Community-based participatory research: Obesity prevention

BACKGROUND: National surveys that have tracked weight in the US for over 40 years have shown an increase in overweight children and adolescents. Overweight children are at-risk to develop diabetes, hypertension, orthopedic and respiratory problems. Overweight youth are more likely to become obese adults who will die 5 - 20 years sooner than normal weight persons. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a nine week exercise, nutrition and behavior change curriculum in Middle School students.

METHOD: The community-based participatory research method was selected to: identify an intervention acceptable to the community, promote sustainable change, improve recruitment, improve sustainability and spread of the program. An ethnically diverse sample (N=214) was recruited. A pretest/posttest design was used to measure effectiveness of the intervention on BMI, BP, activity, nutrition, and parent and peer social support for healthy eating and activity.

FINDINGS: Students reported significant improvements in eating, family and peer support of positive nutrition and physical activity. There were not significant changes in BMI, however, there were significant improvements in blood pressure in the 33 students with hypertension.

IMPLICATIONS: Adolescents make better choices with parent and friend support. Community partnerships facilitate changes in physical activity, nutrition, and hypertension in youth.