title: Baseline characteristics of a school based intervention to prevent non communicable diseases risk factors: Project "together in Health".
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Tobacco use, unhealthy diet, and physical inactivity are among the leading causes of the major non communicable diseases. So, prevention should take place early in childhood.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  In this paper, we will present an overview of project "Together in health" in schools, a component of a community based intervention. It consists on a school based intervention with the aim to improve knowledge, attitudes and behaviors concerning the main chronic disease risk factors such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and smoking.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a quasi experimental design with intervention and control groups. The study concerned pupils of colleges of Sousse aged 11 to 16 years old in 7th and 9th grade. The pre-assessment concerned a randomized sample of schoolchildren. The proportional and stratified sample was composed of 4003 schoolchildren with 1929 and 2074 respectively in intervention and control groups. We used chi square test to compare percentages with 0.05 level of significance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The sex ration was been 1 in the intervention group and 0.87 in control group. The mean age of our population was been 13.48±1.29 and 13.24±1.25 respectively in intervention and control groups with significant difference (p<10-3). Schoolchildren who reported practicing physical activity daily represented 19.1% and 12.7% respectively in intervention and control groups. Concerning eating habits, the schoolchildren reported frequency (number of days per week) of consuming various foods and beverages included respectively in the intervention and control group: vegetables 3.9 days/week and 4.81 days/week, fruits 5.41 days/week and 5.7 days/week, high fat food 2.49 days/week and 2.48 days/week, sweetened beverage 3.84 days/week and 3.3 days/week, sweets 4.33 days/week and 4.57 days/week. The proportion of irregular smokers was been respectively 6.8% and 2.2% among boys and girls in the intervention group and 11.3% and 0.9% in control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Integrated and sustainable interventions against non communicable disease risk factors in this region are needed to prevent these diseases early in childhood.
authors.forename: Jihene
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Maatoug Maaloul
authors.forename: Imed
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Harrabi
authors.forename: Rim
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ghammem
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hmad
authors.forename: Mylene
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Belkacem
authors.forename: Slim
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Slama
authors.forename: Faouzia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ben Mabrouk
authors.forename: Lamia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Boughammoura
authors.forename: Hassen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ghannem