None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
With economic development over the last decade, China is undergoing a rapid nutrition transition from under- to over-nutrition, especially in urban areas. The China National Nutrition surveys indicate that the prevalence of obesity of children and adolescents aged 7-17 years in urban areas has increased by 42% from 3.1% in 1992 to 4.4% in 2002 according to Chinese screening criteria. The situation is even worse in Beijing, the capital of China. The latest data in 2004 indicate that prevalence of obesity in adolescents aged 13-15 in urban Beijing has reached 11% according to Chinese screening criteria. As the prevalence of adolescent overweight and obesity continues to rise, the need for feasible and effective prevention is becoming increasingly urgent. The best available evidence indicates a lack of established and effective preventive interventions for adolescent obesity around the world. It is well recognized that peers are an important influence on health related behaviour and a key source of information for young people. Promotion of healthy eating and physical activity by peers is more likely to be accepted than promotion by authority figures like parents and teachers. Recent studies have shown peer education programs can significantly improve a range of health behaviours, including increasing fruit intake and reducing the risk of eating disorders in primary school students as well as improving clinical and quality of life indicators in adolescents with asthma. However, little is known about whether this premise holds for educating junior high school students about obesity-related behaviors like dietary and physical activity. The proposed pilot study aims to evaluate the feasibility of innovative peer-led interventions in students in grade 7 in 2 intervention and 2 control junior high schools in urban Beijing, based on theory and prior research and provide scientific basis for the development of formal intervention studies in future.
Interventions
Intervention (September 2010 to December 2010):
1. Peer leaders recruitment and training
After the baseline assessment, four to eight peer leaders balanced by gender in each intervention class were selected by the class teacher from volunteer students based on their organization and oral expression ability, influence among students and sense of responsibility.
Then peer leaders in each intervention school were trained by research staff in three after-school 90-minute workshops over 3 consecutiv
Intervention (September 2010 to December 2010): 1. Peer leaders recruitment and training After the baseline assessment, four to eight peer leaders balanced by gender in each intervention class were selected by the class teacher from volunteer students based on their organization and oral expression ability, influence among students and sense of responsibility. Then peer leaders in each intervention school were trained by research staff in three after-school 90-minute workshops over 3 consecutive days at school. The training covered four components: food choice, physical activity and sedentary behavior, carbonated drinks, and goal setting, which directly aimed at behavior change. 2. Peer education Peer leaders then delivered four 40-minute peer education lessons to their classmates over four consecutive weeks in their classrooms. 3.Student action Students were encouraged to maintain a healthy lifestyle based on the personal goals set in the fourth peer education lesson.
Sponsors
The George Institute for Global Health, China
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Educational / counselling / training
Masking
Blinded (masking used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
11 Years to 16 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
Students in grade 7 in the four junior high schools that had at least 160 students in grade 7
Exclusion criteria
Those with disease that influence energy metabolism
Outcome results
None listed