Educational intervention on health related lifestyle changes among Iranian adolescents

The classroom-based lecture method was adopted for imparting lifestyle education. This educational intervention consisted of six ninety minute sessions over a three week time frame. The lectures were targeted to the group based on the baseline data. Lectures were conducted using age appropriate power-point presentations, which included pictorial graphics and educative statements. Each lecture was followed by interactive discussions, where the educator addressed all related queries from the participants. All lectures were administered by a trained nutritional health educator. After each session an informative pamphlet was distributed to study at home to reinforce and attain the information gained through lectures and group discussions. Standard educational content about healthy lifestyles was provided by Iran's Ministry of Health and used for the education component of the intervention. Overall the content included five axes (i.e. nutrition, physical activity, mental health, communication, and safety). The information included the food pyramid, vigorous physical activity, stress management techniques, and information about safety points such as seat belt usage and preventing accidents. Different educational materials such as charts and posters were developed and pre-tested for use as teaching aids by the lecturers. Charts and posters contained basic information related to healthy lifestyles. Two weeks and Three months after the intervention both groups were readministered the survey and data were compared to the baseline data.