School-based obesity prevention interventions in Latin America

Chavez, Rosemary Cosme; Nam, Eun Woo

doi:10.11606/s1518-8787.2020054002038

Cited by 14 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 44 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Reducing obesity in Hispanic children has repeatedly shown not to be effective with a PA/play school-based intervention alone, even when given for a complete school year. Chavez and Nam [48] support our findings and state multi-component interventions that include 1) PA/play, 2) reducing calorie intake and improving dietary components, and 3) involving families in changing behaviors at home are more effective in reducing obesity prevalence in Hispanic children. Further research is needed to examine the influence variables such as sedentary behaviors and dietary patterns outside of the school environment may have on obesity rates by race.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

The Effects of a Yearlong Recess Intervention on Body Fat Shifts in Elementary-Aged Children

Farbo

Rhea

2022

Int. J. Child Health Nutr.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: Obesity has continued to rise in recent years due to a lack of physical activity. The school environment contributes to this problem as opportunities for physical activity are eliminated for more classroom time. Recess, defined as unstructured, outdoor play, can increase MVPA and improve current obesity trends. This study aimed to examine body fat category shift differences in children who received 40-60 minutes and those who received 30 minutes. A secondary purpose was to examine differences by district, sex, grade, and race across both groups since they received more than the national average for recess. Methods: Students in 2nd-5th grade (7-11 years old) (N=393) were selected from schools serving as an intervention (N=190) or control school (N=203) in a larger longitudinal intervention titled Let’s Inspire Innovation N’ Kids (LiiNK). Bio-electrical impedance analysis was used to categorize students as either underfat, healthy, overfat, or obese. These categories were then used to determine if students shifted a category between pre and post-measurements. Results: At least 30 minutes of recess was significantly associated with a body fat shift in 2nd graders and females. Additionally, the percentage of obese students did not change over the school year. There was no association between the group, sex, or race. Conclusion: Due to this study occurring during COVID-19, it is hard to make definitive conclusions on the effects of increased recess time on obesity. However, some positive trends are pointing towards recess as a successful method of preventing a rise in childhood obesity.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

The Effects of a Yearlong Recess Intervention on Body Fat Shifts in Elementary-Aged Children

Farbo

Rhea

2022

Int. J. Child Health Nutr.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The results shown in this review are like those presented in a recent systematic review of school-based obesity prevention interventions in Latin America (Chavez & Nam, 2020). Some characteristics of the studies reported as effective align with previous children and adolescent's obesity prevention evidence.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Interventions to Prevent Obesity in Mexican Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The prevalence of overweight and obesity has been rising among Mexican children and adolescents in the last decades. To systematically review obesity prevention interventions delivered to Mexican children and adolescents. Thirteen databases and one search engine were searched for evidence from 1995 to 2021. Searches were done in English and Spanish to capture relevant information. Studies with experimental designs, delivered in any setting (e.g., schools or clinics) or digital domains (e.g., social media campaigns) targeting Mexican children or adolescents (≤ 18 years) and reporting weight outcomes, were included in this review. In addition, the risk of bias was appraised with the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool. Twenty-nine studies with 19,136 participants (3–17 years old) were included. The prevalence of overweight and obesity at baseline ranged from 21 to 69%. Most of the studies (89.6%) were delivered in school settings. The duration ranged from 2 days to 3 school years, and the number of sessions also varied from 2 to 200 sessions at different intensities. Overall, anthropometric changes varied across studies. Thus, the efficacy of the included studies is heterogeneous and inconclusive among studies. Current evidence is heterogeneous and inconclusive about the efficacy of interventions to prevent obesity in Mexican children and adolescents. Interventions should not be limited to educational activities and should include different components, such as multi-settings delivery, family inclusion, and longer-term implementations. Mixed-method evaluations (including robust quantitative and qualitative approaches) could provide a deeper understanding of the effectiveness and best practices.

show abstract

“…The characteristics of these reviews are detailed in (S3 Appendix in S1 File )). The majority of the reviews were international in scope, with only four reviews targeting specific regions: one focused exclusively on Asian countries [ 15 ], another on the Middle East and Arabic-speaking countries [ 16 ], a third on school children in Latin America [ 17 ], and a fourth on adolescents in Australia [ 18 ]. All reviews included both males and females except one review which targeted only girls [ 19 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Umbrella review of international evidence for the effectiveness of school-based physical activity interventions

Alalawi,

Blank,

Goyder

2024

PLoS ONE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Obesity and physical inactivity among children and young people are public health concerns. Despite the wide variety of interventions available to promote physical activity, little is known about which interventions are most effective. This review aimed to evaluate the existing literature on school-based interventions that aim to increase physical activity among children and young people aged 6 to 18 years. Methods A systematic review of reviews was undertaken. We searched for systematic reviews and meta-analyses published between December 2017 and January 2024 using databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and CINAHL. Titles and abstracts were independently screened by two reviewers, who also conducted data extraction and quality assessments. We focused on outcomes like changes in physical activity levels and body mass index to assess the effectiveness of the interventions. Results A total of 23 reviews examining school-based physical activity interventions met the inclusion criteria, comprising 15 systematic reviews and 8 meta-analyses. All reviews (N = 23) were implemented in the school setting: three in primary schools, seven in secondary schools, and thirteen targeted both primary and secondary schools. The findings demonstrated that six reviews reported a statistical increase in physical activity levels among the target population, and one review found a decrease in body mass index. The most promising interventions focused on physical activity included within the school curriculum and were characterised as long-term interventions. 20 out of 23 reviews assessed the quality of primary studies. Conclusion Some interventions were promising in promoting physical activity among school-aged children and young people such as Daily Mile, Active Break, and Active transport while multi-component interventions seem to be positively effective in reducing BMI. Future efforts should focus on long-term, theory-driven programmes to ensure sustainable increases in physical activity.

show abstract

School-based obesity prevention interventions in Latin America

Cited by 14 publications

References 44 publications

The Effects of a Yearlong Recess Intervention on Body Fat Shifts in Elementary-Aged Children

The Effects of a Yearlong Recess Intervention on Body Fat Shifts in Elementary-Aged Children

Interventions to Prevent Obesity in Mexican Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review

Umbrella review of international evidence for the effectiveness of school-based physical activity interventions

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About