A multilevel intervention to increase physical activity and improve healthy eating and physical literacy among young children (ages 3-5) attending early childcare centres: the Healthy Start-Départ Santé cluster randomised controlled trial study protocol

Abstract

Background: Childhood obesity is a growing concern for public health. Given a majority of children in many countries spend approximately 30 h per week in early childcare centers, this environment represents a promising setting for implementing strategies to foster healthy behaviours for preventing and controlling childhood obesity. Healthy Start-Départ Santé was designed to promote physical activity, physical literacy, and healthy eating among preschoolers. The objectives of this study are to assess the effectiveness of the Healthy Start-Départ Santé intervention in improving physical activity levels, physical literacy, and healthy eating among preschoolers attending early childcare centers.

The Saskatchewan/New Brunswick Healthy Start-Départ Santé intervention: implementation cost estimates of a physical activity and healthy eating intervention in early learning centers

“…The intervention’s characteristics are highlighted below; a comprehensive description of the HS-DS intervention is described elsewhere by Belanger and colleagues [49]. The vision is to ensure young children eat healthy and be physically active every day in order to achieve healthy weights.…”

“…1). The PLM depicted below has been adapted and expanded from previous research describing the pilot testing of the HS-DS intervention [49, 53]. Combined these inputs and corresponding outputs were associated with a number of short-term, intermediate and long-term outcomes.…”

“…Healthy Start-Départ Santé (HS-DS) is one such intervention developed to promote opportunities for early years children to engage in and establish healthy behaviours (physical activity and health eating) while in early learning settings [49]. The multi-pronged intervention was implemented in early learning settings across Saskatchewan (SK) and in New Brunswick (NB).…”

Lunch is ready& but not healthy: An analysis of lunches served in childcare centres in two Canadian provinces

“…A detailed protocol of this study can be found elsewhere. 13 Briefly, a registry of all licenced CCs (all of which were privately owned) in both provinces was used as the sampling frame, and centres were deemed eligible if they had not previously been part of a physical activity or nutrition-promoting intervention, provided lunch to children, offered a preschool program, and had more than 20 preschoolers registered. The CCs were then stratified according to their region (urban or rural) and language spoken (English or French).…”

A Customized Intervention Program Aiming to Improve Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Among Preschool Children: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Iran Healthy Start Study) (Preprint)

“…HSDS is composed of six interlinked components: To address the challenge of childhood obesity and double burden of malnutrition in a developing country, we decided to calibrate and customize HSDS as a health promotion initiative which is now successfully running in two provinces in Canada. [25] "Iran Healthy Start (IHS)/Aghazi Salem, Koodake Irani" is the customized Iranian version of Canadian HSDS health promotion program, which is now being developed in Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, and focuses on improving physical activity and healthy eating among preschool children. The principles of IHS is adapted from the original Canadian HSDS, considering unique conditions that exist in Iranian culture, preschool education bylaws, curriculum and environment.…”