School programs can make difference in childhood weight loss
By Dipali Pathak
In the fight against childhood obesity, school-based programs may prove to be an effective way to help youngsters achieve weight loss and a healthier lifestyle.
A school-based weight management program for Mexican American children enabled them to maintain significant weight loss over a two-year period, according to experts at Baylor College of Medicine in a study that appears in the journal Obesity.
"The study shows that school-based intervention programs can be effective," said Dr. Craig Johnston, instructor of pediatrics at the USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital.
Two groups compared
Researchers compared two groups of overweight and obese Mexican American students between the ages of 10 and 14. Forty were in a treatment group. Another 20 did not receive treatment and were part of a comparison, or control, group. Researchers wanted to see what effect an intensive lifestyle-based weight management program would have.
The first 12 weeks of treatment consisted of at least one nutrition class per week and at least three physical activity sessions per week.
"We taught students how to keep track of the foods they eat and how to read food labels," said Johnston.
Intervention impact
The next 12 weeks consisted of maintenance in which the youngsters learned how to apply the lessons of the treatment program in their daily lives. A snack intervention program taught children how to substitute healthier snacks throughout the day. Peanuts and peanut butter with fruits and vegetables were given to help reduce hunger. Parents received additional information about nutrition through notes sent home with children and monthly meetings held in English and Spanish.
Students in the control group received a self-help book and took a study hall class period.
Those who participated in the intervention program showed greater improvements in body composition and benefits with respect to total cholesterol than those in the control group. Students in the intervention program showed improvements in their body mass index after year one and year two.
Eye to the future
"Our next step is to find out what component of the intervention program was most effective," said Johnston. "We also want to monitor these children further to see what happens in five or 10 years."
Others who participated in the study include Chermaine Tyler, Rebecca Reeves and John Foreyt of BCM, Brian McFarlin of the University of Houston, and Walter Poston and C. Keith Haddock of HOPE Health Research Institute in Missouri.
Funding for the study came from the United States Department of Agriculture.
