A synthesis of existing systematic reviews and meta‐analyses of school‐based behavioural interventions for controlling and preventing obesity

Abstract

Schools are an attractive and popular setting for implementing interventions for children. There is a growing body of empirical research exploring the efficacy of school-based obesity prevention programs. While there have been several reviews on the topic, findings remain mixed. To examine the quality of evidence and compare the findings from existing systematic reviews and meta-analyses of school-based programs in the prevention and control of childhood obesity. This paper systematically appraises the methodology and conclusions of literature reviews examining the effectiveness of school-based obesity interventions published in English in peer-reviewed journals between January 1990 and October 2010. Eight reviews were examined, three meta-analyses and five systematic reviews. All of the reviews recognized that studies were heterogeneous in design, participants, intervention and outcomes. Intervention components in the school setting associated with a significant reduction of weight in children included long-term interventions with combined diet and physical activity and a family component. Several reviews also found gender differences in response to interventions. Of the eight reviews, five were deemed of high quality and yet limited evidence was found on which to base recommendations. As no single intervention will fit all schools and populations, further high-quality research needs to focus on identifying specific program characteristics predictive of success.

Students’ beliefs and behaviour regarding low-calorie beverages, sweets or snacks: are they affected by lessons on healthy food and by changes to school vending machines?

“…those immediately after their completion -are unknown and any effect in the intervention group may have faded before the post-test measurement. Recent meta-analyses and reviews examining school-based obesity prevention programmes that focused on changing lifestyles found greater effects in longer interventions -those that lasted several years -and in those in which parents were involved (32)(33)(34) . The intervention evaluated in the present paper took 6 months at maximum and parents did not participate in it.…”

An analysis of conditions for physical activity and physical education in the Czech Republic

“…Z dílčích výsledků mapujících význam školního prostředí pro úroveň PA vyplývá, že kvalitní školní prostředí představuje jednu z klíčových oblastí, na kterou je nutné se zaměřit ve snaze o zvýšení úrovně PA u dětí a školáků, v prevenci dalšího nárůstu nadváhy a obezity (Hobin et al, 2012), ale také při realizaci nejrůznějších intervencí pohybového charakteru Khambalia, Dickinson, Hardy, Gill, & Baur, 2012;Lavelle, Mackay, & Pell, 2012). Z výsledků zahraničních prací také vyplývá, že mezi důležité faktory, které pozitivně ovlivňují úroveň PA dětí, patří dostatečně kvalitní zařízení a vybavení školy, především pak výukové prostředí a materiální vybavení, které by mělo vyhovovat po stránce účelové, hygienické i estetické (Gorman, Lackney, Rollings, & Huang, 2012;Gronberg, Jansen, & Taylor, 2011).…”

Energy imbalance and psychosocial imbalance in the construction of child obesity in a marginalized area of Mexico City

“…Many interventions (Boon & Clydesdale, 2005;Garner & Wooley, 1991;Kelly & Melnyk, 2008;Khambalia, Dickinson, Hardy, Gill & Baur, 2012) − from physician's prescriptions all the way down to nationwide campaigns, programmes and public health plans − basically entail threatening people with the negative consequences of obesity, informing them about foods they should avoid or eat and stating the importance of physical exercise.…”

“…Nevertheless, we do not know the complex network of these influences, nor the interaction and feed-back loops between them (Hammond, 2009). Although interventions and programmes against obesity include psychological, social, and cultural elements, the range of problems and the resources of any given family can be so specific that general solutions are rendered useless in practice (Khambalia, et al, 2012).…”