title: A school-based education programme to reduce salt intake in children and their families (School-EduSalt): protocol of a cluster randomised controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The current salt intake is very high for children as well as adults in China. A reduction in salt intake is one of the most cost-effective measures to curb the rapidly growing disease burden attributed to blood pressure and cardiovascular disease in the Chinese population. A lower salt diet starting from childhood has the potential to prevent the development of such conditions. The School-EduSalt (School-based Education Programme to Reduce Salt) study aims to determine whether an education programme targeted at school children can lower salt intake in children and their families.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study is designed as a cluster randomised controlled trial. The location is Changzhi, Shanxi province in northern China. The study population will consist of 28 primary schools with 280 children aged ≈11 years and 560 adult family members. Children in the intervention group will be educated on how to reduce salt intake. They will then be empowered to deliver the salt reduction message home to their families. In particular, children need to persuade the person who does the cooking to reduce the amount of salt used during food preparations. The duration of the intervention is one school term (≈4.5 months). The primary outcome is the difference between the intervention and the control group in the change in 24 h urinary sodium and the secondary outcome is the difference between the intervention and control group in the change of blood pressure. An economic evaluation will be undertaken to assess cost-effectiveness.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The study has been approved by The Queen Mary Research Ethics Committee (QMREC2012/81) and Peking University Health Science Centre IRB (IRB00001052-12072). Study findings will be disseminated widely through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Protocol Registered on ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01821144.
authors.affiliation: Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Feng J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Yangfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Xiangxian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Haijun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ching-Ping
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Jianhui
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Yide
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Lijing L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jan
authors.forename: Caryl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nowson
authors.forename: Graham A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Macgregor
keywords: Cluster randomised controlled trial; Salt reduction; School-based education programme