title: [Effectiveness of the school-based prevention program TOPP on factors influencing adiposity in Thuringian schools].
abstract: The onset of puberty is considered a critical period for the development of overweight and obesity. For prevention purposes, we developed the school-based intervention program TOPP (Teenage Obesity Prevention Program), especially for boys. In order to test the effectiveness, we conducted a controlled study using a pre-post design. A total of 84 schools in Thuringian, Germany, with 1,199 boys participated in the study. Program effectiveness was analyzed with mostly standardized questionnaires referring to body-related self esteem, eating behavior, physical activity, teasing, and knowledge. The program was performed during the course of a school project within at least 3 weeks or during the regular school lessons for more than 6 weeks. After 9×90-minute, manual-based lessons, including interactive exercises and poster-based group discussions, significant improvement was only reached for nutritional knowledge. As a main outcome, it could be demonstrated how an area-wide prevention program with low costs could be successfully implemented. The school environment enables us to create a universal, socially equitable, and low-threshold access.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Psychosoziale Medizin und Psychotherapie, Universitätsklinikum Jena, Stoystrasse 3, Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schwartze
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sowa
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bormann
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brix
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wick
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Strauss
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015995:Prevalence; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult