Lindi) Chuang is a Faculty Associate at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, School of Public Health. Trained as a behavioral epidemiologist, Dr. Chuang has experience in the development, implementation, and evaluation of evidence- and theory-based interventions across various domains such as childhood obesity prevention, maternal and child health, and behavioral communication among diverse populations. Her research interests center on promoting behavioral nutrition and physical activity for children and their families.
Dr. Chuang received her DrPH in Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences from the same institution.
Current Projects
Brighter Bites
This project is a collaborative effort to impact eating behavior among predominantly low-income families by introducing them to a routine distribution of fresh produce and corresponding education, ultimately to curb the childhood obesity epidemic.
ENRICH (Encouraging Nurturing Responsiveness to Improve Child Health)
ENRICH stands for Encouraging Nurturing Responsiveness to Improve Child Health. This research project works to help parents establish healthy eating, activity, bedtime, and screen time routines.
CATCH Healthy Smiles
CATCH Healthy Smiles teaches students why toothbrushing, flossing, dentist visits, and healthy food and drink choice are important to oral health. Students will learn and practice the skills necessary to maintain healthy smiles.
HEAL (Healthy Eating Active Living)
This project is a clinic-community based intervention to implement an early life-cycle approach to obesity prevention among pregnant women and women with infants from low-income families.
Recent Publications
Impact of the Coordinated Approach to Child Health Early Childhood Program for Obesity Prevention among Preschool Children: The Texas Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration Study
Sharma, S. V., Vandewater, E., Chuang, R. J., Byrd-Williams, C., Kelder, S., et al. (2019). Childhood obesity (Print), 15(1), 1–13.
Pilot Evaluation of HEAL - A Natural Experiment to Promote Obesity Prevention Behaviors Among Low-Income Pregnant Women
Sharma, S. V., Chuang, R. J., Byrd-Williams, C., Danho, M., Upadhyaya, M., et al. (2018). Preventive medicine reports, 10, 254–262.
Does the CATCH Early Childhood Program Increases Vigorous Physical Activity among Low-Income Preschoolers? – Results from a Pilot Study
Chuang, R. J., Sharma, S. V., Perry, C., & Diamond, P. (2018). American journal of health promotion : AJHP, 32(2), 344–348.
Best Practices and Barriers to Obesity Prevention in Head Start: Differences Between Director and Teacher Perceptions
Byrd-Williams, C., Dooley, E. E., Sharma, S. V., Chuang, R. J., Butte, N., et al. (2017). Preventing chronic disease, 14.
Effectiveness of the Lunch Is in the Bag Program on Communication Between the Parent, Child and Child-Care Provider Around Fruits, Vegetables and Whole Grain Foods: A Group-Randomized Controlled Trial
(Sharma SV, Rashid T, Ranjit N, Byrd-Williams C, Chuang RJ, Roberts-Gray C, Briley M, Sweitzer S, Hoelscher DM; Preventive Medicine; 2015)
