Effectiveness of the State Legislation on School Policies to Reduce Childhood Obesity:The Case of Mississippi

Objective: This study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the 2007 state legislation on school policies in nutrition standard, nutrition education, physical activity, and physical education which were targeted to reduce childhood obesity.

Methods: Data were drawn from the 1999-2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey in the State of Mississippi (N=8,862 students in grades 9-12). Logistic regression with year-fixed effects was performed to capture the influence of the state legislation on teenage obesity, controlling for demographics and nutrition- and physical activity-related behaviors including consumption of fruits and vegetables, sedentary behavior, physical activity, and fasting to lose weight.

Results: The age-, gender-, and ethnicity-adjusted mean of BMI had decreased over time since 2007 (year1999: 23.52; year2001: 23.53; year2003: 23.76; year2007: 24.26; year2009: 24.29; and year2011: 23.91). The 2007 state legislation on school policies was significantly associated with a decreased likelihood of being overweight since 2007 compared with 1999 (year2007, OR=.686; year2009, OR=.739; and year2011, OR=.760; all p<.01). Children who were more sedentary, more often engaged in fasting to lose weight, and less physically active were more likely to be overweight (OR=1.05, 1.37, and 0.97, respectively; all p<0.05). Additionally, children with African American (OR=.64; p<0.05) and females (OR=1.59; p<0.05) were more likely to be overweight.

Conclusion: Legislative approach appears to be effective in affecting childhood obesity. Schools can be one of the most modifiable settings for preventing and reducing childhood obesity, with the implementation of physical activity and nutritional policies. More attention should focus on enforcing the policy and overcoming current barriers.