Abstract
Background Encouraging healthy lifestyles in children is a challenge. This project aimed to improve lifestyles of younger peers by engaging adolescent creators (ACs) to design and implement peer-led and social marketing (SM) health-promoting activities.
Methods A 10-month parallel-cluster randomised controlled school-based pilot study was performed in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Reus (Spain) spanning two academic years (2015–2016/2016–2017). Eight primary schools (n=375 children) and four high schools (n=94ACs) were randomly placed in the intervention group. The 94 ACs (12–14 years) designed and implemented four SM activities for their younger peers (9–11 years). Eight primary schools (n=327 children) and three high schools (n=98 adolescents) served as the control group and received no intervention. Primary (physical activity and fruit consumption) and secondary outcomes (screen time, vegetables, soft drinks, sweets and fast food consumptions) were assessed with validated questionnaires at baseline and at the end of the study.
Results After 10 months, fruit consumption and physical activity were maintained in the children who consumed ≥1 fruit/day and spent ≥6 hours/week physical activity. However, compared with the controls, the intervention significantly increased the physical activity of girls to 15.6 min/week, whereas the percentage of girls who consumed sweets, soft drinks and fast food decreased significantly by 8.4%, 14.5% and 5.9%, respectively. Additionally, the percentage of ≥2 hour/weekday of screen time by boys decreased significantly by 8.2%.
Conclusion The European Youth Tackling Obesity-Kids, SM and peer-led intervention, effectively increased physical activity hours/week in girls, but was not effective in improving the percentage of children who consumed the recommended fruit. Moreover, the percentages of girls who consumed sweets, soft drinks and fast food and boys screen time decreased.
Trial registration number NCT02702336;
Methods A 10-month parallel-cluster randomised controlled school-based pilot study was performed in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Reus (Spain) spanning two academic years (2015–2016/2016–2017). Eight primary schools (n=375 children) and four high schools (n=94ACs) were randomly placed in the intervention group. The 94 ACs (12–14 years) designed and implemented four SM activities for their younger peers (9–11 years). Eight primary schools (n=327 children) and three high schools (n=98 adolescents) served as the control group and received no intervention. Primary (physical activity and fruit consumption) and secondary outcomes (screen time, vegetables, soft drinks, sweets and fast food consumptions) were assessed with validated questionnaires at baseline and at the end of the study.
Results After 10 months, fruit consumption and physical activity were maintained in the children who consumed ≥1 fruit/day and spent ≥6 hours/week physical activity. However, compared with the controls, the intervention significantly increased the physical activity of girls to 15.6 min/week, whereas the percentage of girls who consumed sweets, soft drinks and fast food decreased significantly by 8.4%, 14.5% and 5.9%, respectively. Additionally, the percentage of ≥2 hour/weekday of screen time by boys decreased significantly by 8.2%.
Conclusion The European Youth Tackling Obesity-Kids, SM and peer-led intervention, effectively increased physical activity hours/week in girls, but was not effective in improving the percentage of children who consumed the recommended fruit. Moreover, the percentages of girls who consumed sweets, soft drinks and fast food and boys screen time decreased.
Trial registration number NCT02702336;
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 324-333 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health |
| Volume | 73 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 25 Jan 2019 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Apr 2019 |
Bibliographical note
Acknowledgements: This Spanish research project was supported by the CentralMarket of Reus, Spain (Mercat Central de Reus), which provided fresh food for the
intervention. We thank the professors, parents and students of the Reus primary and high schools for their enthusiastic participation in this study.
Funding: This research project was funded by Obra Social La Caixa, Convocatòria
acció social 2015. Reference: AS15-00350//17.980 euros.
Keywords
- health behaviour
- health promotion
- lifestyle
- public health
- OBESITY PREVENTION
- FRUIT
- CHILDHOOD
- PROGRAM
- CHILDREN
- HABITS
- FOOD
Access to Document
- Impact of a youth-led social marketing intervention run by adolescents to encourage healthy lifestyles among younger school peers
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