A community-based behavior modification intervention for childhood obesity.
Childhood obesity, caused by reduced physical activity and increased food consumption, has reached epidemic proportions. We hypothesized that a single practitioner could enable a child to reduce BMI by educating towards a healthier lifestyle and then reinforcing the message in a structured manner. In this study, intervention group participants and their parents received a half-hour talk on exercise and diet, repeated after 3 months. They were instructed to fill weekly diaries and were called weekly by telephone. Controls received the initial instruction only. Twenty-seven (14 intervention) obese children were recruited. Anthropometric parameters, fitness and biochemical data were collected before intervention and after 6 months in both groups. Sustained but not statistically significant improvements in attitude, BMI SDS and LDL-cholesterol were noted in the intervention group. These promising results support a need for further work to evaluate the efficacy and applicability of our approach in the population at large.
Gillis
David
D
Pediatric Endocrinology Unit, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. dgillis@hadassah.org.il
Brauner
Michal
M
Granot
Esther
E
D000293:Adolescent; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D004038:Diet, Reducing; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015431:Weight Loss / Q000502:physiology
D008078:Cholesterol, LDL